By Diana N. Kintu
Five years after Uganda introduced the Competency-Based Curriculum (CBC) to equip learners with practical skills for the modern world, the country’s most ambitious education reform is facing its first major test.
The early verdict is encouraging: students are making progress, but education officials warn that weaknesses in how schools are implementing the curriculum could undermine the gains if urgent action is not taken.
The findings, contained in the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) 2025 National Assessment of Progress in Education (NAPE) report, offer the first nationwide picture of how learners are performing under the new curriculum.
While the assessment points to improved learning outcomes compared to 2014, it also raises concerns that inconsistent implementation could leave some learners ill-prepared by the time they reach Senior Four.
The assessment, the first major evaluation since the Competency-Based Curriculum was rolled out in 2020, involved more than 8,000 Senior Two learners from 275 schools across the country. It measured learner achievement in Mathematics, English Language and Biology, providing policymakers with evidence on whether the reforms are translating into better classroom outcomes.
Launching the report, State Minister for Higher Education and Acting Minister of Education and Sports Dr. J.C. Muyingo welcomed the overall improvement in learner performance, attributing it to government investments in education, including the recruitment of more teachers, construction of classrooms and enhancement of teachers’ salaries.
However, Dr. Muyingo cautioned that the success of the curriculum depends not only on improved performance but also on faithful implementation in every school.
He expressed concern that some schools continue teaching beyond the prescribed instructional time while others delay project-based learning until Senior Three instead of introducing it in Senior One as required under the curriculum.
UNEB Executive Director Dan Odongo said the assessment provides critical evidence on how the Competency-Based Curriculum is shaping learning and offers an opportunity for schools, teachers and policymakers to address weaknesses before learners complete lower secondary education.
Despite the overall improvement, the report identifies significant learning gaps. Only 45.6per cent of learners attained the minimum proficiency level in Biology, while just 26 percent demonstrated the expected listening skills in English Language.
It also found that girls performed below boys in Mathematics and Biology, urban schools outperformed rural schools, and learners with Special Education Needs continued to face greater challenges, particularly in Mathematics and Biology.
Presenting the findings, UNEB Principal Research Officer Juma Nyal Kennedy said the assessment is intended to guide targeted interventions and strengthen implementation of the curriculum across all schools.
For parents, teachers and learners, the report serves as more than a performance review; it is an early warning on the future of Uganda’s education reform. As the first cohort under the Competency-Based Curriculum moves closer to Senior Four, the challenge is no longer whether the curriculum can improve learning, but whether every school can deliver it as intended so that every learner has an equal opportunity to succeed.