At least 40 adult learners are sitting for this year’s Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) examinations at Luzira Senior Secondary School in Luzira, Kampala. 

George William Kavuma, the coordinator of programmes at the school, told New Vision that out of the 290 senior six candidates this year, the 40 adult learners that are all over 25 years of age, are ready to do their papers. 

“We are very proud to see our learners who have been going through adult education finally sit for their Senior Six exams. Of course it has not been easy for them but we are sure that they will excel even more than these younger ones,” he said.

“The biggest number of this group are self-employed and most of them work in supermarkets, counsellors, and primary teachers, however, we also have a few who work with Uganda Prisons and Uganda People’s Defense Forces,” Kavuma noted. 

He added that the adult learners usually study from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm, unlike the other learners who start classes by 8:00 am, noting that they are usually busy throughout the day. 

The Director of Studies at the school, Vincent Odong, said that as a government-aided school, the institution has not faced any issues of school fees defaulters prior to the examinations as many of them had already completed their meal fees and are ready to go. 

“We have 290 candidates sitting for the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education examinations this year, and very hopeful that this period will be a success. We have made sure that we create an enabling environment for the candidates to see that they adhere to preventive measures of the Ebola Virus Disease,” he added. 

Odong noted that there is a washing point stationed at every entrance to the examination rooms and this is to ensure that the candidates wash their hands and observe the standard operating procedures of the health ministry. 

UACE examinations kicked off Monday with economics and chemistry practicals and are expected to end on December 9.

A total of 97,890 candidates registered to sit for the exams from 2,255 centres.