CONCEPT PAPER

REGARDING THE ESTABLISHMENT OF

ACADEMIES OF EXCELLENCE IN ZIMBABWE

Background

On 28th October 2009, the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture (the “Ministry”)
entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (“MoU”) with Teach Zimbabwe Trust (TZT).
The MoU resulted from the discussions between stakeholders and the Ministry on how best to
partner to improve and expand the educational system in Zimbabwe, with specific focus on the
establishment of Academies of Excellence. This comes in the wake of the numerous challenges
that the education system faces following the many years of economic decline. Due to the
deepening poverty, many talented pupils from poor rural and peri-urban areas have failed to
access quality education or any education altogether. The establishment of the Academies is
intended to avert further loss of talented disadvantaged students and is a policy priority for the
Ministry.

Context

The years following Zimbabwe’s attainment of political independence in 1980 saw the rapid
expansion and development of the education system. The expansion that took place in
Zimbabwe’s education system between 1980 and 1995 was unparalleled elsewhere in the world.
This ‘education miracle’ was achieved and sustained through a massive investment by
Government and the international donor community in school infrastructure, teaching and
learning materials, equipment and other resources, accompanied by a massive advocacy for
participation in education by both the young and old. Aggressive teacher training programmes
and attractive salaries ensured the provision and retention of a highly motivated and skilled
teaching and administrative support staff in schools. Meanwhile, communities, local authorities,
trusts and foundations, corporate bodies (mines, companies, farming enterprises) as well as
individuals complemented Government efforts by investing in school infrastructure, learning
materials and equipment. By 1990 Universal Primary Education (UPE) had virtually been
achieved, and the high standards of education earned the country ‘flagship’ status among the
world’s nations in education development.

The challenge

Since the mid 1990s, Zimbabwe has experienced a precipitous economic decline that led to a
rapid deterioration in the delivery of basic services, with education being one of the worst
affected. Resources for the maintenance of school infrastructure were not available. School
infrastructure fell into a state of general dilapidation and there was a critical shortage of teaching
and learning materials and equipment. Meanwhile, as the local currency collapsed with the
economy, staff salaries were eroded so severely that many staff failed to turn up for duty, with
some leaving the profession and the country altogether. Without teachers schools could not
operate, and so attendance fell and dropout rates increased sharply. In every respect, the entire
education system in Zimbabwe had reached the point of near-collapse.
Opportunities for recovery

The current period presents many opportunities for the rapid restoration of the education sector.
The Global Political Agreement (GPA) signed on 15 September 2008 and the subsequent
formation of the Inclusive Government on 13 February 2009 gave impetus to positive changes in
the country’s political and socio-economic landscape. In March 2009, the Short-Term
Emergency and Recovery Programme (STERP) was launched, and this paved the way for the
country’s rehabilitation, with the education system taken as one of the key priorities during this
transitional period. More recently, the Medium Tern Plan (MTP) seeks to build upon previous
efforts to ensure a more rapid and sustained recovery of the education sector. STERP II
published in December 2009 specifically adopts the Academies concept as outlined in this paper.

Among the many opportunities that Zimbabwe can capitalize on are the following:

• Zimbabwe’s past experiences that enabled it to achieve flagship status in Africa, with the
educational standards that the country had reached only 15 years ago standing as a
beacon to guide current and future efforts
• the lessons Zimbabwe can draw from the wealth of its own experiences as well as those
of other countries that emerged from crisis
• prioritization of investment in education by Zimbabwean individuals, households and
families, with such commitment often exhibited in the strong tradition of community
support for school development
• existence of school structures which, although now in varying degrees of disrepair,
remain solid and restorable at a modest cost
• the stabilization of the economy that saw most teachers who were still in the country
resuming their duties and playing an active role in the restoration of the education system
• considerable goodwill from development partners and other stakeholders who have been
forthcoming with substantial amounts of financial, material, technical, and other forms of
assistance to help the Ministry restore the delivery of education services

The restoration of the education system will require the adoption of cost-efficient and effective
strategies by government, communities and partners. The ultimate aim is to utilise all these
opportunities to re-build schools to standards that ideally match or surpass those of the pre-2000
era.

