All Ministry of
Education offices are run through BSPZ funds after Government stopped funding
education a long time ago except paying teachers’ salaries.
Credible
sources told Masvingo Mirror that district and provincial offices have not paid
rentals for their offices, electricity and water since BSPZ was suspended on
October 6, 2025, and chances are that local authorities and Zesa will be
cutting off supply in the next few weeks. Local offices have also not paid
salaries for workers including clerks and cleaners and there is no fuel for
schools’ inspectors to carry out business, said a source.
Currently
inspectors have no fuel to visit schools.
The source said
Government has zero capacity to run education without BSPZ.
“Government
stopped running education years back. Education is saddled by BSPZ which is a
fund mobilised through levies on children,” said one source.
Ministry of
Primary and Secondary Education spokesperson, Taungana Ndoro said that there
will be no closure of offices because the source of funding for the Ministry is
Government and he argued that the Ministry is getting the lion’s share of the
national budget.
However,
sources in the Ministry said Government has long stopped funding education.
They said every bill including vehicles, fuel and T and S allowances for
officials are funded by BSPZ.
Progressive
Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) president, Dr Takavafira Zhou said BSPZ must
never substitute the responsibility of the Government.
They said
Government used to fund every child in school through per Capita Grant
introduced by Robert Mugabe but this has since been stopped. Per Capita Grand
was used to buy books, chalks and charts and it cascaded right down to the
school and the pupil. Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) also started by
President Mugabe in the First Republic to pay fees for underprivileged children
is now into its fifth year without disbursing a cent to schools. Mnangagwa
introduced Grant in Aid, a facility to help poor schools but this again has
been stopped.
“This means
that Government, except for teachers’ salaries is paying virtually nothing to
the education system. Government is not funding education and without BSPZ the
system will crumble in six months,” said a source.
Ndoro however,
said, “the source of funding for Ministry costs is Government and we are very
happy because year in year out we get the lion’s share of the budget”.
“We pray that
either payment of BSPZ will be outlawed, or that a legislative framework would
be put in place for accountability of the funds … BSPZ must never substitute
the responsibility of the Government to be accountable for the functionality of
the provincial and district offices…,” said Zhou. Masvingo Mirror
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