Africa-Press – Uganda. Biyaya Primary School, a government-aided learning institution in Adjumani District, is grappling with a shortage of teachers, pit-latrines, and classrooms as the school celebrates 90 years of existence.
According to the school authorities, the institution has since 2016 been registering an increase in the number of pupils as a result of the influx of refugees in the district.
The learning institution currently has an enrolment of 1,662 pupils (878 girls and 784 boys).
The head teacher of the school, Mr James Atidri, said the high enrolment is affecting teaching and learning outcomes.
“The staffing is at 58 percent, the teacher pupil ratio at the school now stands at 1:93 yet the recommended ratio is 1:53. The pupil to classroom ratio is at 1:92, yet the national standard is 1:53 and the pit-latrine stance ratio is 1:78 for boys (52 percent) and 1:87.8 for girls (40 per cent). We are stuck at this level,” he said in an interview last week.
He added that the school needs 13 additional teachers, 13 more classrooms, another 24 stances of pit-latrines, 136 desks and an administrative block in order to address some of the challenges.
Mr Atidri said 244 urban refugees joined the school this year, raising the desk to student ratio to 1:4 compared to the recommended 1:3.
The Bishop of Madi and West Nile diocese, Rt Rev Charles Collins Andaku, appealed to the parents, government representatives and non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in the district to work together to address the challenges.
“Continue supporting the Parents, Teachers Association (PTA), continue supporting the school administration and protect the school. The school is for the community. We should not abuse the learners, the school will continue to grow and produce future leaders,” Bishop Andaku said.
The principal district education officer of Adjumani, Mr Philip Akuku, acknowledged that the challenges faced by the school are common in the district, attributing it to the presence of refugees.
“The district has a gap of 275 classrooms, 6,020 desks for learners, a gap of 483 staff houses, and a gap of 300 teachers to match the standards,” Mr Akuku said.
He added that the district has a pit-latrine shortage of 1,724 stances.
About the school
Biyaya Primary School was established as a church foundation under the Church Missionary Society from England in 1933. In 1962, the government took over the school and in 1975, it was made a model school.
The enrolment in the school in the last seven years has been steadily increasing as refugees continue to cross to the district. In 2016, the school had 953 learners, in 2017 the number of learners dropped to 946, in 2018 the number went up to 976.
In 2019, the number again went up to 1,264, it also increased to 1,514 in 2020, in 2022, the number increased to 1,758.
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