Strikes, Ghosts, Missing Funds Marred The Year

Jan 03, 2004

THE year began badly for the country’s highest institution of learning. Makerere University failed to re-open on time because of budgetary constraints.

By Fortunate Ahimbisibwe
THE year began badly for the country’s highest institution of learning. Makerere University failed to re-open on time because of budgetary constraints. A similar fate hit the Nakawa based Business School towards the end of the year.
It was not by surprise therefore that both Makerere and MUBS experienced violent strikes throughout the year.
As if it was a bad precedent, the issue of underfunding in most educational institutions dogged the sector and subsequent eruption of violent strikes in many institutions of learning.
With a couple of cases of flouted guidelines and misappropriation of funds, the education sector has limped to the end of the year.
The issue of transition from primary to secondary which is still very low, the question of sustainability of UPE, funding and misappropriation of funds, procurement related corruption and instability have continued to retard government efforts.
On a good note, however, the country has progressed in achieving the international goal of Education For All (EFA) by 2015 although the challenges arising have proven exceptionally grave.
Universal Primary Education (UPE), the seven-year-old programme whose chief flag bearer is President Yoweri Museveni, has continued to expand with more than seven million children massively joining and returning to school.
It was early last year that the President declared that UPE was for all, not the earlier maximum of four children per family. The President’s brainchild of HIV/AIDS education in the primary schools kicked off at the beginning of the year and is expected to make a big contribution in the fight against the scourge.
Museveni lifted the limit and allowed all interested persons of school going age to begin primary school. This opened the doors even for the 18-year-old and non Ugandans. Rwandese, Kenyans and Tanzanians have all benefited from Uganda’s success story.
With such a accomplishment registered, the Education Funding Agencies (EFAG) expanded their efforts and doubled their funding to the sector.
When the stakeholders met in June and November for the Education Sector Review workshops, the satisfied participants and funding agencies who had come to review the performance declared that “the ministry had met most if not all the goals.”
In the Aide Memoire, the delegates said that the education sector should now focus on monitoring and maintenance. They declared it a successful year. But their conclusion can be subjected to debate.
Education Ministers, Khiddu Makubuya, who was bundled in a car boot at the beginning of the year had a reason to smile: he walked away a happy man because his ministry had achieved most of the targets set for the year 2003.
However, available facts on the ground, later found out that all is not so well as assumed. Some districts had not complied with the School Facilities Grants (SFG) guidelines.
About sh125b meant for building classrooms and toilets was not put to the right use. It was found out that 63% of the facilities built will not last their estimated life span. Some roofs were already leaking, walls cracked and incomplete latrines less than three years after the structures were put up.
This has been feared as a potential factor that can down play government efforts and EFAG, which contributes half of the budget.
The issue of extra fees and lunch provision at school became contentious especially in Kampala. President Museveni ordered that no school authorities should ask for extra fees because this would scare away some children. The decision was, however, rescinded because the schools argued that they could not sustain the children at school without food.
The issue of over 100,000 students not being able to join secondary schooling has become an international concern.
Most children are not able to go to this level, not because they failed but because there are no places for them even when they passed the exams. Only 160,000 out of about 270,000 who qualified will join secondary level leaving hundreds of students stranded.

Although the bigger part of the country is painstakingly making progress, the issue of the northern insurgency has crippled education in the northern region. Most schools in the region have been displaced forcing children out of school which threatens the future of this region that has been impoverished by the 17-year-old rebellion.
The LRA has continued their evil abductions of innocent students. Perhaps, the abduction of 80 Lwala Secondary School girls in June was the tragedy of the year. But thanks to government efforts to end the war, the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) has intensified pressure on the rebels and the President has assured the suffering people that the war will soon come to an end.
While the students and the entire population was suffering at the hands of villain Kony and his bandits, some deceitful district officials were messing up with government funds meant for the teachers in the war torn region. Some pay cheques meant for teachers in Gulu were intercepted in Arua.
The dilemma of ‘ghosts’ has now spread from the UPDF to the Ministry of Education. The ministry unearthed close to over 900 non-existent teachers who were receiving salaries.
While the ghost teachers are being unknowingly paid, 7,000 vacancies have not been filled up because government has no money to recruit the teachers.
As a strategy for ensuring quality education through out all parts of the country, the ministry this year transferred over 800 teachers. Many teachers in the traditional powerful schools were sent to the countryside, a move that was welcomed by the less privileged schools.
But while the education authorities are working hard towards EFA, the Reading Association of Uganda (RAU) declared that 40% of Ugandans are still illiterate. If this percentage of Ugandans can not read and write, there is still a long way to go.
It was another year down the road without the much needed university quota system. Higher education officials said that they were still holding consultations.
Students were admitted on the usual merit system although several MPs had demanded that the slots should be shared out equally.
But the state of affairs at tertiary was largely not the best. The major universities were struck by problems of underfunding that led to strikes.
At Makerere University and MUBS the students took to the streets because of living out allowances. In a counter offensive to halt the strike, the Police fired live bullets and injured one female students.

Even the private sector was not the best, students at Kampala International University (KIU) also had a share of their indiscipline. They also held a strike that led to the suspension of about 12 students.
But at least one step was made forward, Makerere university finally got a chancellor after two years of waiting. Prof. Apollo Nsibambi was appointed as the first Vice Chancellor who is not a head of state.
All in all, the sector did well. Most of the targets set for the year were met. UPE enrolment did not drop drastically. Even rural schools have now got modern classrooms, furniture and teachers’ houses.
Ends

(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});