Pounds 4.5m teaching scheme

The British government is investing in Uganda's education with a new Pounds 4.5 million project for in-service secondary teacher education. The five-year programme will entail building 39 secondary resource centres: one in each district, serving a total of around 1,000 secondary schools. The centres will concentrate on the design of a systematic programme and developing in-service training in core subjects: science, maths and English.

By improving secondary education through better resources and teacher education, the Overseas Development Agency's investment in this programme should be good news for the regeneration of university level education.

But while the economic upturn proceeds, Uganda's young people face the risk of premature death from Aids. Aids is sweeping through young adults in Uganda, graduates and undergraduates.

But from a brief visit to Makerere University - once considered the best in Africa - the sorrow of death is hidden behind optimism. More teachers are being trained there. The numbers will rise from 1,800 undergraduates and postgraduates this year if a planned evening course is introduced this autumn. Demand should increase if the planned White Paper on Education achieves primary school for all by the year 2,000.

The government subsidises Makerere students, trying to bring the university back to the reputation it had before academics were killed, or fled, during the Amin era.