Low Learner Turnout Sparks Concern as Poverty and Parental Neglect Take Centre Stage

13 February 2026, 5:48 pm

By Gift Okello

Schools officially reopened for the first term on Tuesday, 10th February 2026, after a long holiday, but empty classrooms and low learner turnout in Gulu City and the Acholi sub-region have raised alarm among education stakeholders, who point to parental negligence, poverty, and negative attitudes toward early-term learning.

Speaking to our reporter, Richard Jomeo, an activist and opinion leader in Gulu City, said the low turnout is partly fuelled by the belief among some parents and learners that little or no meaningful teaching occurs during the first week of the school term.

The cultural leader of Pawel, Rwot Baptist Latim, blamed parents for failing to ensure children report to school on the first day of term, highlighting that persistent poverty in Northern Uganda continues to prevent many families from raising school fees and meeting other scholastic requirements in time for reopening.

Meanwhile, Denis Odongping, Gulu District Chairperson of the Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU), partly blamed parental negligence for the low learner turnout and the declining performance in some schools.

Akello Betty, a parent at Police Vanguard Primary School, accused some parents of deliberately keeping their children at home to engage in domestic chores and garden work, undermining their education.

The situation was particularly alarming at Pece Pawel Primary School, where only eight learners reported across all classes on the opening day of the term.

Despite the slow start to the term, Gulu City registered strong performance in the 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE), with 4,439 candidates sitting for the exams and 770 attaining First Grade,426 boys and 344 girls.