The introduction of the Universal Primary Education (UPE) programme increased
access to education in Uganda, with the rural population as main beneficiary. There
was a 4% increase in the number of pupils enrolled, and a 7% increase in the
number of primary schools between 2008 and 2009. The total number of classrooms also
increased by 6% over the same period. However, the provision of adequate infrastructure
for children enrolled in primary school remains a key challenge to the education sector.
At a national level, about one in every three pupils enrolled in primary education does
not have adequate sitting and writing space. Although a rising proportion of Uganda’s resources has been directed at the primary education sub-sector, it is not clear to which extent they translate into
desirable educational outputs. The main purpose of this study is to measure the technical efficiency and total factor productivity growth of Uganda’s primary schools. Specifically, the study seeks to evaluate the technical and scale efficiency as well as assess total factor productivity changes of
primary schools in Uganda over the 1995–2009 period.
