Zimbabwe makes heritage-based curriculum mandatory

All schools in Zimbabwe will be required to adopt the Heritage-Based Curriculum (HBC) as their core syllabus from next year, with foreign curricula such as the Cambridge pathway permitted only as optional add-ons subject to approval by the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education.

The policy shift is aimed at standardising education nationwide and ensuring that all learners are grounded in Zimbabwe's history, culture, languages and national development priorities, while still allowing institutions to offer international qualifications as supplementary programmes.

Currently, Zimbabwe operates under three main curricula. Government, council and mission schools primarily teach the Heritage-Based Curriculum. Some private and trust schools offer both the HBC and the Cambridge curriculum, which is administered by Cambridge Assessment International Education. A limited number of institutions, including Harare International School, follow the International Baccalaureate (IB), a globally recognised programme largely catering to expatriate and diplomatic communities.

The Heritage-Based Curriculum focuses on national values, indigenous knowledge systems, science, technology, skills development and local languages. In contrast, the Cambridge curriculum follows a British-based international examination model with globally benchmarked standards, while the IB emphasises inquiry-based learning and international-mindedness.

Responding to questions in the Senate last week, Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Torerai Moyo said the new requirements would be enforced in line with constitutional provisions.

"According to Section 63 of the Constitution of Zimbabwe, everything that is learnt in the country is supposed to be taught under the same curriculum, which is given by the Permanent Secretary," he said. "If we are to look at the Constitution of Zimbabwe, we realise that the Heritage-Based Curriculum is the one that is supposed to be learnt in all schools."

Minister Moyo said Cabinet had resolved that the HBC would become mandatory across all schools, regardless of ownership.

"As of now, we have three curricula," he said. "The Heritage-Based Curriculum is taught in Government schools, council schools and church schools. Other private schools offer Heritage-Based Curriculum. We also have what we call the Association of Trust Schools and independent colleges and other private schools that offer Cambridge. We also look at Harare International School, which is for the children of ambassadors. They have what they call the International Baccalaureate.

"If we are to look at this law, the Bill was presented to Cabinet and we said that all the schools in the country are supposed to teach the Heritage-Based Curriculum."

Schools wishing to continue offering Cambridge will be required to formally apply to the Secretary for Primary and Secondary Education, detailing how they intend to implement it alongside the national curriculum.

"To those who want to continue doing Cambridge, they will do it as an option. However, they have to first write a letter to the Secretary of Primary and Secondary Education explaining how they are going to do it," said Minister Moyo. "That is to say, Heritage-Based Curriculum will be the first and they will also be doing Cambridge."

The minister said the changes were prompted by concerns that some schools were neglecting Zimbabwe's history and indigenous languages.

"We realise that many schools no longer teach the history of Zimbabwe — where we came from and where we are going," he said. "Our indigenous languages, which include Shona, Ndebele, Kalanga, Shangani and Tonga, are not taught in many ATS schools. They are now learning French, Chinese and no longer learning our local languages.

"So, we encourage that by the year 2027, all the children in Zimbabwe be taught the Heritage-Based Curriculum and also be learning indigenous languages. We are not saying they must not do international languages like French and German."

Government is also intensifying teacher training and capacity-building efforts to support nationwide implementation of the Heritage-Based Curriculum (2024–2030), which aims to equip learners with skills, values and attitudes for life and work while aligning education with Zimbabwe's broader industrialisation and skills development agenda.