Newsday

By Fortune Moyo

23 September 2010

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture minister David Coltart is engaged in talks with the Public Service Commission (PSC) and the Finance ministry over the renewal of contracts for temporary teachers countrywide.

It is almost a month into the third term and most temporary teachers had their contracts terminated at the end of last term, putting enormous pressure on the education sector.

Coltart told NewsDay on Wednesday his ministry has not changed its position on temporary teachers and said he is engaging the PSC and Finance minister Tendai Biti on the way forward.

“The position of the ministry is clear and it has not changed: we need to have contracts of temporary teachers extended and they should be included in the salaries bill, as they would have given a service,” he said.

Coltart said he was still awaiting a response from Biti.

“I am currently engaged in talks with the PSC and Biti on the issue of the renewal of their contracts and their remuneration. I am waiting for a response from the two departments before the end of this week,” Coltart said.

He said the freeze on recruitment of temporary teachers by the PSC had caused problems at most schools, as some temporary teachers had not returned to work.

“I made a statement sometime back ordering temporary teachers to return to work and I am aware that some teachers did return to work.

However, I have received reports from some schools that temporary teachers who were there last term have not reported for duty and that has affected lessons.”

Zimbabwe Guardian

By Sihle Dube

23 September 2010

While I commend the efforts by the Educational Transition Fund (ETF) and/or Enterprise Zimbabwe in giving millions of textbooks to Zimbabwe, I would like to know whether those books are in line with the curriculum in Zimbabwe and whether they are aiding the development of an indigenous education system for Zimbabwe; or merely perpetuating a Western-style education system.

Mr Branson recently revealed that his charity Enterprise Zimbabwe helped Minister David Coltart take millions of textbooks into Zimbabwe.

We were not aware that it was Mr Branson’s charity, which was launched a year ago, but also recently relaunched on the sidelines of the ongoing UN Summit on Millenium Development Goals under the Clinton Global Initiative.

While I would like to express my gratitude to Mr Branson, however, worry that much of the help that is afforded to the country might not be aligned to our needs and aspirations.

We need to make sure that donations are aligned with the aspirations of our people; not aimed at “McDonaldisation” of our country; i.e. the perpetuation of a different culture apart from ours.

South East Asian countries like Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, etc have embraced donations, but have made sure they are aligned with their own culture: as expressed through symbols understood by young Asian people.

While I commend the efforts by the Educational Transition Fund (ETF) and/or Enterprise Zimbabwe in giving millions of textbooks to Zimbabwe, I would like to know whether those books are in line with the curriculum in Zimbabwe and whether they are aiding the development of an indigenous education system for Zimbabwe; or merely perpetuating a Western-style education system.

I understand and appreciate that 20 per cent of the textbooks are being printed in Zimbabwe; but that does not say anything about the content of those books and 20 per cent is still a very small percentage. We should have over 90 per cent local production of education materials.

Countries like the US and Britain have 100 per cent local content in their texts.

Dumping of textbooks will not help local bookstores and publishers. We should align the content of those textbooks with our own needs — languages, customs and practices.

Zimbabwe overtook Tunisia this year as the country with the highest literacy rate in Africa, according to the UN Development Programme statistical digest published in July 2010.

The country now has a 92 percent literacy rate, up from 85 percent.

This is commendable, but this statistic is does not say much about what we are literate in. It is not just literacy that matters, but an understanding of our own history and ability to use acquired knowledge to become responsible citizens and develop our country.

This is only possible if the symbols and the messages in those textbooks enhances our national pride; and not denigrate our own culture and customs.

As someone who went to school in Zimbabwe in the 1970s-80s, I am very much aware of the absence of African symbols in textbooks and the focus on Europe, especially Britain in national curricula.

I sure hope that this is now not the case.

Most of the books that we read had faces of people from Europe and other parts of this world. The subliminal message in these books was the glorification of everything Western at the expense of our own images.

