Nearly 50,000 Zimbabwean children dropped out of school in 2024 alone

Nearly 50,000 learners from both primary and secondary schools across Zimbabwe dropped out in 2024, with teenage pregnancies and long distances to school cited as the leading causes, a senior government official has confirmed.

Deputy Minister of Primary and Secondary Education, Angeline Gata, revealed the alarming statistics in Parliament this week, responding to a question posed by Mashonaland West Proportional Representation MP Mutsa Murombedzi. The figures showed that a total of 49,555 learners abandoned their studies during the year - 15,809 at the primary level and 33,746 at secondary level.

Midlands Province recorded the highest number of dropouts with 7,746 learners leaving school, including 5,138 from secondary and 2,608 from primary level. Within Midlands, the districts of Gokwe North and Gokwe South were particularly affected, with 1,215 and 1,272 students respectively dropping out of secondary school.

Mashonaland Central followed closely with 7,370 learners exiting the education system - 4,318 from secondary schools and 3,052 from primary schools. In Mashonaland West, a total of 6,963 pupils dropped out, with 4,771 at primary level and 2,192 at secondary level. Manicaland also reported high dropout numbers, with 6,889 students leaving school, comprised of 4,842 from secondary level and 2,047 from primary.

Masvingo Province recorded 6,014 dropouts, while Mashonaland East had 4,943. Matabeleland North saw 4,215 students leaving school, and Matabeleland South followed with 2,359. In the capital, Harare, 2,105 learners dropped out, while Bulawayo recorded the lowest figures with 942 learners leaving school - 657 from secondary and 285 from primary.

Deputy Minister Gata attributed the high dropout rate mainly to teenage pregnancies, particularly among girls, and the long distances that some learners have to travel to reach the nearest school. "Girls are dropping out because of pregnancy. This is a call to all of us - the House and parents - to work together with the community to address this issue," she said.

She explained that although government policy dictates that no child should walk more than five kilometres to reach a school, many areas still fall short of this standard. Other contributing factors include lack of parental motivation and financial challenges, although some of the latter are being addressed through the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM).

To combat the problem, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education has introduced an Early Warning System, aimed at identifying and responding to potential cases of dropout before they happen. "We are training our teachers to identify communities and children at risk of dropping out. This initiative is being implemented in partnership with UNICEF and has been ongoing for six months now," said Gata.

The Ministry believes that better data and local-level intervention will help address the dropout crisis, which threatens to derail national education targets. The figures underscore the need for comprehensive support systems for learners, especially girls, and increased investment in rural education infrastructure to reduce the burden of distance on students.