AIDS hurting education in Oshana

OSHAKATI – Prolonged illness and death among teachers because of HIV-AIDS are the biggest challenges facing the Oshana Education Region, the region’s Education Director, Dutte Shinyemba, said on Tuesday.

Shinyemba was addressing an event at Oshakati to mark Global Education for All (EFA) week. Those present also took stock of the pledge Namibia made at the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2000 – to provide education for all by 2015.Shinyemba appealed to skilled parents and community members to assist teachers in cases where prolonged illness was noticed at a school in their community.”This will help our learners not to miss lessons for many days due to the teacher’s illness,” Shinyemba said.She noted that the region was experiencing a drop in the number of enrolments at rural schools.However, street children, vulnerable children and women were dominating literacy classes.She said one of the challenges was to ensure that street children and vulnerable children were cared for, attended school and progressed through the education system.Shinyemba appealed to men to join their women counterparts in attending literacy classes.Further, it was important that the region met the challenge of improving the quality of education at rural schools so that parents did not move their children to urban schools.”The other challenge is to make education accessible to people with disabilities.One might still find children with disabilities not attending schools,” Shinyemba noted.Speaking at the same occasion, Oshana Region’s Chief Regional Officer, John Kandombo, urged members of all communities in the Oshana Region to unite in the struggle for quality education for all for a better future.He urged teachers and pupils to be committed, and advocated minimising class repetition and school drop-outs which he said contributed to limiting the economic growth of the country.- NampaThose present also took stock of the pledge Namibia made at the World Education Forum in Dakar, Senegal, in April 2000 – to provide education for all by 2015.Shinyemba appealed to skilled parents and community members to assist teachers in cases where prolonged illness was noticed at a school in their community.”This will help our learners not to miss lessons for many days due to the teacher’s illness,” Shinyemba said.She noted that the region was experiencing a drop in the number of enrolments at rural schools.However, street children, vulnerable children and women were dominating literacy classes.She said one of the challenges was to ensure that street children and vulnerable children were cared for, attended school and progressed through the education system.Shinyemba appealed to men to join their women counterparts in attending literacy classes.Further, it was important that the region met the challenge of improving the quality of education at rural schools so that parents did not move their children to urban schools.”The other challenge is to make education accessible to people with disabilities.One might still find children with disabilities not attending schools,” Shinyemba noted.Speaking at the same occasion, Oshana Region’s Chief Regional Officer, John Kandombo, urged members of all communities in the Oshana Region to unite in the struggle for quality education for all for a better future.He urged teachers and pupils to be committed, and advocated minimising class repetition and school drop-outs which he said contributed to limiting the economic growth of the country.- Nampa