A Makerere University lecturer has proposed that the government set up a procedure involving the private sector to improve the procurement of school text books.
Prof Elisam Magara says the education ministry ought to set up a process that involves private sector in the book chain (including authors, publishers, booksellers and consumers (schools) and the National Curriculum Development Centre in a coordinated structure that would ensure good quality school book production.
He says the current process relies more on the whims of private publishers.
“Whereas the current procurement process ensures that government evaluates the school books and are tested through technical, pedagogical and cost evaluation, the system uses official structures with limited private sector participation and minds less on capital investment for the future development of the book industry in Uganda,” she said.
Prof Magara, who heads the Uganda Textbook-Academic and Non Fiction Authors Association (Utana), believes that the new system would help develop a formidable school book production programme.
“There is a need to support publishers in terms of capital development to produce school books, support for writers in critical areas of the school curriculum through grants, awards and training in textbook writing,” he says. [The system would] extend support [to] marketing authors’ products, and professional training for their editors, booksellers, writers and consumers (head teachers, librarians, and teachers) and curriculum support, quality assurance, and monitoring and evaluation, which all require a policy framework.
He cites statistics that show that the average cost of text books on the local market is $11 (about Shs 37,400) higher than other African countries like Nigeria at $4.61 (about Shs 15,647), and Kenya $3.8 (about Shs 13,800).
Prof Magara believes that establishing the local capacity for books to be developed in Uganda would make reading materials more affordable to learners.
“The NCDC would develop the curriculum, make it available to authors, who would then develop the relevant materials for publishers to print, and for book sellers to make,” Prof Magara said.
“[For instance], as the country is currently advocating for use of local languages, there is a need to support writing books especially interactive textbooks, and integrating the library development policy into the schoolbook provision programme.”
Prof Magara also believes that this would also improve the book to learner ration, which remains a challenge in schools. For instance, in primary schools, every seven, five and four pupils share one Mathematics textbook in P1 P2 and P3, respectively.
The student to book ratio is still high at 4:1; higher than the ministry target of one book per child. Social Studies has the least stock of textbooks among the basic subjects with a ratio of 24 pupils per textbook in P1, 18 in P2.
Things are a little better in secondary schools, where the policy has enabled each student to have a textbook in Mathematics and English language, while in Science the textbook ratio is 1:2.
Prof Magara is planning to discuss this programme further at a publisher-author partnership workshop, organised by Utana in collaboration with Uganda Publishers Association, with the support from Norwegian Association of non-fiction and translators in Kampala from October 3, 2016.
The workshop aims at fostering a positive relationship between authors and publishers, as well as an understanding of contractual relationships.
mtalemwa@observer.ug