Good News for Arts Teachers, Primary and BTVET Teachers as Government Allocates Over Shs560bn for Salary Enhancement

Kampala, Uganda – The government has announced a major salary enhancement for primary school teachers and arts teachers in secondary schools and Business, Technical and Vocational Education and Training (BTVET) institutions, allocating an additional Shs 568.65 billion in the 2026-27 national budget to improve their earnings.

The announcement was made by Finance Minister Henry Musasizi Ariganyira while presenting the national budget for the 2026-27 financial year.

The salary enhancement is part of a broader government effort to improve teacher welfare and address longstanding concerns over disparities in pay within the education sector, particularly between arts teachers and their counterparts teaching science subjects.

According to the budget speech, the additional funding will take effect beginning in the 2026-27 financial year and is intended to improve the livelihoods and motivation of teachers who play a critical role in Uganda’s education system.

“Beginning FY 2026-27, an additional Shs 568.65 billion has been allocated to enhance salaries for primary school teachers and arts teachers in secondary schools and BTVET institutions,” Minister Musasizi minister stated in the budget address.

The salary increment comes amid years of demands by teachers’ unions and education stakeholders who have argued that arts teachers and primary school teachers have been left behind during previous government salary enhancement exercises that largely focused on science teachers in 2022.

The government says the move forms part of a wider investment in education aimed at improving learning outcomes, strengthening teacher motivation and expanding access to quality education across the country.

In the new financial year, the education sector has been allocated Shs 6.66 trillion, with key priorities including expanding access to Universal Primary Education (UPE) and Universal Secondary Education (USE), strengthening STEM and vocational education, improving teacher welfare and training, implementing curriculum reforms, supporting public universities and research institutions, and completing critical sports infrastructure ahead of the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

The budget speech highlights several achievements in the education sector during the outgoing financial year, including continued financing of UPE and USE programmes, completion of 90 additional seed secondary schools, expansion of 54 existing secondary schools, and increased investment in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education and vocational training.

You can read about the approved salary structure for arts teachers and primary teachers whose salaries will be increased starting July 2026 HERE.

It should be remembered that other government employees expected to have their salaries increased starting July 2026 are RDCs, deputies and assistants, as detailed Here.

You can see the list of most highly paid Museveni advisors and State House staff Here, There and Over There.

The full salary structure for the current financial year showing how much each government employee category earns every month is HERE.