Increase capitation grant, NPA tells govt

A senior planner in Education and Skills Development at National Planning Authority (NPA), Mr Samuel Kasule, has asked government to increase capitation grants allocated to public schools to enable them provide quality education.

While addressing the 10th annual national conference on socio-economic rights at Makerere University yesterday, Mr Kasule, who represented NPA’s executive director, Dr Joseph Muvawala, said quality education comes at a cost.

“For government to achieve quality education in Universal Primary Education (UPE) and Universal Secondary Education (USE) schools, for example, the annual capitation grant allocated to each learner must be increased from the current Shs20,000 to Shs63,000 at Primary level, Shs174,000 to Shs530,000 at O-Level and from Shs255,000 to Shs885,000 at A-Level.

“Our focus now should be on improving the quality of education. Let us increase capitation grants, invest in more classrooms, and human resources. Government says it is going to pay teachers, but parents still have the obligation to pay teachers who are not paid by the government,” he said.

According to the Capitation Grants expenditure guidelines, 50 percent of the grant is supposed to be spent on instructional materials, 30 percent on co-curricular activities, 15 percent on school maintenance and utilities, including water and power, 5 percent on school administration.

The funds are released on a quarterly basis and the amount each school receives depends on the learners’ enrolment.

NPA continues to emphasise increase of the capitation grant as a key trigger of quality education needed to achieve the required human capital development to realise economic growth and development.

While meeting members of the Education Review Commission in Kampala, early this year, NPA’s manager of Policy, Research and Innovations, Dr Hamis Mugendawala, said increasing the grant would ensure smooth running of schools.

Dr Mugendawala revealed that over time, financing and investment in the education sector have not kept pace with increasing enrolment and unit costs. 

Ms Lydia Kagoya Muluya, the deputy head teacher of Iwemba Seed Secondary School in Bugiri District, said her school was grappling with the new curriculum due to inadequate instructional materials.

 Ms Muluya said Senior Three, which has 107 students, has so far received eight textbooks. 

“I’m facing hardships in implementing the new curriculum. They post teachers but they have no instructional materials to use,” she said.

Mr George Mutekanga, the assistant commissioner of Private Schools and Institutions Department in the Ministry of Education and Sports, said under the new curriculum, each book is supposed to be shared by three learners for core subjects and six learners for non-core subjects.

Mr Mutekanga said the impact of Covid-19 has seen many students from private schools join government schools, increasing demand for infrastructure and instructional materials.

 “The suppliers of text books for the new curriculum are demanding Shs30b. The schools are asking for tents because classrooms are not enough, but things will get better as the economy improves,” he said. 

Reactions

Ms Angella Kasule Nabwowe, the executive director of Initiative for Social Economic Rights (ISER), said if government-aided schools continue to overcharge students, government should consider withdrawing its support.

Section 3 and 57 of the Education Act, 2008 mandates the Education minister from time to time to issue statutory instruments to regulate school fees and other fees.

 Ms Joan Magimbi, a human rights activist from FIDA-Uganda, stressed the need for schools to desist from asking for many requirements, saying there were so many to the extent that some parents hire trucks to transport them to the school.