Search Page

The Uganda government was last evening left searching for alternative sources of funding following the withdrawal of support to the education sector by one of its key donors. The Dutch government announced it was withdrawing funding to a tune of nearly Shs50b (14 million Euro), citing concerns over persistent corruption, poor public financial management and poor standards.

The Ministry of Education has said it is overwhelmed by the number of teachers who gained employment using forged documents. The Director of Basic Education said that a survey found that all districts in Eastern Uganda have several cases of forgeries. The same has been discovered in the Central region as investigations continue in other parts of the country.

In the past, teachers were heroes and their profession was highly respected. But over the years, things have changed and the profession has become the last career resort for many students. The nation needs to go back to the drawing board in the training and recruitment of teachers, putting emphasis on ethics and professionalism.

A survey conducted by Transparency International in Ghana, Madagascar, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Uganda covered different actors in the education system. The reports highlight the lack of budget information in schools and call for strengthened regulation and accountability, as well as greater involvement of school communities and parents. 

Makerere University has established a new policy that provides for the sacking of lecturers over drunkenness, writes Francis Kagolo for The New Vision. The policy, which seeks to boost academic standards, also requires lecturers to teach for a minimum of 10 hours a week and provide evidence that they carry out research.

In line with the second MDG of achieving universal primary education by ensuring that all girls and boys complete a full course of primary schooling, moral values and ethics need to be inducted in the education system aside practical skills. Though some people have argued that corruption is as old as mankind, it is mankind that can avert the situation through structuring curricular whose aim should be producing morally upright citizens who abhor corruption.

Two of the most prestigious high school institutions are been blame of sending home earlier the children in order to save substantial utilities and teacher's allowances, of detaining children at school in holydays and of asking parents to pay fees twice in the same term.