PRIMARY and Secondary Education Minister Dr Lazarus Dokora has urged school authorities not to chase away pupils from school over non-payment of fees, saying doing so was a curse.
He said parents failing to pay fees must instead provide labour in schools. Dr Dokora made the remarks at Numwa Secondary School in Hwedza last Friday at a function to celebrate bursaries for disadvantaged children.
“These children have not committed any crime and are not responsible for their own welfare,” said Minister Dokora.
“These kids are born to us as a blessing not as curses so we should not quarrel about whether they should be chased away or not. They should be protected and if we dare exclude them from school, we are cursed”.
Minister Dokora urged schools to embark on projects that generate money.
“We are going all out to empower schools and get more land for agricultural projects because we can do more on that land including looking after these kids,” he said.
“If there is no money, parents should come and work. Chasing children from school is a thing of the past.”
Minister Dokora also urged parents to consider family planning. “Before parents plan on having children, first they sit down and plan, including how they will take care of the children. We should also take care of our children during pregnancy by not emotionally troubling their mothers so that they are not born underweight,” he said.
“If there is money required at the school, let us pay up but if you do not have please talk to the school heads and come and work at the school, so that our children remain in school and do well. Even God will bless us for such noble initiatives.”
Minister Dokora applauded the Campaign for Female Education (CAMFED) for the support they give to the girl child.
“We have heard testimonies from some of the young women today and some of you can witness the assistance given to some of our learners by CAMFED,” he said.
“Today we acknowledge and celebrate as a ministry a total of 10,6 million pounds as additional investments into education through CAMFED for bursaries to support 23 384 boys and girls in secondary school for three years. This is a build up from previous grants provided in 2012, 2013 and 2016 totalling 29 million pounds sourced through both the country office and the Girls’ Education Challenge Fund,” said Dr Dokora.
CAMFED Country Director Mrs Faith Nkala said: “To date, as I speak CAMFED has provided secondary school bursaries and supported more than 83 000 girls in Zimbabwe to go through secondary school and this year alone more than 30 000 of them are in school across 29 districts and eight provinces of Zimbabwe we partner with in this noble job,” she said.
“We have also learnt that in a context of extreme poverty, economic hardships, drought, and marginalisation, parents often lack the financial means to secure equality and quality education for their children.
“Our dual package of financial and social support provides girls and boys with their key needs to access education in a safe and secure environment.” herald
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