Comment from Senator David Coltart:

I need to reassure readers that every single one of the 13 million textbooks are Zimbabwean. They have all been produced by Zimbabwean educationalists, approved by the Zimbabwean Ministry of Education’s Curriculum Development Unit, published by  Zimbabwean publishing houses and printed 100% in Africa (20% in Zimbabwe and 80%% in South Africa). So Ms Dube has no need to fear.

Zimbabwean

By Paul Ndlovu

22 September 2010

HARARE – The Government plans to re-introduce allowances for teachers in rural schools as part of a raft of reforms meant to restore the professional status of the educators’ vocation, a cabinet minister has said.
The plan, that is part of the cabinet approved 2010/2011 Education policy, is meant to subsidise the low salaries that rural teachers. The Minister of Education, Sports, Art and Culture, Senator David Coltart, said the ministry would push for the improvement of the salaries of teachers to the maximum affordable level.
“The Ministry does not control public service salary levels, and will work with colleagues in other ministries to try to ensure that teachers incomes are improved to the maximum level that is possible in the context of the need for retaining some balance between employment costs and non salary recurrent costs, and between recurrent and capital expenditure,” he said.
Coltart said the ministry would also campaign for the re-introduction of the payment of rural allowances to teachers in remote locations. “The regulations and procedures exist for this allowance payment, and with budget provision, it would be a simple matter to reintroduce payment of these allowances as one positive step to ensure that teachers in remote locations, who are least likely to benefit from any salary supplements from parents levies, are provided an incentive to remain in post,” he said.
the Zimbabwe Teachers Association (ZIMTA) Chief Executive Officer, Sifiso Ndlovu, cautiously welcomed the plans by the government to pay rural allowances. “That is a welcome development which is long overdue considering that some of our teachers shun rural areas because of the challenges such as transport. For the development of the country, that is a welcome move. For equal access to quality education, that is a welcome move.
“However, it may work temporarily. The question is does the economy have the capacity to pay extra funds? I just hope the minister and the Government is not fooling us about this. Because unless there is a promise from the donor community, there is already a challenge there,” he said. Ndlovu said the teacher situation was still precarious, especially with the
ministry’s directive not to engage temporary teachers.
The minister said the overall situation countrywide regarding qualified teachers was not bad, but there was a growing percentage of unqualified teachers, which needed to be stopped. “In rural areas there are much higher percentages of unqualified teachers, especially in areas where teachers have been harassed. This trend needs to be reversed because it is now being reflected in much worse results coming out of the rural areas in comparison to urban areas,” he said.
Senator Coltart said the ministry would also establish a teaching service professional council as a body to provide guidance and support to the teaching profession and help to restore its professional status.
The Senator said the ministry also proposed a number of critical system development activities for 2011, which would lay the foundation for longer term system capacity to deliver on the medium term strategic plan. “We also propose a study of teacher supply, utilization and development which will provide the basis of a more coherent strategy for human resource planning and management in the Ministry.
“This study should build on available information in the present EMIS system and other official databases, but also provide more specific and detailed information to permit more efficient and equitable deployment and utilization of the teaching corps in the country. This will include a review of non-teaching staff in the ministry and institutions to provide the most efficient and effective support to enable teachers to perform their duties,” he said.

The Independent

By Daniel Howden, Africa Correspondent

Wednesday, 22 September 2010

Sir Richard Branson championed Zimbabwe as a new destination for investors yesterday, saying it was time to get the nation’s shattered economy back on its feet.

While much of the international community has long withheld development assistance, citing the political situation, Sir Richard said the time for “wait and see was over”.

“In life, people have got to take risks,” the billionaire said in New York, where he introduced some of the world’s richest people to his investment venture, Enterprise Zimbabwe. “If everybody waits on the sidelines, it will be the people who suffer. The present state of politics in Zimbabwe is by no means perfect, but it’s a great deal better.”

The initiative has been running quietly for a year already but was unveiled only yesterday to major philanthropists at the Clinton Global Initiative forum on the sidelines of the UN’s anti-poverty summit.

