Over 200 Zimbabwe teachers expected to begin work in Rwanda

KIGALI, Rwanda

More than 200 Zimbabwean teachers are expected to arrive in Kigali this month to begin work in learning institutions across Rwanda, in part of efforts to bridge a tutors shortage in the country.

This follows the agreement on the exchange of teachers entered into between the two countries last year purposely to fill the skill gaps.

The selection followed the normal process of job recruitment where 500 teachers submitted their applications and 401 teachers were selected to sit an oral interview among which only 224 passed.

Speaking at the Trade and Investment Conference in September last year, President Paul Kagame told the participants that Rwanda plans to recruit teachers from Zimbabwe to fill the skill gaps and low numbers of trained teachers and urged the responsible authorities to work on it urgently.

“…Zimbabwe can offer us, good teachers. Work on that in a sense of urgency. Whatever number of quality teachers you find we can absorb,” Kagame said.

After one year of waiting, the batch of teachers is finally soon to arrive not later this month as per the official sources.

Zimbabwean Permanent Secretary for Labor and Public Service, Social Welfare, Simon Masanga, told the local press that the recruitment process is ongoing and he confirmed the teachers will depart the country to Rwanda not later than 17th this month.

“The recruitment process is still ongoing,” he said. “So far we have completed the recruitment of at least 20 teachers and these, if all goes according to the plan, will leave on October 17 in a chartered plane.”

In August, Rwanda and Zimbabwe signed bilateral agreements including an extradition treaty, memorandum of understanding on Immigration Cooperation and a Memorandum of Cooperation when investigating civil aircraft accidents and serious incidents.

According to the Zimbabwean economic analyst, Denford Mutasa, the exchange of expertise and labor is a gesture of willingness between the two countries to implement the African Free Continental Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) that the respective countries entered into back in 2018.

“African countries have decided to increase bilateral trade and increase Intra-African trade soon after signing the Africa Free Continental Area. If you look at Zimbabwe and Rwanda around 2018 there wasn’t much between the two countries in terms of trade,” he said.

Rwanda increased the salary of teachers of primary school teachers by 88% and the salaries of secondary school teachers by 40%.