The release of Uganda’s 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations PLE results on January 30, 2026, sparked a wave of mixed emotions across the country. While national headlines highlighted a slight improvement with 11.39% of candidates achieving Division One the story in the capital tells a different tale. On social media platforms, a growing chorus of frustration from parents and learners reveals a deep sense of disappointment, despite Kampala’s access to elite schools and resources. This article explores the key issues fueling this dissatisfaction.
National Context: A Modest Improvement Masking Deeper Problems
Nationally, the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) reported that 817,883 candidates sat for the exams, achieving an overall pass rate of 89.3%. Boys slightly outperformed girls in the higher divisions, with English emerging as the best-performed subject. However, a notable decline in Social Studies and Religious Education (SST) performance raised broader concerns about the education system’s ability to foster critical thinking under the new competency-based curriculum.
On social media, many framed the results as a “national emergency.” They pointed out that while pass rates appear high, true proficiency remains alarmingly low only 16.4% of candidates demonstrated higher ability in Mathematics, and 18.5% in English. Most learners were stuck at medium levels, able to recall facts but not apply them creatively. This critique resonates strongly in urban areas like Kampala, where significant parental investment comes with the expectation of top-tier outcomes.
Kampala’s Performance: High Passes, But a Missing Peak
Kampala schools did show an improvement in Division One passes compared to 2024, with institutions like Kampala Parents School posting strong results. Yet, a glaring issue emerged: the absence of perfect Aggregate 4 scores the highest possible grade in many of the city’s elite schools. Prestigious institutions such as Kabojja Junior School, City Parents School, Greenhill Academy, and others all recorded zero Aggregate 4s.
Education experts attribute this shortfall largely to challenges in SST, where pupils struggled with applied-knowledge questions. This aligns with observations on X that Kampala schools are “struggling to adjust to the Ministry of Education’s recent shift to competency-based learning.” Meanwhile, districts like Mukono and Wakiso led in top aggregates, amplifying the capital’s sense of underachievement.
Malpractice and Withheld Results: Adding Insult to Injury
Compounding the academic frustration, Kampala topped the national list for examination malpractice, alongside Wakiso and Kisoro. UNEB withheld thousands of results pending investigations into bribery, threats to invigilators, and complicity from officials. Commentators on X described this as “brazen corruption,” noting that some educators are “weaponizing the system.”
For affected families, this has turned a milestone celebration into a period of stressful uncertainty and anger. Parents paying premium fees for private schooling feel particularly betrayed. As one X user lamented, there is “no justification that the best PLE student emerged from Ntungamo” when urban schools boast the “best teachers” yet failed to produce top aggregates.
Parent and Learner Reactions: Voices from X
The platform X has become a central forum for venting frustrations. Parents reported technical hurdles, with school websites crashing under traffic a problem one user called a “harsh truth” in 2026. Beyond logistics, the lack of peak performance has sparked calls for accountability, with demands for UNEB to explain how urban advantages failed to translate into excellence.
Learners face direct consequences. In a system where an Aggregate 4 opens doors to prestigious secondary schools, its absence in Kampala’s top institutions means many high-achieving pupils miss their dream placements. Combined with persistent gender disparities where girls lag in overall divisions despite strong English performance the results paint a picture of unfulfilled potential.
Looking Ahead: Calls for Reform
The widespread dissatisfaction in Kampala highlights systemic flaws: the uneven adaptation to competency-based learning, rampant malpractice, and the glaring gap between resource investment and outcomes. As one commentator warned, Uganda risks producing a generation equipped for memorization, not innovation.
Consequently, parents and educators are calling for urgent reforms, from enhanced teacher training to stricter anti-malpractice measures. While Kampala’s results show progress in broad terms, the lack of peak scores and ongoing scandals have left many feeling shortchanged. As discussions continue online, one thing is clear: satisfaction will only come with tangible changes to ensure every pupil’s potential is fully realized.