Sir Richard aims to reassure private donors who want to invest but are concerned with how the funds will be used. Concerns remain that foreign investment will go to politicians rather than ordinary people. “The idea of Enterprise Zimbabwe is to have a sort of safe haven for people to invest through,” Sir Richard said.

The enterprise was given a cautious welcome by David Coltart, Zimbabwe’s education minister, who is one of several cabinet members from the two MDC factions. “I think it is a good moment for private charitable funds to consider supporting the service sectors like health, water, transport and education and the private sector,” he said.

Zimbabwe was once among the most affluent countries in sub-Saharan Africa but under President Robert Mugabe, the economy has been gutted and international confidence in the nation has been destroyed. In 2008’s presidential election, Morgan Tsvangirai beat Mr Mugabe in the first round of voting despite a brutal campaign of intimidation against the opposition. But Mr Tsvangirai was forced to withdraw from the run-off as violence escalated.

Some fragile progress has been made since and Mr Tsvangirai’s group was pushed by regional leaders to join a coalition with the ruling Zanu-PF party. The US and EU have also been urged by South Africa to drop targeted sanctions against individuals in Mr Mugabe’s regime.

Zimbabwean

By Joshua Morrison

21 September 2010

It has been over two years since the Government of National Unity was formed, and people want to know what has truly changed in the interim.

Thanks to the work of Senator David Coltart in his capacity as the Minister of Education, Sports and Culture, there have been various policy announcements in the recent months. As well as that, his ministry is currently working on a huge revamp of the Education Act.
The secondary pieces of legislation that have been created over the past decade pose an awkward problem. Looking at the statutory instruments from the 1987 Education Act reveals that the law is murky and sometimes confusing, and it has taken many weeks of hard work on the part of Coltart and his ministry to compile a comprehensive list that consolidates all the statutory instruments. At the same, there has been a lot of time taken to identify areas in the Act that need to change.
The Rights of the Child have been a major driving force when looking at the elements of Health and Safety that need to be integrated into schools all over the country. Currently Zimbabwe has an outdated curriculum, and Health and Safety is not at the top of the agenda with regards to legislation. However, this is all about to change. Coltart is looking at areas such as asbestos in schools and the controversial issue of corporal punishment. With extensive research being carried out, and legal draftsmen coming on board, we can be hopeful that the face of education in Zimbabwe will be changing for good.
Coltart is aware that his remit stops at the school gates, but is he is always thinking outside the box. A current concern for his ministry is making school travel safer by providing restrictions on what times pupils can be transported and making the use of seatbelts compulsory. This should allow parents to rest secure in the knowledge that their children will be safe at school. Not only is it going to be safer for children in terms of travel arrangements, but there will also be increased security at the school premises, with visitor restrictions being implemented.
Currently in Zimbabwe, all those of ‘school going age’ are bound by law to attend primary school. However, this is does not go far enough. The African Charter on Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990 says, ‘Every child shall have the right to education’. This clearly means all must have a right to attend school.
Children with special educational needs in Zimbabwe are often the victims of prejudice. The statutory instrument entitled, “Education (Enrolment and Exclusion) Regulation” allows for the exclusion of children who fail to benefit from attendance at school due to their level of educational attainment, or any other reason. This highlights the injustice that pupils with special needs face in being removed from school because of their specific educational requirements. Does this not encroach on their right to education?
This is just another example of how human rights are frequently over looked in Zimbabwe. However, with the new Minister of Education working tirelessly for change, Zimbabweans can be confident that the educational sector will be changing to protect the rights of children and all those who are involved in teaching our nation.

Herald

By New Ziana

21 September 2010

Confusion still surrounds the employment of more than 25 000 temporary teachers whose contracts Treasury directed the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture not to renew this term.

Investigations by New Ziana yesterday revealed that Treasury was causing the confusion as it has been issuing conflicting instructions to the Education Ministry since schools opened two weeks ago.

Initially, Treasury directed the Ministry to stop recruiting temporary teachers this term but cabinet later reversed the instruction.

