LANGO – Ministry of Education and Sports have commissioned four seed secondary schools worth Shs 8b in the Lango sub-region.
State Minister for Sports, Denis Hamson Obua commissioned the newly constructed seed secondary schools which include; Apac, Aduku, Ogor and Abia. The schools were established in the sub-counties with secondary schools.
The schools, according to the local leadership will ease access to affordable education and reduce high school dropout rates in both primary and lower secondary education.
The schools are among the 117 constructed by the government across the country under Intergovernmental Fiscal Transfers with funding from the World Bank. The eight schools have registered reasonable enrolment and it is expected to overwhelm the facilities.
The modern facilities constructed in the schools include classroom blocks, ICT laboratory, administration blocks, library, science laboratory, staff accommodation, sports facilities, CCTV camera and stances of pit latrines.
There is urgent need for staff recruitment, power supply to the schools, construction of medical units, consideration of the inclusion of boarding sections in the newly built schools and retooling of staff on the new curriculum were some of the challenges tabled before Minister Obua.
According to the headteachers of the schools, the students’ enrolment is rapidly increasing up and if the government delays recruiting teaching staff, the existing human resources will be overwhelmed.
At Apac Seed Secondary School, the student population is 834 (S.1 and 2), Aduku 189 (S.1) and Ogor 480 (S.1-S.4). Before the construction of the facilities, Ogor had only 260 students.
“We want the government to reconsider introducing a boarding section in the school because of the long distance for some students especially girls,” said Christine Adongo, the headteacher of Ogor in Otuke district.
“Some of our students come as far as Abim district and it would be a risk for girls who are as well bound to temptation,” she adds.
Professor John Bosco Okullo, the Chairperson Board of Governor for Aduku, applauded President Yoweri Museveni for fulfilling his pledge to give children from marginalized communities in Lango an opportunity to study.
Prof Okullo who is also a lecturer at Makerere University urged the government not to apply yardstick when it comes to recruitment but should first consider volunteer teachers serving in the school.
Minister Obua who represented the First Lady and Minister of Education and Sports said, the seed schools will be constructed in three phases.
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