Uganda: Committee recommends review of disputed Ernest Cook University degrees

The Committee on Education and Sports has recommended a review of graduates whose degrees from Ernest Cook University were not recognised by the National Council for Higher Education (NCHE). The recommendation follows an inquiry into a petition presented to Parliament by Dr Henry Garvin Mukalazi and other affected graduates on 08 June 2026. The petitioners claimed that the university admitted students to bachelor’s degree programmes in Diagnostic Ultrasound and Medical Imaging before the programmes received the required accreditation. Presenting the committee report during plenary on Thursday, 01 October 2026, the Committee Chairperson, Hon. Emmanuel Ongiertho said evidence showed that at least one student was admitted to the Bachelor of Diagnostic Ultrasound programme in 2011, before the programme accreditation in December 2013. The committee faulted NCHE for failing to exercise adequate oversight of the university. “NCHE had been engaging with Ernest Cook University and even recommended that the university affiliates with Gulu University. This implies that NCHE was aware that the university was enrolling students in the course,” Ongiertho said. The report noted that NCHE issued h