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Kiyimba giving back to the community through education
Mr Kiyimba. In January 2020, Kiyimba embarked on a mission to actualize his plan of giving back to the community through education. PHOTOS/Hilda Victoria Namulwana
What you need to know:
In a space of two and half years, our enrollment has grown to over 1,000 students
Renowned businessman Joseph Kiyimba of Ambiance Group; a conglomerate encompassing ventures like Ambiance Tree Farm, Ambiance Discotheques, and Ambiance Distillers recently added Metro Junior Schools to his long list of enterprises, with the major aim of giving back to the community.
“Ugandans have immensely supported me since time immemorial. We started small and over the years, we have grown into a conglomerate of companies, courtesy of the unlimited support from Ugandans,” Kiyimba explains.
According to Kiyimba, he chose education because it is one of the easiest routes out of poverty.
“I employ over 2,000 people and though I pay them well per their job description and education levels, I realized that many struggled to give their children quality education. I saw my employees taking their extremely bright students to schools that did not support their full potential. Yet, in this era, quality education is key in supporting one’s full potential,” says Kiyimba.
In January 2020, Kiyimba embarked on a mission to actualize his plan of giving back to the community through education.
“I zeroed in on starting a primary school, and because I did not have enough resources, I approached I&M Bank for funding which they gladly did. And I can say they have greatly supported me since, not only in education but other business endeavors,” says Kiyimba.
With funding from I&M Bank, Kiyimba says he was able to complete in time the construction of basic facilities like classrooms, dormitories, swimming pool among others, and in January 2022, Metro Junior School Kitemu was opened to offer the much-needed quality education to not only his employees but the general public as well.
“From day one, my goal was to establish a school that offers high-quality education yet at very affordable fees. To achieve this, we have had to be as creative as possible and do lots of research and benchmarking. Am one of the biggest suppliers of firewood to schools in Uganda, and this has enabled me to visit hundreds of schools. It is through these visits and regular interfaces with school heads that I would also inquire on how I can make my school work, and interestingly, many of them were willing to share advice,” Kiyimba explains.
The numbers
According to the head teacher Steven Luwalira, the school has state-of-the-art infrastructure, notably modern dormitories, and classrooms that are fitted with both televisions and digital boards to enhance classroom learning. We also have a well-stocked library and a fully equipped computer lab to enable us to equip our students with the much-needed ICT skills.
Mr. Denis Lubyayi, the school’s director of studies, says the school runs an integrated curriculum of both local and international to give their students exposure.
“We are also giving a lot of priority to reading and handwriting, these are taught as subjects. Good handwriting greatly improves a child’s performance,” says Lubyayi.
“The teachers are also well qualified and well-motivated. We are paid well and promptly which pushes us to give it our all. We also have a well-developed co-curricular department with activities like swimming, football, netball, MDD, and indoor games among others. Spiritual growth is also prioritized and all these are aimed at nurturing holistic citizens,” says Lubyayi.
“In a space of two and half years, our enrollment has grown to over 1,000 students and growing stronger. And a large number of employees’ children are studying here with some on full bursaries and others on half bursaries. And even the community has been able to access high-quality education at very affordable fees. This gives me satisfaction that my goal of giving back to the community is being realized,” says Kiyimba.
