All Good Things Come To An End – It’s Time To Say Good Bye

The big day has come quicker than expected: on April 17^th it was for everyone the last day at school. All the 10 projects have been handed in 2 days before and were presented on the final day. It was very interesting to see how our fellow students spent the previous 2 weeks and what their brains were occupied with. The presentations included all kinds of information: ranging from research topics, theories applied, to challenges faced in the field and of course the findings – but most importantly, there was enough space to have some good laughter’s based on the different groups experiences. CBS students, MUBS students and professors and facilitators from both institutions ended the day together at a local restaurant where we had a dinner in the dark followed by some fun dancing.

Working in an intercultural team was a great new experience for all of us, especially because we managed to be the first group consisting of 5 people in the history of the MUBS-CBS collaboration (Rita, Tonka, Pamela, Pat & Kädi). Following the motto: “the more the merrier” we spent our days driving trough town, trying not do get into an accident, conducting interviews with local artists, diving into the world of the rich and famous and most importantly spending time together sharing stories, going out, laughing (a loooooot), and building a friendship. Our intercultural teamwork experienced it’s peak when teaching the Ugandan students the Austrian “Schere, Stein, Papier” (scissors, paper, stone) game in order to determine who has is the “lucky” one asking the questions during the interviews. Hearing Ugandans speak German ended in tears of laughter for everyone involved (which is pretty much how we would describe a normal working day in our group).

After experiencing the crazy, busy life in Kampala for 3 weeks we were eager to explore a bit more of Uganda and chose to end this field study with some relaxing (and adventurous) days in Jinja. There we decided to do some rafting in the river Nile, and pumped with adrenalin, some of us were then even brave enough to dare their first bungee jump ever. Our Easter gift this year was Rita, coming all the way from Kampala to Jinja, to see her Mzungu friends again and to say Good Bye once more. We will leave Uganda with a lot of amazing impressions, awesome memories and new friends that we will definitely stay in touch with. Participating in this field trip was a once in a lifetime experience and we enjoyed every single bit of it.

Now we have to get some tissues…Good Bye Uganda!

Farewell Message

Ohhhhh dear friends, the time is at the corner when we almost have to say fare thee well, but in this small walk, i learnt that; the glory of friendship is not the outstretched hand, nor the kindly smile, it’s like a gift that is not easily gained. It roots from the heart and involves memories that stay not for a moment, not a day but forever.

It’s been just about 18 days....... but i can’t remember not knowing you guys, not hearing that hard crack of joy in your laughter’s.

Shoulder pads may come and go, but friendship is forever. Because if one day i decide to go to Denmark, i won’t think i don’t know where am headed, coz it helps to know am not alone. I rather have a family there to crush at. We may have wronged some people unintended in this past few days, but remember no one has all the answers and sometimes the best we can do is just apologise and let the past be the past.

I learnt that as in any journey, who you travel with can be more important than your destination, you can never know someone until you walk a mile in their shoes, and in this short walk, i believe a lot of you learnt about Ugandan people beyond what the others perceive.

A lot of you had to go through transitions and some as simple as adjusting to the weather, and the beauty will come when you get back home, sit and reflect on all the small moments that made you smile and u’ll see how far u’ve come and smile at yourself.

As most of us know, life is not made up of big moments, it’s made of the small moments that made us laugh so hard we couldn’t hear ourselves.......(lil white pea).

People think blood is thicker than water, but it’s not only blood bonds that make us family, to me it’s the people who take time to know and understand us and still love us with all our flaws so we can finally be ourselves.

 Every road comes to an end, but as this research project has ended, this end feels like the beginning of long lasting friendship bonds because even when some think we’ve come a long way, i think it was no coincidence, it’s the fruit of our labour to understand each other.

Just because we won’t be together all times doesn’t mean the love will stop, because we cannot choose who we love, but we can definitely choose how we love them. Friendship at times is like a business deal, and when we are lucky, we get trust as the bonus. Embracing all our imperfections make us remind ourselves of how good it feels to be loved.

With all this said, it would be very corrupt of me not to wish you all the best of luck in every walk of your lives and carry on the love we MUBS students showed you and remember, our doors will always be open when you want to visit.

From me and my Ugandan team, KWAHERI!!!!!   

Blogpost Sak, Johan, Bob and Diana

I would hereby like to announce that our group has succumbed to the dual pressure that is the project presentation and the Ugandan heat, and we have had a casualty. On the eve of April 15 Johan Casspe, barely 26 years of age, communicated that he felt unusually cold. As per standard procedure, no one paid attention. The next day, five minutes before our scheduled group work (and only chance to prepare for our presentation) he had developed a high fever and it was made clear that a malaria test was necessary; chaos ensued. 

