Rita Namwanje, a nutrition and food technology teacher at St Mary’s Kitende, says she has helped students in Senior Two to add value to food by using new technology.

“Technology is key because it will help students add value to food.

My students have learnt how to process various products from vegetable waste, such as sim sim biscuits, flour and soya beverages,” she says.

The students are selling their products and banking their money, which is later used to facilitate their activities. This process is teaching them to make more money.

In November this year, the Directorate of Industrial Training (DIT), will assess a total of 450 students from St Mary’s Kitende in various capabilities and later award them with certificates.

St Mary’s Kitende is one of the schools that has adopted the curriculum, and according to the school’s director, Lawrence Mulindwa, students are steadily moving in the right path. By next year, they will be ready for assessment, he says.

“We are monitoring and facilitating skills development so that our students are well-equipped with knowledge and skills that can be replicated outside the classroom, making them job creators,” Mulindwa says.

He is confident that the new curriculum will develop creative and exposed students, who are ready to be self-employed, and can support the Ugandan economy by creating jobs.

“If a student is assessed and he/she graduates with a certificate, even if they drop out of school, they can create employment for themselves,” Mulindwa says.

George Marie, a Senior Two student and his classmates, made pineapple and mango bread jam from mango and pineapple residue. Marie is optimistic that during his holidays, he is going to develop this craft further in order to make some money. “I have learned that I can do something for myself and make money, provide for myself and also teach my siblings,” Marie says.