WINDHOEK – The political leaders of various political parties are mindful the education regime is entrenched in a deep crisis, which has the potential to cripple the country’s industrialisation ambitions.
Many political parties who will contest the elections slated for November 28 have formulated plans that they think could lift education from its quagmire.
Government has over the years struggled to lift the education standards in the country to the desired levels. The lack of infrastructure and poor maintenance of state education institutions are some of the factors plaguing the education sector.
Government currently allocates more than 20 percent of the national budget to education but this has proven the theory that throwing money at any malady is not a cure-all.
There are about 1 700 schools in the country.
New Era compiled a summary to see what strategies political parties will introduce to bolster the education sector once they are elected.
Swanu
Swanu of Namibia stands for socialist principles and it says a country is only at its best when the sum of its human capital is at its optimal.
It accused the ruling Swapo Party of falling short of this ideal and cited this as one of the reasons many Namibians are forced to live in abject poverty.
Swanu avowed to provide better, free and compulsory education from pre-primary to tertiary levels, improve vocational training, promote research and development as well as advocate for the quality of education to be equal across the social class.
Swanu says it will work on skills improvement in order to mitigate the skills shortage in the country by providing basic training centres for unemployed youth to develop skills such as computer literacy to make them more employable.
It promised to engage the private sector more in order to define the skills needed in the job market so that tertiary institutions can focus their courses on optimizing the employment of graduates.
Swapo
Having ruled the country since independence, education in the hands of Swapo has improved, but not to the desired level. Of course, the nation understands there are also other sectors that need attention, but like health and security, education cannot afford to play second fiddle especially at a stage where the country is still in a developmental state.
Swapo promises the continued mobilisation of resources towards free quality primary education and the introduction of secondary education.
The party says the possibility of free tertiary/higher education in priority sectors will be explored.
It also promised to modernise physical capacity, equipment and technology of existing schools, vocational and skills development centres, as well as education and training institutions.
It wants to increase funding for the Unam School of Medicine to swell the annual enrolment of students from 55 to 80 students per year, Unam’s School of Pharmacy from 25 to 40 students per year and introduce new programmes in dentistry, medical laboratory and rehabilitation sciences.
It will also create an environment for the transition of the Polytechnic of Namibia to Namibia’s University of Science and Technology.
Without going into much detail, Swapo says it will improve the conditions of service for teachers.
NEFF
NEFF says, unlike others, its manifesto does not present promises, but rather commitments that it says will be implemented if voted into power.
NEFF says it will offer free quality education for Namibians from early childhood development to the achievement of a postgraduate qualification.
With government-funded students still owing millions to the Namibia Students Financial Assistance Fund, NEFF says it will cancel all debts of all students who owe institutions of higher learning money for academic purposes.
It says it will ensure education and training are linked to community service and industries in order to prepare human resources to contribute to the development of the communities as well as the economy.
NEFF says it will also introduce religious education and improve the remuneration and working conditions of academics, encourage them to continue with teaching and research and not take up administrative posts in the public and private sectors.
NDP
The NDP vowed to renew the current education system in order to allow the elders to have access to education.
It says education must be open for both youth and elders by accommodating them for fulltime and part-time studies.
Education will also be free from pre-primary to secondary school, says NDP.
All People’s Party
APP says its goal is to ensure that children receive quality education that will make them more competitive and allow them to go to any tertiary institution around the world.
Measures the party will implement if voted into power include the implementation of real free and compulsory education for all children from primary school up to first undergraduate university level, college or technikon level degree or diploma.
It will also make repetition of higher secondary grades (grades 10 and 12) automatic at least once.
It also promised to establish more agricultural colleges around the country.
With the country struggling to source science and mathematics teachers, APP says it will return retired teachers still fit for service to help with teaching.
It also promised to ensure all schools have information technology communication centres to enable the youth to master ITC.
It says it will ensure the proper re-grading and recognition of all qualifications obtained by Namibians in the former East Bloc countries of Eastern Europe and Cuba.
DTA
The party believes education is the most powerful tool for the advancement of the nation and most potent weapon to fight poverty.
The party intends to review and revise the education system, salary structures associated with teaching staff and address the shortfall faculty and related issues in the country.
The party also promised to set up a National Commission on Education to report in one year on the state of education and the reforms needed.
It promises to set up mass open online courses and distance learning teaching classrooms to make it convenient for the working class and housewives to further their knowledge and qualifications.
DTA will also initiate a nationwide constituency level incubation and accelerator programme for encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship.
The procedure to avail student loans will be simplified and loans made affordable.
It says it will ensure the effective implementation of the right to education and the right to food security are encapsulated in the constitution.
Nudo
Nudo says education is the greatest equalizer and claims education in Namibia is not addressing the market needs of the country.
It wants to tailor the education system in such a way that it meets the developmental needs of the country. It will also revise the challenges of the Cambridge system and turn it into a needs-based education system.
The party will abolish the automatic transfer of learners to the next grade, saying it creates a culture of non-commitment among school learners.
Nudo also promised to build vocational training centres and colleges for education in all regions, while ensuring teachers have houses in all regions.
Nudo will set up career guidance centres in every major town and city where there are high schools.
Republican Party
On the subject of education RP believes the education system should be adapted in such a way to ensure that it is based on Christian principles with Christian science as a subject and daily devotion to be instituted at all schools because 80 percent of Namibians are said to be Christians.
It will also ensure learners are taught moral values and that they understand that they have to accept responsibilities that are expected from citizens and future leaders, such as self-reliance, self-confidence, curiosity, creativity and empowerment.
RP says it will convince the authorities to place more emphasis on teaching of mathematics, science, languages and history.
It will also push for the establishment of more technical schools for those learners who prefer a more practically oriented education rather than a purely academic one.
RP will also have the current BETD programme reviewed and upgraded to be in line with the requirements of SADC tertiary education institutions, as this will facilitate a smooth transition for those who pursue further studies in the SADC region.
It also promised to provide decent and affordable houses to teachers in all the rural areas.
RDP
The country’s official opposition says the current education system is not meeting the needs of the country’s economy despite the massive budget allocation. If voted into power, the party will replace what it calls the “failing education system” with one that creates the required knowledge and skills to make the country productive and competitive.
It promised to develop an education system that is consistent with national development needs by doing things such as training new teachers, and providing continuous in-service training to teachers to provide better attractive incentives to teachers.
It will also avail textbooks to every schoolchild and introduce free secondary and tertiary education in government-aided institutions.
It will restructure the curricula with deliberate emphasis on science, social science, mathematics, information technology, technical, commercial and management skills as well as civic and environmental education.
RDP says it will adopt a broad-based approach to well-balanced scholars who are fit to enter the economic mainstream where all stakeholders play a role in the formulation of the syllabus.
It vowed to provide sufficient education facilities, accommodation, transport and catering services.
It wants to reduce the teacher-learner ratio to 1:25.
United People’s Movement (UPM)
In its brief manifesto, the party says it will make use of the parliamentary forum to address issues regarding education, health, gender equality, gender-based violence, the economy, social agriculture and other important services at all levels of government.