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Nqobile Tshili, [email protected]

GOVERNMENT is seized with reviewing minimum standards for licensing of schools as part of measures to address the sprouting of illegal learning institutions attributed to the shortage of schools.

The Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education views partnerships with the private sector as critical in addressing educational infrastructure.

The country has a shortage of approximately 3 000 schools with highly populated suburbs such as Cowdray Park in Bulawayo, Stoneridge and Caledonia in Harare being the haven for illegal schools.

Concerns have been raised over the quality of education produced in “shacks” masquerading as education facilities.

However, Government also recognises that some of the illegal schools have requisite infrastructure that can be upgraded, thereby enabling those institutions to be registered.

In an interview, Primary and Secondary Education Permanent Secretary Mr Moses Mhike said the ministry will be visiting some of the schools to try and understand why the learning institutions were not registered.

“As a ministry we are going through a process, we have got what we call minimum functionality standards. For any school to be registered it has to meet certain requirements and among the requirements that we are going to be reviewing is the land size,” he said.

“I believe this is one of the major issues why the majority of these schools are not registered because they don’t have the minimum required pieces of land,” said Mhike.

He said since independence the Government was only licensing schools that have spacious land, a situation that needs to be reviewed.

“It was normal to say for one to have a boarding school, they must have 26 to 30 hectares of land. But where are they going to be getting such land nowadays?

“This means as a ministry we need to revise our minimum standards. That is what we are going to be reviewing. If you are on a two to three-hectare piece of land, we can allow you to have a school but cap you on the enrolment to probably between 300 and 400 learners,” said Mr Mhike.

He said Government is relaxing the regulations as it views private sector players as key investors in the delivery of education.

Mr Mhike however, said the ministry will shut down illegal schools that have no infrastructure and cannot comply with the minimum education standards.

“There are certain schools that do not have the required infrastructure and these should be closed,” he said.

Mr Mhike said Government and local authorities have not been building many schools for the past five or so years hence the shortage being witnessed.

“We now have a backlog hence we are seeing the sprouting of these illegal schools especially in new settlements such as Cowdray Park in Bulawayo, Stoneridge and Caledonia in Harare,” he said.

Responding to questions during the National Assembly’s question and answer session last Wednesday, Primary and Secondary Education Minister Torerai Moyo said the Government was prioritising public-private partnerships in addressing the acute shortage of schools.

Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Hon Torerai Moyo addressing the crowd at COSSASA games at White City stadium, Bulawayo.

“The ministry acknowledges the urgency of addressing classroom shortages exacerbated by high pupils’ enrolment and we remain steadfast in our commitment to equitable, sustainable solutions,” he said.
Minister Moyo said his Ministry was prioritising infrastructural development through partnerships to accelerate the construction of classrooms, laboratories and administration blocks.

He said schools facing acute shortages are being prioritised for listing under PPPs interventions.

“However, fiscal constraints necessitate a phased strategic approach to ensure resources are located where they are most critically needed,” said Minister Moyo.–@nqotshili