Schools shocker… students use garages, beerhalls for class
AUDITOR-GENERAL Mildred Chiri has slammed the Primary and Secondary Education ministry’s inefficiency, which has seen unregistered schools running classes in backyard garages and beerhalls.
Chiri said this in her 2020 audit report on the registration, supervision and monitoring of schools and independent colleges by the ministry which was tabled in the National Assembly on Tuesday by Finance minister Mthuli Ncube.
The report blamed failure by the ministry, headed by Cain Mathema, to craft good education policies to curb the proliferation of illegal schools across the country, where children are said to be taking classes in inappropriate structures and places.
“From the findings which came out through this audit, I concluded that the ministry is inefficient and ineffective as regards to registration, monitoring and inspection of schools.
“As a result of these delays, there was sprouting of unregistered schools and colleges operating from unsuitable premises such as backyards and garages,” Chiri’s audit report read.
“The ministry was not properly registering, monitoring and supervising schools and colleges. I was mainly concerned with one particular school in Bindura district, where pupils were learning from disused beerhalls.
“One disused beerhall at Chiwaridzo Extension suburb (in Bindura) had 11 classes with a total of 454 pupils, while the other one at cocktail bar had three early child development classes with a total of 177 pupils.”
The report also exposed that the environment in some of the classes was not conducive for learning as some of the classes had inadequate windows and ventilation to provide light, rendering learners vulnerable to COVID-19.
Newsday
