UNEB halts release of exams due to Covid-19 restrictions

The Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB) has halted the release of 2020 national examination results due to Covid-19 restrictions that were put in place to contain and prevent the spread of the pandemic in the country.

"We have not suspended the release of exams but we are going to reorganise according to the new guidelines [Covid-19 guidelines] that have been given to us by the government and they have been given to everybody. So we have to re-organize and work with the Ministry of Education and see the best timing of releasing these exams," Jennifer Kalule, the UNEB spokesperson told The Nile Post on Phone.

Last week, President Museveni banned public transport all over the country to help stop the spread of the deadly Coronavirus following the death of 234 Ugandans due to Covid-19 in the last one month

He told the nation that a return to robust measures and a revolutionary approach adopted during the first Covid-19 wave was inevitable adding that the movement of individuals fuels the virus transmission and without limiting the movement of persons, there will be more infections

For that matter, Kalule said that they will have to sit and rethink of a better way of releasing these exams at a later time which she didn't mention given the prevailing situation.

According to the programme, UNEB had scheduled to release the said results as soon as possible starting with Primary Leaving Examinations.

The UNEB 2020 exams were held in March this year because of the need to make up for the time lost by the candidates during the Covid-19 induced lockdown.

This year, a total of 1,181,965 candidates for all the three levels sat their final exams, with 51.1% of them being female, according to UNEB.

A total of 749,811 candidates were able to sit PLE exams, with another 333,775 taking UCE and 98,379 UACE.