Fragile and Divisive Unity over Religious Education Curriculum in Uganda

Abstract

Although Uganda is legally defined as a secular state, it is one of the most ‘religious’ nations in the world in terms of its rich religious though mostly volatile history and current record numbers of religious adherents compared to those who describe themselves as atheists or agnostics. The introduction of Islam, Anglican and Roman Catholic religious belief systems in Uganda ushered in an era of competition for converts which inevitably led to conflicts, including religious wars. 
 Formal Education, mainly through missionary education, centered on promoting denominational identity and despite government efforts to legislate on the need for religious education to address the first national goal of education of ‘promoting national unity and harmony’, the Christian Religious Education (CRE) and the Islamic Religious Education (IRE) curriculum have largely remained catechetical and not dialogical, which compounds the already existing tensions between members of different religious denominations as illustrated by interviews done in schools. There is a need to review the curriculum to address the gaps cited in this article that seeks to address the multi-religious composition of schools and society to safeguard against religious tension and conflict which are proving to be endemic.