KAMPALA, Uganda — President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni has urged youths in the Bugisu sub-region to reject school charges in government schools, emphasizing the need for effective implementation of Universal Primary Education and Universal Secondary Education.
Speaking at the Bugisu Youth Symposium in Mbale City, Museveni stressed that the government introduced free education in 1996 to support children from poor families. “You the youths, you need to insist and say stop school charges in government schools. Wake up everybody that let us implement UPE and USE,” he said.
Museveni noted that some individuals, including Parent-Teacher Associations, have refused to implement this policy, leading to high dropout rates. “But your people down here refused to implement it in the schools including the PTA. They meet and put charges and because of that, children drop out of schools in big numbers,” he said.
Museveni launched the Presidential Skilling initiative to address this issue, providing free skills training to youths. “Recently, I introduced free education in Presidential Skilling centres. I give the youths skills through free education, and this is what we wanted in 1996 for the Primary and secondary and here I’m spending more money than if it was the case if we implemented UPE and USE,” he said.
The president encouraged youths to join the money economy through various sectors, including commercial agriculture, factories, artisanship, services and ICT. He also urged them to utilize government programs like the Parish Development Model and Emyooga to fight poverty and improve their livelihoods.
Museveni advised youths to protect the Parish Development Model from mismanagement and ensure continuity. “Get involved and protect that money. They have been deducting the money from the banks between Shs20,000 to Shs130,000. I have stopped this. The bank charges will be paid by the government. For you, you will get your Shs1 million,” he said.
The president warned leaders who mismanage these funds that they will be arrested and held accountable. “Those who knocked-off money beyond bank deductions are thieves,” he said.
