School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on Contributing Factors and Solutions

Full text

Education Journal
2019; 8(5): 185-195
http://www.sciencepublishinggroup.com/j/edu
doi: 10.11648/j.edu.20190805.13
ISSN: 2327-2600 (Print); ISSN: 2327-2619 (Online)
School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions
on Contributing Factors and Solutions
Josephine Nabugoomu
School of Public Health and Health Systems, Faculty of Applied Sciences, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, Ontario, Canada
Email address:
To cite this article:
Josephine Nabugoomu. School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on Contributing Factors and Solutions. Education Journal.
Vol. 8, No. 5, 2019, pp. 185-195. doi: 10.11648/j.edu.20190805.13
Received: July 18, 2019; Accepted: August 12, 2019; Published: August 23, 2019
Abstract:
This theory-based qualitative study reports perceptions on the contributing factors of school dropouts, and
recommendations for action and areas of capacity building to reduce the high rate of school dropouts in Uganda. The study
which interviewed 101 adolescents, family and community members from rural Budondo sub-county (Jinja district), was based
on constructs of the social cognitive theory and analyzed by thematic analysis using Atlas-ti (version7.5.4). Contributing
factors include: poor academic performance, failure to cope with school, lack of social skills to cope with life’s challenges,
early employment, early pregnancy, lack of parental care and role models, child-headed families, media influence, and drug
abuse, poor payment of teachers, poverty among parents, child labor, long distances to school, family gardening, and lack of
school/personal effects. Recommendations are: training students in social skills, involvement of national and local leaders in
motivating learners, sensitization of parents and community, accessible sexual and reproductive health services, use of school
counselors, involvement of the resident of Uganda in discouraging school dropouts, enforcement of laws, compulsory
handcraft skills training for high school students in lower classes, increased school budgets and teachers’ salaries, income
generation skills, job creation for parents, provision of school meals, co-curricular activities, accessible schools, and provision
of free sanitary towels. Areas for capacity building are: use of school counselors and trained learner-leaders to motivate
learners, training community leaders to handle challenges of learner, reform of school curriculum for vocational training, use
of school gardens for skilling and school food, and training learners/teachers in making sanitary towels. Parental/community
support to students, introduction of co-curricular and vocational skills in schools may help reduce school dropouts.
Keywords:
School Dropout, Factors, Handcraft Skills, Social Skills, Social Cognitive Theory
1. Introduction
Education is not only a human right [1] but also one of the
millennium development goals [2] which helps to lay a
foundation for a bright future for the young with good
employment, socio-economic status and health in general [3].
In Uganda a low developing country, 57% of youths (15-24
years) have not attained primary level education yet 28% do
not complete secondary level education. Only 10% of the
youths complete primary education and 2% complete
secondary level education [4-5] with higher rates of drop out
at primary education level being higher (94%) in rural areas
compared to 77% in the urban areas of Uganda and, among
males (92%) than females (89%) [5]. At the sub-regional
levels of Uganda, Busoga, Bukedi, Teso, West Nile, Acholi,
Lango, Karamoja, Toro, Ankole, Bunyoro, Kigezi have a
dropout rate ranging between 91% and 97% at primary
school level [5]. In particular, Busoga sub-region (where the
study district of Jinja is found) has a school dropout rate of
91% at primary school level [5], and this calls for high
attention [6].
In this study, a school dropout is defined as any individual
aged 6-19 years who had not completed and yet was attending
primary or secondary school while rural Uganda refers to
geographical areas in the countryside which are neither cities
nor towns. Adolescents that drop out of school are at risk of
low economic status even in adulthood due to unemployment,
low paying jobs, alcoholism, poor health, committing crime [7]
and are prone to community detachment [8], all of which are
of public health concern. During an extensive study [9]
exploring needs, barriers and supports, opportunities,
recommendations, and avenues for capacity building towards

Education Journal 2019; 8(5): 185-195 186
the enhancement of adolescent maternal/child nutrition and
health, stakeholders constantly gave their perceived views on
contributing factors towards the high rate of school dropouts
and how this prevalence might be reduced. To date, little is
known about the contributing factors of school dropouts in
rural Jinja district, and how these could be reduced based on a
methodological framework. The goal of this study was,
therefore, to describe stakeholder perceptions or interpretations
on the contributing factors of school dropouts in Jinja District,
and the recommendations and avenues of capacity building to
address the matter.
