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Leonard Ncube, Victoria Falls Reporter
PRIMARY and Secondary Education Minister Lazarus Dokora has proposed that the government gets a share of the building fund from schools, saying the money would be used to create a pool for infrastructure development.
Minister Dokora made the proposal while addressing the Zimbabwe Teachers’ Association (Zimta) conference which ended on Saturday in Victoria Falls.
The Minister said each school would pay about five percent to the centralised fund.
He said his Ministry was weighing a number of possible funding mechanisms towards infrastructure development in schools, with a centralized building fund being one of them.
The Minister said he had already worked on a blueprint for levies which has been sent to schools proposing that the government gets a share of the building fund.
“In terms of infrastructure we have three possible funding sources namely bi-lateral loans, infrastructure bonds and joint ventures,” said Minister Dokora.
He said he was finalising financial terms with the Infrastructure Development Bank (IDB) to take bonds.
“We have been having the building fund since 1980 and we have developed a blueprint for levies which we have sent to schools requesting ideas.
If I can get three or five percent from the building fund then I can get a pool fund for schools,” Minister Dokora said.
Parents pay building fund to respective schools and the money is used for construction of infrastructure at the institutions.
Minister Dokora said part of the money will also be used to build teachers’ accommodation.
Recently, the Minister indicated that his ministry was considering centralisation of School Development Committee levies in response to audit findings of rampant mismanagement.
Schools countrywide have since been directed to deposit levies into a Social Security Fund (SSF) account.
The annual Zimta conference started last Wednesday and ended on Saturday under the theme: Equitable quality education: A public human right good for sustainable societies.”
Online Reporter