Official decries unequal access to education

THE education sector continues to struggle amid growing disparities in the way vulnerable groups like the disabled and poor access it, a social welfare officer has said.

Speaking at the launch of the Simukai Strategic Plan, Manicaland provincial social welfare officer Mrs Charity Ndadzungira said there was inequality in education with vulnerable groups either failing to access it or getting substandard services.

“Vulnerable children continue to be marginalised in the education sector with enrolment levels low and dropout levels high as a result of limited access to educational facilities and resources,” she said.

She said although development partners had complemented Government efforts to improve the education sector through cash transfers to vulnerable groups who are failing to enrol in schools due to poverty, lack of continuity affected such initiatives.

“We have realised that interventions to subsidise the education sector have been inadequate as some development partners only sponsor learners’ midway through which forces the beneficiaries to drop out of school due to financial constraints,” said Mrs Ndadzungira.

She expressed concern over the tendency by some development partners to avail substandard educational services to vulnerable groups.

“Some educational facilities are secluded, underfunded and many times avail poor quality education. Vulnerable groups are sometimes denied the privilege of accessing quality and high level education with most receiving training in obscure trades and professions in the informal sector,” she said.

Simukai child protection programme education cluster chairperson Mrs Amanda Mutenha said the education system continued to discourage enrolment and participation of disabled children and youths in education.

“The learning environment in most schools is hostile to disability due to inaccessible infrastructure and facilities. Children living with disabilities have low enrolment levels in schools as most schools are not conducive for children living with disabilities,” she said.

Mrs Mutenha said there was need to create a suitable learning environment for the disabled.

“Inequalities and inefficiencies within the system continue to disadvantage and exclude the disabled due to unequal distribution of resources. This has led to a continued decline in enrolment of the disabled at higher levels of education like tertiary institutions,” Mrs Ndadzungira said.