2. Methodology
This study was based on the social cognitive theory (SCT)
(Figure 1) to help identify how individual and environmental
factors interface with behaviors [10-12] of pupils/students to
culminate into dropping out of school. The study was also
inclined towards the epistemological stand of postpositivism
with the goal of pinpointing multi-stakeholder perceptions
without basing these on the researcher’s prior skills or beliefs
[13-19]. The postpositivism stance takes on the approach that
theories, background, knowledge and values of the researcher
can influence research unlike the positivism stance which
leans on statistics and experiments as research approaches
where the researchers and participants are independent of
each other [13-14]. For comprehensive discussions with
participants, both close ended pre-set questions guided by the
SCT [13-19] and open ended questions for stakeholders’
personal opinions [14, 20].
Figure 1. Social Cognitive Theory Framework of Contributing Factors of School Dropouts, Recommendations for Action and Capacity Building to Reduce
School Dropouts.
2.1. Study Site
The study was conducted in the rural parts of Budondo sub-
county located 25 km from Jinja Town, Jinja district of Busoga
region, Eastern Uganda [6]. Eastern Uganda has a poverty rate
of close to 25%, [4, 21] a rate that places it in the lowest rank
of the poorest regions in Uganda [6]. Of the 51,560 persons
living in Budondo sub-county and mainly subsistent farmers,
52% are females and 48% males [6], and moreover, 36% of
these residents are underneath the poverty line [22].
2.2. Inclusion Criteria
All participants who were recruited by the study were
those that had signed study consent forms and resided within
Budondo sub-county or Jinja district for at ≥ 3 years.
Adolescents who participated were attending or had attended
school in Budondo sub-county at least 3 years prior to study.
2.3. Study Sample and Recruitment
Over 100 study participants (Table 1) were recruited by
purposive sampling [14, 23-24] by 6 study mobilizers with
the goal of representing the 6 main participant groups namely:
adolescents who had dropped out of school, family members,
health-related personnel, educators, area leaders and
community workers.
Table 1. Demographics of Study Respondents (N = 101).
Respondent Category Gender Number
Male Female
Adolescent Girls 0 25 25
Mothers of Adolescents 0 5 5
Grandmothers of Adolescents 0 6 6
Teachers 0 5 5
Head teachers 9 2 11
Doctors 4 0 4
Midwives 0 7 7
Community Health Workers 1 7 8
Agricultural Officers 3 0 3
Religious Leaders 3 0 3
Local Council I (LCI) Chairpersons 6 0 6
District & sub-county Administrators
7 6 13
NGO Staff 3 2 5
Total 35 66 101

187 Josephine Nabugoomu: School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on
Contributing Factors and Solutions
2.4. Data Collection
Data was collected in March-May 2016. Interview guides
translated into the Lusoga language were delivered by the
researcher (JN) assisted by local trained research assistants.
Key questions were constructed along individual and
environmental factors applicable to the contributing factors
of school dropouts and how these could be minimised.
Interview guides were tried out in rural Butagaya sub-county
with a representation of the target groups. At the start of each
interview, participants were welcomed by the researcher, told
of the study’s objective and assured of anonymity.
2.5. Data Analysis
Interview recordings were transcribed word for word then
translated into English. Codes were created from the
transcribed interviews guided by the SCT model and inferred
themes of contributing factors of school dropouts and
recommendations and capacity building to reduce the
prevalence of school dropouts under the categories of
individual and environmental factors. Using Atlas-ti 7.5.4,
phrases in each transcript were connected to the created
codes which were then networked towards the major theme
of reduction of school dropouts using thematic analysis [14,
25-28] as shown in Figure 2.
Figure 2. Thematic Network of Framework of Contributing Factors of School Dropouts, Recommendations for Action and Capacity Building to Reduce
School Dropouts.
Adapted from: Attride-Stirling J (2001). Thematic networks: an analytic tool for qualitative research. Commission for health improvement, England.
Qualitative Research. SAGE Publications. 1 (3): 385-405.
3. Results
3.1. Demographics of the Respondents
Demographic characteristics of all study respondents are in
the Table 1. Much as male adolescents did not participate in
the study, the views given could be representative of what is
happening in the study area.
3.2. Perceived Factors Contributing to School Dropouts,
Recommendations for Action and Capacity Building to
Reduce School Dropouts
It was perceived that the rate of dropping out of school
was a worrying trend and common for both male and female
pupils/students at primary and secondary levels. Against this,
stakeholders revealed factors associated with school dropouts
and suggested recommendations and areas for capacity
building at individual, social, economic and physical levels.
