Teachers Required to Master Three Local Languages

A Cabinet Minister has reaffirmed that the government’s policy requiring teachers to learn three local languages besides their mother tongue remains in effect.

The policy, introduced in 2018, aims to improve student competency in languages spoken in their deployment regions across Zimbabwe.

Professor Amon Murwira, the Minister of Higher and Tertiary Education, Innovation, Science and Technology Development, confirmed the existing policy during a parliamentary session. He was responding to a question from Senator Annah Shiri about initiatives to incorporate minority languages like sign language into tertiary education.

“Our aim is to have the expertise in all the languages. If you get there, you will have people speaking Chewa, isiNdebele, Shona et cetera,” said Professor Murwira. He highlighted collaborations with universities, such as translating the Zimbabwean Constitution into all official languages, as part of the government’s commitment to inclusivity.

The policy has faced some challenges, however. During the same parliamentary session, Matabeleland North Senator Rebecca Fanuel raised concerns about the deployment of non-Tonga speaking teachers to Binga district, which she said has resulted in poor pass rates, particularly in primary schools.

Professor Murwira acknowledged the issue and clarified that a 2018 policy mandates student teachers to learn three local languages beyond their own. He said this initiative has already yielded the first “multi-dialect graduates” between 2018 and 2020.

To address the language barrier in Binga, the minister said the government established Hwange Teachers’ College in 2019, specifically recruiting 150 students from the area who speak Nambya and Tonga.

Professor Murwira emphasized the government’s broader commitment to educational inclusivity, including the establishment of an industrial college in the previously marginalized Binga district. “An educated and productive citizenry is, after all, a national advantage,” he said.

The minister admitted that the implementation of the language policy is an ongoing process, but he reaffirmed the government’s determination to continue moving in the right direction.