Teachers paid 20bn/- in outstanding arrears

ANNE ROBI in Mtwara

Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Dr Leonard Akwilapo

THE government has released a total of 20b/- payment for teachers’ outstanding arrears, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, Science, Technology and Vocational Training, Dr Leonard Akwilapo has said.

Speaking here yesterday, Dr Leonard said that the funds were disbursed between July 2016 and April this year, stressing that the government was committed to ensure all the outstanding arrears, salaries and other allowances are settled as soon as possible.
Dr Akwilapo was speaking while officially closing the National Global Action Week for Education (GAWE) conducted in Nanyumbu District starting 24 to 28 of this month. “We are continuing with the process of paying the outstanding arrears, allowances and salaries for the teachers, and we are committed to ensure all the arrears are settled soon,” he said.
Dr Akwilapo called for teachers countrywide to now embark on serious teaching and avoid dodging classes, resulting in low quality teaching on bases of not being paid or claiming their pay from the government.
He also asked the Tanzania Teachers’ Union (TTU) to stop campaigns countrywide that encouraged teachers to down their tools and demanded for their payment from the government.
He said the teachers’ union should now start enhancing teachers to ensure quality teaching, adhering to rules and regulations, expressing the need for the education quality assurances to review the monitoring system in schools to ensure better teaching and learning processes in schools.
Dr Akwilapo said the quality assurance should make sure teachers who do not adhere to school rules and regulations, with poor school attendance records and low quality teaching are exposed for disciplinary actions.
On the other hand, the Coordinator of Tanzania Education Network (TenMet) Ms Catherine Sekwao asked the government to budget sizeable amount of funding in the education sector in the country.
Ms Catherine said that many schools in the country were facing many challenges, such as lack of enough desks and other vital infrastructures.