ZAPU condemns govt as over 500 000 students set to miss final exams due to unpaid BEAM fees

ZAPU has slammed the government for its failure to prioritise education, as more than half a million vulnerable students are set to miss their final exams this year due to non-payment of fees under the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM). 

The BEAM programme, designed to support underprivileged children in accessing education, has defaulted on a debt of USD $6.4 million owed to the Zimbabwe Schools Examination Council (ZIMSEC), putting the future of 532 000 students at risk.

ZAPU’s National Secretary for Education and Training, Thabani Mlotshwa, expressed outrage over the government’s failure to uphold its commitments pointing out its financial mismanagement had negative ripple effects on Zimbabwe’s future generations.

“ZAPU is appalled by recent news reports that over half a million students risk missing out on their 2024 final exams, as the treasury has defaulted on a US$6.4 million BEAM debt owed to ZIMSEC. This is a shocking indictment of the government’s misplaced priorities,” Mlotshwa said.

According to Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Minister, July Moyo, the government’s failure to clear its debt will prevent Grade Seven, Ordinary Level and Advanced Level BEAM-funded students from sitting their exams unless a promissory note is issued to ZIMSEC.

While BEAM was accounted for in the national budget, disbursement has not occurred.

“In 2023, a partial payment of ZW$19.9 billion was made in local currency to cover fees for 434 705 primary school students,” Moyo said in Parliament recently.

 “However, no payments were made for secondary schools, and schools owed in USD were left without funds.”

As of 2023, the government owes US$56.7 million to primary and secondary schools, along with US$83 825 to special schools, creating massive arrears and uncertainty for students dependent on BEAM funding.

Mlotshwa slammed the government’s lack of commitment to public education, calling it a theft of the future from Zimbabwe’s most vulnerable children.

“Government’s lack of commitment towards public education has stolen the future from vulnerable children who depend on the well-intended but poorly managed BEAM,” he said.

“Education is a basic right for all Zimbabwean children, enshrined in our 2013 constitution, and forms part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, ratified by Zimbabwe among other member states. Moreover, BEAM funds are collected from taxpayers and not from anyone’s pocket.”

Mlotshwa also highlighted the emotional strain faced by students as they prepare for pivotal exams under a cloud of uncertainty.

“We can imagine the trauma being experienced by the affected learners. These children are under immense pressure because they are not sure whether or not to prepare for their imminent examinations. ZAPU demands that the treasury must treat this matter with the urgency it deserves,” he said.

The ZAPU official said the Zanu PF-led government had to be reminded that among the objectives of the liberation struggle which “ZAPU executed, education for our children was one of our top priorities.” 

“Zimbabwe cannot afford to disenfranchise half a million students when the country is losing millions of skilled manpower in a massive brain-drain stemming from the government’s ruinous economic policies,” Mlotshwa said. 

“The so-called Second Republic has really disappointed us in this critical area.”

ZAPU further condemned the government for its lavish spending on other sectors, such as splurging an unbudgeted USD $3.6 million on luxury vehicles for chiefs, while neglecting essential services like education for the less priviledged children.

“We cannot find any justification for this level of misplaced priorities. Zimbabwe cannot afford to disenfranchise half a million students when the country is already losing millions of skilled workers in a massive brain drain caused by the government’s ruinous economic policies,” Mlotshwa stated.

He called on the government to honor its obligations to public schools and settle outstanding BEAM debts to allow schools to focus on their core mandate of providing quality education.

“ZAPU also calls upon legislative select-committees to probe and expose systemic inefficiencies that negatively impact the education of the less privileged,” he said, adding that the electorate should hold their representatives accountable for delivering on campaign promises.