Uganda’s Kiswahili Teacher Count Exceeds 2,000, Urgent Deployment Needed – Kadaga Informs Parliament
Rt. Hon Rebecca Kadaga, the first Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for EAC Affairs, informed Parliament on Thursday that Uganda boasts over 2,000 Kiswahili teachers, stressing the urgent need for their deployment across the country.
Since the establishment of the Uganda National Kiswahili Council in 2019 to oversee the integration of Kiswahili as the second national official language, Cabinet’s 2022 recommendation to make Kiswahili compulsory and examinable in primary and secondary schools has spurred various initiatives towards implementation.
Kadaga’s disclosure came during her response to fellow parliamentarians following the advocacy by Parliament’s Committee on East African Affairs for the allocation of Shs3.2 billion to support Kiswahili language activities in Uganda.
Presenting the committee’s report, Hon. Noeline Kisembo, Chairperson of the Committee on East African Community Affairs, highlighted the ongoing efforts to integrate Kiswahili language in various sectors, emphasizing the importance of popularizing Kiswahili for community integration.
“For purposes of deepening and widening the integration in the region, Kiswahili language should be popularized as a way of integrating and unifying communities,” Hon. Kisembo highlighted.
The committee urged Parliament to allocate the necessary funds to the Ministry so that they expedite the implementation of Kiswahili integration activities.
In her remarks, Naome Kibaaju, the Sheema North legislator, proposed providing Kiswahili lessons to MPs to enhance EAC integration, suggesting that classes be conducted within Parliament premises for convenience.
“As leaders here, if we intend to start using Kiswahili in our Parliament, we need classes in Kiswahili to begin here at Parliament. Understand there are some lessons taking place at the NRM Secretariat, but that is congested and not conducive for learning. I wish we could have it in one of our rooms here at Parliament.” She retaliated.
Responding to concerns about visa fees for entry into the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Kadaga warned that Uganda would reconsider visa waivers for Congolese citizens if Kinshasha does not reciprocate the gesture.
Since gaining independence in 1962, English has been Uganda’s sole official language. Despite Kiswahili being proposed as the second official language in 2005, it has been taught only as an optional subject in secondary schools since 2017.
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