Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education is poised to significantly bolster the nation’s teaching force with the recruitment of 8,000 new teachers in 2025.
This ambitious plan forms a cornerstone of a wider strategy aimed at improving pass rates, particularly in underperforming schools across the country, and addressing the persistent disparities between urban and rural educational provision.
The recruitment drive, while awaiting final treasury approval, reflects the Ministry’s unwavering commitment to enhancing the quality of education nationwide. Primary and Secondary Education Minister, Torerayi Moyo, confirmed the plans in a recent interview, stating: “The Ministry of Finance has not provided us with treasury concurrence to recruit new teachers in 2025. However, as a Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education, we lobbied for the recruitment of 8 000 new teachers.”
Minister Moyo highlighted the positive impact this recruitment will have on teacher-pupil ratios and, consequently, the overall quality of education: “In 2024, we recruited more than 5 000 teachers. That has tremendously reduced the high teacher-pupil ratio. With the support even in 2025, we expect to recruit more than 8 000 so that we can reduce the teacher-pupil ratio to around 1 to 30 or 35.”
The government’s commitment extends beyond teacher recruitment. Significant investments are being made in infrastructure development and resource allocation to bridge the urban-rural divide in education. Minister Moyo detailed several initiatives: “We used to have quite a number of disparities in terms of access to education, opportunities to access digital tools and some schools did not even have electricity but the Government has solarised some of the schools supported by Unicef. About 150 schools were solarised this year.”
Furthermore, the government is actively constructing 2,800 new schools to reduce travel distances for learners, particularly in rural areas. The ministry is also addressing the challenges faced by teachers in remote locations by introducing hardship allowances: “There is some kind of a hardship allowance because we know some of the schools are located quite a distance from the house. Where teachers might be walking a kilometre or more, we tend to provide a hardship allowance,” Minister Moyo explained.
Teachers deployed to rural schools are required to commit to a four-year service contract before applying for a transfer, in line with existing government policy. All appointments will be subject to thorough security vetting and medical examinations, ensuring the highest standards are maintained. The recruitment process itself has also been decentralised to improve efficiency and accessibility.
These measures build upon the significant progress made in recent years under the Second Republic. The government has made substantial strides in improving education outcomes, aiming to eliminate all schools with zero pass rates by 2030. This year’s Grade Seven results showed a notable improvement in the pass rate, rising to 49.01 percent from 45.57 percent the previous year. The Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (Zimsec) attributed this improvement to targeted interventions by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.
Despite this progress, challenges remain. A number of schools, particularly in the Matabeleland region, reported zero pass rates in this year’s examinations. This highlights the need for continued investment and targeted support for these under-resourced areas.
Specific examples include Zindele, Koodooval, and Driehoek in Gwanda District; Mbembesi, Zhampale, Tshunkunyane, and Gwatemba in Insiza District; and Ndutshwa, Phumuza, and Riverblock in Bulilima District, among others in Matabeleland North. Addressing these disparities is crucial to achieving the government’s ambitious goal of universal educational excellence.
