The Basoga living in Canada under their umbrella body- Uganda Busoga Cultural Association of Canada (UBUCACA) in partnership with Global Event Services of Canada (GESC) have organised a first of its kind symposium aimed at forging a way of developing Busoga region through innovations.
The Busoga Innovation Symposium & Expo 2022 will run from September 28 to October 04 in Toronto, Canada, under the theme: “Inclusive Innovation for Cultural Action”.
The conference will focus on tackling issues of Climate Change, Trade and Industry, Agriculture, Real Estate and Infrastructure Development, Financial Literacy, Moral Decay, Education and Vocational Skilling among others, in Busoga region and how they can be achieved through innovations.
The highly anticipated event will be attended by the Kyabazinga of Busoga William Wilberforce Gabula Nadiope IV, policy makers from Uganda, East Africa and Canada, representatives from Busoga Sectoral Bodies, representatives from Business Community in Canada and Uganda, as well as representatives from Climate Change Action of East Africa Secretariat.
According to Moses Byansi Isanga, the Chairman Organising Committee, strengthening and optimising the utilisation of innovations could help the world to achieve the UN-Sustainable Development Goals.
“The high-reaching spirits of the 2030 Agenda will require fundamental changes in the ways in which health, energy, food, water, housing, welfare, mobility and other goods and services are delivered, distributed, and consumed, where innovations can play pivotal roles,” Mr Isanga said.
He noted that Symposium is aimed at including cultural into the promotion of innovation through further use of Science Technology to address global challenges and development matters such as food security, gender equality, health, energy, water, transport, environment, empowerment of vulnerable groups and disaster-related problems.
“UBUCACA and GESC have seen the importance of innovation in achieving the SDGs and has been recognised at all levels around the world.”
Mr Isanga also disclosed that Busoga as Region with a vast population of over 3 million people is at the heart of Industrial, Tourism, Commercial Agriculture, and innovation, however, the region as in the urban and rural communities still battles absolute poverty, unemployment especially among the youth, gender-based violence, teenage pregnancies, and inadequate education.
“Now, the symposium seeks to draw the fine line between Cultural inclusion of innovation by bringing the King of this region to learn from Canada ways in which the cultural institution can appropriate accelerate initiatives that support the use of innovations to harness the actualisation of the SDGs such as the use of big data analytics in e-health sharing network and the getting to Zero social innovation of the health sector, the Future of Work initiative by the labour sector, women’s empowerment through digital and financial innovation, bridging science and Cultural Community initiative, among others.”
On the other hand, business communities in Canada shall enjoy the opportunities that Busoga region in Uganda provides including among others, exhibition of Best Tourist destinations, Vast Land mainly culturally owned, Cheap labour for global investors and available raw material for industrial innovations.
Others include, conducive weather and climate for year round productivity, Trade and Industry, Agriculture, Real Estate and Infrastructure Development, Finance, Education and Vocational Skilling.
“The King of Busoga is the second most recognised cultural Leader in Uganda with a big influence in the lives of the people, the symposium is the best way to transfer the innovations experienced from the 1st world economies to the people of Busoga through cultural community initiatives with the main notion of global innovation for Cultural actions,” Mr Isanga added.
“The knowledge and learning derived from the Symposium are also expected to be useful for Busoga Cultural Institution in preparing their next work plan and its ensuing strategies for Cultural Community Initiatives. In addition, follow-up activities can potentially be initiated after the Symposium.”
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