By Joan Abaasa
Communications Officer, ICPAU
The Public Accountants Examinations Board (PAEB) of the Institute of Certified Public Accountants of Uganda (ICPAU) has released the results of the August 2025 examinations diet, noting a slight improvement in candidate performance compared to the previous year. The announcement was made on Monday, 22 September 2025, during an event presided over by PAEB Chairperson, CPA Nancy Amuge Owino.
Of 6,087 scripts submitted, 2,213 passed, representing an average pass rate of 36.4%, up from 31.0% in August 2024.
Performance improved significantly at Level II (44.1%), up from 28.8% the previous year, and at Level IV (46.7%), up from 33.5%. Level I also recorded a modest improvement of 4.1%. However, Level III performance declined by 3.3%, with notable drops in Strategy, Governance and Leadership, Audit Practice and Assurance, and Advanced Taxation.
“While we celebrate progress in Levels I, II, and IV, we acknowledge the declines at Level III and commit to addressing these gaps through student engagements and targeted interventions,” Owino said. She announced that examiners’ reports would be discussed with students during engagement sessions scheduled for October 2025.
The results also highlighted demographic trends. Of the 4,249 candidates, 2,436 (57.3%) were female and 1,813 (42.7%) male. Female candidates achieved a slightly higher pass rate at 37.3%, compared to 35.1% for their male counterparts.
In terms of age, the majority of passes were attained by candidates aged 25–34 years, who accounted for 68.6% of the total passes, underscoring the importance of commencing the CPA course early.
PAEB recognised outstanding candidates across all levels. Among them were Esher Treasure Kirabo (Financial Accounting), Umarah Nakyambadde (Economics & Entrepreneurship), Adrine Asingwire (Financial Reporting), and Joel Ayiko (Advanced Financial Reporting). In the flagship Integration of Knowledge paper, Allan Senfuma emerged as the top overall candidate.
Female candidates excelled, securing 14 out of 21 subject awards (66.7%). In addition, 97 students completed the CPA course, up from 80 in August 2024, bringing the cumulative number of CPA(U) graduates to 5,580.
Owino congratulated the successful candidates and emphasised that the improved performance reflects the Board’s continuous efforts to support student learning and professional development.
“On behalf of PAEB, I take this opportunity to commend all the candidates who passed, the top performers in each subject, and those who successfully completed the CPA course. We are steadily progressing towards strengthening the accountancy profession through rigorous examinations and quality assurance,” she said.
Beyond the results, CPA Owino highlighted key initiatives undertaken by PAEB to improve learning outcomes. These included a Training of Trainers workshop (17–18 July 2025) to strengthen teaching quality among tuition providers, a Foreign Accountancy Qualification (FAQ) Masterclass (21–25 July 2025) in which all 61 participants successfully completed, and student engagement sessions in July 2025 alongside pre-exam briefings in August 2025. More activities are scheduled ahead of the December 2025 examinations.
She further reminded students pursuing the Accounting Technicians Diploma (ATD) that the December 2025 diet will be the final one conducted under ICPAU. Effective January 2026, ATD examinations will transition to the Uganda Vocational and Technical Assessment Board (UVTAB).
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ICPAU Secretary/CEO, CPA Derick Nkajja, encouraged students to take full advantage of the CPA journey, noting that the structure of the examinations provides sufficient flexibility for progression.
“Our examinations are designed to give candidates up to ten years to complete, allowing them the flexibility to balance professional growth with other pursuits.
What we would like to see, however, is that students start the CPA course early in their careers. The younger they are when they begin, the more time they have to apply their knowledge to support businesses and contribute to the economy,” Nkajja said.
4,249 candidates sat for their examinations in August 2025 compared to 4,401 in August 2024, representing a slight reduction of 152 (3.5%).
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