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JCTR APPLAUDS GOVERNMENT FOR INCREASING ALLOCATIONS TO UNZA AND CBU IN THE 2009 NATIONAL BUDGET
09 February 2009
The 2009 National Budget announced on 30 January, has revealed government’s commitment to improving the quality of tertiary education in Zambia. Allocations to the University of Zambia and Copperbelt University have been raised by K 12 billion and K 3 billion respectively. The Debt, Aid and Trade Programme Coordinator – Tina Nanyangwe Moyo observed that despite profuse appeals, stand offs and worse still violent demonstrations by students from the two institutions, the 2008 National Budget paid a deaf ear and decided that the institutions were going to run on same the allocation as the 2007 National Budget. The upshot of this decision was obviously not pleasing as it saw premature closures to these important high institutions of learning.
In addition, the increase in the allocations for student loans and bursaries by K11 billion for UNZA and K6 billion for CBU is commendable. It is expected that more eligible but vulnerable students will access the facility who otherwise would fail to continue with higher education.
We are however concerned by a major reduction in the allocation to educational materials. Learning and teaching aids are essential in the enhancement of comprehensive education. Aside from motivating students and pupils, learning and teaching aids act as incentives for teachers and lectures as they make teaching more efficient and less stressful. Allocations for educational materials for colleges has been curtailed by a staggering K 8 billion in the 2009 from K 10.9 billion to K 2.8 billion.
“Community Schools are a very important part of the education system in Zambia today. However, the 2009 National Budget like the 2008 budget has been silent on them.” Mrs Moyo adds. It should be noted that with high HIV and AIDS Prevalence rates, many children have been orphaned and find it difficult to continue with their education in government schools where they are required to pay school fees and other costs like uniform, PTA and several contributions required in primary school. Community schools have taken in many such children and hence the need for government to offer some kind of support to these schools. Moreover, there are over 2129 community schools in Zambia coming second only to government schools. This shows their significance.
Under the health sector, the persistent increase in the allocation for International Specialised Treatment is worrying especially because it goes without saying that very few citizens benefit from this budget line. In last year’s National Budget, the allocation was raised by K 2 billion and increase by a similar amount has been observed in the 2009 National Budget, from K6, 225, 763,220 to K8, 387,006,835. Surprisingly, allocations to Local Specialised Treatment of which the majority of Zambians are likely to benefit have remained meagre, from K1,200,000,000 in 2008 to K1,261,019,160 in 2009. The question then is, what government’s priority for specialised treatment is. Is it only for the select few who can be flown to South Africa using tax payers’ money? The JCTR Debt, Aid and Trade Programme Coordinator, Mrs Moyo strongly urges the government to reallocate the K2 billion additional funds for International Specialised Treatment to procurement of the desperately needed hospital equipment at the University Teaching Hospital and other major hospitals in the country. Many people’s lives would be served through improved Local Specialised Treatment than otherwise.
The 2009 National Budget should be a budget for Zambians and not one that serves a select few at the expense of the tax payers.
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