TASAAGA PRIMARY SCHOOL – A BRIEF HISTORY

In Uganda, education is free but less than one out of three children finish primary school.  

The School’s Founding

A Ugandan named Bruhan Mubiru decided he wanted to do something about it by creating a new type of primary school in a rural community two hours north of the capital, Kampala. However, Bruhan had no money or land to build – so he asked the internet for help.

Robin Galan was one of the people to answer his call. In 2008, he spent over six months, helping to organise, build and to a large part, personally finance the new school. He was joined by other volunteers and locals, and together they made the dream a reality in a matter of months.

The school has been teaching ever since.

A New Approach to Primary Education In Uganda

What makes the school special is that it’s a non-profit private school in a country where all other schools our either government or for-profit private.

UNESCO’s research has concluded that the reason for Uganda’s high primary school drop out rate is that the government schools are severely under-funded, while the private schools are too expensive for the vast majority of Ugandans.

Underfunding causes lots of problems, three of which are the main reasons for children dropping out so young

-       Children not having money for school food

-       Teachers not being paid

-       Huge class sizes

Tasaaga Primary tries to tackle this by charging parents a small school fee ($14 a term), but in return they supply school meals, all school supplies, keep class sizes down and teachers paid on time.

Proving Change Is Possible

For the first few years, the results were excellent. Tasaags students were finishing primary education in greater numbers than the national average and they were learning vocational schools that prepared them for future life.

The school doesn’t just teach locals. It takes students from impoverished regions many hours away, who study as boarders. It also teaches orphans and vulnerable children, who get to study for free.

Rising Costs and Challenges

The school can only ever charge what the local parents can afford, any more and the system doesn’t work.

In the past, the gap between fees and costs was filled by donations, mainly from Robin Galan. Parents who could not afford fees, were allowed to pay in kind by growing crops for school food.

However, the costs have gone up but income in rural Uganda has not. The school has struggled to cover costs over the last few years, results and attendance has suffered. The drop out rate is now similar to the rest of Uganda.

It’s a situation we aim to change.

In 2018, we formed a UK charity ‘Tasaaga Primary School Supporters’ aimed to get the school back on track. Our aim is simple, ensure the school can meet its costs every month. If we do, we know we will keep more kids in primary education for longer, giving them a much better chance in life.