Objectives

The overall goal of the “Academies of Excellence” is to ensure rapid and sustainable recovery
and development of the education system, and thus curtail any further loss of national talent,
especially among disadvantaged students, through concrete, realistic and demonstrable returns on
sufficiently focused investment in the education sector. The specific objectives of the initiative
are:
1. to immediately halt any further loss of the talent that is resident in young, promising
Zimbabweans by immediately identifying talented1 pupils from a variety of disadvantaged
backgrounds, nurturing such talent, and developing it for the long-term benefit of
Zimbabwe;

2. to ensure the holistic reconstruction of selected, targeted secondary/high schools and

primary schools as part of the recovery process in the education sector; and

3. to demonstrate strategies that can realistically be employed by all schools in Zimbabwe in

order to achieve quality, equity and relevance in a sustainable way.

4. to operate as a focal point for local communities and as a benefit to the cluster of schools
in particular provinces which feed children and access facilities.

Strategy

In every post-crisis situation, everything becomes a priority but because resources are often
limited, the Ministry has to prioritise. In this regard, the Ministry has outlined three main policy
objectives, namely:

1. Restoration of basic education. This focuses on protecting every child’s right to gain access
to and participate in basic education of a good quality, with an emphasis on basic literacy,
numeracy and essential life skills. This is supported by a definite set of attainable goals that
focuses on curricular reforms (more focus on technical and vocational education), the
provision of essential textbooks to every school, and creation of a more conducive learning
environment, particularly one that promotes good hygiene (e.g. the repair of toilets). As
part of the process of decentralization, schools will have greater control over the financial
resources allocated to them by central government.

2. Establishment of Academies of Excellence. These are institutions that will be established

out of existing government schools and, within a framework of immediate recovery
imperatives, as well as long-term development needs of the education sector, create ideal
conditions for the fullest development of talent through an inclusive approach that
specifically caters for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds. This concept is based on
similar strategies adopted elsewhere such as the Malasyian “smart schools” programme.

3. Creation of enabling environment for non-government education. This entails the creation
of conditions that will ensure that the vast potential there is among non-government players
to contribute towards the provision and development of education is fully tapped. However,
such contributions will be made within a regulatory framework that ensures adherence to
the core values already articulated by Government.

1
‘Talent’ includes academically and/or athletically and/or artistically talented children.
The first and third policy objectives are being addressed through other mechanisms being
pursued by the Ministry. The partnership with TZT seeks to address the second objective,
namely, the establishment of Academies of Excellence.

Academies of Excellence

The Ministry has entered into a public private partnership with Teach Zimbabwe Trust for the
establishment of Academies of Excellence by rehabilitating existing government secondary and
primary schools. The schools targeted for transformation into Academies of Excellence will
have to meet certain criteria as described more fully below, including extensive academic,
sporting and cultural infrastructure and boarding facilities. In addition, some of the academies
will have centres of excellence to teach particular academic, sporting or artistic disciplines. For
example, an Academy may focus on the teaching of foreign languages or the performing or
visual arts.

Scholarship Fund

A critical component of this initiative is a programme which will identify and channel into each
Academy, academically, athletically and artistically talented but disadvantaged children from the
province in which the Academy has been established. Strict attention will be paid to the
identification of the students in order to build gender equity and assurance of a steady throughput
of girls. Equally important, will be the creation of a scholarship fund to ensure that these
disadvantaged talented students will be able to attend the Academies. Each disadvantaged
student will receive a full scholarship covering school fees (tuition, boarding, levy, examination,
etc), uniforms and equipment (school, athletics, and arts/culture), textbooks, stationery and
materials as well as money to cover other basic expenses. The Minister after consultation with
the Permanent Secretary and Senior Directors, will appoint a board to manage the scholarship
fund.

These Academies of Excellence will support the central policies that have guided the Ministry’s
efforts over the last three decades. They will re-enforce the quest for expansion of access,
enhancement of quality and relevance, and gender equity. This they do by offering all pupils –
especially disadvantaged pupils from rural and peri-urban areas who would otherwise find it
difficult to access a good secondary education – conditions that maximize learning opportunities
within a broad curriculum framework that recognises diversity of talent in the academic field, in
technical/vocational subjects, and in the sporting, artistic and cultural disciplines.

