Enabel, through the Teacher Training Education (TTE) Project, seeks to improve the environment in which students learn and staff work by constructing environmentally friendly and gender-responsive infrastructure to meet today’s current needs.

With funding from the Belgian government, the project has established 19 facilities and enhanced 26 facilities across all the National Teachers’ Colleges (NTCs). Facilities built and enhanced include Early Childhood Development (ECD) centres, sanitary blocks, student and staff accommodation, resource centres, ICT labs, and classroom blocks totalling 12,000,000 EUR. 

Similarly, Enabel and the Education Ministry have embarked on a new construction phase worth 2,393,596.10 EUR (UGX 9,095,665,180) for NTCs Mubende and Kabale, set to run for eight months. These works were recently launched on 8th September in addition to the already established spaces in the NTCs. Establishing these facilities is part of the TTE project’s key focus areas to ensure that college facilities are safe and healthy functional spaces that enhance the teaching and learning process. The architectural designs and infrastructural consider several important factors that focus on innovation, sustainability, energy efficiency and the natural environment. These will give room and resources to both teachers and students to explore different learning techniques and encourage creativity. 

Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony at NTC Kabale H.E Veestraeten Rudi, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Belgium, disclosed that all construction under the project will be driven by the principles of climate-responsive design. “In the three other colleges, we have already finished construction and renovation. It is time to lift Kabale and Mubende up to the same standard. In line with our previous infrastructure projects, we want to limit the impact on the environment. No trees will be cut to burn trees for our projects,” he said.

The ongoing works include establishing and rehabilitating classrooms, laboratories, sanitary blocks, staff offices and student accommodation. Other works will focus on revamping the water supply systems to ensure availability and ease access to water for college students and staff. More contributions will focus on creating safe learning environments based on the different needs of the College staff and students. These include outdoor study sheds, social spaces, and cooking sheds for students, site lighting, chain link fencing, a gate for each college, a great network of electrical and mechanical works, state-of-the-art landscaping, walkways and paved areas to promote easy access to facilities.