IMPALILA ISLAND — The Directorate of Education in the Zambezi Region is exploring plans to expand the curriculum at Impalila Combined School to include Advanced Subsidiary (AS) Level once resources allow, regional education director Alex Sikume has revealed. 

Speaking to New Era during an interview on Friday, Sikume said the initiative forms part of the directorate’s long-term strategy to improve access to quality education in isolated communities such as Impalila. 

“We are considering expanding the curriculum to AS when resources allow — in terms of classrooms and hostel facilities,” Sikume explained. 

He added, “That’s the plan for the future because, looking at this island, it’s so isolated. You can achieve good results here because there will be fewer disturbances from the outside world.” 

According to him, once the  AS level is introduced, the directorate envisions establishing a functional hostel to accommodate learners, thereby creating a more focused learning environment. 

Impalila has an enrolment of 398 learners, ranging from pre-grade to grade 11. 

Currently, Impalila Combined School has a community-built hostel, but it is not yet operational. 

“There’s a community hostel, but the government does not yet fund it. We have minimal resources. We added three hostels on top of what we had last year in the region, and we are thinking of adding others depending on the financial resources available,” Sikume shared. 

He added that because Impalila’s hostel is not yet subsidised, it relies solely on parental contributions. This situation is challenging to sustain, given the low-income levels in the area. 

“We are looking at either having it subsidised or eventually constructing a government hostel here,” Sikume noted. 

He emphasised that the directorate remains committed to improving education infrastructure in remote areas such as Impalila to ensure learners there have equal opportunities to excel academically. 

-anakale@nepc.com.na