By Chantelle Muzanenhamo
ZIMBABWE will deploy a second batch of teachers and other specialists to Rwanda under a 2021 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to exchange skilled labour between the two countries.
The Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare, Simon Masanga, confirmed the development in a video circulating online, saying preparations for the deployment are advanced.
Masanga said the new cohort comprises 157 specialists, the majority of whom are teachers.
He said the recruits are currently undergoing pre-departure training preparing them for life and work in Rwanda.
“We are recruiting another cohort of specialists to go to Rwanda. Again, the majority are teachers, a total of 157. Currently, they are undergoing pre-departure training,” Masanga said.
The training is being conducted jointly by officials from Rwanda’s basic and higher education sectors, together with various arms of the Zimbabwean government, he said.
The programme is designed to familiarise the recruits with Rwanda’s culture, living conditions, food, and social expectations.
“The reason we are doing this is not to catch by surprise the skilled personnel we are sending to Rwanda. We want them to be told about the culture, the living conditions, the food, the do’s and don’ts in Rwanda,” he said.
According to Masanga, the Government of Rwanda is expected to charter a plane on Sunday, 21 December, to transport the educational personnel and other specialists. Zimbabwe’s responsible minister will accompany the delegation.
Zimbabwe and Rwanda signed the MoU on educational cooperation in December 2021.
The agreement focuses on the deployment of skilled Zimbabwean teachers particularly in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), technical and vocational education and training (TVET), and nurse education to support Rwanda’s education system.
It also provides for reciprocal exchange of expertise, fair labour practices, non-discrimination, and social security for deployed educators.
Following the signing of the agreement, more than 300 teachers were recruited in the first cohort, with deployments beginning in late 2022.
Rwanda has been facing a shortage of teachers due to rapid school expansion, a shift to English as the language of instruction, and teacher attrition.
To address the gap, the country has turned to international recruitment, including from Zimbabwe, while also strengthening teacher training programmes to meet growing demand across primary and secondary education.