Kasese district has a lot of investment potential

UPE By Raymond Baguma and John Thawite
ORPHANS and disabled children are the major beneficiaries under the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme in Kasese district, according to Wilson Isemusoro, an inspector of schools in the district.

He credits the UPE programme for opening gates for 18,129 orphans in the primary schools, most of whom have lost their parents to HIV/AIDS. The disabled children who have benefited from UPE are 4,687.

“The number of disabled children increases each year because of the UPE, which advocates for education for all,” Isemusoro says.

The education department headed by Douglas Katemba, has a mission to provide quality primary education to both girls and boys in the district.

Pupil enrollment in the district stands at 128,417 pupils in government-aided primary schools, out of whom 63,651 are girls and boys total to 64,766.

There are 300 primary schools in the district with 258 government-aided ones. There are 42 community primary schools and privately-owned primary schools.

Under secondary, there are 17 government-aided secondary schools, 50 private secondary schools out of which 30 are registered and 20 licenced.
The tertiary institutions in the district include an institute of nursing and midwifery at Kagando hospital with a current enrollment of 132 students presently and a technical institute at Katwe-Kabatoro town. There is also the Wildlife Training Institute at Katwe-Kabatoro and Bwera Primary Teacher Training which has an enrollment of 162 male and 157 female students.

The latrine stance-pupil coverage in the primary schools is 1:89 as against the nationally recommended ratio of 1:40, while water coverage is still low according to the district inspector of schools, Wilson Isemusoro.

A P2 class of Kasese Primary School in Kasese town

According to Isemusoro, there are 1,594 classrooms, although some of them still under construction. The constructed classroom blocks, however, remain prone to environmental hazards such winds and flooding, which are common in Kasese. The current classroom/pupil ratio stands at 1:89, but the education department aspires to have achieved a 1:85 ratio by the end of 2007.

The district administration is in the process of constructing houses for teaching staff at rural primary schools, to address poor housing, improve accommodation and thereby encourage teachers to go to rural schools.

The Belgium Technical Co-operation has rendered assistance to the district through supply of science kits to 250 primary schools and funding refresher courses for primary school teachers. They have also funded the construction of a library at Bwera PTC and supplied furniture and bookshelves at the college; construction of four science laboratories at Kisinga Vocational, Kilembe, Kuruhe, Kitholu, Margharita, Kibanzanga secondary schools.

Development Co-operation Ireland has also given a sh47m grant to the district to produce Lukonzo readers and dictionaries, facilitated schools inspection and procured desks for lower classes.

UNICEF also funds the Girl-child Education Movement while another development partner the Children in Uganda, which is to start Alternative Basic Primary Education to be piloted in Katwe-Kabatoro town council.