Push for education excellence in Busoga: a new era in education

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OPINION

By Amb. Agnes Kadama Kalibbala

Pre-amble

Last week, from May 4 - 9, 2025, over 1,200 Headteachers from across the Busoga sub-region converged at VIVA college in Jinja district for a retooling conference under the Busoga Education Initiative and the Ministry of Education and Sports.

Background to the Busoga Education Initiative (BEI)

The Busoga Education Initiative (BEI) was established in 2017 to improve education quality in Busoga after realising that Busoga was among the worst-performing sub-regions, yet earlier on, Busoga was known to be a hub of the most educated Ugandans. The Kyabazinga of Busoga is the patron of BEI and is supported by the Board of directors, chaired by Amb Agnes Kadama Kalibbala. Since the inception of BEI, the performance of the worst-performing schools had improved, and Busoga was no longer among the worst-performing regions. However, in 2024, the performance dwindled, prompting BEI to organise a retooling conference to address the decline.

BEI's achievements and initiatives

Since its inception, BEI has implemented several initiatives, including:

• Organised over three retooling conferences for teachers and headteachers of Busoga primary schools, aimed at improving performance at PLE.
• BEI identifies two needy children who perform well at PLE annually and recommends VIVA College Jinja to award them a full scholarship to join secondary school at VIVA.
• In partnership with Obwa Kyabazinga, BEI provides scholarships to needy children in PLE, promoting education and reducing dropout rates.
• Scholastic material support: BEI and VIVA College provide materials and food to needy schools every June.
• Counselling sessions: BEI conducts counselling sessions with parents and students to address early pregnancy, early marriages, and child labour, which contribute to school dropouts.

Context and importance of the retooling conference

The context of the retooling conference was crucial given the poor performance of Busoga Region during 2024 at the PLE level. To address this challenge, BEI, in collaboration with MOES, decided to retool the head teachers with the necessary skills and knowledge to ensure improvement in PLE performance in the coming years. By equipping teachers with the required skills and management skills, BEI and MOES aim to enhance teaching and learning outcomes, promote a culture of academic excellence, and ultimately improve pupil performance and achievement.

The conference was attended by over 1200 headteachers and education managers from all the primary schools in Busoga, plus the education managers. Amb. Agnes Kadama Kalibbala, the current Chairperson of BEI and her board members, in collaboration with the Department of Basic Education in the Ministry of Education and Sports (MOES), played a key pivotal role in organising the conference.

Viva College in Jinja district provided the participants free accommodation, meals, stationery, and some basic literature.

Conference highlights 

• Kubeketelya, Chairperson of the Social Services Committee, graced the opening ceremony.
• The 2nd Deputy Prime Minister, Osman Noor, honoured the closing ceremony, promising continued partnership with BEI.
• Distinguished guests included the Assistant Commissioner of Basic Education, Mr Ikwap Robert and the Board members of VIVA College.

Key Presentations

Hon. Migereko - Keynote speaker: Emphasised the critical role of teachers and education institutions in shaping individuals, communities, and the country. Headteachers, therefore, need to appreciate that society and government depend on them to determine what calibre or quality of citizens the country will have, now and in the future, to realise desired transformation.

H.E. Dr Specioza  Wandira Kazibwe and Mr Moses Kyangwa of Busoga Health Forum emphasised that malaria eradication in Busoga cannot happen without the active involvement of schools and their leaders. Headteachers, as custodians of the largest assemblies of children and community influencers, are uniquely positioned to lead the fight against Malaria.

As part of the session, a random Test and Treat demonstration was conducted among 300 participants. The findings were eye-opening as 37 individuals tested positive for Malaria, yet all of them showed no symptoms. This concludes that an asymptomatic teacher becomes an unseen source of infection. This silent transmission cycle continues unabated in communities with limited indoor residual spraying and consistent net usage.

Prof. Balunywa: Highlighted the Importance of effective leadership in achieving good performance.

Dr Hon. Rosemary Seninde emphasised the Importance of financial inclusion in the school timetable to inspire headteachers to develop sustainable financial products and strategies.

Amb. Agnes Kadama Kalibbala: Emphasised the need for headteachers to develop school feeding projects to motivate learners. She committed BEI to hold annual retooling conferences with VIVA College to review Busoga's education performance and make Busoga shine again.

URA Technical team: Focused on taxation policies relevant to schools.

Technical Facilitators from Bishop Willis Technical Institute: Provided technical input, namely, effective leadership and teamwork, Curriculum management and supervision, staff motivation and management systems, on the implementation of the new curriculum, and other technical issues on effective teaching.

Key Outputs of the conference

1. Headteachers received new curriculum instruction books and guidelines on establishing School Management committees.
2. A WhatsApp group was established for future communication.
3. Headteachers are committed to improving PLE performance.
4. A sample of 300 Head teachers was screened, and 37 head teachers were infected with Malaria, although they felt okay.

Resolutions

The following resolutions were adopted:

1. Busoga Schools are committed to improving their performance in the forthcoming PLE results, and never to be amongst the worst-performing sub-regions.
2. Headteachers are to convey the outcome of the conference to the respective teachers by May 17, 2025.
3. The headteachers should emphasise scheming and lesson noting during holidays.
4. BEI/VIVA to organise Annual retooling conference for teachers.
5. Headteachers to establish school feeding programs.
6. Head teachers are to work on reducing teacher absenteeism.
7. Equip teachers with new curriculum guidelines through CPES at the zonal level.
8. Rewarding the best teacher annually.
9. Benchmarking with the best-performing school.
10. School management committees to be given ample induction.
11. BEI and MOES to provide continuous support and mentoring of headteachers and teachers.
12. BEI and the Busoga Health Forum (BHF) will meet soon to discuss collaboration.
13. BEI and MOES will regularly continue monitoring and evaluating PLE performance in Busoga.

Acknowledgments

The BEI and MOES organisers appreciate the support of:

1. VIVA College for providing free accommodation and meals for 1,500 headteachers and Education Managers of Primary schools in Busoga.
2. The Ministry of Education and Sports for mobilising the participants.

• The Education Managers, namely District Education Officers and District Inspectors of Schools.

1. The participation of various Facilitators.
2. The BEI volunteers, namely, Dr Rose Badaza and Dr Edith Basalirwa.
3. All participants.

Key factors for success

Our success at BEI will depend on several crucial factors, including:

1. Commitment of teachers: Dedicated and passionate educators.
2. Parental involvement: Supportive parents who value education.
3. Learner seriousness: Students' willingness to learn and grow.
4. Stakeholder goodwill: Positive relationships with key stakeholders.
5. Resource mobilisation: Ability to secure necessary resources.

Well wishes and support

We kindly request well-wishers to support BEI's cause by:

1. Spreading the word: Sharing information about BEI's mission.
2. Donating resources: Contributing financially or in-kind.
3. Volunteering time: Sharing expertise or skills.
4. Partnering with us: Collaborating to achieve common goals.

Your support will help BEI make a meaningful impact in the lives of our students and community.

Conclusion

The retooling conference has laid a solid foundation for Busoga's resurgence in education. With renewed commitment and collaborative efforts, Busoga is poised to shine again, producing high-quality citizens who will drive transformation and development in the region and the country at large.