TAKEAWAYS

• Betty Nambooze says suspending school trips is a reactionary response that fails to address the real safety challenges.

• She wants government to provide schools with safe transport and trained drivers instead of imposing a blanket ban.

• The MP argues that educational tours are essential under Uganda’s new competency-based curriculum and should continue with stricter safety measures.

Mukono Municipality MP Betty Nambooze Bakireke has criticized Education Minister Dr. John Chrysostom Muyingo over the government’s decision to suspend all school trips following recent fatal road accidents involving learners.

The Ministry of Education and Sports announced the temporary suspension after a series of accidents involving school children, including the tragic King David Junior School, Degeya crash that claimed several lives and left many others injured.

Nambooze described the directive as a reactionary measure that fails to address the underlying causes of road accidents.

“Accidents have happened before and, unfortunately, they will continue to happen. Suspending educational trips is not the solution. Government should instead improve safety measures and provide safer transport for learners,” Nambooze said.

The legislator argued that rather than banning school excursions, government should revive plans to provide schools with buses operated by professionally trained drivers. She proposed that schools without transport should be able to borrow government-managed buses for educational tours.

According to Nambooze, educational tours have become even more important under Uganda’s competency-based curriculum, which emphasizes practical learning and real-life experiences outside the classroom.

“The new curriculum encourages experiential learning. Learners cannot fully benefit if every educational tour is suspended. We need safer systems, not blanket bans,” she added.

The outspoken MP also questioned what she described as selective responses by authorities, alleging that government officials are quick to act when accidents involve ordinary schools while remaining silent about institutions linked to influential individuals. She further claimed that some leaders’ children continue to travel abroad for educational trips while learners in local schools face restrictions.

Nambooze said Members of Parliament intend to engage Dr. Muyingo on the matter, urging him to reconsider the suspension. However, she supported action against school trips organized primarily to generate extra money from parents rather than deliver genuine educational value.