Buwalasi College Reborn as Medical and Technical Training Hub Under Bugisu Cultural Institution
The handover, which took place on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, marks a significant milestone in efforts to expand access to practical, employment-oriented education for young people from the Mt Elgon region and its wider transboundary neighbourhoods.
SIRONKO, Uganda — The Church of Uganda (CoU) North Mbale Diocese has formally handed over the premises of the former Bishop Usher Wilson Theological College in Buwalasi, Sironko District, to the Umukuuka III wa Bugisu, His Highness Sir Jude Mike Mudoma, in a landmark move aimed at transforming the historic institution into a centre for medical and technical skills development.
The handover, which took place on Tuesday, January 6, 2026, marks a significant milestone in efforts to expand access to practical, employment-oriented education for young people from the Mt Elgon region and its wider transboundary neighbourhoods.
New Life for a Historic Institution
Under the arrangement, the Buwalasi premises will immediately begin hosting training programmes in partnership with Kenya’s Southern Medical and Technical Training College (SMTTC), starting in January 2026. The initiative targets youth skills development in a wide range of high-demand fields, including dental care, chiropractic care, oncology (cancer care), radiology, mortuary science, home-based healthcare, cosmetology, medical engineering, digital technology, electrical technology, hotel and catering management, and fashion design.
SMTTC is an accredited private institution under Kenya’s Ministry of Education, Department of Technical and Vocational Training. Founded in 2001, the college focuses on strengthening healthcare systems in Africa through capacity building, education, research, and technology-driven initiatives.
Speaking during the handover ceremony, SMTTC Director Dr Joanes Juma Nyongesa said the institution is also accredited as a Continuous Professional Development (CPD) service provider by Kenya’s Medical Practitioners and Dentists Board.
“At SMTTC, we are committed to transferring knowledge and skills and creating avenues for young African men and women to step into medical, biomedical and biotechnological professions through quality, competence-based training,” Dr Nyongesa said.
He added that the college has, over the past 17 years, enabled hundreds of graduates to secure gainful employment in clinics, hospitals and community health settings, thereby empowering them to serve as professional care workers across the region.
From Clergy Training to Skills Hub
Bishop Usher Wilson Theological College was founded in the 1940s and played a critical role in training some of the earliest formally educated African clergy in eastern and northern Uganda. Among its notable alumni was the late Rev. Janan Luwum, who later became Archbishop of the Church of Uganda before his assassination during the Idi Amin regime in 1977.
The institution originally complemented Bishop Tucker College in Mukono—now Uganda Christian University—but gradually fell into disuse after clergy training became centralized in Mukono. In a later phase, the Government of Uganda converted the Buwalasi premises into a Grade III Teachers’ Training College as part of post-Amin education reforms. That effort, however, was short-lived, and the facility again lay idle following the closure of several TTCs in the 1990s.
The current initiative therefore represents not only a revival of the Buwalasi site but also a reimagining of its role in national and regional development.
Bugisu, Mt Elgon and Cross-Border Impact
Bugisu is one of the 17 administrative areas that formed Uganda at Independence in 1962. The region is predominantly inhabited by the Bagisu, an ethnic subgroup of the Bamasaaba, a Bantu-speaking community found in Uganda, Kenya and the diaspora, and traditionally united under the Umukuuka wa Bugisu.
Sironko District is one of six districts carved out of the former Bugisu, alongside Bududa, Bulambululi, Manafwa, Mbale and Namisindwa. Mbale City, the cultural centre of the Umukuuka, is administratively separate but remains central to the region’s identity. All these areas lie on the south-western slopes of Mt Elgon, which straddles the Uganda-Kenya border.
For decades, Bugisu has served as an educational hub not only for eastern Uganda but also for neighbouring regions such as Sebei and Karamoja, as well as Kenya’s Bungoma and Kitale counties. The new Buwalasi campus is expected to strengthen this long-standing cross-border educational role.
MoU to Establish SMTTC Uganda Branch Under a Memorandum of Understanding signed between SMTTC and the Umukuuka wa Bugisu, the partnership will establish an SMTTC branch in Uganda to provide accessible tertiary healthcare and technical skills training to youth from the Mt Elgon region and beyond.
The Umukuuka will provide cultural support and physical resources, including the Buwalasi premises, while SMTTC will oversee academic and administrative functions. The cultural institution will also help identify eligible students from Bamasaaba communities for subsidised advanced training at SMTTC’s main campus in Kariobangi, Nairobi, with SMTTC managing admissions and academic standards.
Both partners will jointly develop curricula to ensure relevance, quality and alignment with labour market needs, while also promoting community engagement and outreach.
Leadership Reactions
Announcing the handover, North Mbale Bishop Samuel Gidudu officially transferred the premises to the Umukuuka, describing the move as a strategic contribution by the Church to community development and youth empowerment.
In his remarks, Umukuuka III wa Bugisu, Sir Jude Mike Mudoma, described the occasion as one of the most historic moments since his ascension to the throne in August 2023.
“This partnership unlocks significant potential for development and aligns squarely with my mandate of promoting social and economic transformation for our people,” Sir Mudoma said, noting that he personally initiated discussions after identifying the need for a suitable facility.
The Umukuuka’s Prime Minister, Dr Paul Mwambu, urged the Bugisu community to take full advantage of the opportunity by enrolling their children in the new institution, which will initially award certificates and diplomas in medical and technical disciplines.
He revealed that the college is planned to evolve into a fully-fledged university within the next two years.
“The proposed menu of courses is particularly impressive. It responds directly to critical human-resource gaps not only in Uganda but globally,” Dr Mwambu said.
“Programmes such as oncology, radiology, mortuary science and home-based healthcare will equip our young people with highly relevant, in-demand skills and position them competitively in the global job market.”
A New Chapter for Buwalasi
As training activities begin, the transformation of the former Bishop Usher Wilson Theological College into a modern skills development hub signals a renewed commitment by faith, cultural and educational institutions to address youth unemployment through practical, market-oriented education.
For Bugisu and the wider Mt Elgon region, the Buwalasi initiative stands as both a restoration of a historic site and a forward-looking investment in the next generation.