Education, Sport, Arts and Culture Minister David Coltart said Cabinet had resolved that the Treasury directive did not apply to temporary teachers with running contracts.

Following the Cabinet decision, the Ministry of Education began recruiting the temporary teachers, but Treasury last Thursday again directed it to stop and withdraw services for those that had already been employed.

Zimbabwe Teachers Association chief executive Sifiso Ndlovu confirmed that the temporary reprieve to employ relief staff was reversed last week.

“There is chaos and confusion between Treasury and the Ministry of Education as to who should issue instructions to teachers,” he said.

Ndlovu said such discrepancies had an effect on the revival of the education sector.

“This is a disadvantage to students who are sitting for examinations this term,” he said, the confusion was happening at a time teachers were already stressed due to poor working conditions.

An official in the Ministry of Education’s human resources department confirmed receiving conflicting directives from Treasury on the employment of temporary teachers.

“We received verbal approval from Treasury to engage temporary teachers and we went ahead to notify school heads,” he said.

“Later on we received an instruction from the same office to stop the process and wait for written communication,” he said, adding the issue was, however, being sorted out.

Efforts to get comments from the Secretary for Finance Mr Willard Manungo were fruitless as his mobile phone went unanswered while Education Minister David Coltart and his permanent secretary Steven Mahere were locked in a meeting with their officials presumably to discuss the issue.

Zimbabwe needs 120 000 teachers when the sector is operating at full capacity, but according to Zimta, there are currently 90 000 teachers including temporary staff.

Zimeye.org

By Staff reporter

21 September 201o

A group of peer members within the Prof Arthur Mutambara aligned MDC party have threatened to defect to the recently revived ZAPU party following revelations that party leaders are considering to reunite with the Morgan Tsvangirai led faction.

Said a spokesman for the peer group who at present requests anonymity:

“Tsvangirai labelled us evil and called us all sorts of names. Why should he want to engage us now?”

The spokesman added saying that if MDC-M unites with MDC-T, a large number of people will defect to the Dumiso Dabengwa-led ZAPU party in rebellion.

“I think there will end up being 3 new groupings, some of us will go to ZAPU if this ever happens” he said.

Criticising the party’s Legal Secretary David Coltart, who recently announced saying that a united front was necessary to help complete Zimbabwe’s transition to democracy, the peer group leader said Coltart belongs to a group of moderates who align themselves under Mutambara and his position is not a party position.

However, in the United Kingdom, the MDC-M’s national chairman, speaking in his personal capacity opposed the present threats saying any action to unite will help remove Robert Mugabe and his party from power although he also called for a 2-term limit condition for leaders if a new opposition formation is created.

“The unification of democratic forces is desirable and long overdue,” said Abraham Ndodana Mdlongwa.

“Tsvangirai has acted in bad faith”

Criticising Morgan Tsvangirai’s leadership, Mdlongwa added saying that the new formation should of necessity ensure a new Obama emerges:

“The process should culminate in a unification congress where all elected MDC officials including party presidents that have served their 2 terms should be barred from contesting their positions in line with the party constitution of the MDC.  Such officials would of course be free to contest any other position within the united party if they so wished.  This way we would ensure a new Obama emerges within our opposition ranks. I can understand the uneasiness with which some of my colleagues have come to feel about any talk of unity with MDC-T.  Having been an elected official in the original MDC, I am aware Morgan Tsvangirai has not acted in good faith on these matters in the past and has as a result cost the opposition numeours opportunities for dislodging ZANU-PF from power.”

News 24

By Julian Rademeyer and Marietie Louw-Carstens

21 September 2010

Johannesburg – The owner of a safari business, his wife and a professional hunter are among the “masterminds” who have been arrested in connection with rhino poaching.

Dawie Groenewald, 42, the wealthy driving force behind Out of Africa Adventurous Safaris in Polokwane, his wife, Sariette, 34, and Tielman Erasmus, a professional hunter, are behind bars.

