Free education policy and inclusive education in Tanzania: challenges and opportunities BY Dr. Luka Mathayo Mkonongwa 1

Introduction Education is regarded as key to national and personal development of all humans. Over the years, every nation in the world has been struggling to educate its citizens so that they can contribute effectively in the prosperity of their nations. At global level, various conventions have been passed ensure that education is provided without any form of discrimination for whatever reason. (Ref. statements by UNO, UNESCO, UNICEF, WHO, etc)

Experience of free education from other countries Countries such as Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Zambia and Uganda offer the so called “free” primary education. Countries such as Nigeria, Indonesia, India, and Pakistan have legislated compulsory attendance in lower secondary education since 2000.

Free education policy in Tanzania The announcement by H.E.President J.P. Magufuli about free basic education was very exciting to many of us. It was a statement of the government’s will and determination to promote the education sector which has been in crisis since independence. The struggle to offer free education in Tanzania started since independence i.e it began during the days of Mwl. J.K.Nyerere.

Tanzania believes education is key to the national development. Educated people have a greater chance of contributing to the national prosperity than the uneducated ones. The development of the country is shaped by the type and quality of education it provides to its citizens.

Is free education a reality? There is no free education any where in the world. However, there are two main ways of funding education a.Education fully funded by parents and civil societies b.Education subsidized by government In both ways there is funding required and therefore it should be made clear that there is nothing like “free” education The capitation the government provide to schools is insufficient.

Example of distribution of capitation grants in one of the primary schools in DSM The school is given capitation grant of 398,000 Tshs and its distribution is: 30% for non-textual materials 30% for infrastructure maintenance 20 % for examinations 10% for sports and games 10 % for administration

Challenges Low capitation grants e.g. 398,000 per month for primary schools and Inclusive education practice was not well realized in a cost-sharing environment, will it be possible under free education? The so called free education is enhancing discrimination instead of promoting inclusion – i.e. public schools becomes more inferior than private schools Increased enrolment Vs number of teachers and infrastructure

Challenges cont. Poor education infrastructure Poor working conditions of teachers that lead to declining teachers’ morale and motivation Multiplicity of schools Large number of out of school children Shortage of teachers with required qualification Schools have unique environments and needs e.g. rural Vs urban schools Lack of policies informed by thorough research Threat of politics Threat of private education sector

Opportunities Parents and other stakeholders’ contributions Inspectorate departments’ capacity Natural resource utilization Tax collection Research in education Business companies and individuals’ contribution to education

Recommendations Since there is nothing like “free” education it is upon the government to prepare all citizens to contribute in the education sector. A thorough research is required to establish the best modality to ensure effective and efficient provision of free and inclusive education Capitation grants to schools be reviewed and improved Heads of schools need to be trained how to use the capitation funds

Government should allocate high budget in education Children with special needs including the disabled, orphans, vulnerable children and children from marginalized or disadvantaged groups be identified and supported through a well designed system Educators should be fully involved in matters affecting the education sector Specific Education fund be established to finance education in the country

Thanks for listening