School owners contest proposal to regulate fees, salaries

A section of private school owners and school heads, are against government's proposal to regulate both school fees and teachers' salaries.

Much as they support the idea to have contracts for all staff at private schools, the school owners and heads argue that it will be hard to implement a proposed salary structure similar to that in government schools.

Under the proposed National Policy on Private Provision of Education in Uganda, the education ministry will regulate salaries of teachers at private schools.

The proposed policy will require that all private school teachers sign contracts and clear terms on payment, and other benefi ts with the employers.

Private education institutions will be required to have a salary scale and a wage ceiling below which a teacher will not be paid.

However, Lawrence Muwonge, the headteacher of Buddo Senior Secondary School, said such policies are regressive and that they will cripple many schools.

He said all private schools pay according to what they get from students and that, therefore, it will be hard to implement a salary structure.

Unlike teachers in government aided-schools who have a central source of funds for their salaries, he said private ones are self-sustaining and that they work within their budget to pay all the bills.

"It is expensive to run a private school that explains why most schools prefer part-time teachers. Much as I back the idea of having contracts, the proposed policy shouldn't make it mandatory to have a structure," he said.

He added: "For instance, if you say the entry point for a primary school teacher is sh500,000 per month, a number of schools won't be able to pay this because we charge differently. There are private schools charging less than sh100,000 as school fees and there are the high-end ones charging in millions. How  will the salary structure with such huge disparities work?" Muwonge  asked.

Joseph  Kiggundu, the chairperson of Uganda National Association of Private Schools and Institutions, also backed the idea of signing contracts with teachers but disagreed on a salary scale.

More voices

Kiggundu, who is also the director of King's schools in Kabowa, a Kampala city suburb, said the proposed policy should focus on how the government will support struggling private institutions.

Mike Kironde, the director of Jana Schools, operating in Kampala and Luwero, said the proposed policy touches every private player in education and it should be taken cautiously.

"We are having a meeting regarding the proposed policy. We will then write to the ministry to the inform them on our stand," he said.

School fees

Regarding school fees, the stakeholders noted that school fees is determined by forces of demand and supply, services provided and other tax requirements by the government.

Currently, each private school pays local service tax to the respective local government, property tax, withholding tax and income tax, among others.

In addition, the school proprietors are required to remit 30% of their annual profi t, plus a monthly 60% withholding tax to the Uganda Revenue Authority (URA).

In 2007, the Government had scrapped the 30% income tax on private schools temporarily, but it was reinstated in 2015.

Private schools also have to withhold 6% of monthly payments exceeding sh1m to suppliers of things, like fuel, chalk, fi rewood, food and remit it to URA.

According to the URA online portal, the institution also taxes profi ts (chargeable income) earned by private schools after deducting all expenses.

URA says, private schools registered as companies pay tax at a rate of 30%, while schools registered by individuals pay tax at a progressive rate of (10% or 20% or 30% and 10%,  where applicable).

"The parents take their children to private schools because of the services we offer, otherwise, there are government aided-schools which are not charging a single coin, but parents come to us," Kiggundu said.

What consultants recommend

For the government to regulate school fees and salaries of teachers in private schools, education consultants have urged government to introduce incentives to private schools.




George William Ssemivule, the former headteacher of King's College, Budo and Mengo Senior School, said government should introduce tax waivers for private school owners, just like it does for foreign investors in manufacturing.

If introduced, he said, the government will be able to regulate fees charged in private schools because most of these drive the cost of education high. However, Ssemivule suggested that the proposed policy should focus on supporting private schools both technically and financially, rather than regulating.

Robinson Nsumba-Lyazi, the former commissioner of private schools and institutions at the education ministry, says it will be hard to regulate school fees, unless the Education Act 2008, which gives powers to school management committees and boards of governors to set school fees, is repealed.

He wants the policy to reduce people targeting more profi ts than rendering a service. However, both agreed that it is a good policy if stakeholders are consulted.