Lack of pit latrines forces students out of school in Kibuku
Students study from one of the dilapidated structures at Kibuku SS on September 18, 2023. PHOTO/MUDANGHA KOLYANGHA.
What you need to know:
- The school, which was established in 1982, also faces a challenge of inadequate classrooms, some of which were condemned by the engineers from the Ministry of Education.
- The school has a deficit of 15 classrooms.
- The head teacher, Mr Fred Samanya, said on Tuesday that the available pit latrines are not functional.
Students are dropping out of school due to lack of pit latrines at Kibuku Senior Secondary School, one of the traditional schools in the eastern district of Kibuku, the authorities have said.
The school enrolment, which was previously about 1,500, has gradually declined to about 800.
The school, which was established in 1982, also faces a challenge of inadequate classrooms, some of which were condemned by the engineers from the Ministry of Education. The school has a deficit of 15 classrooms.
The head teacher, Mr Fred Samanya, said on Tuesday that the available pit latrines are not functional.
“The available pit latrines carved in, leaving the walls in sorry state, and it’s now a risk area for both learners and teachers,” he said.
He said one of the remaining pit latrines, which was being used by teachers and students, also collapsed last year, leaving the school completely with no place of convenience.
He also said due to lack of enough classrooms, the teachers use tree shades as classrooms to conduct lessons.
Mr Samanya said they have communicated to the district and ministry to rescue the situation in vain.
He said in terms of funding, the school is supposed to receive Shs55 million per quarter but instead it gets Shs41 million. The chairperson of the Board of Governors, Mr Faustino Waluya, said the above challenges are affecting academic performance.
“This situation is compromising the academic performance of students because they spend most of the time seeking for places of convenience outside the school,” he said.
The District Education officer, Mr Christopher Wamika, told Monitor that the district is aware of the challenge.
“We had initially written to the Ministry over the same and the ministry had proposed Shs600 million towards rehabilitation but because of the budget cuts, they failed to realise the funds,” Mr Wamika said. He further explained that Kibuku SS is one of the schools that have been earmarked for rehabilitation in this financial year.
“We are hopeful that under this financial year the school could get Shs4b towards re-construction,” he said.
