By Aggrey Twesigye
A total of 225 pupils failed the 2025 Primary Leaving Examinations (PLE) in Mbarara City, while 64 others missed the examinations, according to the city education department.
Records obtained by the Crooze FM News Desk indicate that Mbarara City registered 6,252 candidates for the 2025 PLE. Of these, 2,272 candidates passed in Division One, 3,217 in Division Two, 360 in Division Three, 116 in Division Four, while 225 were ungraded, based on results released last Friday.
The figures were revealed on Tuesday afternoon by the Mbarara City Education Officer, Gerald Nkurikiyimana, during the official handover of PLE results to head teachers at Mbarara Junior School.
Nkurikiyimana attributed the failures mainly to inadequate staffing in many schools, which he said has negatively affected learners’ academic performance despite the city’s overall strong results.
Speaking at the same event, Mbarara City Town Clerk, Justine Barekye, cautioned teachers against absenteeism, noting that it directly undermines teaching and learning in schools.
Meanwhile, Mbarara City Mayor, Robert Mugabe Kakyebezi, assured stakeholders that the city council is actively working to address staffing shortages as part of efforts to improve education standards.
In a related development, city authorities also distributed science kits to schools following the release of the PLE results. Fifteen best-performing and five worst-performing schools in Mbarara City received the kits from the Ministry of Education and Sports to support the teaching and learning of science subjects.
