Vusumuzi Dube
GOVERNMENT has since independence built hundreds of both primary and secondary schools throughout the country as it strives to ensure that every child is within walking distance of his or her school.
The settler regime had put in place a bottleneck system for the blacks’ education so that very few blacks could go beyond high school hence there were very few schools in both urban and rural areas.
It also introduced a rigorous screening system which started at primary school level and as such many pupils failed to proceed to secondary school. At Form Two the pupils were subjected to another screening and this was again done at
Form Four and Six resulting in very few pupils proceeding to institutions of higher learning such as colleges and the only university available then.
This was a deliberate policy by the colonial government to deny blacks education so that they continued to be hewers of wood and drawers of water.
It was because of the skewed education policy that Government at independence immediately embarked on a programme to build schools in both urban and rural areas while also increasing the number of colleges and universities.
Government has almost met its target of ensuring that pupils are within walking distance of either primary or secondary school. The new thrust now is to improve the quality of education through building world-class schools.
The Government apart from building new schools that meet the new criteria, is also upgrading existing schools to meet the world standards. The new Education Curriculum introduced a few years ago, is meant to produce graduates that do not only excel academically but have entrepreneurship skills that they can use upon leaving school.
The world-class schools that Government is building have the required facilities and equipment to enable the teachers to implement the new curriculum.
We want at this juncture to applaud companies such as the National Handling Services (NHS) for complementing Government efforts to upgrade schools to meet world standards.
On Monday, the NHS handed over a fully furnished classroom block to Mujiji Primary School in Bubi district, Matabeleland North province as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative.
Speaking at the handover ceremony, the NHS board chairman, Mr Godwin Nyengedza said his company was committed to empowering communities through education.
“This classroom block stands as a testament to our belief in the potential of every child at Majiji Primary School,” said Mr Nyengedza.
He urged the school authorities and the local community to safeguard the infrastructure and continue nurturing a culture of learning.
“We recognise the challenges faced by rural schools in Zimbabwe, from overcrowding to resource shortages hence our intervention,” said Mr Nyengedza.
It is our fervent hope that other companies and organisations will emulate what NHS did at Majiji Primary School.
Places such as Gokwe, Binga and Chipinge among others still have schools that have makeshift classrooms which need to be upgraded to world standards in order to improve the quality of education. Government alone cannot upgrade all the schools hence we call upon the private sector and other development partners to come on board.
Online Reporter