Parents fault schools for hiking Uneb exam registration fees

A section of parents in central region have faulted public schools for hiking examination registration fees for students in candidate classes.
Some parents who spoke to Daily Monitor on Tuesday, say many government-aided schools in the region charge between Shs90,000 and Shs200,000 which they say is exorbitant.
Mr Wahab Kayiza, a parent at Masaka Secondary School, one of the biggest government-aided schools in Masaka, says they are being asked to pay registration fees despite clearance by the government.
“We are told government pays exam registration fees for all students under the Universal Secondary Education (USE), but school administrators continue demanding parents and some schools demand more than the standard fees set by Uganda National Examinations (Uneb),” he says.
According to Uneb, candidates sitting Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) pay Shs68,000 as exam fees, and Shs164,000 for Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) yet their counterparts in private schools pay Shs179,000.
Those planning to sit for Advanced Certificate of Education (UACE) in public schools pay Shs186,000 while those in private schools are charged Shs204, 000.
Daily Monitor has however established that some private schools charge exam registration fees ranging between Shs80,000 and Shs100,000 for Primary Seven candidates, Shs200,000 and Shs220,000 for Senior Four and Shs230,000 to Shs250,000 for Senior Six candidates.
“I call upon the line ministry to intervene and explain the exact amount of money we should pay for national exams because some parents are duped,” Mr Kayiza adds.
Daily Monitor has also learnt that more than 60 per cent of government-aided schools implementing USE scheme in the districts of Masaka, Kalungu, Sembabule, Rakai, Lyantonde and Bukomansimbi charge exam registration fees from candidates, which is against government policy.

Exemption for USE programme
Ms Joan Nanyanzi, another parent, says her younger brother at Masaka SS due to sit his final Senior Four exams paid Shs240,000, of which Shs160,000 was for registration for national exams and Shs80,000 for mock exams.
But Hajj Musa Mpungu, the head teacher of Masaka SS, says although his school is government-aided, it is not under USE programme.
“We only charge exam fees set by Uneb and we wire it direct to their bank account. When some parents are charged money for external and mock exams, they mistake it to be Uneb registration fees, which is not true,” he explains.
When contacted, a head teacher in one of the USE schools in Rakai District who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Daily Monitor that although they receive funds from government, it cannot fully facilitate all the necessities of candidates, which prompts them to charge some money.
“We incur extra costs when doing online registration and taking passport photos of candidates and that is the reason we ask some [for] extra money,” he explains.
He says the examination fees are not forcefully levied from candidates, but they do it in consultation with the Parents Teachers Association Committee (PTA).
On the contrary, Mr Moses Ayebaze, the deputy head teacher of Lyantonde SS, says students under the USE scheme do not pay to register for national exams.
“Uneb asks for Shs164,000 from non-USE candidates, but those who are under USE programme are not charged any money.” Mr Ayebare says.
Mr Medard Byarugaba, the Lyantonde District education officer, says he is not aware of any school under USE scheme that charges exam registration fees and in case they exist, they are doing it illegally.
Mr Paul Musalirwe, the deputy headmaster St Patrick Nursery Day and Boarding Primary School , a private school in Njeru Municipality, says parents pay Shs70,000 for PLE registration, which includes leavers party, examination card and mocks respectively.
“This is done in the first term to save parents from paying late registration fees. So, even those pupils who don’t pay are allowed to sit for exams and we withhold their results,” he says.
The principal education officer Njeru Municipal Council, Mr Hassan Nkuntu, says no head teacher in a UPE school is supposed to ask for any money from parents whose children are set to sit for PLE since government pays for them.
“Private schools are allowed to charge money but it must be exactly what Uneb sets,” he says
Ms Namagembe Kizito, the Masaka District education officer, says: “I am just getting that information from media, but will consult with my team to find out whether such charges exist and in case it is true, we shall take another step.”
Efforts to speak to the Uneb executive secretary, Mr Dan Odongo, were futile as his known mobile phone contacts were not easily accessible.
But the Ministry of Education spokesperson, Mr Patrick Muinda, says:“The government caters for exam registration fees for pupils and students who enrolled at primary level under Universal Primary Education (UPE) and therefore any fees charged in respect to that, is illegal,” he told Daily Monitor in a telephone interview.
Government sponsors the biggest number of candidates each year under its universal education programmes both at primary, secondary and post primary levels.
Uneb exams are usually conducted between October and December.

Background

Registration of candidates for Uneb exams started on April 1 and ended on May 31. However, those who register late will pay 50 per cent of the total registration fee and late registration started on June 1 and will close on June 30.
Five years ago, Uneb rolled out the exam e-registration system following a successful two-year pilot in 60 districts. The e-registration system is programmed, with names of schools, subject combinations, and other embedded help systems, it is user friendly and many schools have embraced e-registration.

Compiled by Wilson Kutamba ,Al-Mahdi Ssenkabirwa & Denis Edema