Ever wonder what happens to other schools in Zimbabwe that don't have such generous supporters?
Zimbabwe gets back on track with education goals
By Gabrielle Wade
2 March 2009 [MEDIAGLOBAL]: Zimbabwe teachers are expected to return to school today after almost a year of being on strike. Presently, the Zimbabwean dollar is so weak due to hyperinflation that teachers are demanding to be paid in a foreign currency because, on their current salaries, they are unable to afford basic costs of living or, for some, transportation to and from work.The end of the strike has been postponed numerous times; schools were expected to open in mid-January, for example, but this never happened. Negotiations were in progress at the time, but no deals had been made yet, so teachers continued to strike. According to the Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ), teachers were demanding an average salary of $2,500 a month.
The yearlong strike has caused huge problems in the Zimbabwe education system, with school attendance down to about 20 percent from approximately 80 percent at the beginning of 2008, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). The problems are even more serious in rural areas, where 94 percent of schools are closed and children are unable to make it to the few open schools in urban areas. The schools that remained in operation over the year in urban areas have done so with the help from wealthy parents willing to pay teachers’ salaries.
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