By Lawrence Mulondo
Educationists from the Bugisu and Sebei regions have implored the Government to make agriculture lessons compulsory to all learners in schools.
Despite the fact that agriculture is the backbone of the country’s economy, many children look at it as a punishment or an upbringing for those who have failed in life, risking its future.
According to Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), about 68% of Uganda’s working population is employed in agriculture.
In the financial year 2022- 2023, agriculture accounted for about 24% of the gross domestic product and 35% of the export earnings.
Research has it that 80% of Uganda’s land is arable, however, only 35% of this is being cultivated.
The proposal was raised during a regional stakeholders’ meeting convened by the Education Policy Review Commission to collect proposals on how the country can deliver quality education, in Mbale district recently. George Ongodia, the headteacher of Busiu Secondary School, suggested that agriculture be made compulsory at secondary level and an independent subject at primary level for the skills to be imparted in learners from the ground.
“Since English is compulsory and agriculture is not, we are getting a generation of graduates who are fl uent in English, but hungry. This not only affects the food security of the country, but also the entire economy,” said Ongodia, who is also the chairperson of the headteachers’ association in Mbale, he said.
School gardens
Becky Betty Topacho, the inspector of schools in Mbale city, said it should be mandatory for all schools to have school gardens where learners can practice modern agriculture as they get food to supplement available school meals.
Topacho added that the new policy should address the enhancement of primary school teachers’ salaries and proper retooling of teachers implementing the new lower secondary curriculum.
Automatic promotion
Jackson Wakweika, the district chairperson of Namisindwa, said in the new policy, there is need to scrap automatic promotion in government-aided schools and have promotion based on performance to improve the quality of learners produced.
Joy Wamalugu, the education officer in charge of special needs in Mbale, said they are fighting to see that children with special needs are enrolled in schools, participate and interact with others.
However, they are challenged when they are also given a national exam that is academics based, yet they are not learning at the same pace as other learners, leading to their failure.
What education commission says
The chairperson, Education Review Policy Commission, Nuwe Amanya Mushega told stakeholders that they want to find out what can be made better in the education sector.
“The purpose of going around the country is to have Ugandans participate so that the recommendations that come out of the commission are pro-people and not orders from above as people usually say,” he explained.
The commission has held stakeholders’ meetings in subregions of Busoga, Karamoja, West Nile, Buganda, Teso, Bukeda and lango.
