An independent not-for-profit organisation operating in Uganda since October 2019, Uwezo Uganda actively seeks to contribute to a society in which all children are learning and realising their full potential.
We work towards this by demonstrating how to improve learning outcomes and keeping communities and leaders focused on learning through assessment, research, innovations, partnerships and advocacy.
For 10 years, we generated and disseminated independent assessment data, and contributed to amplifying the evidence of low learning outcomes and the fact that schooling does not equate to learning as a program under Twaweza East Africa.
A society in which all children are learning and realising their full potential
To promote support for quality education for all through assessment, research, engagement and influencing, in collaboration with other stakeholders
By Judith Nyakaisiki
On 23rd and 24th April 2025, Uwezo Uganda, together with other key education stakeholders participated in a validation exercise organised by National Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) in regards to the Primary Curriculum Framework, at Kololo Senior Secondary School. The exercise aimed at gathering valuable insights and feedback on the ongoing primary curriculum framework review.
The review aims to create a more impactful and tailored curriculum that enhances Ugandan primary school learners' readiness for secondary education and the world of work.
During the validation exercise, the stakeholders applauded NCDC upon the well-crafted document and noted its emphasis on integrating life skills and values in the curriculum. The stakeholders further noted that, going forward, parents should be actively involved as key participants in the framework. They also highlighted the importance of well-structured teacher training programs to ensure all educators are fully aligned with the proposed changes.
For more details on the ongoing Ugandan primary school curriculum review, please visit here.
Participants at
the NCDC validation meeting at Kololo
Senior Secondary School
By Faridah Nassereka
To support effective implementation of the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC), the Action for Life Skills and Values in East Africa (ALiVE)initiative is working towards developing modules for supporting nurturing of life skills and values in the classroom. The process in which ALiVE is working with country-specific teams including universities (Kyambogo University, KenyattaUniversity and University of Dar es Salaam) is focused on developing modules in three areas, i) Introduction to Life skills and Values ii) Nurturing of Lifeskills and Values, and iii) Assessment of Lifeskills and Values. The modules targeted for pre- and in-service teacher trainees in universities and teacher training colleges aim at supporting the development of Lifeskills and values among learners and therefore bridging the gaps in delivery of the CBC that are eminent in the education systems within East Africa.
Participants reviewing draft modules on teacher education ahead of their
finalisation
Over three days from 23rd -25th April 2025, the ALiVE East Africa and module development teams met at Fairway hotel in Kampala, Uganda, to continue with the development of modules focused on achieving these three objectives;
1. Validation of the draft
modules for teacher trainees for finalisation.
2. Review and validation of
outlines and draft content for the instructors/tutor’s guides.
3. Development of a harmonised structure for interactive online teacher trainee modules.
Graced by officials from the Ministry of Education and Sport’s Teacher
Education Training and Development (TETD) department, including the
Commissioner, Dr Annet Mugisha, the focus on supporting teacher’s professional
development coupled with the need to engage homes and communities were underscored
as crucial aspects required in the nurturing of Lifeskills and values. She
further commended ALiVE for the efforts so far done for which the Ministry was
appreciative.
Having received feedback on areas for improvement, and mapped out
strategies for piloting of the modules which is the core next step in the
modules development process, the workshop concluded with agreement on timelines
for their refinement and measures to take towards fully developing of the
tutors’ guides for each of the three modules.
