Central region tops UCE results

Kampala.

Schools in the Central region of the country performed better than their counterparts in other regions, with northern region trailing in the recently released Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) exams for 2017.
Central region recorded the highest number of candidates in First, Second, Third and Fourth Division. Candidates who have been graded in these four divisions qualify to join Senior Five, depending on the subject combinations they are able to carry on with.
Central region had 19,720 candidates in Division One, followed by western region with 6,444, eastern region with 2,635, while northern Uganda trailed with 1,184 candidates in First Grade.

Division Two performance
In Division Two, the Central region again came top with 24,738, followed by western with 12,899, with eastern region in third position with 9,004 and northern region with 5,097.
With a total of 26,045 candidates, the central region still emerged best in Division Three. The western region came second with 17,182, while the eastern and northern regions came third and fourth with 15,639 and 8,882 candidates, respectively.
For Division Four, central region had 42,399 candidates, followed again by western (32,919), eastern (34,414) and northern region with 15,562.
After trailing in the First, Second, Third and Fourth grades, Northern Uganda got the lowest number of candidates in Division Nine, namely those who failed all the papers, registering only 3,155. Western region had the second lowest number of failures with 6,380 candidates. The eastern region had the highest number with a total of 8,834 followed by central with 6,716.
Meanwhile, Lira District had the highest number of First Grades in northern Uganda, with 283 candidates followed by Gulu (222), Arua (150), Kole (61) and Dokolo (57).
Commenting on the disparity, Mr James Tweheyo, an educationist, yesterday said the consistence in top rate performance in central and western regions is explained by basic inputs and active participation of parents.
“The issue of basic inputs and participation of parents in schools in central and western regions has no question because they invest money and time in their children. The teachers in the best performing regions are well facilitated hence being harassed to deliver, while those in northern and eastern regions are less facilitated, so they relax as there is no pressure on them from parents,” Mr Tweheyo said.
Mr Tweheyo also said northern and eastern regions are still recovering from post-war trauma.
“It will take time for the performance of the schools in those areas to recover fully academically,” he said.
While releasing the results on Wednesday, Uneb executive secretary Dan Odongo said the schools that fared worst were from Bukwo, Butaleja, Kween, Kapchorwa, Bududa, Sironko, Bulambuli, Busia and Paliisa districts, all in eastern region. Kasese, Bundibugyo and Buliisa were the only districts from western Uganda that appear in the top ten worst performing districts in the country.

Best districts

Central region. The best five districts with Division One scores in Central region are Wakiso with 7,000, followed by Kampala (3,895), Mukono (2,958), Luweero (1,023) and Masaka (763).
Western region. Mbarara District topped western region with 1,080 candidates in First Grade, followed by Bushenyi (1,055), Ntungamo (536) and Hoima (499).
Eastern region. In Eastern Uganda, the best district was Iganga with 620 in First Grade followed by Soroti (374), Mbale (242), Kamuli (228) and Kaliro (152).
Northern region. Lira District had the highest number of First Grades in northern Uganda, with 283 candidates followed by Gulu (222), Arua (150), Kole (61) and Pader (52).