Education Specialist on the Scholarship Program Transforming Uganda

Mrs. Christine Jane Olal is an education specialist that recently joined AIA’s Team in Nakuwadde. As a specialist, Mrs. Christine has special insight into how education in Uganda is structured and how it should be improved. In an interview with Christine, we talk about education in Uganda and the AIA scholarship program, here is her take on the Scholarship program and how it impacts the People in Nakuwadde.

How would you describe the education system in Uganda?

The education system in Uganda is undergoing a great transformation. The new education curriculum is designed to do away with traditional classroom methods and adopt a more research-based and practical system where students are required to do more research and technical hands-on experiments which encourage critical thinking and teamwork. However, the curriculum becomes seemingly impractical in rural communities that have no access to a library or other research facilities.

What is the AIA scholarship program and what is its contribution to the Nakuwadde Community?

The Action in Africa Scholarship program started in 2013 in Nakuwadde, supporting students from low-income families with education funding. Currently, the program supports 112 students in the secondary scholarship program and 19 University students. In a community like Nakuwadde which is remote and with many families with low livelihoods, the program is transformative since it supports dependent and disadvantaged children to acquire an education right from secondary school(High school) to University (College).

What is the selection criteria for the AIA Scholarship program?

The selection criteria is quite different from that of many other scholarship programs. First, ours is a scholarship and not a sponsorship. We first consider the student's participation in the AIA programs at the Center like sports, Art, and Music, this signals their commitment to the community. We then consider the income level of the student's family as well as their parent's commitment to AIA‘s empowerment programs like women to women or men to men. The academic performance of the students, though not the sole determinant, remains a fundamental factor for one to get into the scholarship program.

What are the short-term and long-term impacts of the program and how sustainable is it?

The long-term goal of the program is to empower the community, even if AIA was to leave Nakuwadde, the effect of this program would still subsist. In the short term students are supported and inspired to stick to completing their education because they now get to see people in their community go as far as University with the support of AIA. The scholarship students are also encouraged to intern, volunteer, and give back to and within the community, which is a very sustainable form of community empowerment.

Action in Africa’s Scholarship program addresses the financial challenges within the education sector in Uganda, the program is supported by all our other programs like the After school program, primary school partnership program, and other community empowerment programs.