The Zambia National Education Coalition (ZANEC) is pleased that the government has recruited the 4, 500 teachers provided for in the 2023 and an additional 2, 721 to replace the teachers that have left their positions for various reasons. We are also happy that the Minister of Education Hon Douglas Syakalima assured the nation that these teachers will start working on 12th of February, 2024 when schools reopen for the first term. For the first time, we have also seen transparency in the handling of teacher replacements in which the process was informed by a thorough mapping exercise of teachers who have left their positions conducted by the Teaching Service Commission. This too is commendable and we would like to encourage the TSC to continue on this path.
The Coalition applauds the TSC for the continued use of the decentralized process in both the recruitment and replacement of teachers as it ensures teacher retention and transparency. This is line with both the Decentralization Policy and the “Service Commission’s Act no. 10 of 2016”. As ZANEC, our view is that decentralized recruitment of teachers is the hallmark of teacher retention in our schools. Our belief is that teachers must be recruited and deployed to schools that are as close to their place of residency as possible to mitigate against the prevailing housing crisis for teachers. Centralizing teacher recruitment encourages the migration of teachers deployed in rural areas back to urban areas. In other words, good practice requires that teachers are deployed to teach within the community they live.
We have also noted that the recruitment exercise upheld the 10 percent allocation for applicants with disabilities and focused on secondary school teachers specialized to teach mathematics, sciences, business studies, ICT, special education and Zambian languages. This will go a long way in promoting inclusion and bridging the current gap in teachers of Science, Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) which is affecting performance in these subjects as evidenced from the grade 12 results.
Overall, ZANEC would like to recommend that the Ministry of Education starts the process of recruiting the 4200 teachers planned in the 2024 education budget early, giving priority to schools in rural areas.
Finally, we wish to congratulate the newly recruited teachers and urge them to fully embrace the opportunity they have been given by ensuring that they work hard and uphold their professional ethics.
For/ZANEC
George Hamusunga
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
