New districts’ creation and delivery of primary education services in Lamwo district, uganda

Abstract

New districts’ creation has been an ongoing process all over the world. In the past twenty years, majority of national governments in Africa initiated and deepened the transfer of powers and resources to a range of sub-national government bodies including states, provinces and districts. The purpose of this dissertation was to examine the effect of new district’s creation on primary education service delivery in Lamwo District, Uganda. The study assessed the reasons given by government for curving out Lamwo District from Kitgum District; the effect of creating new district on the delivery of primary education services; and the challenges faced by the newly created district in primary education service delivery. This study builds upon fieldwork undertaken at Lamwo District in Acholi sub-region, Northern Uganda. The data collection methods used were questionnaires, in-depth interviews, observation method and document analysis method. An interview guide was used to manage the discussions. After coding and editing, transcription of notes and audio recordings, the data was analyzed using thematic and content analysis. The findings of this study revealed that creation of new district led to improved primary education service delivery, increased access and equity, improved quality of education and enhanced efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of primary education services. It should also be noted that district creation had negative impacts on the performance of primary schools and can be concluded that high school dropouts, inadequate monitoring and inspection are challenges affecting the delivery of primary education services in Lamwo. The study recommends the need to reposition the local government to bring services closer to people, increase the number of personnel in terms of staff members at the district and recruit more teachers to fill the existing gaps in the primary schools.