New schools to ease education access in Beitbridge

Thupeyo Muleya, Beitbridge Bureau

BEITBRIDGE Rural District Council (RDC) is working with development partners to build more infant schools as part of efforts to ease the shortage of educational facilities in the district and reduce long walking distances for young learners.

Beitbridge RDC chief executive officer, Mrs Kiliboni Mbedzi, said many communities in the vast rural district still lack adequate schools, prompting the council to accelerate infrastructure development through collaborations with Government agencies, development partners and local communities.

The district has 66 primary and 14 secondary schools serving an estimated population of 150 000.

Six primary schools are at various stages of construction, while three new secondary schools are also being built through partnerships.

Mrs Mbedzi made the remarks during the commissioning of refurbished infrastructure at Fula and Tshaswingo primary schools recently. The upgrades were supported by World Vision Zimbabwe’s Matibe cluster, working closely with the local authority and community members.

At Fula Primary School, established in 1984 and with an enrolment of 260 pupils, World Vision constructed a climate-resilient classroom block comprising two classrooms and two offices.

The organisation also set up three fish ponds, a wash basin, a solar-powered piped water scheme, a poultry project, an educational robot and a flush toilet.

Tshaswingo Primary School, opened in 1978, had 10 classrooms decommissioned after termite damage weakened roof trusses. Through the partnership, World Vision and Beitbridge RDC built three climate-resilient blocks, adding six new classrooms for the school’s 688 learners.

“We appreciate the fruits of partnership we are witnessing here. We want to express gratitude to World Vision for helping us improve service delivery in Beitbridge,” said Mrs Mbedzi.

She said the council intends to construct more infant schools to ensure learners travel no more than 5km to access education.

Mrs Mbedzi said the establishment of more schools will address challenges related to access to education.
“In some cases, school dropouts are linked to long distances and the shortage of schools, especially secondary institutions, which affects transitions from primary to secondary level,” she said.

Beitbridge RDC chairperson, Councillor Oscar Chiromo, appealed to other development agencies to support the district’s education drive.

“Education is one of the most important investments for our children’s future. This is why communities, the council and the Government must pool resources to construct more schools,” he said.