OPM OFFICE – The Uganda National Examinations (UNEB) has created a Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan to enable the examination board to carry it out its duties to learners even in instances of catastrophe.
The first off-site centre will be in Jinja. UNEB is reportedly working with the National Information Technology Agency of Uganda (NITA-U) and Ministry of Finance to develop this facility.
The revelation was made by the UNEB chairperson Professor Mary J.N Okwakol during the release of the 2018 Primary Leaving Examinations.
UNEB has also registered an increase in candidature of 3.9% in 2018 compared to only 0.8% in 2017. UNEB attributes this rise to a decision by Education minister Janet Museveni that schools stop subjecting pupils to pre-registration tests. These tests would be used to weed out a sizable percentage of learners that schools deemed would perform poorly in the exams.
The use of ICT methods of registration is also believed to have led to greater numbers of registered candidates. Schools can now register the candidates for the exams themselves are directly responsible and accountable for the process.
UNEB discouraged schools still relying on third parties for the registration process because it cuts headteachers out of the quality assurance role. Head teachers are not able to detect when there are errors in the registration process like mixing up of candidates photographs or mistakes in spelling of the candidates names.
Pupils from schools like Bahrain Nursery and Primary School (Iganga district), Busenga Junior School and St. Peter’s Primary School Kibunga (Butambala district) discovered too late they had not been registered for the 2018 PLE.
To combat the persistent problem of certain schools not registering in time, UNEB now publishes in electronic and print media as well as broadcasts on radio information on the closure of registration. Parents and learners can verify their registration status through use of SMS and internet. UNEB shares the same information with the schools.
PLE exams were conducted on 5 and 6th November, 2018.