Approximately 40% of the intake at the Academies will be reserved for talented disadvantaged
children. However, the overarching goal is that every talented disadvantaged child will have
access to quality education by being able to attend an Academy of Excellence. The balance of
places will be filled by talented children whose parents/guardians can afford to pay.
Implementation plan

The implementation of the Academies of Excellence intervention will require the following
actions:

• Selection of government schools to be transformed into Academies of Excellence.

Government schools will be selected using the following criteria; Availability of, at a
minimum, the following infrastructure:
i. Boarding facilities
ii. Specialist subject rooms such as science laboratories
iii. Library
iv. Sports facilities to cater for a wide number of sports including
football,hockey, cricket, rugby, netball, basketball, swimming and
tennis
v. Potential for e-connectivity
vi. Access to water and electricity
vii. School hall including facilities for the pursuit of the arts.

- Gender equity - where feasible, 1 girls school and 1 boys school will be chosen in
each province

• Conducting a needs assessment. A detailed assessment of type and level of inputs

required for upgrading will be conducted for each selected school, and a timetable and
budget will be prepared.

• Upgrading and construction of physical facilities.

• Identification of talented but disadvantaged pupils. This involves: the development of

criteria (including the development of objective based admission system) for the
identification of competencies that constitute ‘talent’ in the field of academic subjects, in
technical/vocational subjects, and in sporting, artistic and cultural disciplines; setting up
structures for the identification process; putting in place monitoring mechanisms to
ensure transparency, equity and efficiency in the selection process; actual selection of
pupils.

• Putting in place school management systems. Given the critical role of good school-
based management processes in school improvement programmes, this process will
involve: setting up structures for the management processes in the Academies (involving
the selection and appointment of school heads with the requisite qualifications and
proven management skills and experience); developing guidelines for management
processes; identifying management support structures, staff and processes; development
of systems and mechanisms for professional development and performance monitoring
and evaluation;
 • Identification and appointment of good Heads and teachers. To ensure effective
teaching and learning, good teachers will be identified and appointed to the Academies
of Excellence; a comprehensive incentive system to ensure the attraction and retention
of good teachers as well as good teaching performance will be put in place; development
of systems and mechanisms for professional development, performance monitoring and
evaluation.

• Psycho-social support to pupils. Academies of Excellence inherently result in high

levels of stress and other behavioural problems for both students and administration. To
address this guidance counselors will be identified and appointed; links with mental
health professionals and other specialists who can provide services as required will be
established.

• Linkages to local and external institutions. In order for Academies of Excellence to tap
into the global experiences of similar institutions and benefit from the latest trends and
developments in education, they will be twinned to similar institutions in other
countries. This can be done through continuous exchange of experiences, sharing
resources, and participating in carefully designed teacher and student exchange
programmes.

• Collaboration with sports and cultural associations. Within the country, Academies of
Excellence will be linked to sporting, artistic and cultural associations so that pupils can
be exposed to expanded opportunities for the development of talent, get mentoring,
training, coaching from experts and other talented individuals, and be aware of the latest
developments and trends in these fields. For example, partnerships will be sought with
sports associations so that they may assist with the rehabilitation of sporting facilities the
provision of competent coaches and the identification and development of athletic talent.

• Collaboration with Embassies. Linkages with Embassies will be explored especially for
the development of centers of excellence within the Academies for foreign languages
and the arts.

• Collaborating with old boys/girls and parents. In order to ensure that this has
community buy in and back up for the programme close linkages will be developed with
old boys and girls and their associations and parents of children attending the selected
schools. Parental and old boy/girl involvement in the running of schools will be
encouraged in collaboration with the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture.

Time frame

The development of the Academies of Excellence will adopt a phased approach that ensures a
balance between the need to effect reforms in targeted schools on the one hand, and the need to
maintain a measure of stability and continuity on the other. The first phase will therefore be
implemented over a six-year period, beginning with a focus on Form One students in the first
year of secondary education, and ensuring their through-flow to the sixth year. The first year of
implementation will be May 2010, to coincide with the beginning of the second school term. The
first phase will last up to December 2016.

In the first year 2010, twenty (20) government secondary schools will be identified for
rehabilitation and conversion into Academies of Excellence, two in each of the ten provinces.
Each year, additional schools will be identified, alternating each year between primary and
secondary schools. Accordingly in 2011, the focus will shift to the identification of 20
government primary schools which meet the criteria mentioned above. This process will
continue until all the schools which meet the criteria have been rehabilitated.

