Parents in Kalangala district have been advised to provide only necessities in terms of school needs so that children can embark on education after the opening up of schools today (February 06). 

The appeal has been made by school directors and headteachers after registration of a low turn-up of pupils and students in island schools. 

At Kibanga Primary School, only 100 pupils have turned up out of the expected 867 pupils. Bumangi PrimarySchool got 20 out of 365, while in other schools, students have not turned up at all. 

Some of the pupils who turned up at Kibanga Primary School.

Lawrence Lwera, the director of Bridge of Hope Nursery and Primary School, said parents should just buy books and pens instead of leaving their children seated at home.

Parents, including Olivia Namawejje and Mike Sembuusi, cited high costs of requirements as a hindrance for some parents’ failure to bring back their children to school on time. 

Across all Kalangala schools, the turn-up is low though teachers have hope that by the end of this week, most of the pupils will be back in school.