Black History Month: Josephine Nabwami
Program: Master of Food and Resource Economics
February 2025 – Josephine Nabwami believes education is a powerful tool for solving pressing issues in society. Her academic and professional experiences have inspired her to contribute meaningfully to Uganda’s agricultural sector by promoting sustainable farming practices and financial stability for smallholder farmers.
“Unpredictable weather is a challenge in agriculture, and stabilizing farmer incomes is critical,” says Nabwami, a Mastercard Foundation Scholar in the Master of Food and Resource Economics program.
With over 65% of Uganda’s population involved in farming, and 90% of agriculture relying on rainfall, she recognized the immense vulnerability of farmers to climate change. Her work revealed a significant gap in awareness about government-subsidized insurance programs designed to mitigate crop losses and promote resilience in rural communities.
Nabwami holds a Bachelor’s degree in Commerce from Cairo University, where she specialized in Insurance, Statistics, and Risk Management. Her professional journey began as a business analyst and later as a claims adjuster in Uganda, where she discovered her passion for agricultural insurance.
She is passionate about policy development and hopes to combine her skills in policy analysis and risk management into a future career in this area. Post-graduation, Nabwami would ideally gain some work experience, maybe at an NGO in Canada, learning how to implement policy before returning to Uganda.
She had a late start to the Master of Food and Resource Economics (MFRE) program due to visa issues, and is grateful for the support she received.
“Kelleen Wiseman (Academic Director) made a personalized catch-up plan for me,” says Nabwami. She started in-person classes a month behind her classmates, but while she was still in her hometown in Uganda, she watched class recordings – prepared to go to Canada as soon as her paperwork came through. Now, in the second semester she’s feeling as though her academic work has caught up.
Nabwami said being at UBC is both a privilege and a responsibility.
“I feel like I am both a student and a teacher. As a student, I am trying to thrive academically and socially. As a teacher, I am sharing the perspectives of Black communities and celebrating Black achievements, especially in spaces where representation can often be limited.”
She has become involved in Vancouver’s Ethọ́s Lab event called Blackathon, which takes place later this month, encouraging youth to celebrate Black inventors and to explore science and technology.
Wherever her future journey leads to, Nabwami is certain that she wants to be at the forefront of change.
To read more stories celebrating Black History Month, click here.
Tagged with: Equity Diversity Inclusion and Indigeneity, Master of Food and Resource Economics