Hard work has earned Kiwanuka decent life

Seventy-five-year-old Margaret Kiwanuka took an early retirement having worked in the civil service for only six years.

Fondly now referred to by many as “sir”, at 35 in 1985, Kiwanuka begrudgingly quit her banking job at the now defunct Uganda Commercial bank (UCB) in Kampala.

Although in Buganda the Kabaka gives the title “Sir” to personalities with exceptional achievements, for Kiwanuka those around her felt she deserved the title because of her exceptional achievements, especially in the area of education in 2016.

“A big function was organised for me by friends when they were giving me the title Sir. It is a big achievement in my retirement and I pride in the title,” Kiwanuka says. “It is a sign that people appreciate my work in society.”

Despite the benefits and recognition she got in society then with her bank job, “Sir” Kiwanuka called it quits and went on to start a nursery school in a makeshift structure at Kaleerwe in Nakawa Division, Kampala.

She named her school Yudesi Nursery School, which with time grew into the present Yudesi Nursery and Primary school, which in 1989 gave birth to another campus in Kazo, Kawempe Division.

However, before joining UCB, Kiwanuka says, she was a teacher having obtained a certificate in nursery teaching from Lady Irene College in Luweero District.

“I had been teaching in primary schools but because of meagre pay, I quit teaching and applied for a teller job at UCB. I was given the job and got trained,” she recalls.

However, the mother of four, says for the six years she worked in the bank, Kiwanuka realised her heart  was not in it.  She used her  savings  from her teller job to build the school on a family piece of land.

Prep for retirement

In fact, Kiwanuka says, as soon as she joined UCB she realised the need to start preparing for her retirement.

With her passion for teaching that dated as back as her teenage years, Kiwanuka went back into the classroom profession which she refers to as “her calling from God”.

“I started a school so that I could prepare for my old age. You know, there is nothing as good as being your own employer,” she says.

Her father Eugenio Mukasa was a catechist and he inspired his daugjhter to join the teaching profession.

“My father would ask me to teach my peers, who were taking catechism lessons at our home,” Kiwanuka recalls.

From a school with five pupils and operating in a makeshift in 1985, currently Kiwanuka is a proud owner of Yudesi schools, with an enrolment of at least 2,000 learners.

Mistakes

Kiwanuka says although her school project has been a success, she has challenges supervising her farm that has cattle, goats and a banana plantation.

“Supervising the farm is a big challenge. I do not get much returns from the farm as I expected because of poor managers. Annoyingly, in most cases I have to get money from the schools to sustain the farm,” she says.

This makes her regret having started the farm because she spends more on the project.

Advice

Since everyone at any one time will become old and retire, Kiwanuka advises that preparing for old age is vital.

“If you do not prepare for your evening years, you will suffer a lot. I think I made the right decision to retire early and start my own project because if I had started it (school) when I was more than  60 years, managing it would be a challenge,” Kiwanuka says.

Future plans

Kiwanuka plans to refurbish and make her schools more modern and enhance their education standards to be among the top five in the country.

She also hopes to  buy sewing machines so that uniforms for all the pupils are made from the school.

This, she says, would save her delays in making them besides improving their quality.

Free time

Kiwanuka is always busy at her schools and it is during what she calls her free time that she goes to her farm with her grandchildren.

At the farm, she says, she plays with her grandchildren and also monitors her animals and crops. She also uses her free time to play and interact with her  pupils.

“I have passion for  children,”  she says.

At glance
Margaret Kiwanuka was born to Eugenio Mukasa and Monica Namwanje of Lubugumu in Mpigi District.
She holds a certificate in nursery teaching from Lady Irene College in Luweero District which she obtained in 1969 and a diploma in Education from Makerere University.
She is a mother four and has 16 grandchildren.