Government schools in Mityana District are facing a growing crisis as parents withdraw their children due to deteriorating education standards and poor learning conditions.
Primary schools have been hit hardest, with once-full classrooms now nearly empty.
At Kasiikombe Primary School in Ssekanyonyi Sub-county, where 292 pupils are enrolled, the challenges are evident.
Many students lack desks and resort to sitting on the floor or bringing bricks as makeshift seats.
Those lucky enough to find a desk must squeeze in—up to six students per desk—making writing and movement difficult.
The school has only six teachers, forcing some to handle multiple classes. Aceng Winnie, a school administrator, said this has severely affected academic progress.
“One teacher has to teach from Primary Four to Primary Seven. This limits the attention given to Primary Seven candidates, leading to poor performance,” she said.
Despite the difficulties, Aceng noted some improvement.
“Last year, we had five candidates in Primary Seven. Four passed, while one failed. We are hopeful that this year, our pupils will perform even better,” she added.
Sanitation remains a major concern. Kayaga Allen, a parent, stressed the importance of hygiene, noting that female students share toilet facilities with teachers, while boys use dilapidated structures, putting them at risk of disease.
At Kabaseke Islamic Primary School, one of Mityana’s oldest government schools, the situation is equally dire.
Despite having 250 pupils, the school has only five teachers, making it impossible to conduct lessons for all classes at the same time.
Kiguddu Yasin, the headteacher, said the district promised to send two more teachers by the second term.
However, the school’s infrastructure is crumbling, and teachers struggle with poor housing conditions. Mpiima Muhammad, a teacher, recalled an incident where a female teacher left after just three days due to the state of the staff quarters.
Local leaders confirm that once-thriving government schools, which used to have over 500 students each, are now losing pupils to private institutions.
“You find a government school with teachers but no pupils, while private schools with temporary structures are overwhelmed with students. Parents have lost confidence in government schools,” said Dennis Muhumuza, a local leader.
Former Woman MP Sylvia Namabidde Ssenabulya called for urgent investigations, citing the declining quality of education in government primary schools.
She also highlighted a concerning trend where private schools without UNEB center numbers send their pupils to sit exams in government schools, creating a misleading impression of good performance.
“The government should increase the number of teachers in primary schools from seven to at least nine to address absenteeism, which is common in these schools,” she suggested.
The crisis extends to urban areas, with Mityana Municipality Mayor Faustine Mukambwe Lukonge revealing that school renovations have begun to improve learning conditions.
A report by Uwezo Uganda found that 27% of teachers and 35% of students in Mityana regularly miss school, worsening the education crisis.
Without urgent intervention, the future of thousands of children in Mityana remains uncertain.