As Tanzania braces up for the fourth multiparty elections scheduled for October 31st this year, one of the fourth phase government’s challenges remains that of shortage of qualified teachers for primary and secondary schools.
When the latest government came to power at the start of 2006, one of its commitments was to build at least one secondary school in every ward in the country.
Although construction of such schools has been afflicted by a variety of challenges such as low quality buildings, a result of corruption and outright thefts; however, the main challenge has remained that of shortage of qualified teachers.
Shortage of qualified teachers can be divided into two parts, namely general shortage of qualified teachers, that is for any subject.
And secondly, and this is very serious, shortage of teachers for mathematics and science subjects.
The government initially tried to solve the problem of shortage of qualified teachers through the introduction of a series of short, teachers’ training crash programmes.
Beneficiaries of such courses were Form Six leavers who had been left out by universities and other institutions of higher learning.
In a word, the qualifications of most members of this group being picked for training as teachers for Ward secondary schools left a lot to be desired!
It was therefore the short nature of the course the group was being exposed to, coupled with their quality that finally earned them the infamous name of Voda-fasta.
However, as is well known to each and sundry in the country, the bringing in of the so called voda-fasta teachers has not solved the problem of shortage of qualified teachers.
The main reason for this is that most of those teachers are not qualified as teachers given their weak academic base.
A few days ago the Minister for Education and Vocational Training spoke about plans to recruit 31,000 mathematics and science teachers from Kenya and Uganda.
Although the move is an attempt a good attempt to solve the problem, yet it is unlikely the ministry would be able to get the best teachers from the two countries given the fact that the two countries are equally in need of such teachers.
And as months inch, slowly but steadily, towards the general elections, with the dissolution of the government by President Jakaya Kikwete being the next awaited decision, the logical move is the postponement of the problem to the next government.
That being the reality, what should be done? Would it be proper to stay put and wait, for the solution of the problem, by the next government to be elected in four months’ time?
What the next government ought to look into in the quest for solution in the shortage of qualified teachers is to start thinking now and seriously at that about importing mathematics and sciience teachers from outside Africa.
What is perhaps comforting is that importing teachers from abroad is not a new thing for Tanzania.
The first phase government of Dr Julius Nyerere was involved in a similar project in the late sixties and early seventies when it brought an army of teachers from the United States of America under what came to be known as the Peace Corps Programme.
During the time, most of the teachers under the Peace Corps Programme were involved in teaching various subjects, especially English.
And in late seventies and early eighties, the same first phase government imported mathematics and science teachers for selected government-run secondary and technical schools from the then Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, USSR.
Since Tanzanians decided over ten years ago to prepare the nation for science and technology, it has no alternative but to start thinking seriously about importing mathematics and science teachers from abroad.
Tanzanians would be cheating themselves if they think that coming into force of the so called Common Market would solve their problem of shortage of qualified teachers.
Such thinking is wrong because both Kenya and Uganda are not well off in the area, hence the dire need to look beyond the African continent.
For instance it is known that Russia and India has some of the highest mathematics/science teachers per capita in the world.
And because there hundreds of thousands of mathematics and science teachers from the two countries, it would easier for Tanzania to get the best teachers for her schools.
What is more, getting teachers who can teach mathematics and science subjects in English from Russia and India is not difficult.
Another plus is that Russia and India are in good relations with Tanzania.
Thus what the next, new government could do is make use of the existing relations between the two countries in getting mathematics and science teachers.
For a start, the government could enter into five years, renewable (once) contract with each teacher.
Such a programme could be brought to an end after a twenty year programme when Tanzania would have got adequate teachers for its own schools.
The foregoing programme could be implanted simultaneously with a teacher incentive scheme in which teachers, and in particular those involved in teaching mathematics and science subjects, are paid better than any profession in the country.
That is the only way of keeping well trained and qualified teachers in their jobs! The government has to act now or never!
By Attilio Tagalile
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