Alumni

Bio – Edwin Byusa, PhD

Dr. Edwin Byusa is a seasoned and highly accomplished African development leader with over 20 years of experience advancing evidence-informed decision-making (EIDM), policy reform, and capacity development across the continent. His work bridges sectors including education, child protection, digital transformation, and governance, always emphasising inclusive, data-driven approaches.

He is widely published and has a portfolio of high-impact, peer-reviewed research addressing critical issues in education, evidence use, and community development. His publications have contributed to shaping policies and improving practices in classrooms and institutions. As a reviewer for SCOPUS-indexed journals, Dr. Byusa actively contributes to maintaining academic standards and advancing the global body of knowledge from an African perspective.

He has successfully led strategic planning and program delivery for child-centred development initiatives, enhancing community accountability systems and building local capacity in planning, monitoring, evaluation, learning, accountability and fundraising. His leadership contributed to scaling impactful Early Childhood Development and Child Protection models in alignment with national priorities and global frameworks

As the monitoring and evaluation consultant, Dr. Byusa spearheaded systems design to support digital transformation in all African countries. He also served as an education consultant, where he helped shape inclusive education strategies and advance system-level changes through evidence-based reforms. Through his work, he conducted country-level mapping of education and skills data ecosystems, identifying institutional strengths, gaps, and opportunities for harmonisation and capacity-building.

Dr. Byusa is widely respected for his regional expertise, having worked across East, West, Central, and North Africa. He has collaborated with ministries, development agencies, and civil society organisations to promote EIDM, strengthen PMEAL (Planning, Monitoring, Evaluation, Accountability and Learning), data and data use, statistical and performance systems, and improve policy outcomes. He holds a PhD in Science Education and is completing an Executive MBA in Global Business and Sustainability. The Africa Evidence Network named him Runner-up of the Africa Evidence Leadership Award 2024 (Evidence User category), a testimony of his unwavering commitment to promoting Africa-led, evidence-based change.

He is deeply committed to amplifying Africa's leadership in global evidence communities and fostering collaboration and trust within EIDM ecosystems across the East African region and beyond.

Contacts:
Phone: +250788309584
Email: byedwin@yahoo.fr

PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY

Dr. Kirya. R. Kent is an accomplished physicist and educator with extensive expertise in physics education and renewable energy research. Holding a PhD in Physics Education and an MSc in Physics specialising in solar energy, Kent combines deep scientific knowledge with a passion for advancing education. Additionally, with a Master's in Educational Administration and Management, Kent possesses strong leadership and strategic planning skills tailored to academic environments. My Bachelor of Science with Education and Diploma in Computer Science reflect a robust foundation in pedagogy and technological proficiency. Kent's research focuses on innovative approaches to teaching physics and exploring renewable energy applications, particularly solar radiation and climatic modelling. My interdisciplinary background enables me to integrate scientific concepts with the best educational approaches, contributing to academic research and institutional development. Detailed researcher with several published articles. Effective communicator to both colleagues and research assistants. Creative problem solver who always seeks new ways to approach research.

ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE

1. Educational Officer (Science); Kibuli Secondary School (Physics Instructor; 2018 to date), Full-Time.
2. Lecturer; Department of Physics, Faculty of Science. Islamic University in Uganda (2015 to date), Part-Time.

RESEARCH INTERESTS

1. Development of Concept Inventories to Assess Students’ Understanding
2. Assessment of Teaching Methods for Improving Physics Education
3. Student’s Conceptual Understanding and Misconceptions
4. Integrating Renewable Energy Technologies into secondary and Tertiary Physics Curricula
5. Leadership and Management practice for Advancing STEM and Renewable Energy Education.

Email: kiryakirya038@gmail.com, robert.kirya@iuiu.ac.ug
Tel: +256 702 944 038 / +256 752 021 000
Orcid: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9759-6335

Dr. Agnes Mbonyiryivuze (PhD in Physics Education) is an experienced educator and researcher dedicated to enhancing the quality of Science Education in Rwanda. As a former HoD of Education at East African University Rwanda and a Lecturer of Physics, currently, Dr. Mbonyiryivuze is serving as a Lecturer at the University of Kigali and University of Medical Science and Technology (UMST), Rwanda. Dr. Mbonyiryivuze holds PhD degree in Physics Education from University of Rwanda-College of Education (UR-CE) under the African Center of Excellence for Innovative Teaching and Learning Mathematics and Science (ACEITLMS).

She holds a Master degree in Physics from University of South Africa (UNISA) and a Bachelor (Hons) in Physics with Education and Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) from by Kigali Institute of Education currently University of Rwanda-College of Education.

When serving as a Professional Internee at the Rwanda Quality Basic Education for Human Capital Development (RQBEHCD) project funded by the World Bank, implemented by the University of Rwanda-College of Education (UR-CE) in partnership with the Rwanda Basic Education Board (REB), Dr Mbonyiryivuze played a crucial role in training primary and secondary school teachers in mathematics and sciences. As a Professional Internee RQBEHCD Project, Dr. Mbonyiryivuze was dedicated to enhancing the quality of education in Rwanda through the training of primary and secondary school teachers in mathematics and sciences. Her responsibilities included preparing and conducting training sessions, designing monitoring and evaluation tools, and assessing teachers' professional development through various tests. Dr. Mbonyiryivuze was also actively involved in the supervision and observation of teachers, providing valuable feedback to improve their instructional practices. Additionally, she contributed to the project's research efforts by collecting and analyzing data, writing publications, and addressing feedback from journal reviewers and editors. Her commitment to education is further demonstrated by her supervision of Master's students’ project under the ACEITLMS/URCE program.

Dr. Mbonyiryivuze first taught Science and mathematics at secondary school in 2005 after finishing her high school in Math-Physics option from G.S Muhura. This teaching career nurtured her interest to Science Education that led her to major in Physics Education. Dr. Agnes also has been a teacher of physics at advanced level at secondary school (2011-2013), and an Assistant Lecture in Physics at Peace Integrated Polytechnic of Rwanda (PIPR) (2016-2017), UR-CE, Kibogora Polytechnic, etc. Dr Mbonyiryivuze is interested in developing students' conceptual understandings of physics concepts, their attitudes towards physics and achievement by using innovative teaching methods.

With over two decades of experience in teaching and research, Dr. Mbonyiryivuze has published more than 20 articles in international peer-reviewed journals and actively contributes to the academic community through supervision of Master's students and participation in global conferences. Her work focuses on innovative teaching methods to improve students' conceptual understanding of physics and close the gender gap in STEM fields. Dr. Mbonyiryivuze is also involved with organizations such as the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD) and the Rwandan Association for Women in Science and Engineering (RAWISE), promoting gender equity in STEM education.

Email: mbonyiryivuzeagnes@yahoo.com
Contact: +250 785 820 176

Research platforms:
https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Agnes_Mbonyiryivuze2 https://www.linkedin.com/in/agnes-mbonyiryivuze-9a49b1103/ https://scholar.google.co.za/citationsuser=-0CcrP0AAAAJ&hl=en