Stanbic Bank partners with Vision Group to promoting new curriculum

VISION GROUP | STANBIC BANK | CURRICULUM

Stanbic Bank Uganda Limited (SBU) has become the first largest commercial bank in the country to partner with Vision Group in promoting the new school education curriculum since the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology, and Sports suffered a two-year COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.

Before the reopening of schools by the Ministry early this year, an abridged curriculum was approved to be used by the Uganda National Examination Board (UNEB) to start setting the 2022 examinations except for lower primary one, senior one, and senior five as a sustainable way of aiding schools to start a new cycle of education.

Stanbic Bank, according to Ali Lwanga, the Regional Manager of Stanbic Bank, realized that schools have a challenge of lack of requirements needed to teach learners the new curriculum, which they agreed to spearhead as a way of fostering community ties through giving back to the communities, Lwanga said. 

“Our banking business was greatly affected by COVID-19 when our customers, especially schools, were shut-down following the countrywide lockdown. As a way of giving back to our loan customers, especially schools, who are our greatest business pillar, we have decided to support them in implementing the new school curriculum.”

Senior One students of Mt. St. Henry's High School Mukono answering questions after receiving new curriculum study books from Stanbic Bank Limited (photo by Isaac Nuwagaba)

“We partnered with Vision Publishing, which is under New Vision Printing and Publishing Company, to make and supply Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) standard study books, teachers’ guides, and learners’ books in schools.”

Stanbic Bank championed the cause and donated over 100 textbooks in all disciplines to Mt. St. Henry’s High School Mukono on Wednesday, October 12, 2022, which became the first school beneficiary in the country to receive new curriculum learning materials.

Jacqueline Taweeka, Sales Manager for Vision Publishing, said that Vision Group is ready to work with all stakeholders to see that the new curriculum is well-implemented in every secondary school.

Taweeka adds that since it is a compulsory curriculum, all schools will need textbooks to implement the new curriculum and take education standards in the country to a new level.

“We are looking for partners to support schools to be able to sustain provisions of the new curriculum." "Our books are easy to use by both learners and teachers and are relevant to skills development,” Taweeka emphasized. 

Jacqueline Taweeka, Vision Publishing Sales Manager, Ali Lwanga, Stanbic Bank Regional Manager, and Teopista Nakalembe, Head Teacher addressing the press about the new curriculum (photo by Isaac Nuwagaba)

With the availability of partners in both the private and public sectors, Vision Group seeks to print about 2.4 million copies for the 42,000 government and private schools across the country for the new curriculum to take center stage in Uganda’s education sector.

Teopista Nakalembe, the Head Teacher, at Mt. St. Henry’s High School Mukono, appealed for more support, saying that they were overwhelmed by the influx of beginners as a result of automatic promotions following a two-year education lockdown in schools.

“We have a challenge of the lack of requirements needed to teach learners, especially textbooks, to implement the new curriculum.” 

“Being more of a learners-centered curriculum, there is a need to have the internet, textbooks to do research, and materials to practice their projects. She said. "Each learner is supposed to have two projects per term and all that needs books to take ground." 

Mt. St. Henry’s High School Mukono is a private catholic-faith based school that was established in 2009.