Sarah Ssali, is a Ugandan

social scientist Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of socie ...

researcher Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary education, secondary or tertiary education, tertiary higher education, higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membershi ...

and

academic administrator Academic administration is a branch of university or college employees responsible for the maintenance and supervision of the institution and separate from the Faculty (academic staff), faculty or academics, although some personnel may have joint ...

, who is an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. Overview In the '' North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is ...

and

dean Dean may refer to: People * Dean (given name) * Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin * Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk * Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean Titles * ...

of the School of Gender Studies at

Makerere University Makerere University, Kampala (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922. It became an independent national university in 1970. Today, Makerere University is composed of n ...

, Uganda's oldest and largest public university.

Background and education

Ssali was born in the Buganda Region of Uganda. After attending local primary and secondary schools, she was admitted to

, in Uganda's capital,

Kampala Kampala (, ) is the capital and largest city of Uganda. The city proper has a population of 1,680,000 and is divided into the five political divisions of Kampala Central Division, Kawempe Division, Makindye Division, Nakawa Division, and ...

. She graduated in 1992, with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

Social Sciences Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of society, societies and the Social relation, relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the o ...

. She went on to obtain a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. ...

degree in

Gender Studies Gender studies is an interdisciplinary academic field devoted to analysing gender identity and gendered representation. Gender studies originated in the field of women's studies, concerning women, feminism, gender, and politics. The field ...

at Makerere University in 1999. Later, she received a

Doctor of Philosophy A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields. Because it is ...

in International Health Studies from

Queen Margaret University Queen Margaret University is a university, founded in 1875 and located in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is named after the Scottish Queen Saint Margaret. History The university was founded in 1875, as ''The Edinburgh School of Cookery and Domestic ...

, in

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

Career

Ssali is an experienced social scientist with a long track record in the field stretching back to the late 1990s. Her areas of interest include

HIV The human immunodeficiency viruses (HIV) are two species of '' Lentivirus'' (a subgroup of retrovirus) that infect humans. Over time, they cause acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), a condition in which progressive failure of the immu ...

/ AIDS, Gender, Reproductive Health, Health Systems, Public Policy and Politics. Much of Ssali's research focuses on hidden and non-heteronormative behaviors as well as minority groups. Her research has focused on her native country Uganda, but often involves other African countries and distant continents, including Europe and North America. Some of he work include (1) Voluntary HIV counselling and testing among men in rural western Uganda: Implications for HIV prevention. (2) Gender, economic precarity and Uganda government’s covid-19 response. (3) Using life histories to explore gendered experiences of conflict in Gulu District, northern Uganda: Implications for post-conflict health reconstruction. (4) Reasons for disclosure of HIV status by people living with HIV/AIDS and in HIV care in Uganda: an exploratory study. (5) Performance of community health workers under integrated community case management of childhood illnesses in eastern Uganda. (6) Are health systems interventions gender blind? examining health system reconstruction in conflict affected states. (7) Ebola in the context of conflict affected states and health systems: case studies of Northern Uganda and Sierra Leone.

Family

Professor Sarah Ssali is a married mother.

Board and Committee Membership

* World Bank's Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) Advisory Task Force (UG) * Mengo Hospital Research Review Committee * The National Bio-Safety Committee of the Uganda National Council of Science and Technology * International Association for Feminist Economics * Makerere University Council * Makerere University Appointments Board * Makerere University Quality Assurance Committee * Makerere University Students’ Welfare and Disciplinary Committee (Chair) * South Africa Sociological Association (SASA) * Uganda British Alumni Association (UBAA) On the Makerere University Council, Ssali represents the Academic Staff. She is also a member of the ReBUILD Research Consortium, based at Queen Mary University in Edinburgh, Scotland. Professor Ssali is a member of the Advisory Board of "The Next Generation Social Sciences in Africa Program", a collaborative effort among social scientists in research and academia in Africa and the United States.

References

External links