The government has started re-registering and regularising some private schools that it had shut down last year.
This is being done to help absorb thousands of South Africa-based learners likely to join their parents coming back home in the coming months following the expiry of their Zimbabwe Exemption Permits (ZEPs).
Speaking to <a href="https://www.newsday.co.zw/local-news/article/200006997/govt-re-registers-closed-schools-to-absorb-returnees-children">NewsDay,</a> Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education Director of Communications and Advocacy, Taungana Ndoro, said:
<blockquote>
Processes are underway to put in place measures to adopt the learners into local schools.
We have those schools that we call non-governmental or private schools that are in the process of being registered and regularised, and the government is building more schools.
We are also encouraging private players to play their role and make sure we have enough schools to cater for the deficit, particularly in the highly-populated areas.
</blockquote>
Zimbabwe has a student population of six million but has a deficit of 3 000 schools.
Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president Takavafira Zhou said that local schools will struggle to accommodate the children of returnees. Zhou said:
<blockquote>
We will have bloated classes. Resources like chairs, books and others will also be in shortage.
We would have hoped that the government would engage its South African counterpart for a gradual return of our people instead of a once-off flooding of returnees.
We know that an additional number of learners will worsen the plight of learners in schools.
</blockquote>
Zimbabwe Teachers Association secretary-general Goodwill Taderera said:
<blockquote>
No doubt those learners will be crammed in classes because already the teacher-pupil ratio was abnormally high.
Teachers are very committed but the government should now take this issue seriously to avoid worsening the situation.
</blockquote>

Pindula News

Govt Says It Will Regularise Deregistered Schools To Absorb Children Of ZEP Holders

Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister, Paul Mavima, has said the government has not deregistered any Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) operating in the country.
In an interview with the Zimpapers Television Network’s The Chase programme on Thursday night, Mavima said the government has identified and informed 391 NGOs who are non-compliant with the dictates of the Private Voluntary Organisation (PVO) Act to regularise their operations.
He said the identified NGOs, whose figure was 450 last year but has come down to 391, still have a chance to regularise their operations before the Government gazettes their deregistration. Said Mavima:
<blockquote>
The list still gives them an opportunity to regularise before we gazette, for now, we haven’t gazetted but soon we will be gazetting.
We have given them a very long rope but once we gazette they will then have to apply afresh to operate.
</blockquote>
He also denied claims that the listing of non-compliant NGOs was done based on the amended PVO Act, saying the process to amend the law has not been completed. Mavima said:
<blockquote>
The new Act’s amendment process has not been completed and a lot of people have been saying there is a draconian action by Government in line with the new Act and we have started to see the implementation of that Act which is going to constrain civil society space.
The Act has always been there and just like in any other country, it provides a criterion for registration for anyone who wants to operate a PVO.
It sets the requirements needed, a management arrangement, provides annual reports to the PVO board, audited financial statements and keeps within the mandate that you said you wanted to operate in and also to confine yourself to the geographical space that you said you want to operate from. This is standard procedure, everywhere.
</blockquote>
Mavima said Zimbabwe has only deregistered two NGOs last year for national security reasons.
He said one of the NGOs had said they wanted to provide services to children and started constructing schools and after that started teaching fundamentalism in those schools.
Mavima also explained that Jairos Jiri Association, which is among the 291 NGOs that were listed, has over the years been unbundled and become a number of organisations offering various services.
He said some of the offshoots have complied while others are now defunct. | <a href="https://www.chronicle.co.zw/minister-clarifies-ngos-deregistration/">Chronicle</a>

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