More than 10,000 PhD holders and scientists from across Africa have convened at Speke Resort Munyonyo for the 20th Technical and Advisory Meeting of the Africa Centers of Excellence (ACE), one of the continent’s most influential annual gatherings on science, research, and innovation.
The four-day conference, which kicked off today, December 8, and will run until December 11, was officially opened by Uganda’s First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for East African Community Affairs, Rt. Hon. Rebecca Kadaga.
This year’s meeting brings together leading researchers, innovators, engineers, medical scientists, university leaders, and policymakers to chart a stronger path for Africa’s knowledge economy. The discussions align with the ACE II program, launched in 2016 by the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA) in partnership with participating African governments and the World Bank, to strengthen postgraduate education and applied research in the region.
According to the program’s documentation shared at the event, ACE II focuses on boosting advanced training and collaborative research in key priority sectors including Agriculture, Industry, Health, Education, and Applied Statistics, all of which are central to Africa’s development challenges.
Since its inception, the initiative has supported 29 specialised regional centers hosted at 18 universities across eight African countries. Over 9,500 students, more than a third of them women, have been enrolled in Masters and PhD programs under ACE II, building a critical mass of highly skilled graduates driving innovation, scientific solutions, and socio-economic transformation.
The initiative aims to create sustainable regional hubs that can lead Africa’s response to pressing development needs.
As delegates gather in Munyonyo, the focus remains on strengthening Africa’s human capital, enhancing university-industry collaboration, and ensuring that scientific research translates into practical innovations that improve lives across the continent. Uganda’s hosting of this milestone 20th meeting underscores the country’s growing role as a regional center for academic excellence, scientific advancement, and policy dialogue.