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Mwaneseni Mhlanga (not her real name) shivers due to the June wintry conditions as she joins other initiates for her to be taught the dictates of womanhood in a part of Chipinge district.
Once she has finished the business of initiation, she is ready to get married. As such, she is being groomed for the marriage institution. She is 14 and in Grade 6. The initiation ceremony is done every June. That means the children are unable to write their mid year examinations.
Mwateya Chijomeya (17) receives a phone call from his brother in Rustenburg who tells him of the good life he is exposed to in Mzansi. He tells him that a Malaitsha will come and pick him up in the coming few days. Mwateya is in Form 2 at a school in Chipinge district. In a fortnight, he is in Egoli and he joins the growing number of children who do not reach ‘O’ Level.
Yet another one, Yvelle Dube, (16) is a victim of the financial difficulties that buffet Zimbabwean families. Her father had not received any salary since October 2014. He can’t send his children to school when fees are demanded on a daily basis by the administration. She drops out of school; in no time, vultures come; she falls pregnant; her brilliant academic career comes to a screeching halt.
The above scenarios are not isolated. In Zimbabwe, drop out rates are skyrocketing especially in the border districts. Chipinge has the highest cases of drop outs in the country. Because of that, a symposium on the causes of drop-outs and solutions to the growing menace, was held in Chipinge recently as a development partner, CAMFED, traditional leadership, members of the legislature, religious leaders and 61 heads of secondary schools in the district deliberated on the cancer that threaten to reverse the gains in education that have been seen in education since the dawn of independence in 1980.
‘’Where I come from,’’ a lady spoke, ’’there is still that traditional practice of child pledging. Some well to do men are given a girl as compensation for the girl’s family to be able to access ten bags of maize,’’ she said.
As inconceivable as it might be, that practice is still prevalent in the 21st century.
Representatives of traditional leadership and members of the ZRP (Zimbabwe Republic Police) who were there said they weren’t supportive of such evil things done under the guise of tradition.
‘’Let it be known that the law is unequivocal in its determination to protect the girl child. Thus, recently, the age of consent was raised from 16 to 18.
Whenever such an occurrence is sited in your community, go to the nearest police station or effect a citizen arrest on the culprits,’’ a representative of the Police in the district said.
A drop out is a pupil or student who fails to go to the next grade for one reason or another. While boys constitute a sizeable percentage of drop outs, girls are the hardest hit in terms of numbers.
The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is worried about the menace which like cancer, continues to cause havoc in schools and it has to come to a complete stop if the girl-child is to enjoy the fruits of independence-now the country is in the Independence Day celebrations mood.
In his introductory address, Mr Mapfumo, who stood in for the District Education Inspector, said he was happy most stakeholders were gathered for the symposium, a clear sign that it was important for all children to remain in schools if ever the country would retain its status as the most literate nation in Africa.
‘’As a Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education official, I must say I am indeed humbled by this symposium, a first in the district where all stakeholders are meeting to map the way forward for the phenomenon of child drop outs to be a thing of the past. The President made it possible for education to be accessible to everyone in 1980. Sadly, there is a high incidence of drop out in our district. It is incumbent upon us to stop these high rates of drop outs. Failure is not an option, ladies and gentlemen,’’ Mr Mapfumo said.
Chiefs Mapungwana, Mutema, Garahwa, Gwenzi, Musikavanhu, Mupungu and Mahenye were in attendance as custodians of Ndau culture and their input was very invaluable.
Mr Nhamo, an official in the district offices of the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education dealing with Non-formal education, highlighted a scenario in one of the border school that had a high attrition rate.
The above table shows clearly that there is a huge difference in the number of students who go on to further their education from Grade 7 to form four.
These are statistics from the district that lend credence to the notion that the whole picture is mind blowing and the stakeholders have a job in their hands. Almost 50% of those who were in Grade 7 would have dropped out of school by the time their class mates reach the school leaving stage of form 4.
Participants at the symposium were agreed that it boils down to attitude from the teachers, students and the parents.
Chief Mapungwana was adamant that people have got to go back to the basics, ‘’long ago, parents and teachers consulted each other whenever a child failed to walk the narrow path.
Today, as stakeholders, we have to take concerted efforts to ensure that the drop outs rates go down significantly. To that end, as custodians of our culture, we must take parents to task whenever we see a child not going to school,’’ he said.
As the symposium ended, the stakeholders gave time-lines on the implementation of key resolutions towards arresting the huge rate of drop outs in the district.
Ultimately, the child must be a winner. Our future is hinged on the children. Their dropping out is a serious indictment of the society. A child is nurtured by the society in the traditional African milieu.
Online Reporter