Help a Student Stay in School in Uganda

The Super Savers Program has been met with great enthusiasm and excitement ! Our eight pilot schools have embraced the program and more than 1000 children are currently enrolled and saving. We've conducted two pay-outs, where the bank drove to all eight schools to disperse the children's savings. Schools arranged for a small fair to enable pupils to use their savings to pay for their school fees and scholastic materials. Savings have been used to pay for school lunch, extra lessons and general school fees, as well as the purchase of uniforms, pens, pencils, exercise books and mathematics sets. During this pilot phase we also experimented with a matching grant, or financial incentive to save regularly, in addition to a voucher system which ensured that at least half of a pupil's savings went towards educational expenses. Encouraged by the success of the pilot, we are now gearing up for the scale up and a full impact asssessment of the program. We'll be collecting data from 136 schools, or every government primary school in Jinja district, as well as from a couple subcounties in Iganga and Mayuge districts. Throughout October we'll be conducting individual pupil surveys, school administator surveys, classroom surveys and aptitude test for those pupils in classes Primary 4 and 5. Once we complete the research phase, we'll begin implementation in 76 new schools. It's a very exciting time. We want to thank all of our supporters for the interest and involvement and hope many more people can become a part!

As part of its Behavioral Savings Initiative, IPA is currently working on a micro-savings scheme for primary schools in Uganda. Like many developing countries, Uganda has directed significant resources and effort towards achieving Universal Primary Education. Though the country’s UPE policy has been remarkably successful in increasing enrollment rates, more than 50% of children drop out before completing primary school. The central research question for IPA Uganda’s micro-savings scheme is can a primary school savings program decrease student drop-out rates by incentivizing and financially enabling children to stay in school?

In collaboration with the Private Education Development Network and FINCA Uganda, IPA is in the process of creating the Super Savers Program. Currently in its pilot phase, the program offers government primary schools a system through which pupils and their families can save money throughout the school term. At the beginning of the following term, the savings are paid out to pupils and their families to be used to pay for school requirements and scholastic materials. Working with eight primary schools in Jinja district, the Super Savers Program is being defined by the feedback and opinions of school administrators, students and their families. Having learned from the experience of the pilot, IPA Uganda expects to scale the program to a full study with 120 schools in September

As one mother expressed, the program will, “Discourage drop-out, a child feels she cannot leave her savings behind when she drops-out, it is a skill that can be developed, they will learn the spirit of savings.” The Super Savers Program has been driven by the ideas and suggestions of participants like this mother. Even though the program is only in its pilot phase, we’ve received wonderfully positive feedback from all stakeholders, school administrators, teachers, parents and children alike. We’d all like to thank you for your support! If you have any questions about the research design, Ugandan context or our experiences thus far with the pilot, we’d love to hear from you. Please feel free to provide feedback in our comments section!