Matobo Parents Up In Arms Over Forex Tuition Hikes

Parents call for government's intervention as they cannot afford their children's school fees anymore. Graphic by The Bulletin

BY VUSINDLU MAPHOSA | @The_CBNews | This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. | APR 30, 2021

Guardians of some learners in Matobo are being charged tuition in forex. Despite indications that Ministry procedures were followed some parents say they did not agree to the ‘high fees ’nor are they able to pay them.

MATOBO (The Citizen Bulletin) — Parents of children learning at various schools in Matobo District of Matabeleland South have raised a red flag over schools charging in forex and hiking fees amid concerns that rural folks with little or no income generation projects cannot raise the amounts.
 
Concerned parents say most schools are charging between 300 Rands and 1050 Rands which was increased from 100 Rands per term.

Many say some of the charges are more than what other urban schools are charging.

Some of the affected schools in Matobo district are St Joseph Primary School that charges 425 Rands, St Joseph Secondary charging 950 Rands, Gohole Secondary charging 1050 Rands and Sontala Secondary charging 750 Rands.  
 
The parents say these amounts choke families and will result in school drop outs if the government does not intervene.
 
The fees structures in question announced by schools came after  the schools development committees held consultative meetings with parents on the proposed increase and most of them were against the increases.
 
A Maphisa villager, Shakespeare Ndlovu who lives close to Mahetshe Primary, Mbuya Primary and Gohole secondary says the trend in which schools in the district embarked in fees hike is worrying.

“All schools here are now charging in either Rands or United States of America dollars. Primary school rates are between R200 and R500, while secondary schools are charging between R600 and R1050 or between US$55 and US$80.”
Shakespeare Ndlovu, a Maphisa villager

“People are not working here and schools are not teaching children throughout the week but it's either three of two days per week that children go to school. It surprises us why schools decide to increase fees, even in forex.”
 
Ndlovu says these fees structures are gazetted after school authorities convince parents.
 
“Usually when school authorities call for meetings to hike fees, all villagers around the area even those without school going children attend.”

According to Ndlovu, this makes it appear as if there is consensus on fees hikes.

“Government must intervene to probe why schools are in a competition to increase fees. Due to Covid 19 it is clear that many people have not been working and where do they expect people to get such money,” he retorts.
 
Ndlovu says Maheshe Primary is charging R300 while Mahetshe Secondary charges US$55 and Gohole Secondary charges US$70. He says the increments were effected recently and they were yet to see if the schools will start chasing away pupils for non-payment.

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Another parent Sarah Moyo described engagement meetings in which fees were hiked as highly coercive saying most parents felt cornered.
 
The increase in fees came at the onset of Covid-19 lockdown significantly reducing diaspora remittances and access to economic opportunities for many villagers in the district. Villagers say they are not getting much support from their relatives in the diaspora due to COVID-19 induced job losses.

In March this year the Government noted that fees cannot be raised without the approval of a majority of parents attending a meeting called for that purpose, and without the approval of the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.

Parents expressed doubts as to whether the new school fees structures adopted by schools had been approved by the ministry hence their call for the government to intervene.

A Matobo based Primary and Secondary Education official who preferred not to be named says communication regarding the complaints by parents about the fees structures at the said schools had not yet reached their offices.
 
“The ministry is not charging those fees, but parents are the ones who agree on them. It is not the head or ministry who imposes those fees structures. That is why there is Statutory Instrument 87 of 1992 unless those who complain say they were not called to the meeting that agreed on the fees.  In most cases those who make noise are those who would have either not been there at the meeting or those who lost the votes during the meeting in which the fees structure is agreed on,” says the official.

“At voting there is a majority and minority and those who lose usually do not admit defeat.  The ministry approves the fees based on the minutes of the parents meeting, voting pattern and assembly. Unless these were not followed we will investigate.”
A Primary and Secondary Education official based in Matobo

Primary and Secondary Education Ministry spokesperson Taungana Ndoro says there is a procedure in which parents and schools present an agreed fee structure to the Ministry.
 
“Schools are allowed to charge in forex but parents are allowed to pay at the prevailing bank rate,” Ndoro says.
 
He was not committed to comment on whether the schools in question had been granted the permission to hike the fees or not.

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