At the opening of HUC@43, Prof. Emmanuel Katongole challenged the Hekima community to move beyond quick fixes and dare to reinvent Africa’s future.
Hekima University College (HUC) ushered in its 2026–2027 Academic Year, HUC@43, on 15 August, with a thought-provoking keynote address by Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Katongole, Ugandan Catholic priest, political theologian and professor at the University of Notre Dame.
Speaking as the inaugural speaker under the theme Expanding Horizons, Empowering Futures, Prof. Katongole challenged Hekima to see itself as more than an institution that transmits knowledge. He called it to become a “construction site” for a new society, another humanity, another system of production, another vision of politics and another imagination of life together.
Reflecting on his theme, “From Quick Fixes to Prophetic Interruption: On Daring to Reinvent the Future,” Prof. Katongole described the contemporary world as experiencing a profound “poly-crisis”, marked by war, political instability, climate change, economic inequality and weakening institutions.
Drawing on William Butler Yeats’ The Second Coming, particularly the words “things fall apart” and “the centre cannot hold,” he urged the HUC community not simply to repair a failing system but to have the courage to imagine and construct something new.
Central to his reflection was the relationship between lament and hope. Drawing on the prophet Jeremiah, he described the prophetic task as both “to pluck up and break down” and “to build and plant.” He also highlighted the witness of Jesuit Archbishop Christophe Munzihirwa, SJ, and Kenyan environmentalist Prof. Wangari Maathai, as examples of people who transformed suffering and everyday realities into courageous action for a different future.
For Hekima, this means forming critical minds, committed individuals and courageous leaders who can engage Africa’s realities and contribute to transforming them. As Prof. Katongole reminded the community, education must seek not merely to explain the world, but to transform it.
His challenge provides a fitting invitation for HUC@43: to expand horizons, empower futures and dare to reinvent Africa.
By Pamela Adinda,
HUC Communications and International Office Coordinator
