BY RAPHEAL LUBANGAKENE
In the newly proposed budget for the Ministry of Education and Sports, Arts teachers’ plea for pay raise has been rejected due to ‘budget constraints’.
The Shs 843.99 billion that has been allocated to the Ministry of Education and Sports for the 2025/2026 financial year and presented to the Education and Sports Committee of Parliament has been deemed insufficient to cater for Arts teachers’ desires.
“We will not be able to increase salaries for arts teachers in the financial year 2025/2026,” State Minister for Finance Amos Lugoloobi revealed to the committee.
After science teachers received a substantial raise in 2022, their arts counterparts have since been crying out for the same treat, arguing that their work is critical in the Education system and the need to confront the ever rising costs of living.
Today, arts teachers with degrees earn about Shs 900,000, while their science colleagues pocket up to Shs 4 million.
Through the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (Unatu), arts teachers have adopted a more diplomatic strategy in quest to have even the smallest raise in their pay following fruitless strikes in 2022.
Also during the session, lawmakers raised additional concerns over the deteriorating condition of army-run schools.
There are over 37 primary and 11 secondary army schools, many in need of urgent attention.
But also various Primary Teachers’ Colleges (PTCs) in different parts of the country are in disuse and in despair. The committee complained of lack of clear plans for their redress.
Committee members believe that the growing shortage of qualified primary school teachers has been due to the increasing number of dysfunctional PTCs and urged the Ministry to rush actions to resolve this crisis.
All in all, the education infrastructure, persistent pay gaps for professionals remain heavy lifts for budget planners and decision makers in the education sector.
