Dr David Onen is a distinguished Ugandan educationist and scholar whose influence in higher education, research, and policy has spanned more than two decades across East Africa.

A proud alumnus of Makerere University, he holds a PhD in Education, along with Master’s, Postgraduate Diploma, and Bachelor’s degrees—all earned from the same institution. Throughout his illustrious academic career, Dr Onen served as a Senior Lecturer at Makerere University, where he held several prominent leadership roles including Editor-in-Chief of the Makerere Journal of Higher Education, School Dean, Senate Representative, and School Coordinator.

He is celebrated for his scholarly rigour and unwavering commitment to mentorship, having successfully supervised over 72 Master’s and 18 doctoral candidates to completion, in addition to authoring more than 65 peer reviewed publications.

Since 2021, he has been recognised as Uganda’s most cited education scientist by the AD Scientific Index. Following his retirement from Makerere University in 2023, Dr Onen has continued to shape academic discourse and institutional development as a Visiting Professor at SIMAD University in Mogadishu, Somalia.

He is an International Affiliate of the American Educational Research Association (AERA) and a longstanding member of the African Network for the Internationalisation of Education (ANIE).

Passionate about educational transformation and social impact, he remains actively engaged in consultancy work, curriculum innovation, and grassroots initiatives such as the Dero Kwan Scholarship Scheme, which supports access to education for underserved learners in Uganda’s Acoli sub-region.