In a world undergoing rapid changes, there is a perceived need for a new vision and paradigm of university education. Universities should educate students to become well informed and deeply motivated citizens, who can think critically, analyse problems of society, look for solutions to the problems of society, apply them and accept social responsibilities (Kibwika, 2006; Mamdani, 2007). In other words, universities should prepare and train students to become capable and qualified professionals, who can analyse, conceptualise, synthesize, and cope with complex and authentic problems (Noroozi et al., 2012). For, this reason, universities in Uganda and indeed elsewhere, need to transform to be more innovative and relevant in addressing persistent problems such as: poverty, disease, climate change and food insecurity among other things as well as improving the quality of  people’s life. This is not contested in this paper, the contention is rather on what can be done to have adequate competent staff that can make the needed transformation possible. Unfortunately, universities in Uganda as indicated by Kibwika (2006) continue to turn out graduates every year who lack: entrepreneurial, information literacy, collaboration, communication, innovation, problem solving, and responsible citizenship skills considered critical in fostering socio-economic development. Yet, the ever changing and competitive knowledge based-economy calls for education that prepares graduates that are highly innovative and productive at the place of work and society as a whole. Some of the notable problems that hinder universities in Uganda from operating as expected pointed out by O’Sullivan (2010) include university teaching staff incompetence. To this end, this paper is guided by the following major research question: What innovation competence profile, professional development activities and institutional policies and practices underpin the development of innovation competence of teaching staff in universities? The general objective  of undertaking this study is to: establish innovation competence profile, professional development activities and institutional policies and practices that can be used to develop and/or enhance innovation competence development of teaching staff in universities  so as to increase the relevance of universities to national development through fostering innovations at their work places and society as whole.

Theoretical framework

The need for a competent teaching force in any country’s education system cannot be over emphasised (O’Sullivan, 2010), as teacher quality is widely acknowledged as being crucial for transformation of education (Pilot & Kaseen, 2008). Thus, teachers are required to acquire adequate knowledge, skills, attitudes, and values required in the teaching profession (Bakkens et al, 2010). Arguments abound that teacher competence plays a decisive role in students’ learning attainment and overall improvement of an education system (Bakah, 2011). This study is rooted in the social efficiency notion of teacher education reform as advanced by Zeichner & Linston (1990), and builds on the work of Tigelaar et al (2004) on teaching competencies in higher education. The social efficiency perspective of teacher education reform is useful in examining the nature of teacher work so as to provide a basis for studying teaching (Zeichner & Liston, 1990). In this approach to teacher education, training and development, competencies are spelt out in advance together with the criteria to measure mastery of these competencies. Once the competencies have been demonstrated, the teacher is then viewed as ‘effective’ (Zeichner & Liston, 1990). Some of the key assumptions in the social efficiency perspective in teacher education reform discourse as presented by Cochran-Smith (2002) include: teachers must have the ability to demonstrate required competencies; teachers should be prepared for the realities of the teaching world; and teachers must have a desire for continuous learning in this ever changing world in all aspects of life.  

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