Govt must urgently regulate school fees

It is not the first time that Ugandans are crying about the ever increasing school fees every term but also the outrageous school requirements such as hens, rugs, paint among others. 

While the cries go on, the Ministry of Education and Sports is loudly quiet and seems unbothered. The closest the Ministry intervened was two years ago when it merely issued statements warning schools, but as it is always, there were usual empty threats with no follow up.

WATCH: Why there are increasing calls to regulate school fees

Uganda boasts of being highly progressive in achieving the 2030 Agenda, especially SDG 4, which enjoins Uganda to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning for all. This does not fall far from the tree, our own Constitution under Article 30 provides that all persons have a right to education as a basic human right and the state is enjoined to fulfil this right. 

During Covid-19 era, the education sector was grossly affected with the closure of schools for two years and even after the opening of schools, the majority of Ugandans could not afford school fees because of the economic impact created by pandemic. I do not remember reading any government policy dedicated to mitigating the effects of Covid-19 on the right to education, especially on how to support parents to ensure their children go back to school unabated.

Education is a right, and should never be treated as a business opportunity for unjust exploitation and enrichment. It is the primary duty of the government to provide education to its citizens and therefore, commercializing education is wrong in the first place. 

The ministry, up to now, has failed to regulate the education sector especially regarding school fees and school requirements and wonders why the neglect of duty. The Government has a mandate to move in and regulate any sector for the sake of its citizens and most importantly, to safeguard the right to education.

According to the Uganda National Household survey 2019-2020, 16 percent of the children did not attend school because it was considered too expensive and persons aged between 6-24 years, 43 percent boys and 41 percent girls have never attended school because of lack of funding and schools not being affordable.  

The Parliament of Uganda has on several occasions tasked the Ministry of Education to intervene but all in vain. It seems that the Ministry has failed in its duty to regulate school fees and other dues. We also know that some ministry officials own private schools and this is a direct conflict of interest which perhaps points to their failure to reign in schools. 

As a country, we cannot continue to watch as our generation gets wasted simply because they cannot afford school fees. We all owe a duty to our posterity and therefore, it is in the interest of every Ugandan to demand that the ministry reigns in and takes charge of the situation.

It is unfair and it is intellectual laziness to argue that if one cannot afford school fees, they should probably try another school. This is the language of capitalism and undermines the right to education and SDG 4 which emphatically calls for inclusive and equitable education. 

This means that every child, regardless of their social class must be accorded the same education opportunities-this is the basic principle of human rights-human dignity! Those who think that they are not concerned at all and that they can afford “rich schools” forget that their children will one day have to interact with the other children who did not have chance to go to rich schools later on no school at all- the ecosystem of life is that at one point, these two will meet and sometimes, in very unpleasant circumstances. 

Inequality breeds insecurity and we are all unsafe if we do not promote inclusiveness at all levels. The parents are, unfortunately, perpetrators of the continued school hikes as they continuously legitimise these callous actions by schools by not objecting at all. What discussions go on in the Parents Teachers’ Association (PTAs) meetings? Have the parents raised these issues with the schools or they can afford and do not care?

It is high time we all woke up to fight for the future of our children and demand inclusive, equitable and quality education!            
                        Michael Aboneka, Partner: Thomas & Michael Advocates