3.2.1. Individual Level
i. Contributing Factors of School Dropouts at Individual
Level
It was perceived that some learners in rural Uganda
dropped out of school due to poor performance, class
repetition, high age for a given class, and poor attitude
towards education preferring to be employed at a young age.
Other learners failed to cope with knowledge disseminated at
school and were termed as ‘slow learners’ by study

Education Journal 2019; 8(5): 185-195 188
participants. For others, stakeholders thought of them as
being disrespectful to their parents and refusing to continue
with school.
“Most of us [students] get tired of failing and repeating
classes and so we easily give up with education….we get are
demotivated. May be the other reason is that are not
determined to keep on with school even under hardships. Any
small discouragement like long distance to school, lack of
good eats, lack of uniforms, failure to work hard at school,
failure to resist men for favors etc, just makes us give up
easily.” Adolescent 1.
“Students have a poor attitude towards education and
prefer to make money while still young. Some pupils are
weak in class, they do not understand what is being taught in
class, they are slow learners. They [students] would rather
drop out than struggle through school even if we encourage
them. Others are disrespectful and so defiant and won’t listen
to their parents at all even when they plead with them to keep
in school.” Teacher 1.
ii. Recommendations to Reduce School Dropouts at
Individual Level
National leaders were encouraged to position themselves
as testimonies and examples to the young generation in rural
Uganda so as to motivate them to complete school at given
levels.
“National leaders like members of parliaments and
Ministers should be on ground and give community service
so that the students can learn from them and be encouraged
by these educated ladies and gentlemen. The district and
schools should invite prominent members of the society to
speak to pupils and students about the goodness of staying in
school and completing e.g., the Speaker of Parliament Hon.
Rebecca Kadaga who is a daughter of Busoga region. The
students will say see how those women and men are happy
and looking good because they are educated.” Sub-county
Administrator 1.
iii. Capacity Building to Reduce School Dropouts at
Individual Level
Stakeholders recommended use of school alumni and
trained student/pupil leaders (prefects) to encourage and keep
learners in school as examples of the fruits of completing
school and peer counselors respectively.
“We have many prominent people who went through our
schools and these could come back to speak to our children
about the goodness of completing school. Schools also have
student leaders who are good mannered and could be trained
to advise their mates not to give up on school.” Teacher 2.
3.2.2. Social Level
i. Contributing Factors of School Dropouts at the Social
Level
Sadly, girls had no choice of staying in school the moment
they became pregnant as school authorities sent them away
saying they would set a bad precedence and example to the
rest of the students.
“When we become pregnant we aren’t allow to remain in
school because they [teachers] say we will spoil other
pupils. Teachers think that the other pupils will look at us
as examples and think that even when they get pregnant
they will also be allowed to continue with school. So we
end up staying at home.” Adolescent 2.
There were other social factors perceived as factors
contributing towards the rise of school dropouts in rural
Uganda including: parents not adequately providing school
dues and scholastic materials to their children, inadequate
follow-up on children’s school life and academic
performance, and religions and families that advocated for
early marriages making the girls to leave school at an early
age. Some stakeholders also perceived lack of suitable role
models to motivate children to stay in school as some parents
and community members boasted about being financially
well off without being educated and to make matters worse,
peers that dropped out of school and were working gave an
impression of a better life.
“There are families where parents did not go to school
and proudly say that their clan does not attend school
saying “am not educated but I have a car, I built a house,
what is education and in what aspect of life are the
educated people better than us?” Religious Leader 1.
“Another thing is that most of them [students] have seen
many educated people without jobs and they keep on
referring to those saying if so and so went up to Makerere
University for their bachelors and masters and they do not
have a job, why should I waste time studying? Others
families boost so much because they are well off yet they
never went to school. So the children see all this and quit
school because it is seen as a waste of time.” Head teacher
1.
Child-headship of families due to orphan-hood and broken
marriages where the older children take on the responsibility
of fending for their younger siblings was also perceived as a
factor to dropping out of school. In addition, media
influences at local shows or social media platforms in form
of movies and music some of which are pornographic and/or
sexually oriented enticed and kept children away from school.
Moreover, drug abuse of opium and marijuana kept learners
mentally unstable and inadequate monitoring of students by
community members were also cited as contributing to the
high rate of dropping out of school in rural Uganda.
