Longman Changes Hands

The Financial Gazette

By Paul Nyakazeya

20 June 2013

Pearson International, the world’s leading publishing company, has transferred its book publishing and distribution business in Zimbabwe, Longman Zimbabwe, to Consultus Publishing Services (CPS) which has been appointed an exclusive agent in the country, The Financial Gazette’s Companies & Markets (C&M) can report. CPS, which is registered as Consultus Services Pvt Ltd, is owned by Mwazvita Patricia Madondo, a former managing director of Longman Zimbabwe and regional director for Longman Zambia and Malawi.

The agency is with effect from  June 1, 2013. It was not immediately clear how much was involved in the transfer of the Longman Zimbabwe business to an agent, first reported by C&M last month. A letter from Pearson Education Africa’s managing director, Jane Bursey, dated June 10, 2013 and seen by this newspaper, said Pearson had changed its business model in Zimbabwe from company to agency.

“Therefore, Longman Zimbabwe and all imprints under Pearson, Longman and Heinemann will now be marketed and distributed by an agent with effect from 1 June 2013,” reads part of the letter.

“The agent will interface with all Pearson customers. “Pearson transferred the business to the agent as a going concern, that is, transferring all marketing, distribution and administration staff thereby engaging all the experience and expertise gained over the years Longman was in operation,” she said.

The letter said while CPS would interface with customers and supply learning materials, Pearson would devote its time to developing teaching and learning materials for the Zimbabwe curriculum.

“Pearson strives to publish materials and produce learning and teaching tools that reflect the needs of the market, improves learner attainment and ultimately drives the economic growth of the nation. Hence, there will be a continued interface with all Zimbabwe stakeholders, through the agent CPS, to ensure materials are developed to meet the needs of the customer,” the letter said.

Bursey said Pearson “strongly believe the new business model would be a success”.

Longman Zimbabwe publishes educational materials from early childhood materials for pre-school children and continuing up to ‘O’ and ‘A’ levels as well as tertiary education.

Their books are compiled by a team of locally and internationally experienced educationists and teachers.

In 2010, Longman was awarded a five-year United Nations Children’s Fund contract to print 30 million primary school text books to 5 500 schools ahead of other bidders.

This was to avert a catastrophic textbook shortage and further decline in the country’s educational standards.

The awarding of the tender created disconted in the industry, with two major competitors, the Zimbabwe Publishing House and College Press, calling for its suspension.

However, the Minister of Education, David Coltart, who approved the tender, defended Longman saying it won the tender because of its charges and its quality.

Unicef forked out US$52 million on the tender.