Education must go beyond the acquisition of knowledge to fostering creativity, says Mrs Museveni

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Education must go beyond the acquisition of knowledge to fostering creativity, productivity and problem-solving, says Mrs Janet Museveni, the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports.

The minister gave the advice earlier Friday (March 13) while releasing the 2025 Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) Examination Results.

The event, which attracted several stakeholders, including the ministers of State (Dr. JC Muyingo (higher education) and Dr Joyce Moriku Kaducu (Primary Education), plus   Peter Ogwang (Sports), took place at State House Nakasero, Kampala.

Emphasing the importance of the Competency-Based curriculum, Mrs Museveni said, "Education must not be about acquisition of knowledge per se, but about how knowledge helps us to be creative, productive and able to find solutions to the problems in our communities and country. That is the reason why Government, through the Ministry of Education and Sports, has embarked on a fundamental review of the curriculum."

The First Lady also called upon parents and guardians to step into their God-given role and remain actively involved in their children’s lives, adding that education is a shared responsibility whose foundation is built within the family.

According to the Uganda National Examinations Board, a total of 166,400 candidates, including 72,764 females, registered for the 2025 UACE examinations across 2,452 centres.

This reflected a significant 17.2% increase from 2024. Of these, (43.7%) and 93,636 were male (56.3%).

UNEB revealed that 165,172 candidates actually sat the exams.

The release results indicate that   113,291 candidates (68.6%) qualify for university admission.

Below is the Statement by Mrs Janet Museveni, the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports.

Today, we are here to release the last in the series of examinations that UNEB is mandated by law to administer every year- the Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education. Therefore, we must give all the glory to God, for He alone has helped us this far.

I applaud the Board and Staff of UNEB for this achievement, because UNEB has, indeed, successfully discharged its mandate to the expectations of the nation, and on time, despite the large increases in candidature.

We thank God for 1,402,434 of our children who completed the three levels of our basic and secondary education. This is an increase of 107,703 (8.3 per cent) from 2024. We also acknowledge with gratitude the decrease in drop-out rates in all three examinations.

I am pleased to note the rapid increase in candidature at the UACE examination level, over the last three years. In 2023, the candidates who sat for the examination were 109,486. The number has gone up very significantly from 140,888 in 2024 to 165,175; an increase of 55,686 (50.9 per cent). This means that more of our learners are transitioning to tertiary levels of our education system.

The Executive Director’s Statement indicates that entries for Sciences and Mathematics have been rising. While I fully recognise the invaluable role of the Humanities in shaping societal morals, inculcating business and fostering an entrepreneurial spirit, promoting cultural awareness and nationalism, I believe, as I am sure you all do, that STEM subjects are the bedrock for industrial development.

The Statement further shows an increase of over 21,000 more candidates who have qualified for university places compared to the previous year.

I am confident that we have sufficient places in our tertiary institutions, both public and private, to absorb these learners. What our young people appear not to appreciate are the opportunities available in our technical and vocational institutions. Products of these institutions are readily taken up by industries or are able to create jobs by themselves. So, I continue to encourage them to consider that career path. The rewards are visible.

I am pleased to note the good performance by girls, and I congratulate them on this remarkable achievement. I am particularly impressed by the steady increase in the number of girls taking on science subjects, and that they have done very well. This demonstrates that there is nothing mysterious about Mathematics and Sciences. What we now need is more encouragement and the presence of role models.

Parents and guardians, I call upon you to intentionally step into your God-given role. Please be present and actively involved in your children’s lives. May you never forget that education is a shared responsibility, and its foundation is built within the family. With love, support and a positive family environment, you play a key role in nurturing your children to lead fulfilling lives and to value education.

From the released Statement, comments on the work of candidates indicate that they do not relate the knowledge acquired to real-life situations in their communities.

Education must not be about acquisition of knowledge per se, but about how knowledge helps us to be creative, productive and able to find solutions to the problems in our communities and country. That is the reason why Government, through the Ministry of Education and Sports, has embarked on a fundamental review of the curriculum. We recently heard from the study by UNEB, the exciting changes we are seeing in the behaviour of our children, who have gone through the Lower Secondary Competency-Based curriculum.

The Ministry of Education and Sports, through the National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC), has embarked on reforming the UACE curriculum. Currently, we have an aligned curriculum being implemented, where excess and unnecessary content has been removed, and duplication of information across subject areas has also been addressed.

Furthermore, the teaching approaches have been aligned to the approaches at UCE, so as to provide a smooth transition from the UCE.

NCDC will now move steadily ahead to complete the reform of the UACE curriculum, and when this is completed, I expect that the exciting story we heard at UCE will also be told at UACE.

This will require concerted efforts by the Ministry’s department responsible for teacher training, and the Agencies, NCDC and UNEB, to ensure adequate preparation of teachers to appropriately deliver the curriculum.

The implementation of the UCE curriculum has been a significant learning experience. With the lessons learned, we are now equipped to replicate effective practices and to mitigate the risks.

I congratulate the candidates who have performed well. I encourage the learners who may not be satisfied with their results to use the opportunity you have to try again, or to consider other education pathways. The most important thing is to keep yourselves safe, remain positive and not to lose hope in your ability to succeed and have a productive future.

I thank the team at the Ministry of Education and Sports for supporting schools in the implementation of the curriculum. My appreciation also goes to all our foot soldiers, the teachers, especially those who prepared the candidates. Your commitment and consistent dedication to educating our children is truly commendable.

I am grateful to our parents and guardians who provided the support the candidates needed through this cycle. I congratulate the Chairperson and the Board Members, the Executive Director and Staff of UNEB on a job well done. I thank the security forces and all those who supported UNEB at the different stages of the examination process.