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Minister Janet Museveni officially releases PLE 2025 results
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The number of candidates sitting the Primary Leaving Examination (PLE) has continued to rise, with overall performance showing improvement at the Grade One level compared to 2024, the Uganda National Examinations Board (UNEB) has announced. Presenting the 2025 PLE results, UNEB Chairperson Prof. Celestino Obua said candidature increased while absenteeism remained steady at 1.3 per cent over the last two years. He noted, however, that any level of dropout remains a concern.
“I trust that the Permanent Secretary and her team have since been able to establish some of the underlying causes of absenteeism, as was promised last year,” Prof. Obua said. 
Prof Obua. [File: UNEB]
He reported that more candidates qualified to progress to the next level of education compared to 2024 and expressed confidence that all 730,000 learners who passed would secure placement in secondary schools and vocational institutions, given government efforts to expand access to post-primary education.
For the second consecutive year, UNEB conducted an item analysis of all four examination papers to determine learner proficiency levels. Prof. Obua said the initiative supports Uganda’s shift towards a Competency-Based Curriculum and will now be conducted and reported annually.
From the analysis, UNEB concluded that teachers require substantial capacity-building support to effectively interpret the curriculum and adapt teaching approaches. Over the past two years, the Board identified two local governments with the lowest achievement levels and provided targeted training to selected teachers—a programme Prof. Obua said would be sustained subject to funding availability.
Earlier, UNEB Executive Director Mr Dan Odongo officially presented the 2025 PLE results to the Minister of Education and Sports, noting that the examinations were conducted on November 3 and 4, 2025, under the theme “Embracing Security and Holistic Assessment of Learners in a Dynamic Environment.” 
Executive Director UNEB, Dan Edong [File: UNEB]
Mr Odongo said a total of 817,883 candidates from 15,388 examination centres registered for the 2025 PLE, up from 797,444 candidates in 2024. Of these, 522,036 candidates (63.8 per cent) from 11,525 centres were Universal Primary Education (UPE) beneficiaries, while 295,847 candidates (36.2 per cent) from 3,863 centres were non-UPE candidates.
Examiners and curriculum specialists commended the quality of the examination papers, saying they reflected the shift towards competency-based learning by testing learners’ ability to apply knowledge and skills.
However, Mr Odongo noted that some teachers—especially in Social Studies and Religious Education—have not fully adapted their teaching methods to the new approach, leading to difficulties for candidates in answering application-based questions. This, he said, partly accounted for the decline in performance in the two subjects compared to 2024.
He also warned against the use of materials produced by so-called examination bureaus shortly before examinations, describing them as misleading and detrimental to candidates’ performance.
SPECIAL CANDIDATES
On special candidate groups, Mr Odongo reported that 61 inmates were registered at Uganda Government Upper Prison School, Luzira, with 58 sitting the examination. Four candidates attained Division One, 27 Division Two, 13 Division Three, five Division Four, while nine were ungraded.
At Mbarara Main Prison Inmates Primary School, 40 candidates were registered, with 39 sitting the examination. Seven candidates obtained Division One, 15 Division Two, 10 Division Three, five Division Four, and two were ungraded.
Meanwhile, UNEB expressed concern over increasingly brazen cases of examination malpractice, including reports of scouts and invigilators being bribed or threatened by school directors and headteachers to allow teachers to assist candidates inside examination rooms.
Mr Odongo regretted that some officers within District Education Offices had become complicit in such acts but commended the security agencies for their role in investigating malpractice cases.
In line with Section 5(2)(b) of the UNEB Act, UNEB has withheld results of affected candidates pending completion of investigations. Districts with the highest number of cases include Kisoro, Kampala, Mukono, Namutumba, Kassanda, Buyende, and Kaliro.
However, UNEB commended Kyenjojo, Kabarole, and Bundibugyo districts for improved examination integrity. Mr Odongo noted that due to firm action taken by Kyenjojo’s Chief Administrative Officer in 2024, no malpractice cases were reported from the district this year.
Results were officially released by Minister Janet Museveni.
Results for each examination centre will be uploaded to the UNEB Centre Portal immediately after official release. District, municipal, and city inspectors of schools may collect hard copies from UNEB offices in Ntinda starting Monday, February 2, 2026. Parents and candidates can also access results through the SMS service available on MTN and Airtel networks.
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