adminSukulwenkosi Dube Plumtree Correspondent
THE Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education will next week start issuing tenders to local and regional companies for them to assist in the construction of schools in order to address the huge deficit in learning institutions across the country.
The Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Sylvia Utete-Masango said her office would be flighting the adverts beginning next week inviting tenders of potential investors that would be later scrutinised by a selected committee.
In an interview yesterday on the sidelines of the secretary’s merit award presentation for the year 2014 at Madlambudzi High School in Bulilima, Utete-Masango said the country had a deficit of 2,050 schools which should have been built already but financial constraints were stalling the process.
She said the greatest deficit of schools was felt in high density, rural and resettlement areas.
“We’ve come up with a strategy to address the challenge of infrastructural development within schools. This initiative has been recently approved by the Cabinet. We’re departing from the traditional method of building schools because of the backlog that we have in schools.
“As a ministry we will be starting joint ventures with companies from the country and outside. We’ll be offering these companies tenders to build schools in the country using their own funds,” said Utete-Masango.
She said the ministry would draft contracts with the investors.
Utete-Masango added that the initiative would be spearheaded by her ministry but would also incorporate other ministries that would play different complementary roles.
She said as part of efforts to develop the standards of education 1,600 teachers were receiving training in critical areas at five universities.
She said this year the ministry had received $3,6 million towards the teacher capacity development programme.
“The teacher capacitation programme was launched in July last year. We were expecting to enrol 2,500 in this first phase but only 1,600 came up this year but this is an ongoing training programme to capacitate teachers in our schools.
“The areas that we identified where teachers need training is in Mathematics, natural Sciences, VocTech (technical and vocational) subjects, Management and Finance, ICTs, heritage and cultural studies and teaching in local languages. If they’re trained in these areas it will mean schools will have teachers that are currently missing,” said Utete-Masango.
In an address at the event she said the ministry was committed to improving the conditions of satellite schools dotted around the country which were an eyesore.
She said the ministry was developing a rich curriculum as well as an edified learning environment.
“Key is ensuring a learner succeeds is a responsive curriculum, capacitated and competent teachers and heads of schools, a well equipped student and supportive parents. In the future we will be placing significant emphasis on the teaching of practical and tech voc subjects at infant and junior level.
“At infant and junior level these subjects will include Agriculture, Home Economics and Wood work,” said Utete-Masango.
Presenting the award to the school she applauded the institution for making significant strides in offering a curriculum that was relevant to pupils.
Utete-Masango highlighted that Madlambudzi High had been awarded the secretary’s merit award for the year 2014 because of its wide range of academic and skills oriented subjects, psycho-motor and entrepreneurial skills development, infrastructural development and success in athletics.
“In selecting the winner of this award we considered four major areas which are provision of non formal education facilities at the school, child friendliness, quality of examination results and infrastructural development,” said Utete-Masango.
She handed over prize money of $5,000 to the school which had already been deposited into its account.
The school beat 150 other secondary schools in the province.
The school head, Margaret Dube said they recently introduced a low cost boarding facility at the rural government day school in order to assist pupils that had to walk long distances.
“The school started in 1981 with only 84 pupils and now our enrolment is sitting at 940 and 231 of these pupils are low cost boarders. The school is offering 13 vocational technical subjects among them driving and six practical subjects.
“Our aim is to ensure that we give these children a full learning package by offering a wide curriculum for the betterment of their lives. We have noted that not all children are academically gifted but when they leave our institution at O-level we want them to be employable,” said Dube.
She said the school had 37 teachers. Dube appealed for the expansion of the school after citing that the facilities there could only accommodate 500 pupils.
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