By Goretti Nakabugo
On
23-26 March, 2025, we participated in the 2025 Comparative International
Education Society (CIES) 69th Annual Conference that took
place in Chicago, USA, under the theme: Envisioning Education in a Digital Society. Together with counterparts in the Regional Education Learning
Initiative (RELI) Africa, Action for Life Skills and Values in East Africa (ALiVE)
and People’s Action for Learning (PAL) Network we presented on the following panels:
a)
A panel
discussion on ‘What works in adolescent
skills: How evidenced, localised solutions are equipping young people with the
skills that Africa needs’ that took place on 23rd
March 2025. The session
emphasised the need for evidence-based, local solutions to teach young people
21st-century skills. It focused on training teachers, updating curricula, and
involving governments to prepare young people for work and life. Continuous
evaluation and feedback were also deemed essential for effective, lasting life
skills education. Our presentation on the panel was titled ‘Building
capacity to assess and nurture adolescents' life skills [& Values]:
Insights from an East African initiative’ can be accessed here
b)
A panel discussion on Equipping Learners for a Dynamic Digital
Future: Insights from Integrating 21st Century Skills in East Africa’s
Education Systems that took
place on 26th March 2025. The panel focused on developing and
implementing frameworks through ALiVE that have potential to strengthen teacher
education, curriculum and assessment systems in East Africa to cultivate the
skills and values that young people need to thrive. The full panel presentation
can be accessed here
Thanks to everyone who
participated in our sessions, as well as those whose sessions we had the
privilege to attend and learn from. Strengthening our education systems to
create environments where all children can develop foundational literacy,
numeracy, life skills and values – essential for further learning, work, and a
meaningful life – demands collaboration and shared insights. We are truly
thankful for this experience. Looking forward to reconnecting at the 2026 CIES
conference in San Francisco!
By Judith Nyakaisiki
On March 18, 2025, Uwezo Uganda released
its latest national learning assessment report, based on a survey conducted
between July and August 2024 across 29 districts in Uganda. Titled ‘Are Our
Children Learning? Learning Recovery and Challenges for Uganda,’ the report assesses
children’s reading and numeracy skills in 2024, offering a comparison with
findings from 2021, when Uwezo last conducted a similar assessment during the
Covid-19 pandemic and its associated school closures. The report was officially
launched by Dr. Cleophus Mugenyi, Commissioner for Basic Education at the
Ministry of Education and Sports, on behalf of the State Minister for Primary
Education. During the launch, Dr. Mugenyi reaffirmed the government’s
commitment to implementing the report’s recommendations.
The findings reveal a concerning decline
in children’s average reading proficiency—both in English and local
languages—compared to upper primary learners in 2021, likely a lingering
consequence of reduced school attendance during the pandemic-related closures.
On a positive note, the report highlights improvements in numeracy skills. It
also underscores a gradual recovery from the prolonged school closures of
2020–2021. Pre-primary enrollment is steadily rebounding, and children aged
6–10, the target group for lower primary education, are showing English reading
and numeracy levels that align more closely with those recorded in 2018, with
fewer children classified as non-readers or non-numerate.
The report emphasises that enhancing
literacy and numeracy at foundational levels is crucial for progress. It
advocates for expanded access to Early Childhood Development (ECD) programs and
stresses the need to tackle persistent challenges that hinder learning
outcomes. Key recommendations include allocating resources to recruit more
teachers, particularly for lower primary grades, and ensuring their equitable
distribution across government-aided primary schools. Additionally, the report
calls for targeted initiatives to support children who have fallen behind in
literacy and numeracy, enabling them to catch up and fully benefit from their
primary education.
The complete assessment report is
available for download at: https://uwezouganda.org/download/Uwezo_Uganda_2024_Assessment%20Report_Launch%20Version.pdf
A summary of key findings can be accessed at: https://uwezouganda.org/download/Uwezo_Uganda_Key_Facts_Launch%20Version.pdf
By Joseph Kasasa
For
fifteen years, Uwezo Uganda has been at the forefront of conducting citizen-led
assessments of foundational learning, gathering critical data on children’s
learning outcomes in Uganda. To carry out these assessments, Uwezo partners
with grassroots civil society organisations (CSOs) in each district. Various
partner organisations at national and sub-national levels have utilised the Uwezo
assessment methodology, data and findings to develop programs that enhance learning
outcomes as well as evaluate interventions serving the same purpose.
From
7th to 14th April 2025, we were privileged to work with our
partner in Oyam district—Foundation for Inclusive
Community Help (FICH)—as they adapted Uwezo’s tools and
methodology to conduct a school-based baseline assessment of learning in four
districts: Oyam, Kole, Alebtong, and Arua. The baseline is part of FICH’s Equal
Foundations, Empowered Futures project, which aims to enhance
educational outcomes in rural communities, with a focus on gender-responsive
pedagogy in northern Uganda. Uwezo collaborated closely with FICH to tailor
its assessment tools to FICH’s needs, trained 115 assessors from the four
districts to use the adapted tool, and closely monitored the assessment process
to ensure the collection of high-quality data.
