NewsDay

By Feluna Nleya

11 November 2011

CHIVHU — Evicted teachers and staff members from two Anglican Church-run schools in Chivhu and Mhondoro are back at work following High Court and Education Ministry rulings in their favour.

Six teachers from Daramombe Secondary and Primary schools and five from St Mark’s in Mhondoro were this week reinstated following the nullification of their eviction by High Court judge Justice Chinembiri Bhunu last month.

Church of the Central Province of Africa Diocesan secretary Reverend Clifford Dzavo confirmed the development.

“The staff members who had been affected by the evictions are making their way back to school. By this week all of them should have gone back to work,” said Dzvavo.

“We only have to confirm with the primary school headmaster at Daramombe if he is prepared to come back. Otherwise the rest of the staff is back.”

The church’s ex-communicated leader Bishop Nolbert Kunonga, evicted through the Deputy Sheriff, both the primary and secondary school headmasters at Daramombe together with teachers and other support staff.

The eviction of the teachers saw the intervention of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture minister David Coltart who condemned the act saying it was detrimental to the development of education in the country.

He ordered an investigation which produced a damning report about Kunonga’s actions.

The High Court also nullified the eviction of 14 staffers at Daramombe Mission by Kunonga saying the move was illegal.

Bhunu in his judgment said: “The first and second respondents (Bishop Nolbert Kunonga and Bishop Kunyanye) be and are hereby ordered to stay eviction of all staff at Daramombe High School and Primary School pending determination of the final order . . . The first and second respondents shall not interfere with the respective staff operation at Daramombe High School, Primary School and clinic.”

“ . . . Any of the staff members who may have been removed, be reinstated in their previous occupation and workstations, pending determination of the final order,” he added.

The Zimbabwean

By  Vusimusi Bhebhe

11 November 2011

The government plans to introduce a “second chance” programme to help children and youth forced out of school by political violence return to school or acquire vocational skills to enable them to move on with their lives, Education Minister David Coltart said.

Speaking at the launch of the Global Partnership for Education in Copenhagen, Denmark, Coltart said the Zimbabwean government was pursuing several initiatives to improve enrolment and the quality of education by 2015.

“We will introduce a major programme of second chance and skills education for children and youth who have missed out through the political chaos of the last decade, in particular for orphans and vulnerable children,” he said.

Thousands of children have been forced to cut short their education since 2000 following the displacement of their families from rural areas.

Marauding gangs of Zanu (PF) youth militias and self-styled war veterans have terrorised students and teachers at rural schools, accusing them of supporting Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai’s MDC-T.

Coltart said other initiatives being pursued by the government included a 75 percent increase in public spending on education during the next four years and introduction of stricter rules barring the expulsion of pupils over fees payments.

“We will endeavour to increase domestic government funding for basic education by 75 percent from $469 million in 2011 to $822 million benefitting over four million young Zimbabwean learners,” he said.

He revealed that Zimbabwe, which has already abolished rural primary school fees, would “offset the school costs for 700,000 orphans and vulnerable children in 2012 and prohibit exclusion of learners for non-payment of levies through the reform of education regulations”.

The Chronicle

9 November 2011

Zimbabwe will endeavour to increase Government funding for basic education by 75 percent from US$469 million this year to US$822 million, benefiting more than four million young learners, a Cabinet Minister said yesterday.

In a speech delivered in Copenhagen, Denmark, during the Zimbabwe Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture, David Coltart said Zimbabwe, which has already abolished rural primary school fees, would offset the school costs for 700 000 orphans and vulnerable children next year and prohibit exclusion of learners for non-payment of parental levies through the reform of education regulations.

“We will further reduce primary dropouts and increase transition to lower secondary through the phased reduction of compulsory school fees and levies,” he said.

Minister Coltart said the ministry would introduce a major programme of second chance and skills education for out-of-school children and youth who have missed out through the political challenges of the last decade, in particular for orphans and vulnerable children.

Zimbabwe, he said shared the GPE’s vision of quality education for all and sought to nurture robust, international partnerships to achieve this vision for the children of Zimbabwe.

“Zimbabwe developed one of Africa’s finest education systems in the 1980s and boasts one of the highest adult literacy rates on the continent. All members of our inclusive Government are steadfastly committed to restoring Zimbabwe’s education system.

“In the last two years, we have made major improvements, including the reopening of schools, the provision of core textbooks for all primary pupils and the creation of a robust five-year sector plan,” he said.

Minister Coltart pledged that the Government would retain the proud achievement of gender parity in primary and lower education and expand access to quality basic education, especially for orphans and vulnerable children.

