MBABANE – In order to ensure a proper rollout of Grade 0 in all public schools in the country, government is set to amend the Free Primary Education Act, 2010.
This was confirmed by the Principal Secretary (PS) in the Ministry of Education and Training Nanikie Mnisi. The PS was responding to questions on how the funding for Grade 0 pupils will be administered following that those in primary school are accommodated under the FPE. She said: “We are going to amend the FPE Act 2010 this year to include Grade 0 and make it compulsory for pupils to go through this grade. We are hopeful that the next budget will grant us the opportunity to secure 100 posts to try and ensure every child gets a chance to have a professional educators.”
Also, she relayed that the ministry is building Grade 0 classes in some of the storm-affected schools in northen Hhohho. The question emanated from the fact that the existing Act does not make mention of Grade 0.
Instead, it stipulates that every liSwati child enrolled at a public primary school is entitled to free education from Grade I up to Grade VII. This has led to some parents fearing that they may be expected to pay for Grade 0.
The rollout of Grade 0 is in accordance with the Eswatini’s National Education and Training policy 2018 which emphasises the need to ensure all children in Eswatini aged zero to eight years have equal opportunity to access quality Early Childhood Care Development and Education (ECCE) services.
FPE was introduced in Eswatini in 2010 as an initiative which was part of government’s effort to fulfil the constitutional mandate of providing free education to all children at primary level. The programme is aimed at removing financial barriers to education and ensuring that all children in the country access basic education, regardless of economic status.
The initiative was aimed at ensuring that no child in the country would be denied access to education due to financial constraints. Government undertook the responsibility of paying school fees directly to schools on behalf of the enrolled children, thereby easing the burden on parents.
Meanwhile, a document titled ‘Giving children in Eswatini a head start: Early Childhood Care, Development and Education Financing Brief’ published by UNESCO in 2021 stated that in 2019, government piloted Grade 0 in 80 public primary schools in rural areas. Unfortunately, the pilot programme was affected by COVID-19, as most centres closed to contain the virus.
In 2020, according to the document, only 20 per cent of children between three to five years enrolled in ECCDE centres were publicly supported, mainly through the pilot programme for Grade 0 in 80 public primary schools.
A recommendation was made that government should finance the rollout of Grade 0 across the country and accordingly budget for infrastructure creation, training of caregivers, and procurement of materials in the 2022/23 budget and the medium-term budgeting framework. This, it was stated, was required to better prepare children to enter the schooling system.
Also mentioned in the document was that in fiscal year 2021/22, no allocation was made for ECCDE capital projects such as the construction of classrooms for Grade 0 in public primary schools. The recommendation made was that government needed to plan and budget for the financing of infrastructure projects required to increase the supply of ECCDE services, including pre-school classrooms, water and sanitation facilities as well as play centres.
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