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Schools warned over hiking fees
The Herald (Zimbabwe)
April 22, 2005

http://www.herald.co.zw/index.php?id=42769&pubdate=2005-04-22

GOVERNMENT yesterday warned school authorities against increasing fees beyond the stipulated threshold and said disciplinary action would be taken against errant schools.

The warning by the Minister of Education, Sport and Culture, Cde Aeneas Chigwedere, came with the opening of the new school term yesterday.

"As is the norm, those schools that feel they have a genuine need to raise their fees should apply to the Ministry through the permanent secretary and not just unilaterally hike the fees," said Cde Chigwedere in an interview.

"Those that feel aggrieved by the permanent secretary’s decision should then come to me and we will deliberate on that."

He said a number of schools have had their applications to increase fees approved.

The Government gazetted school fees in September last year to protect parents from being ripped off by school authorities who charged exorbitant fees. Some private schools have contested the decision by the Government to gazette school fees saying it would compel them to close as they were being forced to charge uneconomic fees.

The High Court has since ruled in favour of private schools and allowed them to charge higher fees than the gazetted ones. Turning to the issue of examination fees, the Minister said Government was still to finalise on the figures.

"Examination fees would be deliberated on soon by Cabinet and as soon as that is dealt with, the necessary announcement would be made," said the minister.

The Government has set aside $193 billion this year under the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) aimed at assisting at least 888 836 children pay fees. Meanwhile, queues of parents intending to pay school fees at banks continued yesterday.

The queues were still visible at most banking halls in high-density suburbs and the city centre. However, some parents with children at primary schools complained about the requirement by some school authorities to pay fees as little as $200 at banks instead of paying directly at the schools.

They said some banks were declining to accept the money arguing that it did not make commercial sense to receipt the money on a paper worth more than the $200.

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