Govt boosts free primary, secondary education   By Joel Ogwang   The Government is slowly, but steadily prioritising secondary education to create a critical mass of Ugandans who will fast-track the country’s development in future. Augustus Nuwagaba, an international development consultant, says this is long overdue, since there are many pupils who have failed to cross the Primary Seven (P7) bridge to secondary level. Primary Seven, he says, is too low for one to offer a positive contribution to national development. “The least grade every Ugandan should attain is Senior Four,” he says. “But the aim should be to have as many university graduates as possible.” To meet the high demand for secondary education, the Government is designing programmes to absorb the surplus Universal Primary Education (UPE) products.   UPE launched Concerned by the high rate of primary school drop-out largely due to failure by parents to meet education costs, the Government introduced free primary education (UPE) in 1997. To critics, UPE was yet another political gimmick to canvas votes for the ruling NRM Government. It was also considered a venture too expensive to undertake, with the Government doomed to succumb to the gravitational force brought by the exorbitant cost of running the scheme. However, the Government stood its ground and went ahead with the programme. But the fruits of the first year were encouraging. There was instant dramatic turn-around, with enrolment more than doubling from 2.5 million to 6.5 million. This figure has steadily grown over the years to over seven million pupils currently. To ensure continuity from primary to secondary levels, the Government, in 2007, unveiled the Universal Post-Primary Education and Training (UPPET) scheme. Consequently, Senior One enrolment rose by 33% between 2006 and 2007. In 2009, USE was rolled out to cover Senior Four, completing the cycle for lower secondary education. The scheme is restricted to students who score between Four to 28 aggregates in their Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE). Apparently, the Government pays sh47,000 per student per term to private schools, with sh41,000 being paid per student in Government schools. A total of 516,890 pupils sat PLE in 2009, the highest recorded over the years. Enrolment under the free secondary education (USE) was equally high with more than 579,734 students joining.   Massive investment schemes With UPE thriving, the number of students joining USE is overwhelming, hence the need for frugal planning and resource allocation. In this vein, the Government sought a $230m (sh444b) grant from the World Bank and $80m from the African Development Bank to improve USE infrastructure countrywide. In her maiden speech in June 2009, the finance minister, Syda Bbumba, highlighted some of the projects to be undertaken. These include: Building of 6,200 new classrooms in over 500 schools Building 2,300 five-stance latrines Construction of 405 multipurpose science rooms Construction of 144 libraries 1, 900 half-built classrooms to be completed in 400 schools Buy 1.7 million textbooks and 6,300 science kits for both government and private schools. Expand 12 schools and construct 15 new ones Construct 450 laboratories, 2,600 libraries and 41 teachers’ houses over three years, starting March 2010-2012. Rehabilitate 42 traditional schools and two business technical vocational institutes.   Over sh21.7b in School facilities Grant allocation will be spent on latrine construction to improve sanitation, a ‘black-spot’ in schools, with sh2.5b earmarked for inspection. Train 10,000 teachers annually through the 45 primary teachers colleges and five public varsities. All the above projects are intended to promote efficiency in the delivery of post-primary education. They will be implemented between March 2010-2012. The funding will also benefit private secondary schools that partnered with the Government to implement USE.   Other reforms To boost the spirit of patriotism, the Government plans to spend sh3.5b on the formation of patriotism clubs in 5,000 secondary schools countrywide. The resident’s Office, in collaboration with the education ministry, will oversee the implementation of this project. The Government transferred 70 head teachers and 300 teachers in government-aided secondary schools. This followed a string of reshuffles, with 100 head teachers and 500 teachers transferred in December 2007. The secondary curriculum was reviewed, reducing examinable subjects from 42 to 18. Other reforms include changing students’ national examining system, reducing examinable subjects, re-writing learning materials as well as changing the age at which students make career choices.   More students join university In February 2009, the Uganda National Examinations Board released results of the 2008 Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE). A total of 57,510 students qualified for university enrolment, while 27,000 failed. Of the 89,921 candidates who sat UACE, 65% got principal passes, up from 63.7% in 2007. Kamuli, previously considered weak, surprised many by topping the list of districts that recorded the highest intake of students on the government sponsorship scheme in public universities. Out of the 2,562 admissions, 354 (14%)went to Kamuli. Wakiso followed with 262 (10.2%), while Moroto emerged third with 170 students (6.6%). Others are: Busia (5.4%), Rukungiri (4.8%), Kabale (3.1%), Nakasongola (2.8%), Palisa and Kaberamaido (2.5%) and Kyenjojo (3.1%). At university level, the number of universities has increased from one public university in 1990 to five today, with over 20 private universities. University enrollment has also increased from 6,000 to over 100,000 over the same period, according to the 2008 figures from the Uganda Bureau of Statistics   Challenges USE has recorded tremendous success, unlike what critics predicted. More achievements are expected this year. However, the scheme is still riddled with scam involving misuse of funds, ghost students and teachers, squeaky and irregular teacher transfers as well as cheating of exams. The rampant fire outbreaks in schools paint a bad image. Policy-makers and the Police should put more efforts towards combating the vice. Absenteeism and absconding from schools by both teachers and students is still common, leading to wastage of resources.