The government has warned schools against the practice of demanding foreign currency from candidates to register for the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (Zimsec) examinations.
Reports indicate that some schools are rejecting the RTGS dollars and instead demanding that prospective candidates pay using the greenback.
Minister for Primary and Secondary Education, Professor Paul Maavima had this to say:
Zimsec does not charge in foreign currency. The schools that charge in foreign currency is those writing Cambridge examinations.
Zimsec itself is not charging US dollars so why would people be charged in foreign currency? This applies even to private schools writing Zimsec.
A disgruntled parent who spoke to Sunday News on the issue had this to say:
The school first wanted US$20 for registering for any Science subject before changing to US$10 and RTGS$15.
I have already paid the foreign currency that the school wants but I feel it’s not fair for the school to demand foreign currency.