Schools in East Africa are entering new terms this year with an ongoing headache to find resources to ensure affordable education. From Tanzania to Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda, the thread of insufficient learning materials, teachers, overcrowding and confusion over fees charged will dominate the first weeks of the new term.
In Kenya, President William Ruto faces the first test of his credentials when he begins the first full academic year in office on January 24, with a focus on implementing his ambitious school reforms that experts estimate will cost at least Ksh635. billion ($5.12 billion) over five years.
Next week, Kenyan schools open amid confusion over accommodating the inaugural cohort of junior secondary school (JSS) pupils in the new Competency Based Curriculum (CBC), which has been marred by confusion and bad planning.
As the Teacher Services Commission scrambles to hire teachers to fill staff gaps, Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu said this week the government will release funds to facilitate the junior high school programme.
build infrastructure
Kenya is allocating Ksh15,000 ($120) to every JSS pupil, giving a big boost to primary schools that will accommodate them to speed up construction of labs, classrooms and procuring educational materials.
“We have worked on a figure almost equal to what is given to secondary schools (22,240 Kenyan shillings/$180),” Machogu said Monday during the launch of the Form One team in Nairobi.
President Ruto, during the launch of the Bottom-up Kenya Kwanza manifesto last year in the run-up to the general election, recognized education as a key indicator and driver for socio-economic development.
An immediate task is the hiring of teachers, both for secondary and primary schools, for which the government has promised to cover the deficit of 116,000. This will cost at least Ksh238 billion ($1.92 billion). The construction of laboratories is also urgent since the government recommended keeping secondary schools in primary schools.
The government is also facing financial pressure to raise Ksh28.84 billion ($232.6 million) to improve the capacity of day schools, ensure access to quality education and reduce their costs as congestion in institutions worsens. Learning.
The president recently said that high school students who do not have labs at their schools will have the opportunity to access them at neighboring schools.
But what poses a major challenge are revelations by Parliament’s Budget Office in its audit of the education sector that 50 per cent of secondary boarding schools and 70 per cent of secondary day schools lack laboratory facilities. .
This leaves the government with no choice but to build the facility, a long-term undertaking that can take years to complete.
Huge financial requirement
While the previous administration was cautious about the cost of implementing the CBC curriculum, the proposals in the Kenya Kwanza manifesto on education sector reform offer insight into the enormous financial need facing the government.
However, the litmus test for the Ruto administration is ensuring a 100 per cent transition of the 1,287,597 pioneering sixth graders, who took the Kenya Primary Education Assessment last year, to the junior secondary school they He has grades seven, eight, and ninth.
In Tanzania, schools have reopened amid shortages of teachers, classrooms and learning resources, mainly laboratory equipment and books.
A total of 1,073,941 children, distributed almost evenly between boys and girls, have been selected to start Form One classes this week under the Tanzanian government’s compulsory free education for all children completing primary school.
rate cap
In Uganda, officials have assured both parents and schools that a controversial fee cap will be implemented only after stakeholders agree.
“It has ramifications for universal education coverage goals,” said Dennis Mugimba, a spokesman for the Ministry of Education. “Our hands are tied now. We cannot discuss it before the executive wing of the government decides.”
“As you know, education is not provided by the government alone. There are foundation agencies to consult, private school owners… because simply imposing this cap on fees without their input affects learning,” Mugimba added.
But parents are already agitated, questioning the logic behind the regulation, which was leaked to the media before the Cabinet discussed it. The policy proposal mentions only the maximum fee to be charged, which could now give school owners leeway to increase fees.
For example, the government caps fees for a child in primary school boarding at Ush 1.22 million ($329.4) per term, while day schools must charge a maximum of Ush 650,000 ($175.5 ).
The regulation caps fees for a student at a boarding high school at Ush 1.6 million ($432) and Ush 960,000 ($259.2) for a day student. The fees will be the biggest burden for parents upset by the recent economic hardship.
