Uganda’s education system is preparing for a major shake-up after President Yoweri Museveni revealed plans to hire 50,000 new teachers in his next term, a move aimed at ending years of complaints about teacher shortages in public schools.
For years, classrooms under the Universal Primary Education program have been overcrowded, with some schools depending on parents to pay extra fees so administrators could hire stop-gap private teachers. Official figures show the country has about 142,000 government teachers, far short of the number needed to maintain a fair learning environment.
Museveni, speaking at the launch of the National Secretariat for Patriotism Corps in Kampala, said the gap can no longer be ignored. He explained that to achieve a manageable ratio of 53 pupils per teacher, Uganda must recruit an additional 50,000 instructors.
His announcement comes in the wake of a teachers’ strike that shook the sector earlier this month. Members of the Uganda National Teachers Union downed their tools on September 12, protesting salary inequalities and poor working conditions. The strike was only called off after the government signaled it would address the grievances.
The President tied the recruitment plan to his push for free education in government schools, stressing that excuses about teacher shortages would not hold once the new staff are in place. “When teachers are provided, there will be no reason to charge parents any extra money,” he said.
Museveni also called for graduates from the Patriotism Corps to be absorbed into government programs, describing them as an untapped resource for national development and mobilization.
If carried through, the plan could reshape the landscape of Uganda’s primary education, reducing classroom congestion and easing financial pressure on families who for years have carried the burden of extra costs.
