The Principles of Management Excellence for Research (PRIMER) program took place from January 20th – 24th, 2025, at CRID.
This course resulted from a collaboration between Gates Foundation, CRID and the Infectious Diseases Institute (IDI) at Makerere University in Uganda. The training focused on enhancing participants’ knowledge and skills in effective project management throughout the research cycle, from pre-award to project close-out. Twelve CRID members from different units attended: Procurement, External Affairs, Research, Human Resources, Project Management, and Finance. The training program featured a comprehensive agenda which included: Introduction to grant management fundamentals; Focus on negotiating partnerships; Implementation phase management; Project close-out procedures and compliance; Addressing unforeseen circumstances and developing institution-specific plans through group work.
Facilitators were experts from IDI, among which Stephen Anyijurike (Senior Manager for Grants and Contracts), Dr Tom Kakaire (Head of Strategic Planning and Development), Specy Kakiiza (Senior Manager Sub Granting), Benard Musana (Finance Manager) and Paul Gonza (Senior Research Manager). For a week, they coordinated series of presentations, group work, and discussions. Overall, participants felt enriched by the training, as was Bruno Essame, Project manager at CRID. “A new concept I acquired was Good Financial Grant Practices (GFGP). This will enable me to improve my compliance with procedures and policies, but above all to make good proposals to ensure that the project cycle is respected right through to closure”, he explained. For Jesse Fogan, Policy and External Affairs Manager at CRID, “During the workshop, I understood that contract negotiations must take account of the intellectual property aspect. I also learned about the importance of detailing our policies related to procurement in our contracts. This will be of great help to me in my work”.
Overall, participants felt enriched by the training
At the end of the training, a brainstorming session helped to identify key lessons learned, takeaways for CRID, and messages to stakeholders. The closing ceremony was chaired by Prof. Charles Wondji, who handed over participants’ certificates. He encouraged them to keep in touch with their mates even after the training.
