EDUCATION: Relook into The Nziramasanga Commission

The Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Cde Lazarus Dokora has lamented the lackadaisical pace at which the recommendations of the Nziramasanga commission of enquiry are being implemented saying some neighbouring countries have since executed the counsel while Zimbabwe still complains about funding.

Speaking to journalists after a media workshop held in Harare last week the minister said it was time to start acting and stop complaining about the shortage of the funds 15 years after the report was completed.

The Nziramasanga commission of inquiry was sanctioned by the President to diagnose the problems that were affecting the education sector.

“I think it’s a common cause that the Nziramasanga commission should be implemented now. Other nations have taken the report and are implementing it, yes I know of some countries which are acting on it while here we have complained about funding for 15 years.”

Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Professor Paul Mavima had earlier in his key note address said the ministry had formulated the non-formal education policy to ensure the implementation of the Nziramasanga report.

“The move will ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the Presidential Commission of inquiry into the education and training by increasing access to both basic and secondary education,” he said.

Below is an extract from the Nziramasanga report, supplied by the author Pr Caiphus Nziramasanga, which The Sunday Mail Extra will explore and dissect during a series aimed at helping alleviate the crisis in the educational sector.

A SYNOPSIS OF THE PRESIDENTAIL COMMISSION OF INQUIRY INTO EDUCATION AND TRAINING IN ZIMBABWE REPORT (1998 /1999) IMPORT ON THE NATIONAL EDUCATION SYSTEM

Sometime in the late 1997, the government of Zimbabwe, through its two Ministries of

Education resolved to conduct an inquiry into the then Education and Training system. From 1980 to then many significant and important reforms had been carried out and implemented. A real inquiry had not been carried out since a similar one of thirty-five years back (1962), generally referred to as the Judges Commission set up by the colonialists to inquiry into “the African” education, followed by the Lewers-Taylor Committee’s report also on African Education only.

Eighteen years after our political Independence and the revolutionary changes that emerged there from, it was considered necessary to inquire into the “National Education” as a whole considering the fundamental changes that had occurred in the socio-economic-political context and the sure advent of the technological and global forces of the 21st century. Education and training was and would be central to positively confronting the challenges of the new century.

Terms of Reference

Under Statutory Instrument 7c of 1998, His Excellency, the Honorable Robert Gabriel Mugabe, G.C.Z.M, President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, and Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Forces of Zimbabwe, appointed a 12-member Commission of Inquiry into Education and Training. In Proclamation 3 of 1998, His Excellency charged the said Commission to inquire into and report to him upon Education and Training in Zimbabwe.

That Commission was charged with five broad Terms of Reference which were further broken down into about 23 specific Terms of Reference. The five general Terms of Reference were:-

Assessment of the inherited and existing education and training system;

Provision of Education and Training (Access);

Organisational Capacity and Management of Education and Training;

Financing of Education and Training Systems;

Any other matters that may be deemed necessary in addressing Education and Training requirements in Zimbabwe for the 21st Century.

The five broad Terms of Reference and the 23 specific ones made the task of the Commission of Inquiry into Education and Training (CIET) a mammoth mission (Readers may see the Terms of Reference (TOR) in Appendix 4 of the Report, pp 557-561).

This synopsis of the Commission Report comes in a series of three articles designed to give a simple but clear insight into the CIET. Report and recommendations.

Synopsis

The Report is designed in three sections. Section A deals with broad issues pertinent to the terms of reference. The section gives background to the report. Education for the 21st Century, the provision of education (access), and the new philosophy of Education. Unhu/ubuntu, the issues on the organisation and management of Education in Zimbabwe, decentralisation, financing education, language policy, gender equity in Education, children in especially difficult circumstances, and education and training for the disabled. In each unit of this section, findings are proffered and relevant recommendations made for implementation.

Section B gives findings on the central issue of the necessary national Curriculum and Structure Reforms. The main topics include the Curriculum and structure, early childhood Development and Care Education, Primary and Secondary Education, Mathematics Education, Citizenship Education, Culture Arts and Sport Education, Environmental and Science Education and Vocational and Technical Education and Training.