While our group work disintegrated, Johan was to everyone’s relief declared Malaria free and put to bed-rest at the hostel, which luckily was hosting a philharmonic extravaganza in the common room beneath our’s, the likes of which none of the shy CBS students had experienced before. Though it has not yet been confirmed, there is a widespread belief that it was in fact the sweet lyrics “Yesu, Yesu” relentlessly working its way through the thick concrete walls that made Johan feel slightly better as the evening progressed. 

While I was equally impressed by the euphonious affair at St. John’s, I knew that even the best gospel could not produce the WiFi access I was craving; and so I prepared for the perilous journey to Silver Springs Hotel. After surviving multiple charging Boda Bodas, a scorching sun, and ppm 800, I arrived just in time for the sound check of what would be the most fine-tuned, accurate, and deafening cover band experience of my life. At the time of writing this blog post I was listening to a rendition of Toto’s “Africa”, played for me from the highly appropriate distance of two meters, and my soul calmed at the realization that tonight would be a emic musical experience, regardless of my choice of shelter. 

I am equally calm at the prospect of presenting our project unprepared tomorrow, together with an unspecified number of group members. Although I due to logistical reasons had to write this piece without the input of my group, I know I speak for everyone when I say we have had a truly mutual learning experience, and that we will all be very relieved to wrap up the project tomorrow. My battery life is now at 3%, the cover band is coming nearer, and the mosquitos are swarming. Should anyone find a place of undisturbed solitude in Kampala, please confirm and revert back to me as soon as possible.

When all ends came together

By Peragia, Moses, Judith and Kristina

On the 6th day of intercultural field work the group researching female entrepreneurship peaked in the middle of Nakasero market in downtown Kampala.

Before entering the market, we had worked out a pretty structured plan of how to conduct the focus group. However, it did not take much more than one and a half minute after entering the market to realize that the plan we came with was too optimistic and impossible to implement at the market where a woman can hardly leave her business. Plan B was born on the spot between vegetable and fruit stalls. The four of us adjusted within seconds and to our surprise we immediately had a focus group of 6 women surrounding us. The cocktail of two eager MUBS students controlling the situation and the rare sight of two white CBS students proved fruitful.     

The women welcomed this rather unusual interaction and the air was suddenly full of curiosity and excitement from everyone involved.

The women happily shared their stories and points of view. From the discussion we gained insights into the many responsibilities these market women carry, the immense difficulties of accessing sufficient capital and not to forget the importance of witch craft on business success.

By using ground nuts, the women rated the importance of the pressing barriers to business growth. Not only did this method engage the women actively, it also helped us to understand how the women prioritize the challenges they are facing.

Towards the end of the focus group discussion, we introduced the women to disposable cameras. We briefed them in basic photography and encouraged them to take pictures of situations that symbolize the challenges they are dealing with in business and private life. We were quite surprised ourselves that we succeeded in getting the cameras back today. Now, we cannot wait to see the results of this participatory experiment…

Pictorial of Various Events!

Dr. Moses Muwhezi, welcoming CBS Students to MUBS

Enjoying Break tea

HE. Mr Dan E. Frederiksen Danish Ambassador

Prof Waswa Balunywa, the Principal MUBS Welcoming CBS Students to MUBS

At it again!

MUBS and CBS Students!

Another Exciting Experience from Kampala

Kampala is a firecracker of new impressions. We came here very early in the morning and didn’t get a sense the city before the next day where we had our first delicious Indian meal. Apparently, the Indians were kicked out of the country during Idi Amin’s dictatorship and they are now reclaiming the city opening restaurants in every neighbourhood.

(Indian restaurant in the shell-village centre)

The first day we just walked around the Bugolobi area and had the pleasure of being introduced to our group members from MUBS – Maureen and Edward.

(Group-work session at MUBS annex)

We talked about our reflections and expectations on how the group work should progress and got to know each other. Ever since we have been working hard on our project on corporate entrepreneurship. We investigate how the entrepreneurial environment is in Danish-Ugandan joint ventures and draw on each of our cultural background to investigate and analyse.

We have been talking to both employees and CEO’s of two joint ventures, Standard Signs and Konserve Consult who have both been very helpful in answering questions and giving us insights to their businesses.

Besides the group work there has also been time for cultural experiences.

(Focus group interview at Standard Signs)

Today Frederikke went to the Calvary Temple Worship Centre where Palm Sunday was celebrated with style.

