Geraldine Namirembe Bitamazire Minister of State for Primary Education In April 1999, the Honorable Geraldine Namirembe Bitamazire was appointed as Uganda’s Minister of Education, and in 2001 she became the Ugandan Minister of State for Primary education. Her extensive career in education has spanned over four decades from teacher to Senior Education Officer to an earlier position as Minister of Education. Born in 1941, Minister Bitamazire has a diploma, bachelor and master’s degree from Makerere University, and has been promoting women’s rights and girls’ education for many years. Currently the National Chairperson of the Uganda Girl Guides Association, Bitamazire was a member of the UN Commission on the status of Women from 1998 to 2001, and is a founding member of FAWE, Forum for African Women Educationalists.

Giving our young people a chance

The Republic of Uganda is committed to providing her young people with an inclusive quality education that will enable the young people participate and compete favourably in the global village.

In this respect we have put in place policies that are proactive and responsive to the promotion of universal participation in education. As a result we have raised primary school enrolment from 2.7 million pupils in 1996 to 7 million in 2003. In the same vein our primary education syllabus was deliberately reformed to emphasize the acquisition and mastery of basic literacy and numeracy skills. For the youth who missed out school, literacy, numeracy as well as life skills are attained through the nationwide Functional Adult Literacy training programme.

To ensure quality in the instructional process, we have invested in strengthening the teaching force at all levels, beginning with primary through the TDMS programmes. Measures are also in place to enforce upper and lower class size limits as well as provide sufficient reading and instructional materials, remedial teaching. The content of primary education has also been widened and diversified to include integrated science, agriculture, performing arts, physical education, integrated production skills and languages.

At post primary level emphasis is placed on acquisition of competencies with broad application. Thus, we encourage coherent and equitable participation and efficient use of teachers and students time as well as deliberately ensuring participation in business, vocational and technical education. Government has invested in establishing Polytechnics at sub-county levels and, has set up special colleges for training of instructors. There has been an expansion and improvement of school facilities as well as more financial support to poorer schools and students. We have increased minimum class-size and rationalized teacher workload and also introduced double-shifts to enable more children acquire an education.

In preparation of students for the job market emphasis is placed on competencies for the workforce and higher education and the promotion of research particularly applied research.

This is Uganda’s vision, my vision for promotion of education that will promote peace, equity, social inclusion and cohesion.