Section C headed Professional Training and Higher Education gives findings and recommendations on higher education, the teaching profession, accreditation, evaluation and quality assurance and control in Education in Zimbabwe, research and development, basic adult and lifelong education, and a summary of all the recommendations in the report.

In each series summary data on each issue is expanded and recommendations summed up. It is important that readers read the actual Report to access the impact and relevance of the Report.

Those who have read the full Report may certainly find this background summary unnecessary.

However, the summaries of each section that follow should provide insight into the importance of the content of the Report to Education and development in 21st Century Zimbabwe.

Broad Issues

In responding to Terms of Reference 1.0 to 1.5, the CIET studied the issues it was charged to examine. They included: the relevance of the inherited education system; the Zimbabwean and international changing socio economic environment and systems; the basic principles and philosophy of the Zimbabwean education and training needs on the eve of the 21st Century which would and is now dominated by competition, global perspectives and the information realm/age itself. The Commission also investigated into the potential of centralisation and decentralisation of the organisation and management of education; the key issues of gender and gender equity and children in especially difficult circumstances, provisions for students with disability; the nation’s language policy; and financing education.

Considering the enormous expansion and improvements which had taken place since 1980, it was evident that several and serious developments – both negative and positive, had taken place in the country such as increases in numbers of primary and secondary schools and tertiary institutions, increase in enrolments, the setting up of temporary schools, and the rise of social melting patterns, it was mandatory to reform the education system so that it could match with the rapid developments. Students and pupils participating in-subordination, violence and vandalism were in the increase rather regularly. Understandably, some stop-gap measures were taken for example down-sizing and decentralisation exercises were adopted without careful consideration. Of course these were revolutionary measures necessary in a revolutionary environment.

On the 21st Century education needs, the Commission noted that resulting from our free and universal education policies, there was urgent need to examine several possibilities to ensure the provision and access of relevant quality education. Recommendations were spelt out on shared financing education with the private sector, parents, local government councils and communities without total deregulation of Education from the central government.

The Commission also recommended rapid computerization of schools, the curriculum, and the teaching profession so that they can meet the challenges of the technology-driven 21st Century. This and other similar recommendations are overemphasized in the Report. The absence of a definitive implementation policy on the curriculum with technology or a rather delayed action would result in irreparable damage to the employment of our school leavers.

What is needed is a definitive school structure reform, and curriculum re-vamping and not by “cutting and pasting” the curriculum. CIET also called for 21st Century oriented education implementers who see the urgent needs for reforming education and training in the lines recommended by the CIET. Zimbabwe is already 14 years behind in making our Education system compliant and compatible with the standards and requirements of a technologically quality assured education in comparison with some of our neighbouring nations. The recommendations advanced at the end of Chapter 3 and 4 and need to be acted on rather urgently. Internal “tissue rejection” must be erased.

Philosophy of Education

The Terms of Reference l.2 and 2.1.9 called on the CIET to enquire into and report on the basic principles and philosophy of “Zimbabwe’s educational and training needs and aspirations“, and “examine and make recommendations on the role of cultural education in the ethical and moral formation of Zimbabwe’s youth”. In consultation with people of all walks and levels of the Zimbabwean society the Commission was pressurized to recommend that Hunhu/Ubuntu be the philosophy of Education and training in Zimbabwe. The 12 recommendations in the section and in all other sections of the Report implore the nation to seriously ensure that hunhu/ubuntu was taught and ingrained in the Education of all the learners in the country noting that the cultures, practices, values and norms generated by technologies these days, are totally and frustratingly driving our children out of the genuine Zimbabwean culture. One needs to just see what comes on Facebook etc to understand the importance of hunhu/ubuntu as a philosophy of education. Suffice to note that it is claimed that the Ministries of Education have adopted this philosophy- but, to what extent and vigour?

