THE Minister for Education and Vocational Training Dr Shukuru KawambwaTHE Minister for Education and Vocational Training Dr Shukuru Kawambwa has directed all stakeholders in the education sector to adhere to their professional ethics and warned irresponsible officers that they would not be spared for any failure record.
“We cannot go on with business as usual slogan. You must work diligently and efficiently. You must change your attitude and the changes must start now,” the minister told about 600 delegates in Dar es Salaam.
Dr Kawambwa pointed out that the ministry was currently facing several challenges, sometimes due to lack of commitments on part of education and other partner officers in their respective levels.
He said time has come for each one of them to perform his or her duties instead of accusing each other. Among the challenges, the minister said, include congestion of students in classes, shortage of teachers, in particular for science subjects, shortage of teachers’ houses, desks and toilets, dilapidated infrastructure, drop of success for graduates and rise of illiterates.
“We must find ways of reducing them and subsequently eliminate them completely. It is a known fact each one of you here knows his duties and obligations at his working place.
We cannot go on with these challenges year after year,” the minister said. The delegates comprising Regional and Districts Education officers, directors, school inspectors, ward education coordinators, heads of education colleges and other institutions are meeting in Dar es Salaam to discuss the implementation of Big Results Now Programme in the education sector.
According to the minister, the government decided to use the programme, which requires every officer to perform his or her functions to the highest degree and each one of them would have a particular area to deal with and would be assessed for what he or she was doing.
For example, Dr Kawambwa said, starting this year, his ministry has been tasked to increase the passing rate for primary school leavers from 31 per cent to 60 per cent and reach the same level for secondary school graduates from 43 per cent.
The minister also pointed out that it has been directed that a standard two primary school pupil will be allowed to join standard three after knowing how to read, write and count. “I have expressed my commitments in writing before the President toward these successes. Some of you will be required to commit yourselves in bringing before me. For those who feel are unable to cope let them be open so that we can let them go. We should not blame each other later,” he warned.
While addressing the delegates, the minister used the opportunity to unveil a number of successes his ministry
achieved, including increased enrolment of pupils in primary schools from 7,541,208 in 2005 to 8,363,386 by 2001 and increased number of schools from 14,257 to 16,001 during the same period.
He further said that there was an increase of primary school teachers from 135,013 in 2005 to 175,449 by 2011 and the ratio per one teacher for 56 pupils decreased to 48 pupils during the period in question, whereas there were also significant improvements at the secondary level.
The minister also expressed the ministry’s commitment to increase ward secondary schools and the target is that by 2015, some 1,200 would be fully functioning. Improvements of the first phase involving 264 schools have started and the ministry has provided 20bn/- for the purpose.
