UWEZO suggests for reduction of primary education cycle to six years

By Charles Katabalwa

19^th Oct 2022

UWEZO Uganda wants the government to consider reducing the long cycle of Primary Education from seven to six years to save resources for Pre-primary education.

The Minister of Education and Sports Janet Kataha Museveni mandated the Education Policy Review Commission (EPRC) to review the 1992 Education Policy with a view to repositioning Uganda’s Education system to meet the needs and challenges of the 21^st century as specified in vision 2040.

EPRC at its offices in Nakawa is currently holding a public consultation week which started on 17th October to Friday 21st 2022 to seek for opinion from different stakeholders on the subject and UWEZO Uganda has today presented its recommendations.

UWEZO Uganda is An NGO which uses research to demonstrate how to improve learning outcomes and keep communities and leaders focused on learning.

The Executive Director UWEZO Uganda, Mary Goretti Nakabugo while addressing journalists after submitting their recommendations said experience from many other countries suggests that where Pre-primary education is generally accessible and effective six years are sufficient for primary cycle.

Nakabugo adds that benefits of phasing out P7 would reduce the number of adolescent and over-age children in primary schools for whom post primary schools offer a more suitable culture for management of such students unlike having them at primary level.

They also want pre-schools to be independent and separate from primary schools for effectiveness in service delivery.

Nakabugo has disclosed that there should be a framework to partner with the private players, religious institutions and communities to avail spaces for access to Early Childhood Care Education (ECCE) across the country.

UWEZO has also challenged the government and providers of education to strike a balance between quality and quantity in the training and employment of teachers rather than putting much emphasis on academic levels such as degrees or diplomas.

Among other submissions UWEZO wants, improvement on the National teachers policy, increase on the number of teachers per learner to make education more interactive, teaching and learning, monitor the progress of the child and integral development of the child.