11 inmates sit UCE exams at Mbarara prison

At least 11 Mbarara Main Prison inmates sat their Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) exams under the new Lower Education Curriculum as the final Senior Four examinations for 2024 started on Monday.  

The inmates are among 379,620 who are sitting for their examinations under the new lower secondary school curriculum. Out of the 11 students at the prison, 10 are convicts and one is on remand.

Winnie Musanyana, who is the head teacher at Mbarara Main Prison School said “it is the fourth time inmates at the prisons sat for their examinations despite getting a center number last year.”

“Previously, we were sitting in other schools outside the prison,” she noted.

She added: “The pioneers of this year have been taught by inmate teachers and outside teachers from different schools. We keep on hiring them and they come and help us where need be.” 

Musanyana said all their registered candidates are sitting since there are no absentees.

“The new curriculum was not easy at first being that it was new to everyone but with continuous training from our area supervisor, we managed to reach this far. We thank God that all our candidates are present,” she said.

She says the school grapples with the challenges of limited teachers as students are only taught by inmates despite an existing need for more trained teachers.

“The whole school accommodates 399 students for both secondary and primary but for secondary I have 124 students in secondary, we have been bringing senior trainers to help train our students so that we can be on the same pace with others,” she said.

She added: “We have managed to catch up and I trust we are going to make it because we have prepared our students and they are well equipped.”