Abstract:
This paper sought to explore the extent to which financial resources can be managed and optimized to
foster school improvement and development in Uganda. The research questions aimed at investigating
the nature and amount of the governments' and parents' contributions, how financial resources are
optimized to achieve school budgetary objectives, and its effect on school developments such as the
provision of facilities, infrastructure, and instructional materials in secondary schools. Statistics from
the annual budget estimates of the Ministry of Finance, Planning and Economic Development quoted in
the Education, and Sports Sector Strategic Plan 2017/2018-2019/2020 (Ministry of Education and Sports)
is expounded to answer the research questions. Comparisons are drawn to other countries, including
the USA and China; however, the underlying principle is that it may not necessarily be the amount of
financial resource invested in the education sector that matters but the concentration on financing key
areas that affect the social and economic aspirations of a particular country. For example, sub-Saharan
Africa ought to channel resources in secondary education with a core value of fighting ignorance,
disease, and poverty. A combined Keynesian-Schumpeterian economic approach has been proposed to
emphasize government increased expenditure on education to boost aggregate demand while at the
same time encouraging innovations (technological developments) in line with social-cultural patterns of
society to foster school improvement in Uganda.
Key words: School developments, optimization, Keynesian-Schumpeterian, financial resources management.