“There are also so many video halls that operate everyday
showing films and the children go there as early as 8:00
am. This is the same with music shows and discos that
keep our children away from school. There are some
students that smoke drugs like opium and marijuana so
they are misled and can’t go to study. Drugs are being
sold covertly and cunningly with an impression that it is a
modern thing.” Local Council I Chairperson 1.
“The community and leaders have done nothing to keep
the children in school even when they see children getting
onto trucks to go and cut sugarcanes on a schooling day.
The police also does not take the trouble to arrest such
people who take the children to do work during school
time.” Health-related Personnel 1.
ii. Recommendations to Reduce School Dropouts at the

189 Josephine Nabugoomu: School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on
Contributing Factors and Solutions
Social Level
Compulsory sexual and reproductive health education and
services such as use of contraceptives to both male and
female students at upper classes of elementary levels and all
levels of high school was cited as a way of reducing
pregnancies and hence school dropouts. In addition,
transferring social skills to students for improved self-esteem,
patience to keep in school, assertiveness and working
towards a focus on their future could help students to face
life’s challenges and make better choices life, and avoid early
pregnancies which are associated with school dropouts.
“Why doesn’t schools teach students about pregnancies
because that is the main reason why students fall out of
school whether girls or boys. Boys on making the girls
pregnant run away from our villages for fear of the police
and go to look for work in towns. Students in secondary
schools and those from primary five to seven should be
openly talked to about that topic and how pregnancies can
be avoided. Contraceptives are not accepted in our
cultures as of now but this has to change because the girls
and boys are sexually active and may not stop by just
speaking to them! The girls out of fear of pregnancies are
carrying out unsafe abortions. Let us face the facts and get
practical solutions.” Health-related Personnel 1.
“Schools should teach students skills which can help them
say no to early sex and the many temptations they face due
to the challenges of life. Most students think that being
poor gives them a right to sleep with older men for money
yet they can do with the little we as parents give them. We
also grew up in poverty but we were patient and schooled
to get some qualifications. Also challenges of parents
providing students with little money shouldn’t be an
excuse for our children to drop out of school. They should
be patient and focus on what they will be in future after
graduating from school. Please let schools help us out
because they stay with or children longer than we do.”
Religious Leader 2.
Other recommendations to reduce school dropouts at a
social level include: community responsibility from national
to local levels to advise children, sensitization of parents
about the importance of education, use of toll-free telephones
for students to report uncooperative parents and teachers,
follow-up by teachers and area leaders and organizations
over children that do not attend school.
“We all from parents, elder siblings, teachers, local
leaders, national leaders, neighbors, should not get tired
about talking to the students to keep in school as it were in
the earlier days. Continuous sensitization and counselling
of parents about the value of education and supporting
their children by following them up, attending school
meetings and feeding their children at school is also
important. These are their [parents] children and not
[President] Museveni’s children!” District Administrator
1.
Other suggestions included: use of tough laws to force
learners in school and to close all media areas that entice
students, arresting drug dealers and users, stopping of
students’ involvement in media shows, and organizations
coming up to support child-headed homes so that even the
older children go to school. The office of the President of
Uganda was perceived to being of help if he spoke against
school dropouts and encouraged parents to keep their
children in school.
“There is need to set up tough laws that limit the
operation of video halls and music shows in terms of
working hours and those that take up children.
Government should set up very tough laws that will force
students to go to school and arrest them or their parents if
they fail to abide.” Local Council I (LCI) Chairperson 2.
“The President should pronounce a tough directive on
school dropouts and encourage parents to keep children in
school because things are out of hand. He is the head of
this country and people fear him knowing that what he
says cannot questioned.” Teacher 3.
iii. Capacity Building to Reduce School Dropouts at Social
Level
Stakeholders recommended training of teachers in service
or in teacher institutions, and other community service
providers on how to help learners handle challenges they
faced especially when in school and advise them so as to
motivate them into keeping in and completing school.
“At least if all us teachers are trained both at work and
while they are studying on how to help and advice all
these children who feel so disappointed to continue with
school like those who fail in class. Other people like
medical personnel, LCs [Local Council leaders], and
VHTs [Village Health Team workers] should also be
trained in the same. This will help the children to complete
school.” Teacher 4.
Stakeholders also recommended training of law enforcers
and community and family members on how to how to
follow-up learners so as to help them keep interested in
education.
“All of us as community leaders and workers should be
trained on how to sensitize and follow up our children and
their parents to cub down that bad attitude of refusing to
go to school.” Health-related Personnel 2.
