Seven Gulu students miss UCE exams over imprisonment, pregnancy

What the report says

At least seven students in Gulu City missed the start of the 2026 Uganda Certificate of Education (UCE) examinations on Monday, according to The Observer. The absent candidates were drawn from Charity College Gulu, a private school, and Gulu Army Senior Secondary School, a government-aided school, out of 3,554 students registered in the city.

Education officials said five of the missing candidates were registered at Charity College Gulu. School deputy headteacher Jerose Adoch said one student was serving a prison sentence for offences said to have happened outside school, another was in rehabilitation for drug abuse, and one had spent school-fee money elsewhere. Two others did not show up and their reasons were unclear, with efforts to contact parents unsuccessful. Adoch also said the school had not stopped any candidate from sitting because of unpaid fees.

At Gulu Army Senior Secondary School, senior education officer and acting city education officer Richard Kibwota Okidi said one candidate was pregnant and did not report, while another male student had dropped out and could not be traced. He said the examinations began smoothly overall, with centres opening on time and no major incidents.

The absentee cases highlight the wider challenges that can disrupt exam participation, including discipline issues, pregnancy, dropout and family or financial pressures. The Observer also noted that Gulu City has 37 secondary schools taking part in the UCE, while Uganda National Examinations Board said 503,214 candidates registered nationwide for the 2026 exams.