He said the ministry would establish a national baseline of early primary literacy rates next year, track it and improve it with measures including the mainstreaming of early childhood development at all primary schools, teacher development and quality enhancing per capita school grants.

Minister Coltart said that they were aiming for a 10 percent increase in attendance at the end of primary examinations by 2015.

Global Partnership for Education in Copenhagen

Speech by David Coltart

8 November 2011

Zimbabwe shares the GPE’s vision of quality Education for All and seeks to nurture robust, international partnerships to achieve this vision for the children of Zimbabwe.

Zimbabwe developed one of Africa’s finest education systems in the 1980s and boasts one of the highest adult literacy rates on the continent. All members of our Transitional Inclusive Government are steadfastly committed to restoring Zimbabwe’s education system. In the last 2 years we have made major improvements including the re-opening of schools, the provision of core textbooks for all primary students and the creation of a robust five year sector plan.

I, the Minister of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture of Zimbabwe, pledge that we will retain our proud achievement of gender parity in primary and lower education and expand access to quality basic education, especially for orphans and vulnerable children.

We will:

1. Establish a national baseline of early primary literacy rates in 2012, track it and improve it with measures including the mainstreaming of ECD in all primary schools, teacher development and quality enhancing, per capita school grants. We aim for a 10% point increase in attendance at end of primary examinations by 2015.

2. We will endeavor to increase domestic government funding for basic education by 75% from US$469 million in 2011 to US$822 million benefitting over 4 million young Zimbabwean learners.

3. Zimbabwe, which has already abolished rural primary school fees, will offset the school costs for 700,000 orphans and vulnerable children in 2012 and prohibit exclusion of leaners for non-payment of parental levies through the reform of education regulations. We will further reduce primary drop outs and increase transition to lower secondary through the phased reduction of compulsory school fees and levies.

4. We will introduce a major programme of 2nd chance and skills education for out of school children and youth who have missed out through the political chaos of the last decade, in particular for orphans and vulnerable children.

New Zealand Herald

By Andrew Alderson

6 November 2011

Zimbabwe’s minister for education, sports, arts and culture has pleaded for cricket tours like New Zealand’s to continue as the Unity government attempts to haul the country back from the brink of implosion.

David Coltart is an elected politician for a branch of the Movement for Democratic Change which forced president Robert Mugabe and his ZANU-PF party into a coalition known as the Unity government after the September 2008 election.

He wants that process to continue, claiming his party has gained traction over three years to loosen Mugabe’s grip on power.

The other school of thought argues there should be a mandatory boycott of sporting links with Zimbabwe until remnants of the oppressive and brutal regime of 87-year-old Mugabe are gone.

Mugabe led the liberation movement against white minority rule and was elected in 1980. He has been there since but his health is deteriorating. He regularly travels to Singapore for medical treatment.

Coltart is the first to admit the running of the African state is flawed but says the installation of democracy is a process, not a one-off event.

“The situation is far from perfect. It is a fragile transition. There are a lot of things I dislike but we have no viable non-violent alternative. It is not as bad as it was before the 2008 elections.

“We faced rampant cholera, hyperinflation, the closure of schools and politically motivated murders. Today none of that applies. We tackled cholera, controlled the currency, got teachers back to work and there has not been a single politically motivated murder this year.”

Coltart draws comparisons to South Africa’s return from boycott in the 1990s when apartheid was in its death throes. While Nelson Mandela was released by president FW de Klerk’s government as part of a conciliatory step in 1990, he did not take office until 1994.

“There are always hardliners in and out of government determined to derail the process. In South Africa there were political assassinations as late as 1993. Yet the international cricket community embraced the South African cricket team as early as November 1991 when they went to play a one-day series in India. That was long before any guarantee everything would end happily. We are in a similar position.”

Coltart claims cricket is a microcosm of Zimbabwean society where those in charge have brought past players back from premature retirements instigated by Mugabe’s regime.

“We had ructions with white players leaving and racially discriminatory policies appearing to be implemented. We’ve sought to reconcile the racial fractures by bringing back disaffected players like Heath Streak and Grant Flower to coach. Some black players like Tatenda Taibu have returned as well.

“I believe efforts like that deserve to be rewarded by the ICC and national boards when deciding whether to tour. They are not superficial decisions. Our team is selected on merit. Any suggestion of discrimination is gone. It is reflected on the playing field. We could barely get through two days of a test six years ago. We were annihilated and axed from test cricket as a consequence. Compare that to now. We’ve beaten Bangladesh and competed against Pakistan and New Zealand.

