The Minister of Education and Culture, Samaria Tovela, stated on Thursday, July 24, that a lack of funding is compromising the development of the education sector, particularly hindering the construction of new classrooms to accommodate the nearly 100,000 classes still being taught outdoors.
“We need resources in order to build schools and quickly place our children in classrooms. At the moment, we’re working with what we have and prioritizing the most critical areas,” the minister said.
According to Tovela, efforts are underway by the government to improve the situation, but in the meantime, alternative solutions are being pursued. “While we don’t yet have the funds, we are providing staff so that children can continue learning,” she added. Speaking during the launch of the 12th edition of the National Culture Festival, the minister highlighted the provinces most affected by the issue: Nampula, Cabo Delgado, Zambézia, and Maputo — spanning the northern, central, and southern regions.
In June, according to Lusa, Faruk Karim, head of the Planning Department at the Provincial Directorate of Education in Nampula, reported that over 1.3 million primary and secondary school students attend classes seated on the floor due to a lack of desks. Recently, Minister Tovela confirmed in the National Assembly that the education sector’s budget allocation would be reduced in 2025 — from 14.2% of the State Budget in 2024 to 12.1%.
Despite this, the minister assured that the government remains committed to investing in teacher training and improving school infrastructure in order to ensure a more inclusive, resilient, and modern education system.
“Education remains one of the government’s top priorities, and we are committed to ensuring that the available resources are used more efficiently. The current budgetary constraints are strongly influenced by the post-election crisis, which has caused an economic slowdown and a drop in domestic revenue collection,” she explained.
As part of the Government’s Five-Year Plan (2025–2029), the gradual hiring of 58,128 teachers is planned by 2029, which should help reduce the current student-to-teacher ratio to 55 students per educator. The minister emphasized that these measures are aimed at improving teaching conditions and access to quality education across the country.
In the area of STEM education (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), 44,000 third- and fourth-grade teachers have been trained, in addition to 228 secondary school teachers and 392 trainers from teacher training institutes. Added to this are 85 instructors from vocational education and 325 lecturers from higher education. Robotics clubs have also been established in several secondary schools.
Source: Diário Económico