3.2.3. Economic Level
i. Contributing Factors of School Dropouts at the
Economic Level
It was perceived that poor payment of teachers
demotivated them such that they gave inadequate moral
support to help children stay in school. In addition, poverty
among parents also fails them to financially support their
children such that students are kept home when sent home by
school authorities to bring given school requirements.
“Teachers can only do what they can with the little salary
they give us which is not about to change even with our
frequent strikes. Teachers are demoralized and have given
up on the children, they do not care, encourage or follow
them up. We do not even have the scholastic materials for
instance, a teacher is supposed to give 10 test questions
but he/she instead gives 5 written on a chalk board

Education Journal 2019; 8(5): 185-195 190
because he/she cannot write all the questions on the
blackboard in a given short time. When we tell students to
go back home and bring some little money to contribute to
such costs, parents just tell them to stay at home saying
there is no money. With time, such children will lose
interest in schooling.” Head teacher 2.
Child labor and a temptation for daily money paid from
cheap employment for example at sugarcane farms, and a
mentality that the government should fully provide free
education including meals and scholastic materials were also
perceived as economic factors associated with dropping out
of school.
“One of the reasons that has caused children to drop out
of school is child labor and love for money at a young age.
There are many sugarcane growers, the people who hire
sugarcane cutters also hire children of an age as low as 8
years who are paid like 2,000 UGX (~$0.56 USD) on a
daily basis. So they wonder why they should go back to
school again yet they are earning money.” NGO Staff 1.
“You can take the children to school knowing the head
teachers will not ask for anything since it is free education
but when you reach in the middle of the term you see
children sent home for books and some money like 20,000
UGX (~$5.6 USD) and we keep wondering because we
were told its free universal primary education and now
they are asking for money.” Grandmother.
ii. Recommendations to Reduce School Dropouts at the
Economic Level
Introduction of vocational skills within existing curriculum
subjects at high school level of Uganda was perceived as an
avenue to: help learners make some money from items made,
prepare students for future self-employment, and keep
learners interested in schooling.
“Our schools must start training students in handcraft skills
that could help them make money while at home but that
means schools should allow our children to come back
home early at about 4:00pm and make the items. Our
children seem to only go to school to pass examinations
without any handcraft skills to make money. All schools
whether here in Budondo or the town of Jinja just teach
what student will answer in final examinations but not
practical skills. When asked why, schools say that they are
not given money by the government. Let me ask you the
educated, can’t external funds be got for this throughout the
country? It is of no use to have children get non-practical
education yet there are no jobs and they can’t even create
their own jobs? So how are we preparing our children to
face the unemployment in this country? Mother 1.
“Entrepreneurship skills must be introduced and well-
funded through subjects like Fine Art, Home Economics,
Foods and Nutrition and Agriculture, and taught to all high
school students in lower classes as it were during our
school days. External funding should be sought for by
organizations to have these skills taught as a strategy to
help them [students] make money and keep them interested
in staying in school as the practical skills will break the
monotony of studying only theory subjects.” Head teacher 1.
Stakeholders also recommended that a firm position of the
President of Uganda (H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni) about
what “free” education the government offers would help in
terms of parents taking on the responsibility of providing
meals and scholastic materials to their children. Other
suggestions included: government’s job creation for parents
in rural Uganda to earn and financially support their children
through school, increase of school budgets, and increase of
teachers’ salaries for motivation were perceived
recommendations to handle the above economic challenges
and hence reduce school dropouts.
“The President [of Uganda] should either provide meals
and scholastic materials or tell the community that he
can’t solve their financial problems since they are their
children and not his. He gave them free education and
they have to do give their children food to eat at school,
and buy them books to write on and uniforms and shoes to
wear.” Health-related Personnel 3.
“The government needs to increase on the amount of
money that they give schools because the money we are
currently getting both as schools and pay for teachers is
very little money and we can’t do much.” Head teacher 3.
iii. Capacity Building to Reduce School Dropouts at the
Economic Level
It was suggested that community leaders and the police be
trained into how they could sensitize and/or reprimand all
those who use children for child labor.
“The police and LCs should be trained in talking to
owners of sugar who use children to harvest sugarcanes
especially during school time. If talks fail, force should be
used to arrest those law breakers.” Mother 2.
