Parliament to push for education of pregnant girls

Parliament is to debate a motion advocating for pregnant girls to resume their studies following the long lockdown period.

The Chairperson of the Uganda Women Parliamentary Association (UWOPA) Sarah Opendi told a House sitting on Tuesday, 01 February 2022 that a number of church founded schools have barred pregnant girls from attending classes.

She said this followed a directive from Bishop John Ssebaggala to the church founded schools not to allow pregnant girls back in school.

“Our prayer is that these girls should be allowed to be in school. We have a motion that we would like to table to the House in the presence of the Minister for Education,” said Opendi.

The Deputy Speaker, Anita Among said that President Yoweri Museveni recently made a pronouncement that pregnant girls should be allowed to access school.
She reiterated the need to have a motion on the matter.

“We cannot make a ruling now on whether the church should allow these students or not. It is a known fact that we have schools in every sub-county,” Among said.

Minister for Gender, Labor and Social Development, Betty Amongi said that the ministry is coordinating a multi-sectoral approach that is targeting civil society, UN agencies and Government in addressing the matter.

“The Vice President, the Minister for Education and the Prime Minister are heading a national campaign on this matter. This approach has drawn a strategy that will cater not only for those girls who want to go back to school but also those who want to take on other optional skills,” Amongi said.

MP Aisha Kabanda (NUP, Butambala District) said a tour conducted around some schools in the country indicated that pregnant girls who had returned to school were not studying comfortably in the class setting.

“On a desk of four students, these girls cannot fit because of their size. The congestion and sitting environment in the classes is not fitting for the pregnant girls to continue studying,” said Kabanda