Schools hike fees amid rising inflation

Vicky Wandawa and team

The closing of schools for third term holidays has left parents wondering whether their children will continue studies in the preferred schools or change and join new ones. Most schools have increased fees, with those in the central region increasing by the widest margins.

The school heads blame it on rising commodity prices as well as the electricity crisis, arguing that with the frequent night power cuts, they are forced to buy fuel for the generators to enable students to revise. 

They also cited the need to better teachers’ pay so that they can also meet the skyrocketing needs. 

The inflation rate in the country stood at 29% as of November, attributed mainly to rising prices of food, fuel and electricity. 

However, the central bank recently announced that it expects the inflation to peak soon before declining in 2012.

A parent with children at Kampala Parents School, says the fees were increased from sh800,000 to sh1m per term, starting next year. 

Likewise, a parent with children at St. Peters Naalya in Wakiso district said the schools fees had been increased to sh691,000 up from about sh620,000, which was paid in the just-concluded term.

A St. Mary's College, Kisubi student gets a hand from a gentleman during the school's opening of the term.

However, some schools had already raised their school fees in second term. Greenhill Academy is one such school and according to an administrator at the school, this hike led to an increase in teachers’ salaries in October.

Likewise, Donald Bategeka, the director of Mandela Secondary School in Hoima, said they increased fees because of the need to better teachers’ pay and help them cope with the current inflation. 

Nonetheless, the increment would not help the teachers much because it does not match the rate of inflation.

“We increased by sh50,000 across the board, 13.5% at A’level and 12.5% at O’level, which is below the inflation rate. But in reality, our fees are not high compared to the current purchasing power.”

Besides increasing the fees to increase teacher’s pay, the head teachers are citing operational costs as a result of inflation.

“The cost of everything has risen. We have several activities that require money such as the computer laboratory and school vans. Water and electricity tariffs have all increased. Recently, we got a water bill of sh1m,” said Sarah Namuwaya, the headmistress of Victoria Nile Primary in Jinja.

Similarly, George Kulaba, the headmaster of Spire Road Primary School, said in the schools’ old budget, sugar was at sh2,600. But when management met to make another budget recently, it had tripled. He also said a bunch of matooke had increased from sh8,000 to sh20,000.

 “Therefore, we had to make some increment in school fees since it is the only source of income to the school. But it was a resolution made by stakeholders, including parents, for the proper running of the school,” he said.

Parents speak out

As a result of the increments, some of Parents who talked to Saturday Vision said they would move their children to more affordable schools.

“We will have to move our children from private schools to USE schools because we cannot cope with the amount of money charged by most secondary schools,” said Yolam Junjura, a parent of two. 

“I am being forced to revise my budget and forego other needs. I have even reduced on the meals in order to save money for fees. I will also reduce on their pocket money and scholastic materials,” he said.

While Junjura will still afford sending his children to school after making sacrifices, Francisca Kaahwa, 51, a resident of Kijungu cell in Hoima municipality and a single mother says her son, who did his O’level this year, will have to stop schooling because she cannot afford fees anymore.

“The only option left for him is to look for employment because I cannot afford to pay the money we are being asked for,” she said.

Jimmy Obbo, a parent in Jinja, says whereas the fees increment will have a financial implication on parents, it is justifiable to make school run smoothly.

“As long as parents consented to the plan, for instance, in a Parents Teacher association (PTA) meeting of the school, then it is okay. For instance, in a boarding school where a child has to be fed, given medical care and other basics, you cannot operate without increasing fees when faced with this inflation,” Obbo says.

“Failure by schools to provide students with necessities, due to lack of funds will only lead to strikes and destruction of property. Parents need to adjust to cope with the situation,” he adds.

St. Lawrence students share a light moment before parting ways on closing day of the school.

A parent with a child at Bukalasa Seminary, who preferred anonymity, gives an analysis. “For 2012, the school fees is going to be sh640,000. We have had an increment of sh480,000 over the nine-year period since 2002 and an average increment of sh54,000 per year.”

He explains that if a parent with a son in Bukalasa Seminary worked with an organisation, whose annual salary incremental was 5% and his salary was say sh250,000 in 2002, his salary would be increased by only sh12,500 per year. So, where this parent has to deal with a sh486,000  fees increase per year, he only has a sh150,000 pay rise in the same period with which to work.

“How does this parent finance the difference of sh336,000? I think the public accounts committees in the districts, Parliament and other investigative bodies still have a lot of work to do,” the concerned parent explains.

In St. Joseph’s College Layibi, the head teacher, Tom Otim, said fees increment was an item in the agenda of a meeting scheduled for December 16.

“Currently, A’level students pay sh353,000 per term, while the O’level students pay sh312,000. But this figure is going to be revised next Friday when we meet with the PTA executive. I am under pressure from teachers and other non-teaching staff to increase wages,” he said.

In Tororo, Rock High School was due to raise fees from sh105,000 to sh130,000, pending approval from the board and government. 

At Lubiri secondary school, the students have been paying sh288, 000 but will pay an additional sh62,000 while at Jinja Secondary School, the fees have been increased from sh148,000 to sh158,000. Students joining the school have been paying sh170, 000 but will pay an additional sh10, 000 starting next year. 

No change

But unlike the others, Bright Valley Primary School, a private school in Gulu, did not make any changes. 

The School’s director, Lovis Odokonyero, said much as they were stung by the current food prices and general inflation, the condition of the parents who send their children to this school forced them to leave the fees unchanged.

“Most of our parents are just resettling after several years of civil war and we decided to take the burden and accept a reduction in our profit margin. For that matter, pupils in the boarding section will continue to pay sh396,000, while day scholars will remain at sh210,000,” said Odokonyero.

In Wakiso, Uganda Martrys SS Namugongo had not increased its school fees. An administrator at the school said that students paid sh750,000 last term and the same amount of money would be paid for first term 2012.

City Parents and Silver Spoon School as well remained at sh580,000 and sh593,000 respectively. 

Even Kabojja Junior School, which has been charging sh650,000 will charge the same next year.

USE suffering

The schools which are implementing the Universal Secondary Education (USE) programme want the government to increase the financial allocation to them because with inflation, the funds have become inadequate to cover operation overheads.

Josephat Tumwesigye, the chairperson of the National Association of Private USE schools said, “Inflation has been hitting us and since 2007, the government has not increased the money to private USE schools even by a dot. Apart from a consignment of books, we have not received any other support.”

President Yoweri Museveni mingles with Patriotic Club members of Mengo Senior Secondary school earlier this year.

Tumwesigye said the sh47,000 given to private secondary schools implementing the USE programme is too little to cover all operational costs and it is always released very late. 

He gave a scenario of a private USE school with 500 students and a teaching staff of 20, which will receive sh23m from government per term. 

However, the money will go towards payment of teachers’ salaries amounting to sh24m per team minus teaching aids such as chalk and stationery.

“For effective teaching, you need a bare minimum of 20 teachers. And going by a teacher-student ratio of 1 teacher to 80 students, a teacher will be paid sh300, 000 per month. And this translates to sh6m per month for 20 teachers and sh24m for a full term of four months,” Tumwesigye said.

But Aggrey Kibenge, the spokesperson of the ministry of education and sports said, “The ministry entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with these private service providers and it provides a mechanism through which this matter can be discussed. I encourage them to take advantage of this.”

Additional reporting by Robert Atuhairwe, Raymond Baguma, David Labeja, Patrick Okino, Charles  Kakamwa, Fred Turyakira and Moses Nampala