Parliament raises alarm over deployment of non-Nambya teachers in Hwange

Concerns have been raised in Parliament over the deployment of non-Nambya-speaking teachers to schools in Hwange district, amid fears that learners are being deprived of mother-tongue instruction during the critical early years of education.

Hwange East legislator Joseph Bonda challenged the government over the continued placement of teachers who do not speak Nambya in communities where the language is predominantly spoken, despite the availability of trained Nambya-speaking educators.

Responding in Parliament, Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Deputy Minister Mercy Dinha said teacher recruitment and deployment falls under the Public Service Commission (PSC), which allocates staff based on funded vacancies, staffing requirements and equitable distribution of qualified personnel.

She explained that the PSC is currently filling only attrition posts due to limited recruitment opportunities but said efforts have been made to prioritise Nambya-speaking teachers in Hwange.

“Since 2023, a total of 84 Nambya-speaking teachers have been recruited. Of that total, 30 were Early Childhood Development teachers, 45 primary school teachers and nine secondary school teachers,” Dinha said.

She added that the PSC remained committed to recruiting, training and deploying teachers with appropriate local language competencies in line with deployment guidelines issued on March 4, 2024.

However, Bonda argued that the policy was not being effectively implemented, claiming many teachers trained to teach in Nambya were ultimately deployed outside Hwange to areas where the language is not spoken.

“We find that most of them end up in Tsholotsho or in any other area of non-speaking Nambya language,” he said.

“Their first preference is to enrol as Nambya teachers because they want to teach in Hwange.”

Dinha maintained that the commission continues to prioritise local recruitment for Hwange, describing the recruitment of 84 Nambya-speaking teachers since 2023 as significant progress.

The parliamentary exchange highlighted longstanding concerns within the Nambya-speaking community, which has consistently argued that the shortage of teachers able to teach in the local language undermines the quality of early childhood education.

Educational research has consistently shown that children achieve better learning outcomes when taught in their first language during the foundational years, making mother-tongue instruction a key component of effective early education.

While the government says it is implementing policies that prioritise local language competencies, concerns raised in Parliament suggest gaps remain between policy and practice, with trained Nambya-speaking teachers allegedly being deployed outside the communities where their skills are most needed.