Uganda’s number one policy Think Tank – EPRC rebrands today

It is generally believed that policy can make a difference in the growth and welfare of a society. For example ideological and policy differences are often cited in explaining the variance in economic development between North and South Korea, former East and West Germany or indeed Eastern and Western Europe in general. The effectiveness of public intervention presupposes the existence of a cause and effect relationship between the intervention and a desired outcome.  The conception of the causal chain is embedded in the prevailing ideology and development paradigms.

Accepting the premise that policy is important is but one step away from asking how a country can put in place such policy framework for the effective attainment of the aspirations of its society. Invariably such a task by the official authority tends to require research support from dedicated institution or think tank that has the capacity to carry out rigorous research and effectively engage with policy makers to ensure the uptake of research findings that can positively influence the strategic direction of the society. In Uganda, the Economic Policy Research Centre is one such institution that has partnered with national Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) but also with reputable international research institutions and think tanks to support policy processes for inclusive and sustainable development in the country and beyond.

The Economic Policy Research Centre (EPRC) is an autonomous not-for-profit organization limited by guarantee. Established in 1993 and located at Makerere University Campus, the Centre’s mandate is to carry out policy oriented research to inform policy in Uganda. Currently ranked as the number one policy think tank in country, the Centre is a reputable, credible and independent in providing evidence based policy advice to support the formulation, implementation and evaluation of government policy. The Centre’s core business covers a diversity of thematic development issues and their policy implication including employment, public financial management, microeconomic analysis, social service delivery, social protection; private sector development and competitiveness, natural resources management, policy inconsistency and implementation gaps; and trade and regional integration.

On Thursday 30^th of July 2015, EPRC will launch a new brand and logo aimed at enhancing its relevance, effectiveness and visibility in providing evidence driven policy advice for sustainable development in Uganda. As it implements its current Strategic Plan (2013/14-2016/17), the Centre seeks to consolidate the achievements it has gained in providing influential and relevant research outputs and services. Thus, the rebranding of the EPRC will position the Centre as a key partner in the country’s transition toward middle income status as envisioned in Vision 2040; deeper economic integration in the East African Community; and in engaging with the post 2015 sustainable development goals (SDGs).

Through the implementation of its medium term strategic plans, EPRC has registered significant achievements in the policy sphere over the years. Maintaining an independent but constructive position on topical issues, a growing number of MDAs now consider EPRC as a GO-TO policy think tank and an indispensable partner in policy processes. The Centre’s significant contributions to national policy formulation has been cited by the World Bank Research Observer in 2002 which identified EPRC as an independent research institution with considerable policy influence in Uganda. In addition, the 2013 annual global think thank rankings by University of Pennsylvania put the Centre 17th out of 550 think tanks in Africa and the number one in Uganda.

The Centre’s research has and continues to influence a number of policy initiatives including the reform of the National Agricultural Advisory Services (NAADS) program, policy on malaria control, Social services delivery, agricultural input tax policy, and many others. In response to the Uganda Service Delivery Indicator (USDI) survey for example, the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Finance Planning and Economic Development (MoFPED) pledged to set up a taskforce of permanent secretaries to address issues of governance, accountability and service delivery in the health and education sectors.

Finally a central part of EPRC’s research agenda relates to trade and regional integration which has seen far reaching policy reforms especially as part of the transition of the East African Community to Common Market status. The policy reforms at the EAC level have in turn triggered national policy reforms aimed at domesticating EAC policies into the national policy framework. EPRC’s researchers have been part of many technical working groups that provide support to the process of developing national positions in trade and regional integration negotiations. In this rebranding, the Centre proposes to scale up this and other policy support efforts to reinforce Uganda’s transition to middle income status.

By Alex Thomas Ijjo (Senior Fellow – EPRC) and Tonny Odokonyero (Research Analyst - EPRC)