SchoolPay, a Ugandan education payment platform, has launched Asome by SchoolPay, an initiative designed to support education continuity when a registered parent or guardian dies. The program aims to alleviate financial uncertainty for families, ensuring that a child's education remains uninterrupted. Asome will support the payment of a child's school fees for the next three school terms, subject to verification and program requirements. This initiative is part of SchoolPay's broader efforts to create value across the education sector.
The Asome initiative is designed to work through existing relationships between families, schools, and SchoolPay. When a registered parent or guardian dies, the school will notify SchoolPay, which will then engage with the school and family to verify the circumstances and complete the necessary documentation. This verification process may include documentation such as a death certificate and evidence of previous school-fee payments. Once the process is completed, SchoolPay will begin paying the child's school fees for the following three terms.
Asome by SchoolPay is expected to become active from November 2026, subject to final rollout confirmation. The program is part of the Do More with SchoolPay campaign, reflecting a wider shift in how SchoolPay is creating value across the education sector. SchoolPay has traditionally been known for simplifying education payments for parents and schools, but the platform has steadily expanded beyond the transaction itself. The wider SchoolPay ecosystem now includes tools and services designed around different aspects of the school, parent, and student experience.
The SchoolPay ecosystem includes S-Wallet, which allows parents to send pocket money to students digitally. SchoolPay's ERP solutions support schools in managing student records, attendance, academics, finance, accounting, examinations, and other administrative functions. SchoolPay Medical further extends the ecosystem by helping schools manage student medical information and related health processes. Asome builds on this approach, creating value around the full education journey, including moments when families need more than a payment channel.
Education does not exist in isolation; it sits within an ecosystem of schools, parents, students, financial institutions, and technology partners, each playing a role in keeping the journey moving. Asome is one example of how SchoolPay is extending its role within that ecosystem. For a family facing the loss of a parent or guardian, three school terms can provide something particularly important: time. It can provide time to reorganize household responsibilities, allow another guardian to assume financial responsibility, and give the child an opportunity to remain focused on school.
According to Fincom CEO Charity Atukwatsa, the process begins with the school, which informs SchoolPay of the death of the registered parent or guardian. The initiative also recognizes that a child's education journey may change during the supported period. For example, if a registered parent or guardian dies while a child is completing Primary Seven and the child transitions to secondary school the following term, the support can continue at the new school for the next three terms, subject to program requirements.
Asome by SchoolPay is positioned not simply as a payment benefit but as a practical intervention aimed at helping families protect a child's education when circumstances suddenly change. The program reflects a broader ambition to create value around the full education journey, including moments when families need more than a payment channel. By providing financial support and flexibility, Asome by SchoolPay aims to ensure that a child's education remains uninterrupted, even in the face of unexpected challenges.
Key points
- SchoolPay's Asome initiative provides financial support for education continuity in the event of a parent or guardian's death.
- The program supports the payment of a child's school fees for the next three school terms, subject to verification and program requirements.
- Asome by SchoolPay is part of the Do More with SchoolPay campaign, reflecting a wider shift in how SchoolPay is creating value across the education sector.