The
baseline sample targeted 7,428 children across three classes (Primary 3 to
Primary 5), assessing their basic literacy and numeracy skills using Uwezo
tools. FICH's overarching goal over the next three years is to:
1. Improve
foundational literacy and numeracy skills for 24,000 children in the four
districts
2. Increase girls’ enrollment and retention in Primary 3 to 5 by 20%
3. Train 288 teachers in gender-responsive pedagogy, and
4. Establish 10 girl-friendly spaces.
For more information about Uwezo assessments visit https://uwezouganda.org/publications/reports
to access our assessment reports and https://uwezouganda.org/publications/datasets
to access our datasets.
For the past 15 years,
Uwezo Uganda has been at the forefront of citizen-led assessments, gathering
essential data on children’s learning outcomes throughout Uganda—an approach
that has gained traction among similar organisations. In March 2025, we were thrilled
to join forces with Power Teachers Africa (PTA), who tapped into Uwezo’s
assessment tools to establish baseline data on children’s learning in Mbale.
Uwezo Uganda went out of its way to support this effort, training volunteers on
how to use these tools effectively and keeping a watchful eye on the assessment
process.
Power
Teachers Africa, a
Uganda-registered not-for-profit, is committed to delivering affordable,
teacher-focused motivation programs to government schools across Africa. Their
work tackles pressing issues like teacher absenteeism and turnover while
boosting learning outcomes. Beyond that, PTA strives to spotlight the value of
incentivising teachers, rallying stakeholders around this cause for better
education.
The
baseline study sample included 100 children, aged 6 to 16, across five classes
(Primary 2 to Primary 6) at Bumbobi Primary School. Using Uwezo’s tools, these children
were assessed on basic literacy and numeracy skills. PTA’s overarching goal is
to elevate learning outcomes, and to gauge the impact of their efforts, they’ll
conduct a follow-up assessment later this year, again with Uwezo’s backing.
Curious about Uwezo’s
assessment methods? Dive into our past reports here:
https://uwezouganda.org/publications/reports
By Judith Nyakaisiki
On 5th February 2025, Uwezo Uganda participated in the Language Development and Advocacy Network (LDAN) Workshop. The Workshop aimed to:
- Advance
ideas, connections and proposals highlighting the roles
of languages and communication in
development
- Ensure that issues of concern represent broad, diverse,
equitable and inclusive perspectives, and
- Engage
with organisations and communities from different world regions working
within this field to
collaborate, advise, learn from, shape and help steer this area of
interest, including developing policy,
research and practice priorities; informing researchers,
decision-makers and practitioners; all while
encouraging local perspectives, priorities and proposals.
Dr Mary
Goretti Nakabugo, Uwezo Uganda Executive Director, was one of the panelists at
the workshop. Her presentation centered on the relevance of LDAN to a
developing country context such as Uganda. She mainly focused on the issue of
using mother tongue / local language as a medium of instruction and how
this relates to learning outcomes. She shared that, in Uganda, there is an
existing language policy, which requires the use of pupils' mother tongues or a
common area language as a medium of instruction from Primary 1 to Primary 3.
She argued that while the policy is well-intentioned, it is faced with a
number of challenges in practice and has not yet translated into desirable
learning outcomes. For example, due to the linguistic diversity of Uganda even
within smaller geographical areas, choosing to use one local language as a
medium of instruction in one given village may exclude some learners who do not
speak the language, thus, affecting their learning.
In all this, she noted teachers to be a key factor, yet they have hardly been well-supported to implement the language policy. A recent spotlight study report on basic education completion and foundational learning in Uganda highlighted a scarcity of curriculum documents and teacher guides. Where these existed, they were all in English, inserting more pressure on the teachers to be language interpreters while delivering the curriculum (Nakabugo et al 2024)[1].
In her final submission, Dr
Nakabugo argued that, improving children’s learning outcomes requires much more
than simply having in place a language in education policy that requires the
use of local language as a medium of instruction. Other factors, such as
support to teachers, availability of resources, the support to learners and
parental and community awareness of the value of the policy need to be
considered.
The full presentation can be accessed here