In studying government documents on Education policies, it dawned also to the CIET that the language policy, though present was regional and tribally based. The Commission was told by

Zimbabweans in all provinces that the policy was archaic and divisive in a country that needed unity of purpose and living together. They emphasized that the two main indigenous languages – Ndebele and Shona be taught to all children in all schools in all provinces in addition to English. The then so-called “minor” languages should be developed to higher level which, in time would be as important as Ndebele, Shona and English. They further argued that politics should be removed from language development and ration building strategies.

Organisation and Management of Education

The terms of reference (TOR) 2.2.1 and 2.2.4 required the CIET to review the organisational structure of the glen current Education and Training system arid suggest reforms related to government’s policy to decentralize education to local authorities and advise on system-wide capacity building.

The Commission’s findings led them to recommending several strategies that would ensure everybody and all stakeholders being involved directly in the provision, organisation and management of Education and Training. Ignoring the nine (9) recommendations advanced in this unit would result in serious problems in supporting Education and Training by industry, communities, the non-governmental organizations, parents, local authorities, chiefs and communities. Responsible authorities from these areas desire specific policies delineated indicating their specific roles and responsibilities in the provision, and management of Education and Training in the country. The impact of such policies on funding, organising, providing managing and monitoring Education and Training cannot be underestimated. The Commission was however, aware of the provision of the Education Act (l987) and the subsequent Statutory Instruments 70 of 1993 and 87 of 1992 which delegated some managerial powers to the School Development Committees and School Development Authorities (SDC/SDA) respectively; while the Rural District Councils and Urban Councils, in relevant Acts were also empowered to provide some managerial responsibilities over schools. However, people from Rural and Urban areas reported problems of conflict of interests between SDCs/SDAs and Councils’ authorities.

Similar concerns were raised on the decentralisation issue. In short, failure to implement the recommended reforms from CIET, perpetuates the organisational and managerial hi-cups in the provision of quality Education a id Training.

Decentralisation of Education and Training

The CIET was charged under the Terms of Reference 1.4 to collect evidence on decentralisation of Education and Training and to recommend on: “The establishment of an appropriate framework for organisation and management of Education and Training – for decentralisation of functions to local authorities and communities” noting administration, institutional capacity, financial and legislative requirements.

As indicated above, decentralization became a very sensitive issue curing all-hearings. People demanded to know the differences between/among the concepts decentralisation,de-concentration, devolution, deregulation, and privatisation of Education and Training.

Apparently Vision 2020 had viewed decentralization as an essential process for development. Its best to simply say the majority of the stakeholders had mixed feelings about the strategy as they associated it with corruption, mismanagement of funds, rise of different quality levels of education from one district/urban to the otter, and or loss of control In the whole education.

The 26 recommendations from the CIET should be considered seriously during the implementation process since the proposed policy has huge implications on inter-ministerial policies and responsibilities on Education and Training reforms and management, Financing Education

The Presidential proclamation, under TJR 2.3.1; 2.3.2; 2.3.3 and 2.3.4 the CIET was charged to address the: financial resource allocation. Financial resources generation initiatives, participation of local authorities and other stakeholders, and, the self help system financing Education and Training.

The CIET findings then, may not be relevant now due to the fast-changing economic trends nationally and international. It is proposed that a careful and unbiased examination of the proposed strategies, singly or in combination, may result in relevant strategies to our situation.

Each of the 13 recommendations has merits worthy considering.

Gender Equity in Education

The Commission also studied issues on gender equity in Education and Training and did so thoroughly and widely. Its recommendations have, already influenced pieces of legislation on gender equity. However, a lot more has still to be done in the Education and Training legal instruments and local practice at schools, colleges and universities. The impact of ensuring gender equity in Education and Training cannot be under-estimated. Similarly the CIET recommendations on Education for the disabled and those in especially difficult circumstances should be implemented now together with other recommendations.

Summary

This discussion highlights some Education and Training reform issues which impact heavily on the adequate quality implementation of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into Education and Training as required in the ZIM-ASSET. The next issue will examine the Impact and challenges of the proposed curriculum and education structure reforms.

Pr Caiphus Nziramasanga is the author of The Nziramasanga Report.