GOVERNMENT has advised schools to apply for permission to charge building levies to improve infrastructure at schools.
Primary and Secondary Education minister Torerayi Moyo said this in Parliament recently while responding to Mbizo legislator Corban Madzivanyika, who had asked when government intended to construct classroom blocks and provide furniture for some schools within his constituency.
Madzivanyika said schools like Mbizo, Manunure, Chana, Dambudzo and Emthonjeni were conducting lessons under trees due to lack of facilities.
In response, Moyo said government and parents have a role to play in the development of school infrastructure.
“The construction of schools or classroom blocks is a joint activity, where government and the parent’s board have a part to play,” he said.
“The government has also authorised schools to collect building levies so that schools can attend to their infrastructural development needs.”
Moyo said schools required additional blocks to augment the existing ones due to the rise in enrolment patterns and the trend was prevalent in urban schools.
“The ministry will, therefore, mobilise resources through our Public Sector Investment Programme. As a ministry, we have many schools in need to improve their infrastructure, therefore, it means we have many competing priorities within the sector,” he said.
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Moyo said the ministry would continue to mobilise resources to ensure that learners have adequate, age-appropriate and learning spaces.
Educators Union of Zimbabwe secretary Tapedza Zhou in January this year said most public schools were in deplorable state due to abuse of funds and neglect.
“If the government had the will and if it considered education as a priority, it was supposed to channel funds obtained through corruption and misplaced priorities to build schools,” said Zhou.
