The Government of Uganda has announced a Shs 83 billion investment in expanding digital literacy and community learning programs as part of its renewed commitment to tackling illiteracy, ahead of International Literacy Day on September 8, 2025.
Speaking to the press at Uganda Media Center on Tuesday, the Minister of State for Gender and Cultural Affairs, Hon. Dr. Peace Regis Mutuuzo, said the five-year initiative, dubbed Support to the Implementation of Integrated Community Learning for Wealth Creation (SUICOLEW), will run from the 2025/26 to 2029/30 financial years.
“It will expand Community Learning Centers (CLCs) across the country and promote digital literacy as a key driver of socio-economic transformation. Despite our progress, 24 percent of Ugandans, about 11.9 million people, remain illiterate. This programme is designed to address that gap, particularly among women, youth, and persons with disabilities,” Dr. Mutuuzo said.
Uganda currently has a literacy rate of 76 percent, according to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics (UBOS 2024). However, Minister Mutuuzo warns that high school dropout rates, overcrowded classrooms, and limited access to resources continue to undermine government education initiatives such as Universal Primary Education (UPE) and Universal Secondary Education (USE).
“The new programme will build on past interventions, including the Functional Adult Literacy (FAL) programme, which reached over 3.3 million learners by 2016, and the Integrated Community Learning for Wealth Creation (ICOLEW) pilot launched in 2016. Unlike previous efforts, SUICOLEW places stronger emphasis on digital literacy and linking education to livelihoods under the Parish Development Model”. She remarked.
According to the Minister, the project aligns with Uganda’s Fourth National Development Plan (NDP IV), the NRM Manifesto 2021–2026, and Vision 2040.
“It directly supports human capital development, financial inclusion, and mindset change, which are critical to our nation’s socio-economic transformation,” she added.
The government also credited the role of NGOs, faith-based and community-based organizations, including DVV International, Caritas Uganda, and the Finnish Refugee Council, for complementing literacy programmes through targeted interventions.
To mark this year’s International Literacy Day, Minister Mutuuzo revealed that Uganda will hold a week-long series of activities including literacy boot camps, reading competitions, a symposium, and the graduation of adult learners.
Minister Mutuuzo called on all stakeholders, including government agencies, NGOs, faith-based institutions, cultural leaders, educators, and the media, to “unite in advancing literacy as a collective national responsibility.”
