The Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS), in partnership with the Ministry of Education and Sports, is preparing to roll out the second phase of the 2025 Baseline Education Census (BEC), with data collection scheduled to begin on June 10, 2025.
According to UBOS, this second phase follows an incomplete first round that was conducted in Kampala and Mukono districts but was cut short due to the closure of Term 1 in schools.
“The first phase was cut short by the closure of Term 1, and it covered areas of Kampala and Mukono. Now CAPIS (tabs) are turned to Wakiso and the rest of the districts across the country,” said Didacus Okoth, the UBOS Principal Public Relations Officer, in a statement shared on social media.
Currently, UBOS is engaged in intensive training of enumerators who will be deployed across districts to carry out the data collection. The aim of the census is to gather comprehensive data on the state of education in Uganda—including information on schools, staff, learners, facilities, and infrastructure—essential for planning and policy-making at both national and district levels.
Public awareness campaigns about the census are underway. In a recent radio appearance on Kapchorwa’s Trinity Radio, Okoth joined the Acting Resident District Commissioner (RDC) of Kapchorwa, Martin Sakajja, to discuss the objectives and importance of the BEC 2025.
“Accurate data is the backbone of informed decision-making in the education sector. This census is not just about numbers, but about improving learning environments across Uganda,” Okoth emphasized during the radio discussion.
Okoth also appeared on Elgon FM in Mbale city alongside Thamas Musungu, Senior Communications Officer at Mbale District Local Government supporting regional mobilisation and public awareness to spread the message in Eastern Uganda.
The BEC is a critical tool that supports Uganda’s goals under Vision 2040 and the National Development Plan (NDP III), particularly in enhancing education access, equity, and quality.
Stakeholders are being encouraged to support enumerators and ensure that data collection is smooth and accurate, especially as the exercise moves into rural and hard-to-reach areas. UBOS has urged school administrators, district officials, and the general public to cooperate fully and provide the necessary information to enumerators during the census period.