adminPost Correspondent
ZIMBABWE’S rural communities are still facing a deficit of school infrastructures, with children still walking over 20 kilometres to the nearest school, but thanks to the incumbent schools infrastructure programme under the education for all drive, satellite schools are being initiated to shorten the walking distance.
The education for all drive is also working towards ensuring that in every rural community the nearest secondary school will not be beyond 10kilometres whilst the nearest primary school will not be beyond 7km.
Primary and Secondary Education Minister Lazarus Dokora last week Friday during a media workshop organised by his Ministry revealed that 2 056 schools were earmarked to be constructed throughout the country under the school infrastructure programme.
“The country is facing a deficit of school infrastructure, of which key among these are satellite schools. The intention of the ministry is to address this challenge of which the ministry is already establishing community and private-public partnerships for the success of this programme . . .
“The Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe is already working on a school infrastructure fund as we work towards meeting our target to build all the earmarked 20 156 schools,” said Minister Dokora. Minister Dokora said new policies in line with Government’s pro-poor and pro-people agenda were in tow.
He said the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education was pursuing a vision of providing quality education to all Zimbabweans and breaking new ground of leading in Sciences and Information and Communication Technology.
“We need to break new ground to be the highest in ICT or Sciences and not just have the highest literacy rate in Africa.
“The drive is to have a strong base of scientists and engineers to ensure that the country is equipped on industrial and technological innovations,” he said.
He said the ministry was in the process of reviewing the curriculum in order to make the content relevant to the nation as well as the changing ICT-compatible world in line with the set targets of the Zimbabwe Agenda for Sustainable Socio-Economic Transformation.
The ministry has since launched the non-formal education policy to complement the formal education system.
On the other hand, in Makoni West, Charamba High, a satellite school still under construction in Ward 25, is already an example of a school benefiting from the community and private-public partnerships. Makoni West legislator Cde Kudzanai Chipanga has been donating bricks and cement to the community for them to construct the classroom blocks.
The Chinese Embassy recently donated goods that included 120 chairs, 60 desks, 40 water pumps, 10 basketballs and 16 soccer balls to the school and community. Minister Dokora said in the wake of liquidity constraints and lack of Foreign Direct Investment in the country community and private-public partnerships would be the key driver of the schools infrastructure programme.
Online Reporter