The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) on Saturday held a community meeting in Hopley to engage parents, teachers, and learners on the right to education. The gathering was a powerful reminder that education is a fundamental right, not a privilege, and that the State carries the responsibility to ensure that every child, regardless of background or location, has access to free and quality education. Parents in Hopley raised deep concerns that despite the area being home to more than 200,000 residents, it still does not have even a single secondary school. This is a tragedy that has forced children to walk extremely long distances, rely on unsafe public transport, and return home late, exposing them to violence, abuse, and unsafe conditions.
The parents’ testimonies painted a painful picture of an economy that has made education unattainable for many families. Exam fees are unaffordable, pushing countless learners out of school, while teachers, earning starvation wages, have resorted to charging for extra lessons as a way of survival. This practice, though understandable, has created a situation where learners whose parents cannot afford extra lessons are neglected, leading to further inequalities. It is a dangerous situation that harms teachers, students, and parents alike. This underscores why ARTUZ continues to demand a salary review and payment of USD $1,260 for teachers. When teachers are paid fairly, they are motivated, able to focus on learners equally, and can restore dignity to the profession without resorting to survival mechanisms that disadvantage children and families.
The community also expressed fears that many young people in Hopley are being driven into drug abuse, prostitution, and early child marriages as a direct result of being locked out of education. This is a generational crisis that government must urgently address. It is unacceptable that such a densely populated settlement has been left without a single secondary school for so long. We ask: why has it taken government so many years to act when the crisis is evident to all? The Ministry of Education has now made a commitment to build a new school in Hopley, but crucially, no timelines or specific dates have been given. As ARTUZ, we welcome the pledge but remain cautious. We hope this is not just lip service to a community that has waited far too long for what should be a basic right.
As ARTUZ, we continue to advocate for the right to education, for schools to be built where children live, and for teachers to be treated with dignity. Hopley is a stark example of the failures of the current education system: overcrowding, underfunding, neglect, and broken promises. We demand urgent action, not empty words, to ensure that every child in Hopley and across Zimbabwe has access to safe, free, and quality education. The right to education cannot be delayed any longer — the future of our children and our nation depends on it.