22 Jul 2020

 Maun East Member of Parliament, Mr Goretetse Kekgonegile says there is need for all stakeholders to team up to address challenges in the education sector in the Ngamiland district.

Speaking during a courtesy call on the incoming North West Regional Education Director, Ms Veronica Letlhare, Mr Kekgonegile said the district had a number of challenges, which needed urgent attention.

He mentioned challenges such as shortage of teachers, both at primary and junior schools, lack of stationery as well as poor performance of schools.

The MP cited Maun Senior Secondary School as an example, saying it used to be the community’s pride in terms of academic performance, but it was currently among the country’s bottom five schools.

He also said a lot of schools were manned by temporary teachers, yet there were vacant posts, citing Disana Primary School, which he said had a staff complement of 25, 10 of which were temporary.

In addition, Mr Kekgonegile revealed that some schools had been operating without senior teachers for more than five years, which affected pupils’ performance.

The Ministry of Basic Education, he said, had given the district affirmative action to hire at the regional level and wanted to know why that was not happening.

He stated that some teachers complained that they were not paid Remote Area Service Allowance (RASA), citing teachers at Mababe and Sankoyo villages.

He also called for strong guidance and counselling units in schools, saying the district was challenged with many learners heading families, while their parents were working for safari companies in the Okavango Delta, which resulted in delinquency.

Mr Kekgonegile informed the new director that they were not expecting miracles from her, but a partnership with other stakeholders in the region to tackle the issues.

He said education was amongst the MPs’ top five priorities, hence they believed that together, they could turn things around.

Meanwhile, he also donated 40 blankets for sick bays at all schools and 37 face shields for all Standard 7 teachers in his constituency.

The donation, which the MP said was an indication that they were willing to be partners in the education system, was handed over to the regional director on behalf of the school heads.

Ms Letlhare acknowledged the MP’s visit and assured him that she would familiarise herself with the region to appreciate the challenges.

She also stated that she had a meeting with sub-region representatives, who briefed her on critical issues.

She promised to do all in her power to bring positive change in the schools’ performance and also appreciated stakeholders for availing themselves to be partners in the education sector.

 She said she believed that together, they could make great things happen for the district.

Ms Letlhare also welcomed the donations, saying they came at the right time, as they were preparing for mock examinations. ENDS