Girls urged to embrace technical education
Female students of Water and Sanitation Engineering lay a water pipe during a vocational skills exhibition at Uganda Technical College Bushenyi recently. PHOTO BY PAUL ARIHO
What you need to know:
An official in the Ministry of Education decries lack of career guidance in schools to encourage young girls to take up vocational education.
The Ministry of Education has appealed to female students to venture in technical education, saying the perception that the profession is for men originates from our cultures.
The ministry’s principal education officer in-charge of technical education, Ms Loy Muhwezi, made the remarks recently at an exhibition by female students from government and private technical institutes in western Uganda at Uganda Technical College Bushenyi.
Female students from more than 20 institutes showcased skills they have acquired from pursuing technical studies, leaving members of the public thrilled by girls’ superb craftsmanship.
They displayed works in mechanical, civil, water and sanitation, building and electrical engineering, and information communication technology.
Ms Muhwezi said lack of political will to promote technical education had for many years hampered its development.
Low budget support
“Politicians hardly think about us in budgeting. We have to embrace technical education for this country to develop. The government has come up with a programme of skilling Uganda and that is where we need to support it,” she said.
Ms Muhwezi said what is lacking is career guidance in secondary schools to encourage young girls to take up vocational studies. She said that there is a need to demystify the myths surrounding educating girls with technical skills.
The college principal, Mr Silver Mukwasibwe, said the exhibition was also done to celebrate female students’ contribution towards development of technical education. “Females have continued to shun technical education thinking that it is for men. There is nothing that a female technician can’t do. We need give them the same opportunities as males,” Mr Mukwasibwe said.