3.2.4. Physical Level
i. Contributing Factors of School Dropouts at the
Physical Level
It was perceived by many stakeholders that in rural
Uganda, lack of school meals where children kept hungry
and scholastic materials such as books and pens demotivates
the learners from keeping in school. In addition, lack of
sanitary towels or use of improper materials by girls during
menstruation keeps them at home leading to their dropping
out of school with time. Long distances to school which
tiresome students that stayed far and parents keeping their
children in gardens especially during planting and harvest
seasons were also seen as physical factors which contributed
to school dropouts.
“Some of those children find being in school very difficult
because of lack of lunch, uniforms and scholastic
materials like books, mathematical sets, sharpeners, rulers.
Some schools are very far and walking for long
discourages some children. Some girls lack sanitary
materials to use during menstruation, they may use dirty
pieces of clothes, sponges, leaves, banana fibers but these
can’t help. When defeated, they can’t go to school and
when this continues, the girls will drop out of school.”
Health-related Personnel 4.
“Time for sowing and harvesting, the children don’t

191 Josephine Nabugoomu: School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on
Contributing Factors and Solutions
attend school. When it’s a dry season, more children
attend school but in a rainy season, children are busy
working in their parent’s gardens and with time, they drop
out.” Agricultural Officer.
ii. Recommendations to Reduce School Dropouts at the
Physical Level
Stakeholders called upon the government to provide
school meals, scholastic materials, sanitary towels for girls
and fully facilitate co-curricular activities so as to keep
children in school. Sensitization of parents to provide school
meals that their children was also suggested.
“Government should make the school environment
friendly by building several schools, providing sanitary
pads for girls and lunch for the pupils such that they can
stay at school. They should put in place co-curricular
activities like music, games and sports and handcrafts with
enough facilities like balls, musical instruments, and craft
materials so that children can enjoy school.” Sub-county
Administrator 2.
“Parents should be sensitized to take on their
responsibility of providing school meals to their children.
If the child is at home you are providing lunch, if the child
goes to school, as a parent you are supposed to provide
lunch too. Since the child is not at home and he/she is at
school, the lunch should transferred to school because this
is what the child would have eaten while at home. So who
eats the children’s lunch when they are at school and not
home?” NGO Staff 2.
iii. Capacity Building to Reduce School Dropouts at the
Physical Level
The government was called upon to introduce school
gardens to grow foods to be eaten at school as part of their
curriculum, and to train learners/teachers in making sanitary
towels from locally available materials.
“Our government should be able to give schools land for
gardens so that students dig their food as part of the
lessons taught. If parents cannot provide sanitary towels
to girls, let our children and teachers be trained in making
these from the materials we have here.” District
Administrator 2.
4. Discussion
The study revealed perceived factors related to school
dropouts and recommendations to reduce the vice at
economic, social and physical levels involving families,
communities, and the government making it a collective
responsibility. This study was based on the social cognitive
theory. By understanding the contributing factors of school
dropouts and what the community members suggest to
reduce the vice at a range of levels, it may help to consider
possible opportunities.
At the individual level, learners’ stay in school to continue
with education was challenged by a lack of self-drive and
resilience to overcome personal negative attitudes. Much as
peers may help to build confidence among the learners as
exhibited in other public health studies [29-31], a trained
school counselor may help students to open up and cope
better with the challenges of life [32]. Trained school
counselors have been reported to help to reduce classroom
anxiety, class disturbances, dropouts and poor performance
[33]. School counselors promote academic and career success
preparing the young generation for a productive and well-
adjusted adulthood and may play a role of bridging the gap
between learners and teachers and parents [33] especially if
well received and having good working relations with parents
and school administrators [34]. Such an intervention of
employing a school counselor may also help correct learners
who are looked at as being disrespectful to their parents and
those who prefer employment to education. Sensitizing of
teachers to handle students challenged with academics may
also be very helpful instead of them setting up a uniform
learning pace for all learners.
Training of students in social skills may help build
confidence and self-esteem hence helping them face life’s
challenges and keep in school [35-36], avoiding early sex and
or early pregnancies, and also completing their studies at
given levels for a qualification that can help them acquire
gainful employment. Social skills are personal and
interpersonal skills that help students to benefit themselves
and others, and relate well with others for example, making
positive decisions, self-worth, positive decisions, patience,
high bargaining power to one’s advantage, assertiveness
creativity, self-control, determination, positive attitude to life
[35-39]. Students could be equipped with the social skills
under subjects such as English Language, Religious
Education and General Paper which are already part of the
high school curriculum [40], and some of which are
compulsory [41-43].
