A BENEFICIARY OF CASH BASED TRANSFER PROGRAMME EXCELS IN 2018 UGANDA’S PRIMARY LEAVING EXAMINATION IN KOBOKO
Uganda is now home to about 1.2 million refugees, more than half of them from South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The country maintains an open door policy towards refugees, an attribute that has turned Uganda into model case in the handling of refugees. Free education has been one of the key social services that refugees who sought comfort in Uganda enjoy alongside host communities allowing them opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills. Uganda has about 517,000 refugee children at primary level with 217,000 new refugee arrivals anticipated by the end of 2020, another 130,200 pupils will need pre to post-primary education services, putting a further strain on the already stretched capacity of national and district-level education systems and compromising both access to and quality of education service delivery.
AFOD-Uganda in partnership with World Food Programme through WFP service provider Post Bank is implementing a Cash Based Transfer in Lobule settlements, Lobule Sub-County in Koboko District where refugees receive cash assistance on a monthly basis as well as being equipped with financial literacy skills. Through Cash based transfer, refugees are able to meet their basic needs.
In an interview with a CBT beneficiary, here is what he had to say, ‘My name is Tom a 57 year old Congolese who came to Uganda in October 2013 due to insurgency in DRC. I appreciate AFOD Uganda and WFP for the monthly cash entitlements I receive, which boosted my son`s performance through timely payment of school fees and provision of scholastic materials. My son Samuel emerged the best in 2018 PLE in Lobule settlement, Koboko district scoring aggregate 8 in PLE with a Credit 3 in English, Distinction 2 in SST, Distinction 2 in Science and Distinction 1 in Mathematics at Padrombu primary school in lobule sub county’. Even with family size 4 where I receive a meagre 124,000 Uganda shillings, I have managed to prioritize and pay for my son’s education’. ‘Amidst a number of financial constraints like; high cost of scholastic materials, school uniforms and examination fees, my son was able to excel.
AFOD –Uganda and other partners have documented key barriers that hinders refugee’s access to education as; long distance between homes and the nearest schools, poor school facilities and early marriage, the highest prevalence of child marriage is in Northern Uganda where majority of refugees hosting districts are located at 59%, followed by Western region (58%), Eastern region (52%), East central (52%), West Nile (50%), Central (41%), South west (37%), and lowest in Kampala (21%). In addition, 2018 joint inter-agency MSNA report points to language barrier as a critical factor preventing refugee children in Uganda from accessing quality education. While the South Sudanese primary school curriculum is in English and has some similarities to the Ugandan primary school curriculum, refugees from Burundi, DRC and other Francophone countries face challenges in adjusting to a new curriculum in a foreign language. In order to build on the momentum created by other global initiatives and to sufficiently address the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A concerted integrated strategy by NGOs and partners is therefore required to address these barriers taking into account girls’ specific vulnerabilities.