Tanzanian state
In Tanzania, the shortage of classrooms, teachers and learning facilities has led some parents to switch to private schools in search of a better education for their children.
President Samia Suluhu had repeatedly insisted that her government would ensure that all selected children entered their first year in O-Level studies.
She said in Zanzibar that her government would reduce congestion in schools to ensure there are no more than 45 children in a classroom, as well as ensure a friendly teaching and learning environment.
Data from the Ministry of Regional Administration and Local Government indicates that a teacher in public schools teaches between 65 and 100 students at a time in a single classroom.
And the Tanzania Teachers Union wanted the government to improve salaries to allow teachers to cover current living costs.
A total of 800 new and furnished classrooms have been built in Tanzania and the president said the government is ready to accommodate at least 400,000 students when schools open.
Low involvement
But reports from various regions have indicated low participation in student registration. The government has warned parents not to register their children to enter secondary education of heavy penalties.
Dr. Charles Msonde, Permanent Under Secretary in the Office of the President, in charge of Regional Administration and Local Government, said that 232 secondary schools have already been built through the Secondary Education Quality Improvement Project.
Another 184 new secondary schools will be built before June.
Tanzania in 2016 made ordinary level primary and secondary education compulsory and free.
Under Samia’s presidency, the Ministry of Education issued a directive to all public schools prohibiting them from soliciting fees or contributions from students and parents. She also reversed a Magufuli-era policy that expelled pregnant girls from school, signaling an additional number of returning students.
Rwanda, despite revising school taxes, is also facing similar problems to its EAC counterparts: Schools entered the second term while grappling with mounting debt and limited resources due to fee cuts announced last year.
additional support
directors who spoke East africa they worry that the sector and students may suffer unless parents or the government provide additional support.
The second quarter of the 2022-2023 academic year began on January 9 with thousands of students from pre-school, primary, secondary and vocational training returning to school after a four-week break.
Some schools that obtained essential needs loans in the last term are now facing repayment demands.
In September 2022, the Ministry of Education announced cuts in school fees due to the state of the economy. But school administrators complained that their budgets were cut too low, leaving them in a bind. Andre Nsengiyumva, director of Groupe Scholaire Nzove in Nyarugenge, told The EastAfrican that the school owed suppliers and was likely to get more credit in the new term.
“There is little hope that we can pay the debt. The second quarter is the longest of the academic year. We rely on government support and contributions from parents. Hopefully food prices won’t go up any further,” Nsengiyumva said.
The school has 2,712 primary and secondary students, all beneficiaries of the school feeding program. The school has a budget of about Rs 27 crore ($25,000) per term, of which the government provides Rs 21 crore ($19,600) in capitation grants and school feeding assistance, while the rest Parents collect it. Last quarter, only 54 percent of parents paid their contribution.
The regulations of the Ministry of Education set school fees for public secondary schools at a maximum of Rwf 85,000 per term (USD 80) and Rwf 975 (USD 0.9) per term for primary schools. Before the regulations, some schools charged up to Rwf200,000 ($186).
While parents rejoiced at the fee revision, some admit that higher contributions will be inevitable to keep their children well educated.
“I would understand if (school fees) went up again. I pay Rwf 19,500 ($18) for my son and that is very little compared to food prices. As long as the government makes sure that schools don’t take advantage of parents, I think it’s understandable to raise school fees,” said Musonera Eustache, a mother.
In late December, the Education Ministry announced plans to reassess the regulations’ applicability after many school principals complained.
The new term also began with a revised school schedule. All schools in Rwanda will now open at 8:30 a.m. instead of 7:00 a.m. and end learning at 5:00 p.m., as per Cabinet resolutions in October.
The new calendar gives one hour for lunch, instead of two hours as before. But principals say one hour is not enough as some schools take lunch in shifts or use classrooms as refectories due to a lack of canteens.
Reporting by Apolinari Tairo, David Mwere, Ange Iliza and Julius Barigaba
