Vic Falls Public Schools Bear The Brunt Of Lack Of Investment

Chambondo pupils during a day quiz...Parents resort to unregistered learning institution due to overcrowding at the school. Image by VicFalls Wild

BY BOKANI MUDIMBA | @The_CBNews | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | MAR 2, 2022

One of the biggest issues facing public schools in Victoria Falls is overcrowding, with adverse effects on student learning.

VICTORIA FALLS (The Citizen Bulletin) — Chambondo Primary School head Phathugwalo Masuku could not miss the opportunity to expose overcrowding at his school when Deputy Primary and Secondary Education Minister Edgar Moyo visited.

“We are crowded and wish there could be urgent means to decongest our school. We have more than 1 600 learners yet our school cannot manage to contain that,” Masuku says during a tour of the school.

The Deputy Minister was in Victoria Falls recently touring public education facilities where he came face to face with the poor learning facilities at the schools including overcrowding.

“That is why we had hoped for the speedy completion of Chamabondo 2 Primary School to ease congestion at our school,” Masuku adds.

Construction of Chamabondo 2 Primary School started way back in 2005. Almost two decades later, the school located in Mkhosana suburb, has a single incomplete block with no roofing, inside plastering and flooring.

Two other blocks are under construction but at window level.

Chamabondo 2 is one of the learning institutions being constructed countrywide through the central government's Public Sector Investment Programme (PSIP).

Education ministry officials last year said the school would enrol its first class in 2021 but that remains a pipedream.

The school was expected to ease congestion at Chamabondo and Chinotimba primary schools whose enrolment is closer to a combined 4 000.

The resort town has a single public high school, Mosi-oa-Tunya High School, with an enrolment of nearly 2 000 learners and the church-run Mkhosana Adventist Secondary.

Dadani Technical College, Lulu Academy and Oasis are the few registered private institutions but have a small enrollment.

“We need more public schools in Victoria Falls to match the growing population and ease congestion in the existing institutions,” says Victoria Falls resident Maina Mpofu.

Her two daughters are enrolled at private schools in the city.

A combination of an increasing population and a decrease in funding has caused class sizes to soar. Many classrooms now regularly exceed 40 students, and it is not uncommon for there to be more than 45 students in a single class.

Victoria Falls, with an estimated population of more than 40 000 people, became a city in 2020 making it the eighth in the country.

The resort city has a single public high school, Mosi-oa-Tunya High School, with an enrolment of nearly 2 000 learners.

Infrastructure development has however, not been commensurate with the city status.

Victoria Falls Combined Residents Association chairman Kelvin Moyo says the shortage of schools compromises the quality of education.

“The central government has failed to complete Chamabondo 2 which is a drawback especially as far as education is concerned. We expect the council to also invest in learning infrastructure by having a budget that dedicates funds towards this,” Moyo says.

A number of residents called on the Education ministry to address the shortage of classrooms in public schools that has resulted in overcrowding.

Unregistered and illegal backyard private schools have now mushroomed in the resort town as residents capitalise on the shortage.

Some residents have converted houses into schools while others have occupied disused buildings offering private lessons.

Residents say they have no choice but to enroll their children at these unregistered private learning institutions.

Deputy Education Minister Moyo admits the shortage of public schools.

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“We look forward to some of these (construction) projects being sped up so that they are completed,” Moyo says.

Prior to the global COVID-19 pandemic, there was a backlog of 3 000 schools countrywide and the number rose to an estimated 4 600 after the outbreak to allow social distancing.

This has caused overcrowding in schools where learners are expected to adhere to health protocols such as maintaining social distancing.  

Moyo adds: “There have been funding challenges but we are happy the central government provided funds for the construction of more public schools.”

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