Janestic Mwende-Twikirize

Janestic Mwende-Twikirize serves as Associate Professor of Social Work at Makerere University, Uganda, and holds the position of Secretary for the International Association of Schools of Social Work (IASSW) Board of Directors (2024-2028). Her professional affiliations include the Association of Schools of Social Work in Africa (ASSWA), Global Social Service Workforce Alliance, National Association of Social Workers in Uganda, and Migration and Social Transformation Network.

Her academic credentials comprise:

• PhD in Social Work and Social Development
• MA in Social Sector Planning and Management
• BA in Social Work and Social Administration

Dr. Mwende-Twikirize's research integrates decolonial frameworks with practical social work applications, emphasizing indigenous knowledge systems in African contexts. Her work critically examines international social work practices through localized lenses while addressing systemic challenges in child protection and social service workforce development. She actively promotes curriculum transformation to center African epistemologies in social work education.

Her current initiatives demonstrate significant grant leadership:

• Principal Investigator for "Enhancing school retention through community social labs and problem based fieldwork"
• Lead PI for IASSW-funded Ubuntu-inspired virtual learning platform development (https://ubuntuplatform.ushahidi.io/)
• Co-PI for international partnership on "building resilient communities through inclusive education" (https://resilient.uia.no)
• Co-PI for Review of African social work historical documents
• Erasmus+ mobility partnership with Technical University of Applied Sciences Wurzburg, Germany

Her community social labs represent innovative fieldwork models merging academic training with grassroots problem-solving, particularly in educational retention and child welfare systems across East Africa.