In africa, school still a dream for many!

Published Wednesday, October 17, 2007 7:47 PM

 

Although Uganda seems to be making progress in the field of Education, the picture is not that bright when one looks at education on the whole continent of Africa.

there is the plan by African governments to improve education and givce free education to the children but this has not ben done and realized in many parts of Africa due to poor infrastructure of the nation and art times due to the tribal wars in different parts of Africa. Look at how the LRA war vs UPDF has halted the progress in Northern Uganda for the last 20 yrs since NRM government came to power. its a whole 20 yrs wasted .

Uganda has embarked on a program of FREE  UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION = UPE since 1996 now coming to almost 10 yrs and this giving a chance to many poor ones who could not afford to go to scoll and thus the number of pupils rose from some 2 million in primary schools to now almost 8 million, with the first group of elementary school graduates moving to secondary school and geting again FREE UNIVERSAL SECONDARY EDUCATION = USE in this year 07 : Uganda government is determined to improve on education for all  as outlined in its plan of USE and in its setting up of more secondary schools that are well equipped with science laboratory equipment, textbooks, teachers and desks and many more permanent buildings especially in the rural areas  that every subcounty gets a good goverbment aided secondary school http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/19/593154

but will this experiment help Africa and Uganda and will the children and the parents respond positively to this offer of free Universal Primary and Secondary education = UPE, USE: There is already talk of some donors threatening to dump UPE because they think that despite the big numbers joining 1 st year primary school, yes by the end of seven years even with the automatic promotion in all classes it less that 50% able to reavh P& class and thus sit for PLE Primary leaving Exams or the Senior Entrance Exams. What went wron and where are the studenta and why this sudden drop by the seventh year? the questions are as many and as varied as can be.   http://www.ugandaobserver.com/new/news/news200710251.php

then there is the challenge of private schools that have come up rather fast in Uganda and perhaps are able to absorb more studenta who cannot be taken by the govt established schools. these private schools seem to be getting better in quality of education may be because they have fewer studenta thanper class and per teacher than the governmnet schools wher some USE schools like Kitara SS in Hoima got almost 800 students in year one or S1 of free USE

and its the parents from neighbouring countries like Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Sudan and Ethiopia and DRCongo sending their students or children to Uganda thinking that the liberalisation of the Uganda education system has offered better quality of education from nursery thro primary-secondary-higher-tertiary and University level. some schools are set up for good education but the fear is that some are set up for commercialisation to make money. But of late it is also clear that the Ugandans in the Diaspora those abroad are beginning to send back good money and investing it in businesses and also in establishments of Schools, Instititions and Universities. Unfortunately its the rich who can afford these schools and so the UPE and the USE are a welcome relief for the poor parents both in towns/cities and in rural areas.

 And President Museveni has to be thanked for this big idea of UPE and of USE a great help to the masses and to the poor parents  who can now send their children to school without paying school fees. Haaa and no wonder someone has began a school and named it after Museveni. its in Mbaale in east Uganda http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/9/35/592357  YOWERI MUSEVENI PRIMARY SCHOOL -- I guess its his/her way to say THANK YOU to Museveni for the innitiatives done in Education of Uganda

See - how 

 IN AFRICA,

SCHOOL EDUCATION

STILL A DREAM

 FOR MANY CHILDREN

http://www.comcast.net/news/international/africa/index.jsp?cat=AFRICA&fn=/2007/07/21/720266.html  : for many - a dream still far away from reality 

http://www.comcast.net/news/international/africa/index.jsp?cat=AFRICA&fn=/2007/08/25/747989.html  : saying no to girl-child soldiers 

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/13/573859  : Why United Nations praises Uganda's UPE

http://ugpulse.com/ugandan-community/forums/thread/8103.aspx :overhauling education system 

http://ugpulse.com/articles/daily/Government.asp?ID=732: Invisible children of Northern Uganda

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/9/35/572282  : Why Vocational Institutes yield poor results

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/9/579/567958 : Beginning a Vocational Training Institute for S4+S6s

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/13/594502  Uganda govt stops hiring teachers

http://www.newvision.co.ug/D/8/13/594637  Govt warns UPE schools on charging extra fees

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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmxT21uFRwM : song = we are the children of Africa

 

 

by TIICA
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Comments

# everyLILthingCOUNTSam said on Friday, November 02, 2007 9:15 PM

how much of a difference would it make if people from long island all donated money to send the children in africa, to school?

-samantha (16,ny)

# samsung said on Wednesday, November 21, 2007 4:34 AM

People in USA,UK are already doing this indirectly. The greater share of funding for the UPE and USE comes directly from donor funding from the governments afore-mentioned. Those funds are taken from the taxpayers in the countries and injected into the Ugandan educational system. It is at this point that responsibility is handed to Ugandan officials to ensure greater accountability on the use of the monies to improve the quality of education.