A visually impaired student at Makerere University is facing a severe disruption to his academic programme after unknown thieves broke into his room and made off with his laptop and upkeep money amounting to approximately Shs300,000 — losses that have placed his continued studies in serious jeopardy.
The student, who is pursuing his degree at Uganda’s oldest and most prestigious public university on a government state scholarship, is now appealing to well-wishers, individuals, and organisations for urgent support to enable him to recover and continue his education.
The break-in, which targeted the student’s room on or near the Makerere University campus, resulted in the loss of two critical assets: his personal laptop and his available upkeep funds. While the monetary value of the stolen items may appear modest in absolute terms, the impact on the student’s daily life and academic functioning is considerable.
For a student with a visual impairment, a laptop is not a supplementary academic tool — it is the primary interface through which coursework is accessed, assignments are completed, and academic engagement is maintained. Assistive technologies, screen readers, and specialised software that enable visually impaired students to participate fully in university education are all dependent on the availability of a functioning personal computer. The absence of this tool effectively creates a direct and immediate barrier to learning.
The student’s financial vulnerability is further compounded by the nature of his sponsorship arrangement. As a state scholar, he receives a government stipend of Shs500,000 per semester — a figure that, distributed across the full duration of a semester, provides extremely limited financial flexibility even under normal circumstances.
The theft of Shs300,000 — representing more than half of his total semester stipend — has effectively eliminated whatever financial cushion he had available for basic subsistence needs including food, transport, and personal upkeep, in addition to depriving him of his primary academic tool.
The combination of these two losses has placed the student in a position where continuing his studies without external support is not a straightforward proposition.
The student’s situation draws attention to a wider and often under-examined challenge facing students with disabilities at Ugandan universities. While government scholarships provide a critical entry point for students who would otherwise be unable to access higher education, the financial support attached to these scholarships in many cases does not adequately account for the additional costs associated with disability — including the procurement and maintenance of assistive devices, specialised academic materials, and the general cost of living on or near campus.
A single adverse event, such as a theft or a medical emergency, can therefore have a disproportionately severe impact on students in this category, given the absence of any meaningful financial buffer.
Makerere University, like other public universities in Uganda, has structures in place to support students with disabilities. However, the pace at which institutional support can be mobilised in response to individual emergencies often leaves affected students reliant on the goodwill of the wider community while formal processes are engaged.
An Appeal To The Public
The student is actively seeking support from well-wishers who are in a position to assist — whether through the provision of a replacement laptop, financial contributions toward his upkeep, or connections to organisations and individuals with the capacity to intervene meaningfully on his behalf.
His full appeal, in which he speaks directly to the public about his situation and the support he requires, is available for viewing at the following link:
Members of the public who wish to support the student are encouraged to view the appeal for direct contact information and details on how contributions can be made.
Beyond the immediate needs of this individual student, his situation presents an opportunity for universities, student welfare organisations, disability rights bodies, and corporate entities with education-focused corporate social responsibility programmes to examine the adequacy of support systems currently available to students with disabilities at Uganda’s public universities.
The determination required to pursue a university education as a visually impaired student on a minimal government stipend is considerable. That determination deserves to be met with institutional and community support structures robust enough to absorb the kind of disruption that this student is currently experiencing.
For now, his immediate need is clear. A laptop. Basic upkeep support. And the opportunity to return his full attention to the degree he has worked to earn.
