A new research report obtained on extensive primary research has shown that there is a transfer of education costs to the parents.
The research was gotten from stakeholders from forty-eight primary schools in Namayingo, Sheema, and Yumbe districts, as well as consultations with national education officials,
Whereas the constitution and the Education Act stipulate the responsibilities of both the government and parents in the children’s access to basic education, the government is falling short of its obligations.
As a result, School Management Committees (SMCs) are resorting to levying extra fees to close the deficits, mainly in infrastructure and staffing and, in some cases, teacher motivation.
According to the Education Act, parents and guardians are assigned the duties of registering their children of school-going age at school, providing food, clothing, shelter, medical care, and transporting and scholastic materials.
On the other hand, the government is responsible for the provision of learning and instructional materials, infrastructure development and teacher welfare, recruiting, deployment, and promotion of both teaching and non-teaching staff.
However, in the research report on governance and accountability in the provision of public primary education in Uganda that was launched on Thursday, October 3, 2024, at Hotel Africa in Kampala, despite the government committing to eliminate school fees and providing free public primary education, parents are required to pay fees.
Another key finding from the research report is that from the expected parents’ total school fee payment, it is clear that the parents’ school fee payments almost match the government capitation grants, and this is due to limited funding of the UPE program.
While discussing the research findings during the launch of the research report on Thursday, October 3, 2024, at Hotel Africana in Kampala, Ismael Mulindwa, the director of basic and secondary education, highlighted the negative impacts of shifting the education burden to parents.
“Requiring parents to pay school fees undermines the objectives for which UPE was started. Pushing the burden of filling the staffing and development deficit has resulted in school dropouts for those who fail to meet the imposed fees,” Mulindwa said.
In his recommendations, Mulindwa said to ensure that UPE is adequately funded in the appropriation of the national budget as per the NPA recommended threshold to minimize the growing cost burden of public primary education on parents.
Robert Ikwap, the Assistant Commissioner of Basic Education, appealed to the school management bodies to ensure that the termly and annual school reports are developed and submitted to the foundation bodies, sub-county executive committees, and district education offices in line with the accountability requirements.
Despite a remarkable surge in enrollment of UPE pupils from 3.1 million in 1996 to 8.6 million today, the system remains plagued by issues of quality, equity, and accountability.
