The reopening of schools in Busia, Bududa, and Mbale has been hampered by a lack of funds.
The government had previously stated that it will provide Shs 62 billion from the capitation grant to assist schools in preparing for the reopening.
As schools reopen in Busia, Bududa, and Mbale, school principals have expressed dissatisfaction with the slow transfer of funding intended for rehabilitation and the purchase of basic operational equipment.
The government had previously stated that it will provide Shs 62 billion from the capitation grant to assist schools in preparing for the reopening.
However, some of the schools we visited in Bududa, Busia, and Mbale City reported they have yet to receive this money, making it difficult for them to improve their facilities or even acquire goods to enforce standard operating standards.
Schools in Busia such as Busia SS, Busyabala P/S, Majanji P/S, and Habuleke P/S, among others, are still in poor shape, and their only hope is in the government.
Due to a lack of money, most of the schools in the district lacked hand washing facilities, sanitizers, and even temperature guns, according to Aggrey Mayende, the chairman of the Busia Secondary Schools Head Teachers’ Association and the head teacher of Busia SS.
Busyabala Primary School’s head teacher, Alex Ogalo, said they were promised Shs 1.5 million to buy the equipment but have yet to get it.
According to Ogalo, they chose to open in stages due to a shortage of enough classes to accommodate students after a four-classroom block was blown off in 2018 and there has been no intervention since then.
The Head Teacher of Bukonde Secondary School in Mbale City, Abubakar Masifa, stated that the school has yet to receive the funds promised by the government. According to him, they are making do with the little money left on the school account while waiting for the government to follow through on its commitment.
According to Gabriel Makanga, the Busia Senior Education Officer, they have yet to get funding to provide all of the essential resources when school begins.
Micheal Natsami, the head teacher at Mabono Primary School in Bududa, said they are having difficulty enforcing the SOPs due to a lack of funds. He claimed that the government promised them money, but that they have yet to get it, despite the fact that their schools are operational and they have children.
