Governments of Rwanda and Zimbabwe yesterday concluded deal under which Zimbabwean teachers will come to start teaching when the academic year opens in January, an official source confirmed Monday
Immediately, 273 teachers will be for the secondary school level and another 33 for vocational institutions or TVETs, according to the ministry of Education.
The latest development is similar to a period between 2005 and 2010 when the Rwandan government welcomed an influx of Ugandan teachers.
The Ugandans, especially English teachers, were in so much demand that the High Commission in Kampala published advertisements in Ugandan media.
There were even Rwanda-Uganda Education Expos held to entice the Ugandans to move over. They got lots of incentives, far exceeding what they got back home.
In a virtual signing ceremony, Rwanda’s education minister Dr Valentine Uwamariya and Zimbabwe’s public service minister Paul Mavima put pen to paper this Thursday afternoon.
The MoU on exchange of educational personnel and expertise follows a Zimbabwean trade mission in September where President Paul Kagame revealed the country urgently needed English teachers. He said Zimbabweans could fill that void.
The arrival of Zimbabwean teachers will replace Ugandans who had to leave as relations between Kigali and Kampala broke down. Since March 2019, Rwanda has publicly accused Uganda of planning regime change in Kigali. The Ugandan authorities also claim Rwandans are sending spies into their country to destabilize it.
CU/abj/APA