The opposition Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party has asked the government to halt the Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB) from burdening parents with the payment of registration fees in candidate classes, including Primary Seven, Senior Four, and Senior Six.

According to John Kikonyogo, the FDC party spokesperson, the government should be responsible for paying registration fees, adding that UNEB should write to the Ministry of Education and Sports to present a budget before parliament to cater for such imperative areas in the education sector.

“This will reduce the risks associated with registration fee administration because there have been incidents where some head teachers fail to submit the money collected to UNEB, and that is how some candidates have missed sitting for national examinations after failing to register with UNEB,” Kikonyogo said.

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Kikonyogo made the remarks while addressing the members of the press during a press conference held on Monday, October 14, 2024, at the party headquarters in Najjanankumbi along Entebbe Road.

He added that it is unfair for the government, which is supposed to make sure every child goes to school, to allow registration fees mostly in private schools to be established.

“These registration fees may appear like little money to the people of Kampala, but it’s much to those in the village who cannot afford two meals a day. This money has also resulted in school dropouts as some students fail to get registration fees to sit for examinations,” Kikonyogo said.

“We are asking, what is the use of this money? Nowadays everything is virtual because there is no physical collection of documents from head teachers like it used to be,” he added.

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According to UNEB, Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) candidates pay UGX 34,000, Uganda Certificate Education (UCE) candidates pay UGX 164,000, and Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) candidates pay UGX 186,000.