According to the Uganda national sexuality education framework of 2018, Uganda has an estimated population of 34,634,650, of which 33% of this population is made up of young people below the age of 19. This youthful population is a potential opportunity and asset for driving, accelerating, and sustaining economic growth and transformation envisaged in the national vision 2040. However, it also has some challenges as these people are at a stage in their lives when they are exploring and establishing their own individual and collective identity in society. Thus, they face many sexual and reproductive health challenges, spiritual and emotional challenges, conflicting cultural norms and practices, as well as, modernization challenges. In particular, the general sexual health indicators in the country show negative trends with rising early unintended pregnancies, unsafe abortions, increasing STI, and rising child abuse including gender-based violence and sexual abuse. To date, young people are continuously exposed to uncensored sexually explicit, and obscene material which often portrays inaccurate information about sex and sexuality. This is done through the Internet, social media, and mass media outlets such as newspapers, radio, TV, telecommunications, etc. There is also an increase in the consumption and abuse of alcohol, drugs, and substances among the youth. Yet these behaviors predispose the youth to risky sexual activities that may lead them to teenage pregnancy, school dropout, and acquisition of sexually transmitted infections including HIV and AIDS. In addition, young people, especially girls are exposed to sexual and gender-based violence including rape and sexual harassment.
Uganda further faces more major challenges in providing quality and accessible basic education to children and adolescents. Around 4 out of 10 young children aged 3 to 5 years attend early childhood education, showing marked progress from 2011 that saw 2 out of 10 children enrolled. Similarly, 8 out of 10 children aged 6 to 12 years attend primary school and more than 1 in 4 attend secondary school. However, access remains inequitable: the secondary level enrolment of the richest 20 percent of the population (43.1 percent) is five times that of the poorest 20 percent (8.2 percent). In geographical terms, the highest Secondary Net enrollment is seen in Kampala (52 percent) and the lowest in Acholi (7 percent). Child marriage, teenage pregnancy, abuse at schools, and school fees keep many teens, especially girls, out of secondary schools. Costs associated with education account for 6 out of 10 people leaving school, and pregnancy accounts for 8 percent of girls who leave school. Similar challenges remain in the quality of education: only about 50 percent of the children in Primary 3 were proficient in literacy and numeracy in a 2018 survey conducted by the Government of Uganda. All this further underscores the need to equip young people with appropriate knowledge, attitudes, values, and skills to help safeguard their lives while they grow, develop, and learn so as to achieve their goals in life accordingly.