Teachers Demand government on Hard to Reach Allowance

By Robert Ariaka

Arua April 30, 2016

Teachers posted to teach in hard to reach areas are demanding government to consider them for hard to reach allowance.

Speaking to URN, Kazmiro Eyobi, a teacher of Ayavu primary school in Ogoko Sub County says, due to long distance, some teachers who are not accommodated within the schools fail to concentrate.

He says once teacher in the district sub counties are paid allowance, they will be able to use the money to cater for transport especially where the school has poor accommodation for teachers.

Cue in: “Challenges of accommodation”

Cue out… “Much about that”

Eyobi says the school has eight teachers including the head teacher, but six are accommodated in poor houses forcing the teacher to opt residing from their homes and travel long distances to teach.

Ogoko Sub County is 80km away from Arua town and most of the teachers posted abandon the sub county over hard living conditions.

Florence Munduru, the deputy head teacher of Roga primary school in the contentious Ewanga sub county Arua district says, teachers who are posted in the far parts of Arua district abandon teaching because they find it hard to settle.

According to Munduru, paying hard to reach allowance will help retain teachers in the far areas and also make it easy for them to visit their families.

Cue in: “Because these teachers”

Cue out… “They will settle”

She says out of 13 teachers posted in the school, only six are available while others have left due to hard living conditions.

Acia Marino, the DEO Arua says, government has not considered teachers in Arua for hard to reach allowance yet some health workers are considered. He appeals to the political leaders to lobby government to provide money for teachers posted in hard to reach areas.

Acia identified the most deserted areas by teachers as Ewanga, Rigbo, Pawor, Rhinocamp, Ogoko, Anyiribu, Offaka, Logiri and Adumi Sub Counties in Arua district.

He says once teachers are paid hard to reach allowance, they will be able to use the money to settle their families and also be able to visit their homes on monthly basis.

Cue in: “Their observation is correct”

Cue out…. “By the government”

He says for now, the teachers are not paid hard to reach allowance which makes it a challenge to control them.

Currently Arua district has a total of 26 government aided secondary schools, 34 private secondary schools while there are 246 primary government aided primary schools in Arua main and 16 in Arua municipality.

End.