- BY RAPHEAL LUBANGAKENE
The government of Uganda through the Ministry of Education and Sports recently drew a new Education policy, more liberative than ever, as it looks to improve the low literacy rates in the country, chiefly remote areas. And Karamoja region in the North East lags a mile too far behind.
During the regional Parliamentary sitting that took place in Gulu City last week, Karamoja legislators passed a motion urging the government to carry out a more robust strategy which is the compulsory boarding school education in Karamoja sub-region.
Pian County Member of Parliament, Hon. Remigio Achia who made known of the motion pointed to the seemingly endless challenges faced by the Karamoja sub-region where 65 per cent of the population lacks formal education.
Of those challenges, poverty is most menancing. Achia put issues such as high school dropout rates, long distance treks and absence of school feeding programmes down to poverty.
She also mentioned cultural responsibilities such as livestock farming, and historical injustices against the region – as majorly impactful on the education levels as well.
The legislator also cited the adverse impact of the low education levels itself in the region, saying that the male dropouts are often recruited into violent activities such as cattle rustling, while female dropouts face early marriages and teenage motherhood.
“Many children of school-going age (3-18 years) are absorbed into livestock herding which exposes them to the risks of conflict and eventually drags them into cycles of violence,” she explained.
Fast to second the motion was Napak District Woman Representative, Hon. Faith Nakut who shared concerns about the cyclical insecurity in Karamoja, and chained it to low education levels and widespread household poverty.

The motion was supported by several other law makers who expressed the essence of implementing a stronger educational policy to outweigh the heavier costs of alleviating insecurity in Karamoja.
The legislators held up that despite the existence of Universal Primary and Secondary educational schemes, it is paramount to embark on this stronger project of free compulsory boarding schools and spread it to the most remote areas of Karamoja if literary rates are to be raised.