“The relevance to New Zealand Cricket and other cricketing bodies is that we are making steps to rectify the situation. I’m hopeful people seeking reform from us will be encouraged. It is about rebuilding a national spirit.”

World cricket’s scepticism about Zimbabwe ambitions is not helped by Mugabe remaining the Zimbabwe Cricket patron, a curious affinity for the game driven by the British once piping the BBC’s Test Match Special radio commentary into his prison cell as a form of audio torture. He came to love or at least tolerate the game, but Coltart says Mugabe’s involvement is largely irrelevant these days.

“That fact is used against us because he looms large in all facets of our society. The reality is he has not been involved in cricket in any way since I became minister.”

Zimbabwe Cricket has still had problems of late. Taibu complained ahead of the New Zealand series that no player had received match fees or signed a contract for more than a year. Coltart acknowledges the issue.

“No sane person would argue Zimbabwe is perfect, cricket included. Zimbabwe Cricket is in financial difficulty but not alone in that regard around the world. Look at Sri Lanka and the West Indies. While you can’t condone the non-payment of match fees it is not a deliberate act.”

New Zealand Cricket Players Association boss Heath Mills visited Zimbabwe last year as part of pre-tour security.

“Our health and safety concerns were met, there were no issues from that perspective. We were comfortable the infrastructure would support the tour. The New Zealand government was supportive of us being there following David Coltart’s visit to New Zealand which demonstrated progress was being made.

“The MDC and Coltart were desperately keen for touring to resume. They felt the country had started to rebound from rock bottom following the establishment of the Unity government. You could see things were far from perfect but cricket coming back was a big thing for those trying to bring about change.”

Times Live

By Vladimir Mzaca

6 November 2011

The Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture is on an ambitious drive to get a large chunk of the national budget for 2012, aiming to make sure that government continues to give top priority to the education sector.

Finance Minister Tendai Biti is expected to announce next year’s budget in the next two weeks.

In recent weeks his team has been on a countrywide consultative drive.

He is on record as saying that a huge share of the budget will go towards paying the civil service bill, while another considerable figure will go towards electoral reform.

However, Education Minister David Coltart has sent his wish list to Biti. “We want at least 22% of the budget. There is a lot to be done in the education sector to keep it alive,” said Coltart.

Coltart heads a ministry whose workers’ union activists do not shy away from threatening industrial action.

The minister has argued that there is a need to improve the working conditions of teachers for them to stay in service.

“The issue does not start or stop with their remuneration. Conditions of service are also important. Some schools have dilapidated infrastructure and textbooks are still an issue,” he added.

In Coltart’s view the ministry has always been underfunded, which is why problems are getting worse.

“If you are always short-changing the education sector, it always carries forward its burdens to a point that they become too many. That is why things are like this at the present moment,” he said.

In the 2011 budget the Ministry of Education, Sports and Culture and the Ministry of Higher and Tertiary Education received the largest allocation of the government’s budget.

In 2010 Biti stated that 555 primary and 399 secondary schools had no desks. Furthermore, the textbook to pupil ratio was 1:15.

He also pointed out that at least 26% of primary classrooms needed repair.

In a drive to alleviate a textbook shortage, Unicef came up with a textbook distribution programme in 2010 that seeks to ensure a textbook to pupil ratio of 1:1 at primary schools.

It is difficult to gauge the success of this programme since it has not yet been evaluated.

Zimbabwe’s education system was once among the best in Africa. Since the turn of the century it has suffered a serious decline in public funding, along with hyperinflation and political unrest which has resulted in the mass exodus of teaching staff in search of greener pastures in neighbouring countries.

Biti said the projected budget for 2012 was $3.6-billion, so the 22% that Coltart referred to amounts to $750-million.