(Palm Sunday in Calvary Temple Worship Center)

The rest of the day was dedicated to working on our project. We are currently analyzing the data we have collected, so part of the day was spent at different coffee bars in the local shopping mall where access to internet is free and coffees are good. Our local colleagues are proving invaluable input to our analysis of recordings of interviews and focus group discussions. They hear underlying messages and see hidden agendas that we, mzungus do not notice. It is a truly valuable cooperation.

Greetings from a group celebrating diversity

Different perspectives:

Sam, Alice, Nana & Ronja

The following blog is seen from a sarcastic point of view to highlight the differences between the MUBS students and the CBS students.

We are now done with most of our interviews and have gotten to know each other quite well in the group. We have for example learned that meeting at 9 o’clock with MUBS students is somewhere in between 9.30 and 11.30. We have also learned that wazungu (muzungu in plural) have no idea how to dress properly for meetings and end up half naked and with pink flipflops for an interview with the AGOA administration.

“Naked muzungu at AGOA office”:

We have learned that it is possible to run two businesses, talk on two phones at the same time while sending emails on a tablet and switching between Swahili, English, and Luganda and doing field research with wazungu – and this of course without showing the least signs of stress and having a big smile on your face all the time.

“Da Busy Boss”:

Also, if you ask the MUBS students how it is to “walk” with wazungu, they will say that: “Wazungu don’t walk, they RUN!”, and if you ask a muzungu how it is to walk with a MUBS student they will answer: “MUBS student don’t walk, they STROLL veeeeeeeeeeryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy sloooooooooooowlyyyyyy!”.

“Break from muzungu-running”:

MUBS students driving skills are also QUITE IMPRESSIVE though a muzungu might question their decisions while driving. One day we ended on a road that in muzungu standards would have been a one way road, but while waiting for an SUV to leave a parking spot, two other cars decides to drive towards us from the other end of the street – Now who gets to go first??? It seems like there is a hierarchy between cars: In this situation, the silver Mercedes (of course) got to go first, while “we” (Sam) had to make the most precise parallel parking maneuver EVER! We almost moved straight to the right. Then the SUV moved, and we got the nice parking spot. That’s how it’s done Ugandan style!

“Chicken, chicken…who moves first?”:

Another thing is that MUBS students don’t say ‘goodbye’ on phones, they just hang up. Wazungu find it rather rude, but as a MUBS student explained: “This is business, this is not pleasure!”

Pronunciation also tends to give some trouble every now and then. For instance if a muzungu gets a restaurant recommendation from a MUBS student, they might think they are going to a restaurant called “Lones” , but really, the restaurant’s name is “Lawns”. As an extra example: hat, hut, heart, hard, hurt, hot are all pronounced the same way: “hart”.

“Happy moments”:

MUBS students also find it VERY weird that wazungu prefer to sit in the sun over the shadow. They sweat like pigs, turn completely red like shrimps, and the next morning they wake up still pale white like peanuts.

“Muzungu feeling like home”:

Lastly, the most important lesson learned is that both the wazungu and the MUBS students have a lot of self-irony. Our humor match perfectly and a lot of laughter is shared every day.

After almost two weeks in Uganda - Nora and Sara & Suleiman and Leticia

We have been here for almost two weeks now, and enjoyed every single day of it. Our group consists of Nora and Sara from CSB and Suleiman and Leticia from MUBS. Until now we have settled on a research question and our main objectives for the project, and visited many interesting sights for our fieldwork. In particular we are very pleased with all the friendly people who have been so kind in helping us out for our research. Ugandans are so welcoming! In our project we are researching private sector development, and more specifically we are looking into the effects of Swedish development aid in two businesses in Uganda. It has been both challenging and fun, and we are excited to draw some conclusions on a small part of the Swedish development aid in Uganda.

The first weekend we went to Jinja – a town approximately two hours away from Kampala. There, we visited the source of the Nile, the local market and enjoyed a great (and really quick in African standards!) lunch in the city centre. It was a beautiful day to be outside, and it was nice to see something else in Uganda, apart from Kampala. Sunday was spent back in Kampala, mostly at the Sheraton hotel in the sun. A nice and relaxing end of the week!

So far we have really enjoyed our stay in Uganda, and had so many good experiences. Now we are looking forward to another fun weekend that will be spent in Kampala. Some of the activities on our agenda this time is going out Friday night, visiting Kristina’s host mother from her stay last year, and going to Sunday mass at the church at 7 am (on a Sunday!!). 

We can already say that we are so happy with our trip, and Kampala is a city worth coming back to!

Greetings from Mathilde and Sidsel

Greetings from Mathilde and Sidsel

We now feel highly integrated. When walking to the market to buy some avocado, the locals now say, “Hello – how are you?” and we answer back in Luganda (the Uganda language) “I’m fine thank you, just came from the guest house which enriches us with impressive animal sounds”. 

