Girls outnumber boys but trail in key 2025 PLE performance areas

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The release of the 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations results has highlighted persistent gender performance gaps, according to the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB).

UNEB data shows that girls continued to outnumber boys among candidates who sat the examinations.

A total of 428,324 candidates representing 52.4% were girls, while 389,469 representing 47.6% were boys.

Despite their lower numbers, boys performed better than girls up to Credit Four, UNEB executive director Dan Odongo said during the release of the results on January 30, 2026, at State House, Nakasero, in Kampala.

“Fewer boys are in the lower grades of seven and eight, and the fail grade of nine.”

Odongo said girls performed better in English, a trend he described as consistent over time.

In Integrated Science, boys performed slightly better than girls, while in Social Studies with Religious Education, boys also had a marginal advantage.

More boys passed in Division One, with 48,220 candidates representing 12.54%, compared to 43,770 girls representing 10.35%.

In Division Two, however, girls accounted for 201,655 candidates, while boys were 186,638.

More special needs candidates

UNEB also reported an increase in the number of candidates with special needs who registered for the examinations in 2025.

A total of 3,636 special needs candidates were registered, compared to 3,328 in 2024, representing an increase of 308 candidates.

“The number of SNE [Special Needs Education] candidates continues to increase annually due to the awareness that has been created in the schools by UNEB, and the education ministry. In this group, female candidates constitute 48.3% while 51.7% are males,” Odongo said.

The special needs candidates included learners with physical disabilities, dyslexia, hearing impairment and visual impairment.