They were arrested on Monday along with Dr Karel Toet and Dr Manie du Plessis, two veterinarians from Modimolle, and Toet’s wife, Marisa.

Groenewald, a former police official, was suspended from the South African Professional Hunters Association four years ago, and Zimbabwean authorities put a stop to his hunting there.

He was arrested in the US in April this year in connection with a leopard trophy which was illegally hunted in South Africa and exported to the US. He pled guilty and was sentenced to pay a fine of $30 000 (R228 000).

He spent eight days in prison there, over two months under house arrest and also had to pay $7 500 (R57 000) in damages to the American hunter.

He denied in an interview with Media24’s investigative team that he was involved in rhino poaching and has been forbidden from entering Zimbabwe.

Notorious

According to the South African Aircraft register, Groenewald is linked to a closed corporation which owns a Robinson R44 helicopter with the registration ZS-HBH.

His wife, Sariette, is listed as a director of Valinor Trading 142 – the owner of the helicopter.

It is a known fact that helicopters are often used during rhino poaching operations.

Groenewald’s Out of Africa Adventurous Safaris is rather notorious in hunting circles.

They advertise hunting safaris in Botswana, Tanzania, South Africa and even Zimbabwe, despite the fact that the Zimbabwean nature conservation authority (Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority) forbade them from entering the country in September 2004.

A Zimbabwean cabinet minister and well-known figure in conservation circles, David Coltart, had earlier described Out of Africa to Newsweek as a “cruel organisation which has no respect for the environment” and strives for “unsustainable hunting quotas”.

Hunting experts in Zimbabwe allege that Out of Africa has strong links with politicians close to President Robert Mugabe.

During the height of political instability in Zimbabwe, the organisation apparently organised hunting safaris on farms and land invaded by Zanu-PF’s “war veterans”.

Shock

About 100 vehicles from the police and the department of nature conservation raided game farms in the Musina area on Tuesday. A police helicopter and aircraft were also used.

Several people, including professional hunters, were questioned.

There have been no further arrests.

National police spokesperson Vishnu Naidoo said on Monday the nine suspects are allegedly involved in killing rhinos, sawing off their horns and removing the carcasses.

These nine suspects will appear in court in Musina on Wednesday, the day declared International Rhino Day by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF).

The South African Veterinary Association (Sava) expressed its shock over the arrest of Toet and Du Plessis.

It distanced itself from any “colleagues” who might be involved in rhino poaching.

Altogether 210 rhinos have been poached for their horns right across the country since January.

Daily News

By Enock Muchinjo

20 September 2010

HARARE – When a Zimbabwe Cricket second-string XI begins a four-day Intercontinental Cup match against the full Ireland team Monday, the country’s preparation for Test cricket will get into full swing.
ZC selectors refused the temptation to select a full strength Zimbabwe team for this tie, to the delight of Zim XI coach Steve Mangongo, who has always advocated for a bona fide second team in this competition.

Mangongo’s argument is a legitimate one.

To sustain a place at Test level, the country needs a big pool of well-prepared players, so exposing genuine second-teamers to competitive four-day matches against tier two teams like Ireland, Kenya and Afghanistan will widen the base.

“Every international match we play is important in our roadmap,” Mangongo said at a joint press conference on Saturday.

“Playing Ireland with virtually our second team is a positive way forward.”

There was general feeling in the Irish camp that the Zimbabweans had blundered by picking a “weakened” team.

Ireland captain William Porterfield, meanwhile, says the team must regularly beat teams of similar strength like Zimbabwe to boost chances of gaining test status.

The Irish team finally arrived in Harare Saturday following a denial by Cricket Ireland that it was placed under pressure to travel to Zimbabwe.

“We are always looking forward to improve ourselves, and test cricket is the pinnacle,” Porterfield told the Daily News upon arrival. “We’ve made massive strides in Ireland cricket and we now have a good chance of getting Test status.

“I think playing good cricket regularly will contribute (to gaining test status), especially against the teams closer to us. Getting big performances against such teams will do us no harm.”

