MatNorth: Multi-Stakeholder in Education Workshop held

Details

Created: Friday, 13 March 2009 18:21

A Multi-Stakeholder planning workshop for Ministry of Education, Sports, Arts and Culture (MOEASC) was held from the 3rd to the 4th of March 2009 in Bulawayo.

The workshop which was attended by NGOs and partners working with the ministry in Matabeleland North Province was organised by MOESC with the objectives of:-

i)Getting the stakeholders to know each other and their areas of operation in light of avoiding duplication of effort.

ii)Stakeholders to understand the goals and objectives of the MOEASC and in this way assist the ministry in achieving them.

iii)Share experiences and together plan the way forward for a better Matabeleland North as far as education provision was concerned.

Venue:    Eveline High School, Bulawayo.
Dates:        03-04 March, 2009

On the first day, a presentation from the education directorate on the ministry’s mission, goal and objective was made. This was followed by NGOs presentations and a plenary session.

Tonga.Online, represented by the Project Director, had an opportunity to make its programmes and activities know to stakeholders in Matabeleland North.

Issues which emerged from the presentations and discussions were:-

i.Coverage of  the province in terms of child abuse and other vulnerability interventions is minimal
ii.Ineffectiveness of Rural district Councils and School Development Committees in ensuring effective delivery of education services
iii.Issue of decaying infrastructure and vandalism in schools
iv.Issue of coordination of stakeholder interventions to ensure equitable distribution of assistance
v.Sharing of best practices among stakeholders
vi.Transparency in selection of beneficiaries
vii.Issue of NGOs operating without authorization from either Ministry of Education or Local Authorities
viii.Issues of teacher motivation/ retention /addressing security concerns of teachers
ix.Need to staff develop heads on effective management of schools
x.Poor performance of the province in public examinations and in sport
xi.Payment of fees--- is it a sustainable way of assisting needy pupils
xii.Need to establish an Education Working Group to enhance coordination of stakeholder interventions for the Province
xiii.Need for stakeholders to have inputs in the drafting of the new constitution especially on issues of decentralization
xiv.Prioritization of ICT—especially ensuring their optimal usage
xv.Need for effective monitoring and evaluation of implementation of programmes

In the second day, a way forward was agreed upon and an encompassing action plans for 2009, were drawn for Matabeleland North province. These plans form the basis on which resources will be mobilized to address the identified gaps/ issues and also monitoring and evaluation of the activities could be facilitated.

Observation

Tonga.Online is the only NGO working in the ICT sector in the entire province. Based on this fact, the Ministry has appealed to TOL to assist with the training of the provincial staff and ICT teachers in Matabeleland North province if resources permit. This appeal comes in light of shortage of IT teachers and the under utilization of ICT infrastructure in the province. From the discussions held there is no promise of getting IT teachers in Mat-North province in the near future.

Recommendation

i)Ministry should have a database of the Schools with ICT infrastructure and electricity.

ii)All NGOs working in different district should be mobilized to finance this vast training.

Pottar Muzamba
Project Director-TOL