Grounded in feminist epistemology, the study focused on the concepts of location, social
position, gender and Affirmative Action to assess the social phenomenon of inequality in the
distribution of public university educational opportunities in 4 regions and 112 districts of
Uganda. The study used district level data of a student population of 101,504 admitted to five
public universities from 2009-2017, to construct the ‘Fair Share Index’ (FSI) as a measure of
higher educational inequality. Based on the FSI, the Fair Share Equity Framework of analysis
was created, developed, applied and used extensively in the study, to incorporate ‘equity’ as a
‘third’ dimension in the assessment of higher educational distribution in Uganda. The Education
Equity Index (EEI) was computed for each of four regions and 112 districts of the country. The
EEI was defined as the difference between the Fair Share Index (FSI) or population quota and
the actual proportion of the student population allocated to a region or district of the country. The
index measures the ‘Fair Share Gap’ in the distribution of higher educational opportunities from
one region and district of the country to another, based on the changing configurations of
population quota and the actual student population allocated over the years. It shows the extent
of the gains or losses incurred in the distribution of public university education by a district over
time, and the extent of inequality in access to public university educational opportunities as a
resource in regions and districts of the country. The Fair Share framework defines,
conceptualises, measures and incorporates the discourse of equity as a dimension of educational
distribution in ways not previously reported. By so doing, the author addresses the puzzling
complexities of the social phenomenon of inequality in higher education and in development, in
ways not previously reported. The new methodology is based on the feminist Standpoint theorythe
notion that the social phenomenon of inequality is socially, historically and culturally situated
and that its investigation and analysis must be placed in the context of the location of the social
phenomenon itself. On that basis, the Fair Share Equity Framework does not simply offer a
perspective; it provides a rigorous and an innovative methodology, which simplifies
investigation of the social phenomenon. In the entire study, the researcher endeavored to
systematically illustrate the theoretical and empirical paradigms of the Fair Share Framework as
a new contribution to knowledge and an important effort towards the greater goal for equity and
gender equality in higher education.
The study found that social location and gender were the main factors in Uganda’s public
university educational inequality. Ninety-point-five (90.5) percent of the total student population
was found in the top 20 per cent of districts of Uganda. Seven (7) out of every 10 students
selected for undergraduate programmes were from three (3) districts; Up to 82 per cent qualified
from schools located in five districts; and a single private high school accounted for as many
students as the number that came from a total of 733 public schools. While half the population of
women in public university education was in one out of ten colleges, eight of out of every ten
were in two colleges. In the rest of eight public university colleges, men outnumbered women by
a ratio of 8:2.
Owing to the district factor, the high school factor and Affirmative Action, gender remains the
main factor in Uganda’s public university educational inequality. The representation of women
tended to be lower in fields where jobs have considerable national appeal but it was higher in
fields where prospects, status and potential for future income, power and access to resources are
considerably lower within the historical, social and cultural context of Uganda. Access and
distribution criteria mainly favored students from the top districts and high schools in the
country. Although Affirmative Action opened doors for more women in higher education, the
doors that were opened were not necessarily for historically excluded. The programme tended to
benefit primarily the most fortunate, failing to reach the most marginalised, the excluded and the
hard to reach on grounds that it was implemented for competitive reasons.
In the distribution policies, systems and practices, emphasis was laid on the supply side rather
than demand. In spite of the introduction of a district quota-based policy in 2005, the distribution
system did not work for students from underprivileged schools in remote districts of Uganda.
The majority of women and men who lagged behind originated from remote and disadvantaged
districts. There was a significant binary divide. While the men occupied one section of the
colleges, women were in the other section of the colleges. The benefit of Affirmative Action
programme was limited to a specific category of women, from specific districts and a few top
secondary schools in the country. Women faced considerable barriers, particularly in science
education, due to the lack of effective policies to address college-based inequalities related to
intake, and the transition from high school to higher levels of education.
In recent times, considerable emphasis has been laid on studies that assess the social phenomena
of inequality from an income and wealth distribution or inputs and output dimensions. Building
its foundation from the feminist theories of knowledge, the framework stands out, for its
emerging perspectives on the concepts that constitute the notion of equity. It explores new
discourses and provides a theoretical framework that can be deployed in fields of development to
deconstruct the conundrum and address the complexities of inequality. It presents a rigorous and
systematic approach; contributes to the theoretical and empirical relevance of the feminist
Standpoint epistemology and to a scientific vision in the study of inequality in all fields of
development.
When Uganda moved to universal primary schooling system, policy makers appear not to have
anticipated the implications of this move for the country’s secondary and higher education
system. The higher education distribution system has thus continued to aspire to its original elite
model. This is not because it is insensitive and irresponsible, but because it is not structurally
ready to accommodate the upcoming burden of mass and universal primary and secondary
schooling. This malaise has distorted the notion of equity and equality in the distribution system,
shifting the developments in Uganda’s higher educational distribution system rapidly in an
opposite direction. The distribution of public university education in Uganda has thus become
less of a central government function and more of a private affair, signaling a much deeper crisis
– the degree to which admission policies, systems and practices may structurally deter the
national equity, equality and empowerment agenda. This study dealt with the structural issues
that influence equity and gender dynamics in the distribution of public university education in
Uganda. It offers recommendations that address the failure of the national merit system in
underprivileged schools in remote districts of Uganda.
As presented, the Fair Share Equity Framework is my own construct and innovation. It was
inspired by 20 years of experience in development, working with seven major International Non
Governmental Organizations (INGOs), as well as with local civil society groups and
communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America. I was concerned with what appeared to be the
sheer absence of methodologies that attempt to advance the application and use of the concept of
‘equity’ and ‘Fair Share’ in public policy; and in the investigation of the growing forms of
geographical inequality; particularly in regions and districts of countries such as Uganda, where
access to development resources such as higher educational opportunities is significantly
hampered by the lack of space due to the limited state’s capacity for long term planning and
inadequate tax-based models for financing of educational infrastructure. The study defines what
constitutes ‘equity’ as a ‘dimension’ of educational distribution. It illustrates a clear gap between
the government’s attempts to increase access to secondary education and the status of access to
higher education. Its show the pitfalls in the governance framework currently guiding the higher
education system, which primarily benefits students from a few districts in the country. This
perpetuates a system that rewards only the privileged.
The Fair Share methodology shows how the feminist Standpoint theory provides for the use of
the feminist concept of social location in education; and in the understanding of how inequality
in the distribution of higher education can be naturalised and legitimised in everyday life. It
ascertains the nature of districts for which the distribution policy and system is most effective
and the category of districts that lag behind. Its thesis is the notion that inequality in access to
higher education cannot be corrected, without the synchrony between government’s efforts in
ensuring access to primary and secondary education and an open strategy to achieve equity in
higher education across the entire country. A case is made, that in order to address the social
phenomenon of inequality in the distribution of higher education in regions and districts of
Uganda, the proportion of all members from each district, who have the minimum level of
preparation to participate in higher education should be determined by a Fair Share Index. The
Fair Share Index provides a rigorous perspective on the discourse of equity; a perspective, which
simplifies investigation and contributes to the scientific vision of the feminist Standpoint
empiricism. / Development Studies / D. Phil. (Development Studies)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:unisa/oai:uir.unisa.ac.za:10500/26224 |
| Date | 16 January 2020 |
| Creators | Odaga, Geoffrey |
| Contributors | Kibuka-Sebitosi, Esther |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | application/pdf |
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