Exchange to Change January 2018 E2C January 2018 web | Page 12

12
IN THE PICTURE
Introducing IOB’s
latest addition…
Ivan Ashaba
On the 1 October 2017, Ivan
Ashaba joined IOB as an
Academic Assistant. Ivan is
from Uganda and grew up in the
capital, Kampala.
I did a Bachelor’s degree in Social
Sciences (Political Science & Social
Administration) at Makerere
University in Uganda. I worked
with the Uganda Broadcasting
Corporation after graduation and
my work (briefly) as a talk-show
host exposed me to question about
the exercise of power and how it
impacts ordinary people, especially
the poor and downtrodden. Later,
I got another job - working as a
community officer with a nonprofit
organization (Unbound) that worked
with children and seniors in rural
parts of Central Uganda. Despite
my own humble background, I was
shocked by the levels of deprivation I
saw in the villages. Where I had once
wallowed in self-pity, I later learned
that I was better positioned to help
communities in need.
I travelled to Turkey to pursue a
Master in Political Science at Ankara
University. Studying at the Faculty
of Political Science was interesting.
From the Mavi Marmara raid by
Israeli commandos, to Erdogan’s
personalization of power, to the
Kurdish Question, and to Turkey’s bid
to join EU – class discussions often
became tense. I returned home after
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my studies and started working with
Uganda Christian University as an
assistant lecturer.
In 2015, I came to Belgium on a
VLIR-UOS scholarship for a Master
in Governance & Development.
Studying at IOB exposed me to a
unique and interdisciplinary style
of instruction. Interactions and
competition with other international
students sharpened my general
aptitude. I wrote my thesis on
security agencies and regime survival
in Uganda - a topic that continues
to fascinate me. In fact, I just am
publishing a paper on regime
survival and fragility in South Sudan.
As part of my other research, we
have just finalized the evaluation of
Uganda’s 2016 general elections. This
project was granted by Uganda’s
Electoral Commission, with funding
from UNDP.
Generally, my areas of interest
include incumbency & post-
authoritarian transitions, elections &
election management, security
agencies (Army, Police), Regime
Survival, Crime and the State etc.