Other challenges faced by learners at the social level could
be lessened through sensitization of community members for
support. Community-based sensitization has been reported to
create awareness and acceptance of public health related
interventions [44-46]. This strategy of encouragement could
be extended to help both boys and girls who drop out of
school. Such information sharing and advocacy could also
support a shift in areas such as parental care and follow-up of
their children at home and school, standing against early
marriages for girls, and talking against issues like use of
drugs and media that influences students and keeps them
away from school. The hope which communities have in the
office of the President of Uganda could be taken advantage
of as a point of strength and be used by this office to speak
against school dropouts and encourage parents to provide for
their children’s school needs.
Community-based health facilities and systems should be
facilitated with materials and personnel needed to support
and provide teenagers with comprehensive sexual
reproductive health services and information related such as
counselling and contraceptive use so as to avoid pregnancies
[47] which lead to dropping out of school. Government,
community members and non-government organizations
should put up teenage friendly interventions such as private
and safe teenage centers and environment for sexually active

Education Journal 2019; 8(5): 185-195 192
teenagers to comfortably receive contraceptives with accurate
information and education for teenagers to make healthy and
informed decisions to prevention of pregnancies [47].
Compulsory training of both male and female students of
lower levels of high school in vocational skills for income
generation as part of the existing curriculum subjects like
could be explored as such practical skills may help keep
learners interested in school [48]. Students may also take
these skills back home for early self-employment [49],
preparing Uganda’s adolescents for the high unemployment
rate among Ugandan youths which currently stands at 6.5%
(7.4% for women and 5.5% for men) [50]. The situation is
not helped by the fact that the total number of youth in
Uganda stands at 80% for those under 35 years and 55% for
those below age of 18 [50]. Moreover the population of
Uganda is so high standing at 34.6 million persons with an
annual population growth rate as of year 2014 censuses being
3.03% and total fertility per woman being 5.4 children [6]
pointing to a possibility of an increase in youths. Vocational
training not only helps to improve the economic status of
individuals and communities but has also been reported to
enhance motivation, life satisfaction, career development,
social coherence and crime reduction [49]. Skilling Uganda,
a strategic plan under the Business, Technical and Vocational
Education and Training (BTVET) project of the Ministry of
Education is mandated with training youths out of school
(before or after completion) in practical skills to enhance
personal and national economic status [51]. The project
however grapples with challenges such as inadequate funding
leading to offering majorly theoretical lessons and low-cost
skills that do not match with the market demands, inadequate
facilities in form of buildings and equipment, lack of
specialized teachers/trainers among others [51]. With lobbied
funding from national platforms like the Uganda Presidential
initiative on skilling the girl child [52] and international
organizations, vocational skills training could be expanded to
high schools for all students to acquire income generation
skills which may not require sophisticated buildings and
equipment. Giving high schooling teenagers an early start at
vocational skills may be a good strategy of interesting and
encouraging them into self-employment at a young age. This
strategy of early skilling may be better than waiting to skill
youths at higher ages into self-employment as an intervention
to their failure of getting gainful employment due to lack of
formal jobs or dropping out of school. All year one and two
high school students in Uganda could be trained in handcraft
skills under subjects like Fine Art, Home Management,
Foods and Nutrition and Agriculture which are part of the
high school curriculum [40], as these students may be quick
at taking on vocational skills. However besides a need for
funds to purchase materials needed, training of teachers in
modern handcraft skills may also be required [42,43] so that
they not only train learners but also assess and grade students’
performances.
Teaching of vocational skills may also help break the cycle
of theoretical lessons but may also require a shorter school
timetable for the traditional academic/theoretical studies so
as to give room for learners to practice the said skills whether
at school or home. A curriculum reform at secondary level
(high school years 1-4) is being conducted by the National
Curriculum Development Centre (NCDC) of Uganda where
learners will handle less study subjects and reduced content
with core and elective options but this new curriculum has
not yet been implemented [40]. It is anticipated that the new
curriculum will take on more of a hands-on-skills and
learner-centered learning approaches [40]. School curricula
could also include co-curricular activities such as music,
games and sports. Sports as a co-curricular activity has been
reported to improve academic performance and guard against
school dropouts [48, 53-54]. This may call for fitting of such
activities in the present school time tables, construction of
play areas and/or provision of play materials by the
government.
Avenues of partnering with national and international
organizations that could offer credit to parents need to be
explored for parents’ income generation so as to support their
children financially because the socio-economic status of the
population in rural Uganda is low [4, 21]. Support through
area NGOs in terms of financial credit, agricultural seed
grants, and training in income generation skills may help.
