The Government has announced plans to close all illegal private schools and colleges in Manicaland as part of efforts to uphold educational standards, following disappointing performances in the 2025 Grade Seven examinations.
Manicaland
Provincial Education Director, Mr Richard Gabaza, revealed that the Ministry of
Primary and Secondary Education has directed all unregistered institutions to
regularise their operations by December 31, 2025, or face closure for failing
to comply with standard operating procedures.
Several schools
have been accused of operating outside the authority of governing education
bodies, making effective supervision and quality assurance difficult.
Although Mr
Gabaza has not officially commented on the Grade Seven results, sources
indicate that the province performed below expectations, with fewer learners
attaining six units compared to previous years.
Mutare Junior
Primary School led the province, with 73 learners achieving six units. Baring
Primary School recorded only nine learners with six units,
Fern Valley
Primary School, 3 Brigade Primary School, and Chancellor Junior School also
struggled, with 10, 16, and 19 learners attaining six units, respectively.
A closer look
at the results shows that girls outperformed boys across several schools.
At Mutare
Junior, 39 girls achieved six units compared to 34 boys, at 3 Brigade, 13 of
the 16 top performers were girls and at Fern Valley, nine of the 10 learners
with six units were female.
The
Government’s crackdown on illegal schools is intended to restore confidence in
the education system and ensure that all institutions operate within
established guidelines.
Authorities
believe the move will help improve the quality of education in Manicaland and
address the challenges reflected in this year’s Grade Seven results.
“May I announce
to you that the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is going to close
all illegal schools in the province. We have seen illegal schools mushrooming,
especially in urban areas, and as a ministry, we have made a decision that
these illegal schools should not continue. We are going to discontinue them,
with the assistance of the police and the minister.
“Our children
are vulnerable under these circumstances comrade. Do not forget this. We are
using the office of the Public Service Commission because they are the owners
of the children. You can claim that they are your children, but they are not –
they belong to the Government by law.
“So, if you
have a friend who has a school that has not been registered, encourage them to
ensure it is registered by December 31, 2025. The Minister of Primary and
Secondary Education gave a grace period of three months from October to
December 2025. We have seen a lot of problems associated with illegal schools,”
said Mr Gabaza.
Mr Gabaza said
educating a child is the responsibility of the Ministry of Primary and
Secondary Education and Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation,
Science and Technology Development.
“The enormity
of this responsibility has led the ministry to strategise and create
partnerships with private developers. The Constitution, in Section 75, provides
that any citizen is allowed to develop a school, as long as that school is
developed and registered in terms of the law and regulations of the Education
Act. There is need to strengthen collaborations between private organisations,
NGOs, and Government departments as we develop infrastructure, improve
resources, and uplift the learning environment. Education is a shared
responsibility.
“We should
observe protocols and uphold policy. Allow me to remind all schools that the
ministry operates within clear structures – from the school to districts,
provinces, and finally the head office. We must all adhere to national
policies, reporting procedures, safeguarding frameworks, and curriculum
requirements. Leadership must ensure accountability and transparency in all
operations, including financial management and resource utilisation.
“Effective
learning demands adequate resources and the wise management of time. I urge
school leadership to continue ensuring that teaching and learning materials are
sufficient, instructional time is protected, teachers prepare thoroughly and
teach consistently, and learners attend all lessons punctually, so that we have
a perfect education system,” said Mr Gabaza.
The decline in
performance for primary schools in Manicaland reflects the national outlook,
where a slight decline in the pass-rate was noted.
Schools in
rural areas generally continue to play second fiddle to their urban
counterparts.
Zimbabwe Rural
Teachers union president, Mr Martin Chaburumunda said the low pass-rate
synonymous with rural schools is linked to the underfunding of the schools,
which ultimately affects lesson delivery.
“There is still
a wide gap and difference between rural schools and urban ones. The teachers
are the same in terms of training. The most pressing issue is funding – school
fees in rural schools are very low, which every parent can afford, but
unfortunately, this leads to unintended outcomes.
Most rural
schools lack essential learning materials that aid the delivery of lessons in
the classroom. There is no adequate stationery, such as textbooks, exercise
books, charts, and others. The Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) funds
are released very late, leaving schools exposed to serious funding gaps. This
ultimately affects the learner.
“There is a
need to increase funding for rural schools and also leverage technology to
bridge the resource gap. The Government must speed up the school internet
programme so that learners and teachers have wide resource materials through
the internet. There is a need to implement policies to address the rural-urban
divide, stock libraries with modern books, and set up science laboratories,” he
said.
Mr Chaburumunda
added that there are other contributing factors, such as distance travelled to
access schools, children’s background, and communities’ attitude towards
education.
“Learners in
rural schools travel an average of 5km to the nearest school, and this affects
them. They arrive late and have limited time to do homework, as time is
consumed walking. The most vulnerable children are in rural areas, such as
orphans, child-headed families, and those under the care of distant relatives.
There is no luxury of extra lessons in rural communities.
“There is also
a need to address the issue of infrastructure, such as proper classrooms,
teacher accommodation, water, and electricity availability.
This will make
schools in rural and resettlement areas be at the same level as those in urban
areas. Grade Seven results are very important because they build the learners’
confidence as they begin secondary education,” said Mr Chaburumunda.
ZIMSEC board
chairperson, Professor Paul Mapfumo, speaking during a Press conference, noted
the decline.
“A total number
of candidates who sat for six subjects in the 2025 Grade Seven examinations is
389 626. Of these, 188 980 passed all six subjects, recording a national
pass-rate of 48,49 percent. This is a slight decline of 0,52 percent in
candidates’ performance from the 2024 pass-rate, which was 49,1 percent,” he
said.
Professor
Mapfumo also noted the female candidates’ dominance at a national scale.
“Pass-rate by
gender: Out of 395 090 candidates who sat for the 2025 Grade Seven
examinations, 201 842 were female, of these 199 980 sat for six subjects, with
107 241 passing six subjects, translating to a 53,64 percent pass rate.
“There were 193
248 male candidates who sat for the Grade Seven examinations, of which 189 696
wrote six subjects, and 81 698 passed six subjects, translating to a 43,06
percent pass-rate for male candidates,” said Professor Mapfumo. Manica Post
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