In Uganda, good education remains a popular aspiration for many households. Whether driven by perceptions of quality, discipline, or opportunity, parents are increasingly opting to place their children in private schools, despite the higher costs compared to government institutions. 

But how high are those costs, really? And is it financially realistic to fund a full private education, starting from Primary 1 and ending in university, using only one’s monthly income? 

The first step is to establish the baseline: how much does it cost, today, to educate one child privately? 

At Kampala Parents and Greenhill Academy, average tuition for primary school is approximately UGX 1.5 million per term. Most schools run three terms per year, meaning a base tuition of UGX 4.5 million annually. However, this figure excludes other compulsory costs: meals (UGX 300,000 per term), extracurricular clubs (UGX 200,000), and transportation for day scholars (approximately UGX 600,000 per term). Altogether, the cost of one year of primary school adds up to around UGX 6.6 million for day scholars. 

Multiplying that across the seven years of primary education gives us a total of UGX 46.2 million in current terms. 

Secondary school tuition increases significantly. On average, O-Level students pay UGX 2.7 million per term in tuition, with an additional UGX 500,000 per term for personal effects and supplies, bringing the total annual cost to UGX 10.2 million. At A-Level, tuition rises further to UGX 3 million per term, or UGX 10.5 million per year including related costs. Over six years, this translates to UGX 61.8 million. 

University fees vary by programme, but a reasonable benchmark is UGX 3 million per year in tuition, and another UGX 2 million in related costs such as accommodation, transport, and learning materials. For a three-year programme, this gives us a total of UGX 15 million. 

Together, these figures suggest that sending a child through a full private education, from Primary 1 to university graduation, costs UGX 123 million in today’s terms. 

But these are just today’s prices. 

It is well known that education costs in Uganda rise steadily over time. According to the Uganda Bureau of Statistics, the inflation rate for education services stood at 6.7% as of March 2025, compared to general inflation of around 3.5%. 

Accounting for this, the actual cost of educating one child privately could reach UGX 155–160 million over the next 18 years. 

This is a significant shift. The same child whose education appears to cost UGX 123 million today will require up to 30% more simply due to price increases over time. 

Now consider a middle-income family earning around UGX 2 million per month. This amounts to UGX 24 million per year in gross income. 

If a family were to fund their child’s entire private education using only their monthly salary, they would need to dedicate roughly 6.5 full years of income, uninterrupted, without spending on housing, food, health care, transport, or any other essentials. Even if stretched across 18 years, the cost remains heavy—an average of UGX 720,000 per month, every month, for nearly two decades. 

For a household living on UGX 2 million, this represents more than a third of gross income—before tax, emergencies, or any other obligations. 

The feasibility of such an approach quickly comes into question. 

Faced with this reality, many parents adopt coping strategies. Loans are common, particularly at the start of school terms when banks and microfinance institutions offer school-fees promotions. Others pay in instalments, sometimes accruing penalties. A more drastic group sells assets, often land or livestock, to finance university education or international exam fees. 

Still others delay non-urgent bills, reduce consumption, or rely on extended family. But these methods are reactive and often come at a steep cost: interest payments, disrupted cash flow, and long-term financial stress. 

While these behaviours make it possible to “get through the term,” they rarely offer a sustainable solution. School fees are not a one-off emergency. They are a recurring reality. 

One alternative to term-by-term funding is structured saving, where parents begin contributing fixed amounts towards each educational stage years in advance. This approach relies on compound growth, where money invested early grows in value over time, helping bridge the gap between current capacity and future need. 

Let’s examine this model in action. 

Suppose a parent begins saving UGX 135,000 per month from the day their child is born. Invested in a moderate-growth education fund returning 10% per annum, this amount will grow to UGX 26 million in six years, just as the child turns six and enters Primary 1. 

That is enough to cover the full cost of Primary 1–4, from the very beginning. 

While those funds are being drawn down over the first four years of school, the parent begins saving for Primary 5–7, contributing UGX 60,000 per month from age 6. Over five years, this grows to nearly UGX 20 million ready just in time. 

At the same time, the parent begins contributing to funds for O-Level (UGX 100,000/month from age 6), A-Level (UGX 40,000/month from age 10), and University (UGX 30,000/month from age 12). Each pool grows independently and is timed to mature shortly before its corresponding education phase begins. 

The total monthly contribution never exceeds UGX 250,000, or 12.5% of household income, and the burden gradually eases as earlier stages are completed. 

But not all parents start planning from birth. Many of us find ourselves considering education funding seriously only once the child is already in Primary 1 or later. 

In that case, a catch-up plan is possible. To prepare for Primary 5–7, O-Level, A-Level, and university, such a parent would need to contribute approximately: 

UGX 60,000/month for P5–P7 (5 years to go), 

UGX 100,000/month for O-Level (9 years to go), 

UGX 40,000/month for A-Level (13 years to go), 

UGX 30,000/month for University (15 years to go). 

That brings the monthly total to UGX 230,000, still under 12% of income. The principle remains the same: contribute early, invest wisely, and separate the goals for each stage. 

Without a doubt, the cost of private education, once inflation and time are considered, is too large to comfortably absorb within a household budget already stretched by essential living expenses. Families attempting to do so tend to rely on short-term fixes that come at long-term cost. 

However, with structured planning, starting early and aligning savings with each education phase , families can reduce financial strain and regain control. This model does not eliminate sacrifice, but it spreads it, smooths it, and turns it into a strategy rather than a scramble. 

For many parents, the real challenge is not lack of income, but lack of structure. And that, unlike inflation, is something within their power to change.