Supplementing school-based religious education in Uganda: a case study for the Mugigi catechetical course

Religious education, like all learning, can take place in informal, nonformal, and formal settings. In Uganda, the Education Bill 2007 triggered discussions about religious education and control over schools by founding religious bodies. In this context, the role played by the Mugigi course to supplement the religious education imparted in schools has become especially important. The course targets candidates for the Solemn Communion and involves catechetical instruction, formation, and literacy. This paper compares the teaching approach of Mugigi and that of schools. Also highlighted are three limitations of the Mugigi programme, related respectively to the issues of poverty, the risk of placing too much emphasis on examination results, and the ‘apparent failure’ to help learners reflect further on the local Church’s inculturated rites integrated into the Mass.