Kikuube District is grappling with a severe shortage of primary school teachers, a crisis that has left classrooms overcrowded and pupils struggling to receive quality education.
With only 720 teachers in the district’s 74 government-aided primary schools—far below the required 1,350—the education sector is straining under a deficit of 630 educators.
District Inspector of Schools Amon Zondera attributes the shortfall to various factors, including retirements, deaths, and professionals leaving for other fields.
"Many teachers are retiring to join politics or farming, and sadly, some pass away. But even when there are vacancies, we hardly get new applicants. The issue of wage gaps also plays a big role," he said.
Zondera further noted that many newly posted teachers leave within months due to poor working conditions.
"Kikuube is not an easy district for newcomers—there’s limited access to clean water, healthcare, and transport. Maybe the government should consider recruiting more locals who are familiar with the environment," he added.
Kikuube District Education Officer (DEO) Deogratius Byakagaba warned that the teacher crisis is significantly affecting learning.
"Limited staffing means children receive minimal teaching, which explains the continued poor performance in most government schools. The government needs to stop making excuses and recruit more teachers," he said.
Parents are also raising concerns about the workload placed on the few remaining teachers. Justine Atugonza, a resident of Buhimba, sympathized with their plight.
"I’m not a teacher, but I can imagine the strain of moving from one class to another, trying to cover all subjects. This is not sustainable. The government must act," she said.
The impact of the shortage is evident in the district’s Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) results. Out of 4,259 candidates, 363 completely failed, while 133 registered pupils did not sit for the exams.
The results showed that 250 candidates scored Division One, 2,046 were in Division Two, 1,018 in Division Three, and 449 in Division Four.
Girls slightly outnumbered boys in participation, with 2,152 sitting for the exams compared to 2,107 boys. Among those in Division One, 148 were boys and 102 were girls.
Education officials and parents are now calling on the government to urgently address the teacher gap to prevent further decline in academic performance and give pupils in Kikuube a fair chance at a quality education.