Porterfield said he expected a “tough series” against the full Zimbabwe team, who they will play in three ODIs in addition to an Intercontinental match against the hosts’ second-string XI.

Last week, Zimbabwe’s sports minister David Coltart applauded the cricket boards of Ireland and New Zealand for agreeing to send teams to the country. New Zealand is also set to resume ties with Zimbabwe after naming an A side to tour the unstable Southern African nation in October.

Newsday

By Munyaradzi Mugowo

20 September 2010

Government has agreed to amend the country’s Labour Relations Act to make it equally friendly to employees and employers following a year of intense lobbying by the private sector, which wants an end to the system of wage arbitration and what it considers an onerous labour appeal and dispute settlement procedures.

Business argues that labour costs now rank second after raw materials in terms of contribution to production costs, undermining its competitiveness, and this is arising from “unrealistic” wage
increments by national employment councils (NECs) acting on flawed provisions of the Act.

The legal framework for labour relations in Zimbabwe was last comprehensively reviewed in 1992 through the Labour Relations Amendment Act No 12, and since then four statutory instruments (SIs) have been passed to solve a growing number of sticking issues arising from fundamental provisions of the Act.

These include SI 31 Labour Relations (General) Regulations of 1993 and SI 30 Labour Relations (Settlement of Disputes) Regulations of 1993. The two subsidiary legislations repealed SI 368 of 1985 and SI 369/1985, respectively.

Initiated last year, the latest effort aims to review the system of wage arbitration blamed for stoking firms’ costs of production under the present “dollarised” environment as well as the current three-tier appeal procedure in case of a labour dispute, which prolongs labour disputes, among other issues.

Quoting a recent survey Antony Mandiwanza, Group CEO of Dairibord Holdings, told a Confederation of Zimbabwe Industries (CZI) conference last month that labour costs now rank second after raw materials in terms of contribution to production costs and blamed this on NECs and arbitrators.

Mandiwanza said the wage shock aggravated a general cost spike arising from “dollarisation”, undermined local firms’ cost competitiveness.

“This (high labour costs) has implications for cost competitiveness,” Mandiwanza said.

“Many people have been asking why local products are more expensive than imports.

“The answer is the competitiveness of the Zimbabwean player is being eroded by high production costs as a result of high the cost of labour and utilities.

“This is why we must take an active role as business in the process of reviewing the Labour Relations Act.”

The interests of the private sector are being represented by the Employers Confederation of Zimbabwe in the legislative review process.

Mandiwanza added that the only strategy available to local firms is to link bonuses to performance and that way reduce labour to a variable cost.

Godfrey Kanyenze, the director of the Labour & Economic Research Institute of Zimbabwe, concurred and added that Zimbabwe’s Labour Relations Act had created an aristocracy of “overprotected employees” whose fortune depends on NECs rather than performance.

“The strategy for workers is to declare a deadlock and refer the case for arbitration, which often awards an increment outside the permissive factors,” Kanyenze said.

“What the arbitrator simply does is to average what the workers demand and what the employers offer to come up with an arbitral award.”

He added that the Labour Relations Act provides for quarterly wage reviews by NECs and for an appeal in case of non-compliance or violation.

The labour appeal procedure is widely considered cumbersome, costly and inefficient.

According to David Coltart, Education minister and prominent labour lawyer, Zimbabwe’s appeal procedure must be reduced to a two-tier system as the present procedure tends to complicate labour disputes by holding a case for up to five years.

Under the current three-tier appeal procedure, initially disputes are still handled by labour relations officer who can either make a determination or refer the matter for determination by senior labour relations officer.

In terms of SI 30 of 1993, any party who feels aggrieved by the determination can appeal to the Labour Relations Tribunal.

“And the procedure isn’t finished yet as any party
aggrieved by the decision of the tribunal can still appeal to the Supreme Court which will take at least another year,” Coltart said, adding the process of appeal can take up to five years to the benefit of layers.