KAMPALA: The Ministry of Education and Sports has released the schools calendar, indicating that all learners in Primary, secondary technical and community polytechnics level will report for studies on January 10, 2022.
While releasing the calendar at Kololo airstrip in Kampala, the Education minister, Ms Janet Kataha Museveni, said Wednesday that the first school term will last 14 weeks, starting January 10, 2022 until April 15, before learners break off for a three weeks holiday.
“By the time schools closed for the second Covid-19 national lockdown in June 2021, learners in P.4, P.5, and P.6 had already completed their assessments and promoted to the next respective Classes; that is, P.5, P.6, and P.7. The P.1, P.2, and P.3 Classes of 2020 shall report in the next respective Classes of P.2, P.3, and P.4,” Ms Museveni explained.
“Remedial lessons shall be provided for these Classes during First Term 2022 to help them cover critical content for the previous Class,” she added.
The second term will also last 14 weeks, starting May 9, 2022 until August 19, 2022, followed by another three-week holiday, according to the minister.
The third term shall commence on September 5, 2022 to December 9, 2022 before learners break off for seven weeks, until January 29, 2023 when they would resume studies.
Ms Museveni announced that all learners of 2020 who were not in candidate classes would be automatically promoted to the next class.
“Remedial classes will be offered to them in the first term to help them catch up,” Minister Museveni says.
The first lady also clarified that parents of Senior two students who had fully paid school fees before the second lockdown will not pay fees for the first term.
However, this raises the question of what will happen to parents who had paid fees to institutions that have since closed. In her address, Ms Museveni said that government would not be able to provide financial relief to private schools.
“Owners are encouraged to take advantage of Covid-19 relief measures that have been offered by various agencies,” she said.
Ms Museveni also acknowledged the challenges the sector and its stakeholders faced during the Covid-19 period.
“The long closure of schools has adversely affected our young girls who have fallen victim to defilement, teenage pregnancies and child marriages. Our schools especially the Private schools may not be able to reopen due to financial stress,” she said.
Schools in Uganda have been closed since March 2020 when President Museveni announced the first lockdown to curb the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. This kept millions of Primary and secondary students at home.
The move to keep schools closed for a prolonged period of time has been blamed for challenges faced by students especially the girl-child. In the past year, cases of teenage pregnancies and girl-child abuse have risen in Uganda.
In November 2021, President Museveni announced that schools, and the rest of the economy would be opened up in January 2022.
