NEBBI, February 21, 2025 — District councillors in Nebbi are preparing to begin investigations into headteachers of both Universal Primary Education [UPE] and Universal Secondary Education [USE] schools regarding learner enrolment.
During their recent monitoring at the end of the year, members of the Education Committee discovered that, in some schools, the number of learners recorded in the school registers exceeded the actual number of learners in various classes.
Ayerango Sophia, the councillor representing elderly persons in Kucwiny Subcounty, stated that the office of the Resident District Commissioner [RDC] must investigate the widespread enrolment of ghost learners.
“We want an audit report on why there is an increasing enrolment of ghost learners in government-aided schools, especially when the government is committed to sending grants to these schools,” Ayerango said.
She added that, since headteachers are allegedly using this method to extort money from the government by falsifying enrolment figures, disciplinary action must be taken against headteachers found guilty of enrolling ghost learners.
However, the Nebbi district LCV Chairman, Emmanuel Urombi, stated that it is difficult to verify the councillors’ claims regarding ghost learners because the first term sees a large number of learners, but some drop off in the second term.
He further explained that last year, the district recorded a total of 86,000 learners, but during the headcount, the actual number was found to be 82,000, indicating a gap of 4,000 learners. This suggests that there is still a significant dropout rate in the district.
Robert Abak, the Resident District Commissioner of Nebbi, confirmed that investigations have already been conducted, and so far, two schools have been identified as having a high number of ghost learners. He added that the headteachers of these schools have not yet been engaged by the Inspectorate of Government [IGG].
Abak assured that further investigations will be carried out across the district to hold headteachers accountable for enrolling ghost learners and to ensure appropriate disciplinary actions are taken.
https://thecooperator.news/nebbi-priests-form-sacco-to-improve-livelihoods/
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