Harare, 30 May 2013
The Global Partnership for Education (GPE) has granted Zimbabwe USD 23.6 million to be used on training of teachers and improving their professional development and performance. The grant was announced after the GPE Board of Directors met on 22 May 2013 and approved Zimbabwe’s application.
In welcoming the contribution, Minister of Education, Arts, Sports and Culture David Coltart said the grant will boost the Government’s ongoing efforts to revitalize the education sector.
“I am delighted that Zimbabwe has been admitted to membership of the GPE and that this funding application has been successful. There has not been much professional development and in-house training of our teachers for over a decade and so this grant which will focus on teacher retraining will address a key need. We have some of the best teachers in Africa but their skills have declined during the recent period of economic and political turmoil. Accordingly this funding comes at a critically important moment as we seek to restore excellence to Zimbabwe’s education system,” he said.
Zimbabwe is among 10 countries from sub-Saharan Africa whose applications were approved by the Board. Others are Benin, Burkina Faso, Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritania, Senegal, Somalia, Tanzania, and Zambia. The grant will be administered over three years and will be managed by UNICEF.
The Global Partnership for Education is a multilateral organization solely devoted to getting all children in school and improving the quality of education. Its partners include developing countries, multilateral organizations, donors, the private sector, teachers, civil society/NGOs, and private foundations. With its headquarters in Washington, DC, membership of the GPE has grown from 7 countries in 2003 to close to the current 60 partner countries. During this period, the GPE has mobilized more than USD 3.5 billion to improve access and quality to education, has helped nearly 23 million children to go to school for the first time, has supported the construction of over 37,000 classrooms, and has trained over 413,000 teachers.
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For further information, please contact:
Ellen Shiri, Ministry of Education, Arts, Sports, and Culture; Tel: 0772 937 881; Email: Â elshiry@gmail.com