The Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB) has released the May/ June 2025 assessment results indicating that 91% of the candidates attained full competence.
Speaking during the release on Friday, UVTAB Executive Secretary, Onesmus Oyesigye said the completion rate for candidates across most programmes was above 75%.
“The general performance of female candidates was better with 14,188 (92%) out of 15,399 candidates that sat acquiring full competence compared to males, where out of 11,211 candidates that sat, 9,928 (89%) successfully acquired full competences,”Oyesigye said.
He said the completion rates of the candidates from the informally acquired skills were better at 96% compared to those from formal TVET at 81%.
“The good performance may be attributed to the flexible nature of acquiring skills and focused hands-on skilling that the trainees go through.”
Oyesigye reported that a total of 30,291 candidates registered for the end-of-programme assessments, 17,245 of which were female and 13,046 males.
Majority of enrolled in Home Science, Technology Education, and Agriculture programmes and the UVTAB Executive Secretary attributed the higher female enrolment to the flexible and short-term nature of these training modules, which makes them more accessible to women.
Special needs candidates
According to UVTAB, a total of 109 special needs candidates, including 52 females and 57 males, were registered for the assessments and 94%(102 candidates) sat for the exams.
Of the 102 who sat for the exams, 85, representing 83%, attained full competences.
A total of 19 candidates with special needs were assessed in occupations such as tailoring, hairdressing, and jewellery making and 89% of these acquired full competences.
The UVTAB Executive Secretary said those who did not meet full competence requirements will be given another opportunity in future assessments.
In Technology Education and Training at diploma level, 5,120 candidates registered, and 4,089 sat for assessments.
Out of the 4,089 who sat, 192 candidates representing 5% achieved Class I (Distinction) while 2,997(73%), earned Class II (Credit).
The overall completion rate stood at 78%, translating to 3,189 candidates who successfully attained full competences .
UVTAB said some programmes recorded lower performance due to skill gaps in certain modules, including Diploma in Automobile Engineering candidates who struggled with electronics, while those in Architecture found difficulty in Building Specifications.
On the other side, Civil and Water Engineering candidates faced challenges in Elementary Design of Structures, Biomedical Engineering candidates in Bio Control Systems, and those in Fashion and Design performed poorly in Exhibition and Marketing.
In Refrigeration and Air Conditioning, many failed the Engineering Mathematics III paper.
According to UVTAB,at certificate level in technology education and training, of the 73 candidates who sat for assessment, one scored a first class, 30 attained Second Class Upper, and 10 got Second Class Lower.
The overall completion rate was 56 percent, with poor performance linked to challenges in modules such as Surveying I, Land Scale Modelling, and Principles of Property Economics.
In Agriculture Education and Training at diploma level, 760 candidates registered and 661 sat for assessments.
Out of those, 318 attained Class I (Distinction) and 315 earned Class II (Credit), giving an impressive overall completion rate of 96 percent. Performance across most programmes was described as excellent, with some achieving 100 percent completion.
For certificate-level agriculture programmes, only six candidates registered, and three turned up for assessments, of whom two, representing 67 percent, completed successfully with First Class grades.
In Business Education and Training at diploma level, 2,363 candidates registered and 1,900 sat for assessments. Of these, 529 scored Class I (Distinction) while 1,137 attained Class II (Credit).
The state minister for higher education, John Crysestom Muyingo who represented Education Minister, Janet Museveni said government attaches high importance on technical education.
“The NRM government recognizes TVET as a priority subsector, with several ongoing projects aimed at strengthening it. Among these is the Uganda Refugee and Host Communities Project, valued at USD 8.7 million, which is supporting the rehabilitation and equipping of three Skills Development Centres: Inde in Madi-Okollo District, Omugo in Terego District, and Buhungiro in Isingiro District. In addition, nine Technical Institutes across the country are also being rehabilitated and equipped. These include Lutunku in Sembabule District, Kabale, St. Kizito in Masaka, Nkoko, Nalwire, Moroto, Moyo, and Birembo Memorial,” he said
The minister noted that government has undertaken significant strides in expanding and improving the country’s education infrastructure. Under the Uganda Secondary Education Expansion Project (USEEP), construction of 116 new secondary schools is underway, alongside the expansion of 61 existing schools to enhance access to quality secondary education.
“Additionally, through the Uganda Learning Acceleration (ULEARN) flagship program, 121 traditional secondary schools and 29 Teacher Training Institutions-including the Uganda National Institute for Teacher Education (UNITE), have been earmarked for rehabilitation.”
