The Uganda Students' Higher Education Financing Policy

Abstract

The Government of the Republic of Uganda under the leadership of HE the President, is making arrangements to introduce the students' higher education financing scheme through the Ministry of Education & Sports and as such, the Ministry of Education & Sports is to oversee the implementation through making arrangements for drafting an enabling law for the financing scheme, ensuring that an appropriate institutional framework is in place to oversee the management of the scheme and to prepare a budget for running of the scheme in respect to the disbursement of loans to the student's. Higher education in Uganda was originally free covering tuition and living allowance but the growth of student numbers has meant that the Government of Uganda can no longer afford to pay tuition and personal needs for all the students that qualify to join higher institutions of learning. It has overtime offered scholarships to highly qualifying students at higher institutions but with the growth in student numbers, many qualifying students have missed the chance to join universities and other tertiary institutions on Government support. The funding of public universities and other higher learning institutions largely depends on Government subvention which in most cases is inadequate. Thus, the financing and affordability of higher education is currently a top agenda of the Government. With the increase in the number of students completing advanced secondary education, it has become a burden for the Government to provide free quality education. It is apparent that the cost cannot be borne by many parents as evidenced by many students who drop out of the universities because of lack of fees. The emergence of private universities and tertiary institutions has shown that many parents are willing to pay for the university education of their children.