By Weswa Ronnie
MBALE CITY
The Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB) under the Ministry of Education and Sports has today Monday met with academic registrars , directors and principals of higher institutions of learning from the Eastern region to discuss key reforms introduced in May this year.
It’s now coming to six month since Ministry of education and sports changed UBTEB to Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB)
The engagement was at Elgon technical school located at Northern city division in Mbale city.
These reforms aim to address the problem of youth unemployment in Uganda.
The new reforms include the establishment of a new institutional framework, recognition of prior learning, labor market alignment, centralized curriculum development, assessment and certification, licensing trainers/instructors, approving curriculum, and assessing students, among others.
According to Abel Muwumba Mukakanya, Chairman of UVTAB, the purpose of the engagement was to inform academic registrars and principals of government and private institutions of higher learning about these reforms.
He noted that most institutions produce graduates who are “half-baked,” with only theoretical knowledge and no practical skills, making them uncompetitive in the East African market.
Obadiah Muzee Lalobo, a board member of UVTAB, stated that the reforms were introduced in May this year after the phasing out of UBTEB and replacing it with UVTAB.
However, he observed that most institutions of higher learning are not implementing these reforms.
He urged institutions to adhere to government guidelines and implement the reforms to produce students with practical skills that can compete well in the East African market.
Faith Arao, Academic Registrar of East Link Training Institute in Mbale City, expressed her appreciation for the engagement, saying it had been enlightening.
She noted that some institutions produce half-baked students because qualified instructors are expensive to hire, forcing them to employ unqualified personnel.
Oriokot Tukei, representing Tororo UCC, suggested that the Ministry of Education and Sports should establish a clear curriculum for ordinary and advanced levels in secondary and tertiary institutions, as not all institutions teach technical subjects.
