Tanzania’s priorities in education as budget rises to nearly Sh2 trillion

Dar es Salaam. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology is expected to spend Sh1.96 trillion in 2024/25, about Sh200 billion more than its budget for the current financial year.

Part of this increase is intended to fund the implementation of the new education curricula, which partly kicked off in January.

The ministry was allocated Sh1.67 trillion for 2023/24, which enabled it to undertake key responsibilities, including completing the review of the 2014 Education and Training Policy.

Presenting his docket’s 2024/25 budget estimates in Parliament in Dodoma on Tuesday, Education, Science and Technology minister Adolf Mkenda said the ministry plans to focus on five priorities aimed at improving the quality of education.

This, among other objectives, will enable Tanzanian youth to acquire knowledge, skills, confidence, self-employment and secure employment across the globe.

The ministry will also focus on supporting research, science, technology and innovation in the country’s development agenda.

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The priorities also include continuing the implementation of the new education policy and training curricula, reviewing laws and preparing guidelines for the provision of education and training in the country.

“We intend to expand opportunities and enhance the quality of technical and vocational education and training (TVET), as well as to make more opportunities available and improve the quality of primary, secondary and teacher education,” Prof Mkenda said.

Another goal is to promote research and the use of science, technology and innovation.

“To enable the implementation of goals set for 2024/25, the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology requests your approval for a total of Sh1.965 trillion,” Prof Mkenda told the House.

Parliament’s Education, Culture and Sports committee warned that budgetary constraints that could make it difficult for  the ministry to attain its goals.

The committee identified some loopholes, including a shortage of teachers, instructors, and lecturers, especially in science, mathematics and practical training subjects.

Committee chairperson Husna Sekiboko said when presenting the team’s views that  when the committee analysed the ministry’s development budget, it found that the estimates had increased by 68 percent, indicating that the government prioritised projects implemented by the Ministry.

“Despite this increase, the education budget is only 14 percent of the total government budget, thus not reaching the international goal of 20 percent of the total government budget,” she noted.

Moreover, the committee was not satisfied with the funds allocated in some areas, including the implementation of the 2014 Education and Training Policy and the Education Curriculum.

“This will result in a lack of learning and teaching infrastructure, a shortage of teachers with qualifications matching the new curricula, and may even affect students’ ability to achieve educational success,” Ms Sekiboko said.

The small budget allocated for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges is insufficient to meet their needs and may lead to a lack of equipment and infrastructure and poor teaching and learning, according to the Committee.

It found that the majority of the ministry’s budget is allocated to the Higher Education Students Loans Board, which accounts for 60.33 percent of the development budget.

This situation, it says, hampers the government’s intention to strengthen the country’s infrastructure and procedures to produce educated Tanzanians and those continuing their education, thereby increasing productivity in the country’s development.

Lack of financial resources and infrastructure, which could affect the purpose of the new curricula and the benefits of education for students, was a major setback identified.

“The government should increase the budget for the implementation of new curricula, improve learning and teaching infrastructure, and ensure that practical training equipment is available.”

The Committee also recommended that the government increase funds for Teacher Training Colleges to provide and prepare teaching training in line with the new curricula.

Despite Members of Parliament supporting the Ministry’s request for approval of that amount, they mostly aligned with the Committee’s sentiments in calling for an increase in the budget to meet the significant needs of implementing practical education.

Mr Charles Kaijage (Muleba North-CCM) acknowledged the ministry’s accomplishment in completing the review of the new curricula, which has begun implementation.

However, he expressed concerns about the ministry’s ability to achieve this within the anticipated budget.

“The challenge here is the budget,” he said. “Implementing this practical education requires expert teachers and modern infrastructure. With this situation, I still see challenges that the government needs to address,” said Mr Kaijage.