Re-introducing fees in UPE and USE  schools would be misguided

Musa Mugoya

What you need to know:

The appropriate study that the government should have undertaken is to establish the unit cost required to educate learners in primary and secondary levels.




Education

Due to charging of illegal fees in Universal Primary Education (UPE) and Universal Secondary Education (USE) schools, cost remains a driver of 6 of 10 persons that leave school, according to the Uganda National Household Survey 2019/20 conducted by the Uganda Bureau of Statistics.

A case in point is Chris Baryomunsi, the minister in charge of Information, Communication and Technology twitter post on February 12, 2022 “Today, I met Tukamushaba Afia, 14 yrs (holding a hoe) digging with her mother in Kiziba, Kanungu. She dropped out of school in P.3 because her parents cannot afford 30,000 shs per term. I have made arrangements to get her back to school. UPE should be made free and compulsory.” He accompanied the post with a photo of himself, Tukamushaba, her mum and siblings in the garden. 

Surprisingly, a month after his twitter post, Chris Baryomunsi issued a statement on decisions taken by the cabinet on March 14, 2022. Among the key decisions include one for the Ministry of Education and Sports (MoES) carrying out a study on whether Ugandan Parents are willing and able to pay fees in UPE & USE schools. The findings of the study are expected in June this year and will inform the government on whether to allow payment of fees or not.

Any plans by the government to re – introduce payment of fees in UPE and USE will be eroding the gains so far made in access to primary and secondary education over the country.

Additionally, the Children Act, as Amended, the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child that Uganda is party too, guarantee the children’s right to basic education. Currently, the country’s education planning by both National Planning Authority (NPA) and MoES is hinged on the Sustainable Development Goals that emphasize “leaving no one behind” and Uganda has committed itself to this agenda. With plans to re – introduce fees in UPE and USE schools, is the President and his cabinet telling us that domestic and international commitments do not matter to them? Is it possible to implement leaving no one behind agenda with school fees in UPE & USE schools? 

The cabinet resolution appears to be informed by two reasons. First, the government’s limited funding of UPE and USE schools in the country and opting to return to parents to fill the gaps. Under international commitments, the government’s failure to finance free quality basic education on account of lack of resources can only stand after demonstrating that it has undertaken all measures at its disposal to the extent of the available maximum resources. The loss of resources being made through corruption is astronomical. Plugging such leakages can secure the required funds for UPE & USE. 

The second premise for re – introducing fees may be that since almost all UPE and USE schools are charging non – tuition fees in form of development, examination, laboratory fees among others, with variations among schools, then let it be formalized. This argument is not only unfortunate but extremely weak for just one reason. S. 9 of the Education Act prohibits charging of mandatory tuition and non – tuition fees, there is an established structure right from the MoES to Local Government (LGs) level with the mandate of monitoring, supervising and enforcement of compliance to education laws and policies. This is a demonstration of laxity on the part of the MoES and LGs to execute their mandated roles. If UPE & USE schools are currently charging fees illegally, what will happen when there is an official pronouncement from the cabinet allowing them to charge fees?

The appropriate study that the government should have undertaken is to establish the unit cost required to educate learners in primary and secondary levels. This would act as a benchmark for the government’s financing of UPE and USE programs and perhaps regulation of fees in private schools. Education is a right guaranteed under Article 30 of the Constitution and thus access to basic education cannot be on the basis of ability to pay school fees.

Mr Mugoya is the Programs Officer-Right to Education at Initiative for Social and Economic Rights.