NCDC is retooling over 420 teachers from Rwenzori sub-region in Western Uganda to prepare them to start teaching Kiswahili in Primary Schools next year.
This is the first cohort of teachers to be flagged off after the training to teach Kiswahili starting with Primary Four. The Kiswahili teacher trainees have been drawn from both government and private schools in Kabarole district and Fort Portal City, Kasese district and Kasese Municipality.
During the training at Canon Apollo Core PTC in Fort Portal City, teachers are refreshing their knowledge, skills and values required to implement the teaching of Kiswahili at primary school level.
Addressing participants at the opening ceremony on Tuesday 12th November, 2024, the Director NCDC, Dr Grace K. Baguma encouraged teachers to follow the timetable released by the Ministry of Education and Sports three years ago, providing for three Kiswahili periods weekly.
Dr Baguma stressed that the roll out of Kiswahili at Primary level is in line with the aspirations of the East African Community drive to promote Kiswahili for economic and political integration, social cohesion, peace and protection of Africa’s strong cultural identity, heritage, and shared values and ethics.
‘Kiswahili is one of the world’s top ten most spoken languages with more than 200 million speakers. It is Africa’s most widely used native language, and also the most widely spoken in sub-Saharan Africa. Let us speak it. Let us be proud of it. Let our children learn it,’ Baguma stated.
In July, 2022, Cabinet approved the compulsory teaching of Kiswahili in primary and secondary schools. The Constitution stipulates that Kiswahili shall be the second official language in Uganda. The implementation of Kiswahili at Primary school level is in tandem with the Government of Uganda Language Policy agenda. Kiswahili is already taught at secondary school level as a compulsory subject.
In 2021, the UN designated 7th July as World Kiswahili Day owing to its wide reach and cultural significance. Dr Arinaitwe Perpetua, the coordinator of the Kiswahili training programme said the rollout of Kiswahili at primary school level will be done in a phased method across the country.
“We have started the rollout of Kiswahili at primary using a phased approach. NCDC developed the curriculum, piloted it and reviewed it. We have shared the resources with the teachers to prepare them to start teaching Kiswahili,” she stated. ENDS
