The Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) has released the 2024 Uganda Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) results today, March 14, 2025, at State House Nakasero.

This marked a significant milestone in Uganda’s education sector, with the 2024 examination witnessing a record increase in the number of candidates.

The number of candidates registered for the UACE examination saw a 28.4% increase, rising from 110,566 in 2023 to 141,996 in 2024. Of these, 43.6% were female candidates, reflecting a steady rise in female participation in secondary education.

Janet Kataaha Museveni, the Minister of Education and Sports, praised the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) for its dedication and efforts.

She highlighted the challenges faced in administering the pioneer UCE examinations under the revised Lower Secondary Curriculum, stating, ’’As you all may know, today’s release of results marks the third and last set of end-of-cycle results that UNEB diligently administers annually.’’

Dan Odongo the UNEB Executive Director provided key statistics about the 2024 examination, noting that the number of candidates who appeared for the UACE examination increased by 28.7%, from 109,486 in 2023 to 140,888 in 2024.

’’This year, we had a record 2,255 examination centers, an increase of 7.3% from 2023, demonstrating our efforts to make examinations more accessible across the country,’’ Odongo said.

He also reported that of the 140,888 candidates, 61,598 (43.7%) were female, and 79,290 (56.3%) were male, showing a steady rise in female candidates’ participation in UNEB.

Odongo highlighted the strong performance of female candidates, stating, “Despite being fewer in number, female candidates have consistently outperformed their male counterparts proportionally.”

He also pointed out that female candidates outperformed their male counterparts in subjects like humanities, Physics, and General Paper, continuing a trend seen in previous years.

Prof Celestino Obua, the UNEB Chairperson, acknowledged stakeholders’ concerns about grading under the new competency-based curriculum.

’’The Board understands these concerns, as such transitions often come with challenges. However, we will not assign numerical values to the grades, as that is not the intent of the new curriculum,’’ Prof Obua stated.

He also highlighted the impressive achievements of the 2024 UACE.

“This year saw a significant surge in candidature, with numbers rising from 110,566 in 2023 to nearly 142,000 in 2024. Additionally, the number of candidates failing to report for exams has decreased over the past three years, reflecting increased trust and engagement with the education system,’’ the UNEB Chairperson noted.

On the issue of examination malpractice, Odongo assured the public that the number of malpractice cases remained low.

’’The cases of malpractice at this level have remained low. This year, UACE had the least number of malpractice cases compared to the Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) and Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) examinations,’’ he revealed.

Obua clarified that malpractice cases were reported at only 38 of the 2,255 examination centers, and the results from these centers would be withheld pending further investigation.

With the number of candidates continuing to rise, the future of Uganda’s education looks promising, with growing opportunities for all students, regardless of gender, to succeed and contribute to the nation’s development.