This implies that we no longer are referred to as Mzungus. From an event management perspective, Friday night proved no different as we entered the Jazz bar in Bugolobi and were greeted by our elderly-constantly-hugging-Jesper-friend from the Bebe Cool concert. At the end of the day, it needs to be emphasized that this paragraph might be slightly ironic - we will always be Mzungus.

We have been teamed up with Helen and Kasim, which both study the Master in Entrepreneurship at MUBS. Our research deals with the level of development and outcome for informal entrepreneurs linking up to multinational hotel corporations in Kampala. So far it has been a challenge to get information from the hotels. However, today we had a small breakthrough having one very successful interview, which also provided us with further contacts. We are therefore now looking forward to an intensive week of interviews and project writing. Kampala is hectic, easygoing, warm, rainy and most of all a happy place to be.

Roger over from Mathilde and Sidsel

Greetings from Steffen's Team

Day 1 and 2

St John’s Guesthouse

After some small difficulties (for some students African Time already started in Istanbul) everyone had arrived at St John’s Guesthouse – a nice, and quiet place with friendly staff.

After a great dinner at a Indian restaurant where especially the Butter chicken seemed to be popular – at least among the waiters - we were ready for the first day of school. From St John’s we walked to school Monday morning ready to meet the MUBS students and get to know our groupmembers.

 ”Welcome to the pearl of Africa”

A very warm welcome from the MUBS faculty created a nice atmosphere and let the way to socializing and introduction between the students. After a second breakfeast with specialties from the Ugandan cuisine and another welcoming from the Dean we were ready to explore the strengths and weaknesses in the intercultural teams and the way was led for the Field study to begin. 

”White people like to be naked”

Yet, at the presentation at the Private Sector Foundation it seemed like everyone had the desire to take of their clothes off due to the heat and 40 people in a small room/sauna with no air condition. The representatives gave us a lot of interesting insights about the private sector in Uganda and especially some critical questions from the MUBS student increased the academic level of the debate. 

Bebe cool/Big size

Tuesday night everyone was invited to a concert with the one and only reggae master Bebe Cool – a great initiative taken by Kristina. The cool Kampala club Amnesia set the scene and the crowd was highly entertained by the great beats from local artists and a Champions League match on the big screen. A lot of hours were spent on the dancefloor by the MUBS and CBS students before Bebe Cool set the roof on fire.

Greetings from Diana, Ruth, Florian and Jesper

Oli otya!!!!!

Greetings from Diana, Ruth, Florian and Jesper and welcome to the Pearl of Africa – the place of scorching heat, hectic traffic conditions, big shot reggae musicians and great food. Let us give you an example: If you are into slow cooked food, you will definitively enjoy the goat stew served with matoke and maybe some chapati. Wash it down with a Kenyan favorite, the Tusker Lager, a Nile Gold or maybe a glass of freshly pressed passion fruit juice. Life here is great!

As the sun is setting to the west, we reflect on the last couple of days in Kampala. After some long days with plenty of lectures, presentations and activities, we went out on our first real field trip in the parts of town called Banda and Katwe, trying to get a hold of what is going on in the informal furniture and metal fabrication industries. Our goal was to conduct a preliminary study on the access to financial services and markets for entrepreneurs but also to experience the thrill of riding around town on a boda boda while taking in the busy and wildly chaotic urban environment that is downtown Kampala.

After interviewing almost 40 businesses, we had a well-deserved chicken pilawo and at the end of the day, we went to the African village to do some what? … shopping! Tonight we are probably going to kick back and maybe go for a beer or two at the Bamboo Nest. Tomorrow we will start analyzing the data we collected and get ready for the planned weekend trip to the supposedly beautiful and beach accessible town of Jinja. Did we mention that life here is great?!

Much luv,

Diana, Ruth, Flo & Jesp.

Welcome to yet another Exciting Collabo!

Makerere University Business School and Copenhagen Business School (Denmark) in a joint collaboration have organised yet another field study trip for their students, with a view of learning from one another. The study is scheduled to run from March 31– April 17, 2014.

The two institutions are focusing on a joint study to develop the students’ skills in the area of private sector and entrepreneurship in Uganda as well as on a research project regarding Youth Entrepreneurship and Employment.

The Key facilitators from both institutions include Assoc. Prof Soeren Jeppesen , Assoc. Prof Thilde Langevang , Assoc. Dean Edith Basalirwa, Mr. George Batte, Mrs Sarah Kyejjusa Bazibu and Mrs Agnes Nassuna Kasirye.

You can view activities of the previous students by visiting their blog here