Uganda’s Free Universal Primary Education (UPE) and
Universal Secondary Education (USE) have led to increased
enrollment of learners at elementary and high school levels
[55-57] although these programs (UPE and USE) have their
bottle necks. The bottlenecks include among others:
poor/lack of funding, sending pregnant girls out of school
[58], high pupil-to-teacher ratio; inadequate classrooms and
education materials; insufficient funds to handle the large
number of learners, poor performance in examinations
leading to attainment of low grades, unsupportive parents
who perceive free education to also include meals and
scholastic materials, and a high dropout rate [55-57, 59].
However, government’s stand and sensitization on what free
universal primary and secondary education means could be
important for individuals who may perceive it to include free
school meals, scholastic materials, and sanitary towels for
girls. Parents need to be sensitized and encouraged to provide
school meals that their children may have anyway eaten
while at home, a principle of transfer from home to school.
Uganda could borrow a leaf from Kenya where their
President in 2017 signed the Basic Education Amendment
Act into law which guarantees that girls in state schools
receive free sanitary pads giving them dignity and a chance
to stay in school [60]. In addition, a provision of separate
sanitary facilities for girls may ensure privacy as
recommended by a study carried out in Ethiopia to determine
the effect of menstrual hygiene on school attendance and
dropout by adolescent students [61]. Such interventions may
ensure use of clean and quality sanitary towels hence
enhancing the safety of girls by keeping them away from
infections. A recent study in Kenya that provided fee
menstrual cups and sanitary towels to elementary school girls
(ages 14-16) reported lower risks of sexually transmitted
infections and vaginal infections among the intervention

193 Josephine Nabugoomu: School Dropout in Rural Uganda: Stakeholder Perceptions on
Contributing Factors and Solutions
group [62]. Interventions to skill students of low economic
status in making their own reusable and washable sanitary
towels from relatively low cost materials may also be a good
strategy towards a feasible and sustainable solution.
Several studies in other parts of the world have also
proposed recommendations to keep learners in schools such
as: accountability for those that dropout of school, policies
that reward schools that reduce in school dropouts [7], setting
up policies that improve on school retention [7-8],
developing positive relationships between teachers and
learners, social support for youths that are at risk of dropping
out of school, and use of extracurricular arts activities such as
art and design [63].
5. Conclusion
Recommendations and areas of capacity building to reduce
school dropouts network around the environments that
children stay and operate in from family to community level,
calling for collective responsibility from students, parents,
teachers local and national leaders, and the international
community targeting both boy and girl children. Sensitization
for parental, school and community support to children,
training students in social skills to face life’s challenges
positively, provision of reproductive health services such as
contraceptive use to prevent pregnancies, provision of free
sanitary towels to girls in school, use of school counselors,
improved economic status of parents and community
members, involvement of students in co-curricular and
acquisition of income generation skills for students may help
reduce school dropouts in Uganda. Findings of this study
may help to direct future interventions in developing
interventions to reduce school dropouts in Uganda.
Ethics Approval and Consent to
Participate
This study was conducted according to the guidelines laid
down in the Declaration of Helsinki and all procedures
involving human participants were approved by the Office of
Research Ethics of the University of Waterloo (ORE #
20708), The AIDS Support Organization Research Ethics
Committee (TASO-REC) (TASOREC04/16-UG-REC-009)
and Uganda National Council for Science and Technology
(UNCST) (number SS4013). Written support was also given
by Ministry of Health for Uganda, Ministry of Education for
Uganda, and authorities of Jinja district, Budondo sub-county
and the local community. Written, informed consent was
obtained from all participants.
Funding
This study was funded by the Nestlé Foundation for the
Study of Problems of Nutrition in the World, Lausanne,
Switzerland. The Nestlé Foundation had no role in the study
design, conduct of the study, analysis of data, interpretation
of findings or writing of this article.
Author’s Contributions
Josephine Nabugoomu conceptualized and coordinated the
study, collected, transcribed and analyzed the data, and wrote
the manuscript.
Acknowledgements
I am so grateful to all the study participants who gave me
their valuable time. The 6 VHTs who were my community
study coordinators are appreciated. Also appreciated are: Dr.
Cornelius Wambi Gulere (who translated study instruments
into Lusoga language); Ms. Kalimwine Liz (Recording
Assistant); and Mr. Mwami Enoch Isaac (who helped with
transcription).
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