Critical timelines for Year 1

Action Item Due Date

Identification of the 20 schools (see map) Completed
Needs assessment of each targeted school 30 June 2010
Fundraising road show July – August 2010
Initiation of tender process and identification August 2010
of contractors for physical upgrading and
expansion
Commencement of physical upgrading September 2010
Establishment of Scholarship Fund board August 2010
Selection and placement of students 4th quarter 2010
Launch of first 20 Academies November 2010

Roles and responsibilities

The key players in this project are the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture and TZT,
and their roles will be complementary.

1. Role of TZ Trust

TZT will appoint an implementing partner.TZT and that partner will enter into a contract
outlining the latter’s responsibilities and obligations in accordance with the MoU and this
Concept Paper. The implementing partner will have control of and responsibility for the
resources needed to competently and transparently deliver the services. The implementing
partner will have first right of refusal to deliver contracts on behalf of TZT.

TZ Management Services will be primarily responsible for the mobilization of funds and the day
to day management of the project in accordance with the policies and guidelines agreed to
between the Ministry and TZT. It will seek financial and other material support from
international organizations, donor communities, and international and local private sector.
However, TZ Management Services shall not be legally bound to mobilize the required financial
and material resources. TZT will be responsible for the proper accounting of all funds received
and accounting transparency to donors and the Ministry.
TZT and TZ Management Services will work closely with the Ministry to ensure proper
coordination and agreement on project plans. More specifically, in accordance with the MoU,
TZT shall be responsible for the below:

(a) ensure the repair/expansion of the physical infrastructure of schools selected for the
Academies of Excellence programme;
(b) ensure the rollout of a ICT competencies program for ICT teachers at the Academies of
Excellence;
(c) identify disadvantaged talented students in rural and peri-urban areas in consultation with
the Ministry and develop a scholarship programme for the integration of such students
into the Academies of Excellence;
(d) manage & administer incentive schemes for schools & Ministry staff in Academies of
Excellence;
(e) co-ordinate sector players involved in the activities referred to above ;
(f) recruit qualified professional local staff and expatriate staff in the activities referred to
above;
(g) enhance the academic and technical proficiency of students in Academies of Excellence;
and
(h) ensure the professional development of teachers and administrators in Academies of
Excellence.

2. Role of the Ministry

The Ministry will assume overall responsibility for the design of the intervention, ensuring that
the Academies of Excellence are national institutions that promote Ministry’s policy goals. More
specifically, the Ministry will:

(a) select schools, pupils, appoint school heads and teachers;

(b) provide management oversight, monitor and evaluate overall performance of the
Academies; and
(c) meet the basic salaries of all staff on the authorized establishment.
(d) monitor the activities of TZT and its partner entities to ensure that the activities are
consistent with the policy goals of the Ministry;
(e) appoint the members of the board which will select talented disadvantaged children who
qualify for the scholarship and place such children in Academies.
(f) coordinate the involvement of educational, sporting, artistic and cultural bodies and
associations in the schools selected.

Accounts

TZT will establish a bank account in which all funds received for the project will be deposited.
Quarterly and annual reports will be prepared by an independent and international chartered and
professional accounting firm. All such reports will be submitted to the Ministry and the relevant
governmental authorities in accordance with the Private Voluntary Organisation Act. The books
of TZT and TZ Management Services will be available for inspection by the Ministry and
Ministry of Finance at times mutually agreed to by the parties.
Indicative Budget

The Ministry will require a minimum of US$2.8 million to rehabilitate each Academy of
Excellence. This includes scholarship for approximately 600 students, teacher incentives,
upgrading and expansion of physical infrastructure, IT programme and all other administrative
costs. A more accurate assessment of the funding requirements of each selected school will be
determined once the schools have been identified and the needs assessment done.

The major cost items making up the budget are the following:

1. Funding for physical rehabilitation of schools and their facilities

2. Funding for scholarship programme – full scholarship to be provided - tuition, board,
textbooks, clothing, extracurricular expenses, travel
3. Supplemental payments for administrative and teachers salaries
4. Professional development
5. IT systems
6. Libraries