Rt. Hon. Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga congratulates ‘daughter’ Sharifah Kalumba on her introduction (Photo by our reporter)
NEWS EDITOR
THE Institute of Parliamentary Studies has been proudly renamed after House Speaker Rt. Hon. Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga owing to her exceptional commitment to Parliament since 1989.
President Yoweri Museveni on 23rd April 2020 assented to the Bill establishing Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga Institute of Parliamentary Studies, a one-stop specialized resource centre for the training and capacity development of Members and Staff of Parliament of Uganda, Local Councils and other Legislatures within the region.
Members of Parliament across the political divide on 27th November 2019 unanimously passed the Bill in a uniform debate that legislators praised the Speaker for dedicating her life to the development and building the capacity of the Legislative arm of Government.
The Ngora County Member of Parliament, David Abala noted during the debate that Speaker Kadaga devoted her life to serve the Parliament of Uganda and has since 1989 loyally and outstandingly served the institution hence the need to name the institute after her.
“The Right Honorable Rebecca Alitwala Kadaga has devoted unparalleled, exceptional and unequaled service to Parliament. The Institute should have been named after her yesterday,” said Abala.
PROFILE
Born in Kamuli District, Eastern Uganda, on 24 May 1956, Rebecca Kadaga attended Namasagali College for her high school education. She studied law at Makerere University, graduating with the degree of Bachelor of Laws (LLB), in 1978. She went on to obtain a Diploma in Legal Practice from the Law Development Center in Kampala in 1979. In 2000, she obtained a Diploma in Women’s Law from the University of Zimbabwe. In 2003, she obtained the degree of Master of Arts (MA), specializing in Women’s Law, also from the University of Zimbabwe. In 2019, Nkumba University, a private university in Uganda, awarded Kadaga an honorary Doctor of Laws degree.
Between 1984 and 1988, she was in private law practice. From 1989 to 1996, she served as the Member of Parliament for Kamuli District in the District Woman’s Constituency. She served as the Chairperson of the University Council for Mbarara University, between 1993 and 1996. During 1996, she served as Secretary General of the East African Women Parliamentarians Association.
From 1996 to 1998, Rebecca Kadaga was the Ugandan Minister of State for Regional Cooperation (Africa and the Middle East). She then served as Minister of State for Communication and Aviation from 1998 to 1999 and as Minister for Parliamentary Affairs from 1999 to 2000. She was elected as Deputy Speaker of Parliament in 2001, a position that she held until 19 May 2011, when she was elected Speaker of Parliament.
Following the February 2016 general election, Kadaga was unanimously re-elected as Speaker of Parliament on 19 May 2016.
Besides her duties as Speaker of the Ugandan Parliament, she sits on the Appointments Committee, Parliamentary Commission (Chair) and the Business Committee (Chair).
