Tears, hunger, and tragedy: Parents demand action after deadly school trip

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Their voices trembled with worry, their faces drawn tight with concern. Parents across Uganda are speaking out after a tragic school trip ended in the deaths of two pupils and left 11 others injured. 

Members of Parliament have joined the chorus, calling for urgent regulation of school excursions in primary and secondary schools, citing mounting reports of negligence, exploitation and trauma.

Ruth Asiimwe, a mother in Mukono district, recounted with visible distress how she recently encountered a group of schoolchildren, dusty, tired, and visibly hungry, at a local hotel during lunch hour. The pupils, she claimed, had been driven all the way from Entebbe, only to be served a modest meal of rice and meat after paying a steep sh700,000 for the trip. 

"Some of them were crying from hunger. The hotel staff were not paying attention to them but to other customers, and out of pity, I gave my own food to one of the children,” Asiimwe said. “What are they learning from such trips, how to suffer?”

Peter Onek, another parent, suggested that school trips should be limited to older pupils from Primary Six onwards and that charges should be reasonable and transparent. Other parents voiced similar frustrations, pointing to poor transport standards and safety lapses. Paul Kamya, a father, warned that many schools hire vehicles in dangerous mechanical condition. “There should be clear regulations on the type and condition of vehicles used for school trips and a thorough vetting of drivers,” he said.

David Kugonza, a parent, recalled a terrifying incident in which a school bus carrying his son to Murchison Falls National Park caught fire mid-journey. “Instead of cancelling the trip, the school simply found another bus and continued,” Kugonza said. “After that experience, I will never allow my child to go on long-distance trips again.”

Other parents criticised the financial exploitation surrounding these excursions. Doreen Ayebale acknowledged the value of educational trips but said regulation is urgently needed to curb excesses. Juliet Kitonsa shared how a school asked parents to pay sh60,000 for a school party, where each child received a slice of cake and minimal playtime on rented bouncy castles. “It was not worth the money,” she said.

These concerns have come into sharper focus following a tragic accident on Saturday, August 2, 2025, on Mityana road, where two pupils from Daystar Junior School in Makindye Division died while returning from a trip to Kasese district. Eleven others were seriously injured.

Raising the matter on the floor of Parliament on August 5, 2025, Kalungu West County MP Joseph Ssewungu demanded answers from the Ministry of Education and Sports over the lax oversight of such excursions.

“The ministry must explain how school trips are planned, including who approves them, what age groups are involved, the time of travel and safety procedures,” Ssewungu said. “It is unthinkable that nursery children would be taken from Kampala to Kasese. That is a reckless journey even for adults.”

Ssewungu, a former teacher himself, said subjecting very young children to such travel was “unprecedented and irresponsible.” According to police reports, the bus driver is believed to have fallen asleep, causing the fatal crash.

Ssewungu questioned the financial burden these trips place on families. “Some parents are being charged more for a trip than they pay in tuition fees, and the children do not even eat properly during the journey,” he said.

Speaker of Parliament Anita Among echoed the concerns and warned of growing inequality and possible exploitation. “I have seen children transported in lorries. At least these ones were in a bus,” she said. “But we must ask: when trips go overseas, what happens to children whose parents cannot afford it? Aren’t we promoting discrimination and extortion?”

Responding on behalf of government, industry state minister David Bahati said the Ministry of Education would soon respond. “We will forward these concerns, and the Minister of Education and Sports will make a statement in the course of next week,” he told Parliament.

As more parents demand answers and accountability, the spotlight now turns to the Ministry of Education to ensure school trips are safe, meaningful and fair for every child.