By KT Reporter
The Ministry of Education and Sports is considering extending a system that allows young but over-age school dropouts to return to formal education.
The initiative, already operating in refugee-hosting districts under War Child Canada, could soon be available to Ugandans outside the refugee communities through the Accelerated Education Programme (AEP).
Speaking at the launch of the AEP Guidelines for Uganda, Sarah Bugoosi Kibooli, the Commissioner for Special Needs Education, said the programme has, in the last two years, demonstrated that it can rapidly improve literacy among beneficiaries.
“This programme has shown us that even those who dropped out years ago can quickly catch up and return to school,” she said, adding that expanding the system to Ugandans would have a huge socio-economic impact.
The programme, implemented under the Bridge Programme spearheaded by War Child Canada, is supported by the Mastercard Foundation with partners including Save the Children, Norwegian Refugee Council, Finn Church Aid, and Windle International.
Commissioner Bugoosi’s remarks were echoed by Permanent Secretary Kedrace Turyagyenda, who pointed out that many young people in Uganda, such as boda-boda riders, are intelligent but dropped out of school, adding that many of them could benefit from AEP and get back to pursuing their education. “Without such opportunities, idle youth become a source of trouble,” she observed.
The AEP is a flexible, age-appropriate education model designed for out-of-school children and youth whose learning was interrupted by poverty, conflict, marginalisation, or crisis. It uses compressed curricula and accelerated time frames to help learners quickly gain certified competencies in literacy, numeracy, and other key subjects, enabling them to reintegrate into the formal system.
Currently, the programme mainly benefits refugee children from Burundi, DR Congo, Rwanda, and South Sudan. It is delivered within existing schools, though in cases where integration into formal classes is delayed, sponsors construct separate classrooms for AEP learners. Teachers are trained to handle the learners’ special needs and to implement the compressed syllabus.
Albert Siminyu, War Child Canada’s Country Manager in Uganda, reported that more than 7,500 young people have rejoined secondary schools under the programme, with many progressing to A-Level.
Siminyu added that through this programme, they have enabled learners to bridge gaps and even proceed to university or start small businesses. He added that some are already in production as micro-entrepreneurs.
Commissioner Bugoosi said the newly launched guidelines will standardise how AEP is implemented across different schools and communities, ensuring consistency, funding, and sustainability.
The idea has also been welcomed by Mondo Kyateka, the Assistant Commissioner for Youth and Children Affairs in the Ministry of Gender. He highlighted that 42 per cent of Ugandan youth are not engaged in education, training, or employment, which he described as a potential trigger for instability.
He, however, calls on the education sector stakeholders to increase focus on offering training or skills that translate into marketable products. According to him, while Uganda has more than 40 universities, there seems to be no system of ensuring that all the university programmes are designed to suit the needs of the market, to ensure that the graduates get employment or create jobs.
Dara McLeod, the Executive Director of War Child Canada, urged stronger partnerships to sustain the programme in the face of dwindling international aid.
At the same event, university and A-Level scholarship programmes targeting refugee-hosting communities were also launched, further expanding opportunities for vulnerable youth.
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