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• Ghandi's 4 more dangers: 4 Business without ethics; 5 Science without humanity; 6 Religion without sacrifice; 7 Politics without principle #
• I feel quite desperate when I see the environmental destruction of our beautiful Zimbabwe – hardly a square meter from Byo to Hre not burnt #
• I am concerned about the negative reports from #NZ criticising the Black Caps tour – the views are ill informed and 3 years out of date #
• No one suggests that things are perfect in Zimbabwe – far from it – but sports tours help heal a nation such as ours which is in transition #
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• #Zimbabwe have taken NZ and Pakistan to 5th day and almost all 20 #NZ wickets – that is what Test #cricket is all about – now go beat them #
• #Zimbabwe deserves its #Cricket Test status back; going to 5th day and taking almost all 20 wickets of an opponent is what its all about #
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• Test #cricket at its finest; day 5 final session v NZ #Zimbabwe need 81 runs off 20 overs with 6 wickets in hand – will they go for it? #
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• Well done NZ for withdrawing appeal – cricket at its finest – what a test match this is turning out to be! #Cricket is the winner! #
• Here I am sitting in Joburg airport waiting to fly to Denmark – I sure would prefer to be at Queens in Bulawayo watching a great test match! #
• Chakabva out going for a wide ball – this is of course inexperience – but as I keep saying whatever happens Zim are back and will learn #
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• Well done Zimbabwe . You lost this match but won our hearts. Hearty congratulations to Brendan Taylor and his feisty men #
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• Cricinfo comment: "Zimbabwe have garnered support from fans from all over the world with their romantic return to Test cricket" #
• On reflection #Zimbabwe cricket will recognise that we lost on our first innings – we were the better team than #NZ for the last 2 days #
• Cricket can help Zimbabwe – Cricket – NZ Herald News http://t.co/8uzLzbxL via @nzherald interview with@davidcoltart #
• #Zimbabwe lose #cricket game but win respect http://t.co/fQgvQrzE #

NewZimbabwe.com

4 November 2011

With the East Africans currently having a stranglehold over the marathon majors, Southern African and three-time Comrades Marathon champion Stephen Muzhingi will attempt to break the sequence in the New York Marathon on Sunday.

The Zimbabwean will be making his marathon debut away from the continent after securing an entry into the race through a special invite following his exploits in the world’s best-known ultra-marathon, the Comrades.

Muzhingi, 33, won the event for a third time on the trot Muzhingi becoming the first man in 23 years to win the world’s oldest and toughest endurance race three successive times.

Following his win in May, Sports Minister, David Coltart tweeted: “Very few people seem to appreciate what a truly remarkable win Stephen Muzhingi has had today. He is a humble man from a poor background who has achieved this magnificent hat-trick without much of the backing that athletes receive elsewhere in the world.”

While the New York Marathon distance, at about 42 kilometres, is less than half the ultra-marathon distance that Muzhingi has thoroughly dominated in the past, it is harder to qualify for as it requires a runner to have a sub 2:10 marathon time, a speed Muzhingi lacked in order to qualify for the coveted elite athlete invitation.

“I have now dropped to a sub-2:20 marathon time but I’ve never really raced a marathon properly, so this will be a true test for me,” he said. “My aim is to run a 2:10 or faster, which I know I can do.”

On Sunday he will test his endurance against some of the world’s top distance runners, watched by an estimated two million cheering spectators and more than 300 million television viewers.

This year’s event is backed by $650 000 in prize money with the winner expected to take home about $130000.

Ethiopian Gebregziabher Gebremariam won in 2010.

Radio VOP

4 November 2011

Harare – Western donor countries contributed $84 million worth of secondary school textbooks in a scheme dubbed Education Transition Fund (ETF).

The textbooks were channeled through the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) while cash strapped Zimbabwe government added $1 million in the fund to buy secondary school textbooks.

The Education Transition Fund (ETF) was launched Thursday.

The ETF which is co-ordinated by Unicef saw donor nations such as the Australia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, United Kingdom, United States of America, the European Union and Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa contributing to the bulk of the ETF to buy 7 million secondary schools textbooks to be distributed to over 2000 schools across Zimbabwe.

Vice President John Nkomo who officially launched the ETF at Bak storage in Harare thanked the donor community for pulling together resources in order to help the ‘Zimbabwean child.’

“Since independence, the government of Zimbabwe has prioritised education as an indispensable obligation to be fulfilled for all Zimbabweans,” Nkomo said.

“Through the Education Transition Fund we will continue to uphold this principle for the benefit of our future generations.”

Unicef country representative, Peter Salama said this is the second phase of the ETF after the first launch in 2009 in which donor nations bought books worth over $50 million for primary schools.

“The second phase will focus on equity and access to quality education for all children, in particular, responding to the gender disparity of students in secondary schools and giving children not in schools and opportunity for a second chance for education,” Salama said.

The ETF will buy books for the following subjects: Mathematics, English, Science, Shona or Ndebele, History and Geography with all secondary students getting a copy of each of the seven subjects.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai who attended the launch said “the Education Transition Fund will go a long way in bringing back universal and equitable access to education for all Zimbabwean children. As we work to provide access to quality basic education and social services to all Zimbabweans, the revitalisation of the education sector should remain on top of the development agenda.”

Minister of Education, Arts, Sports and Culture, Senator David Coltart said Zimbabwe education is still under funded urging government to prioritise education after he said the government contributed only $1 million of the total $85 million of the ETF.

He said education, despite having been promised $66 million in the 2011 budget the ministry has received little funds to date.