Recommendations to the Government

➢ Education Sector Reforms

Since it got independence, Uganda has undergone tremendous changes. The most remarkable reform was the 1997 Universal Primary Education law that declared free education for primary school going students. At the core of this policy was the government’s goal to increase access to primary education for all Ugandans including those from the poor segments of the society. Indeed, the initiative was able to meet its objectives as the enrolment rate and school drop-out significantly improved over the next two decades. However, in the third decade, since the program was launched, there have been obvious challenges facing the education sector as more students have begun to drop out.

This has been as a result of very low investment on the much-needed infrastructure in schools to help cope with the rising numbers of students being registered at schools. The lack of sufficient infrastructure is having a big impact on the quality of students who graduate from public schools as their learning is highly affected. Also, the teacher-student ratio has also been poor ranging between 1:49 and 1:56 in primary schools. Such numbers

indicate that the education reforms that only target higher enrolment of students to schools can only serve the short term. I, therefore, recommend that the government gives the education sector more attention, particularly about the amount of money that is allocated towards primary and secondary schools since these are the foundation of Uganda’s education system.

➢ Curriculum Reforms

After successfully implementing the free Universal Primary Education program that has seen more Ugandan kids enrolling in schools, it is a high time that the government now shifts focus from simple number driven policies to quality driven output policies. This means that education should not be simply a matter of getting a certificate, but it should focus on producing a skilled workforce that can drive the Ugandan economy forward.

To achieve this, I recommend that the government should review the education system to allow students specialize from an early age and allow those who can do well in a specific field to focus on the areas that they have better talent on. There are many areas as noted in the research that are ignored in the curriculum, yet these areas can provide students who are not academically gifted an opportunity to realize their full potential. Some of the areas that the government needs to put more attention include sports, art, artisan, and woodwork courses as well as improved technical skills. It is necessary to mention that the curriculum reforms need to focus on promoting more practical approaches rather than relying on theoretical aspects of education.

➢ Improve Access

Although the basic education in Uganda is, in theory, free, the already discussed challenges are making parents and guardians skeptical about taking their children to public schools. Such negative opinion on public schools are founded on real problems such as the low distribution of schools, meaning students may need to travel much longer distances to reach school, which can be discouraging and expensive. On the other hand, private sector players who are trying to bridge the gap by opening up private schools have failed to offer economically friendly rates that can allow even the sons and daughters of poor people to go to their schools. My advice is that the government needs to engage with the private sector players to come up with a cost-effective solution that will benefit the

investors at the same time enable poor students to access education. In the meantime, the government can also make investments in expanding infrastructure at the existing schools such as building more classrooms, recruitment of more teachers to reduce the ratio between teachers and students.

➢ Relevance to Industry Demands

This is another important area that the government of Uganda needs to give the best attention. In contemporary societies, education is seen as a vehicle through which one can gain relevant skills to enable them to enter into the labour market. While I acknowledge that the current demands by the labour market, in general, is based on the desire to recruit skilled individuals with technological and scientific knowledge, the government should be able to do its internal assessments and establish which specific sectors the countries have a comparative advantage over the others. For example, in Uganda, while technology and manufacturing are very important sectors that need to be exploited through improved education. This should not come at the expense of another source of income such as farming which is highly profitable given the geographical and climatic conditions in Uganda as well as fertile soils and the potential demand for agricultural products domestically and regionally.

Agriculture is a broad sector that has the potential of employing thousands of youths who are currently unemployed while the cost of food products will also go down. This means that the government instead of abandoning other critical sectors. I hope that in the coming years, more and more Ugandan’s will be much more aware of the country’s capacity and therefore focus on those areas that are relevant to the growth of the economy. If many people do engineering courses and neglect agriculture courses in a country with huge agriculture potential this contributes to unemployment.

➢ More focus on R&D

Research and development have emerged as one of the most critical areas of education and employment. With proper investment in R&D, students are not only able to achieve high-quality education but also become self-employed. With proper tools and environment, young Ugandans can engage in invention and innovative activities as part

of their education life. High-quality innovation can be a good source of capital as well as employment as major firms will seek to tap on the skills of the youths. Interestingly, innovation can be done in different sectors of the economy thereby attracting a whole diverse group of youths. Universities and schools can lead the way by providing platforms such as innovation camps, summer schools as well as inter-University competitions that will motivate the students to work harder. The government on its part needs to support such initiatives.