The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) has called on the government to replace the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) with direct student grants.
Ahead of the 2025 National Budget announcement by Finance Minister Mthuli Ncube, ARTUZ presented a proposal emphasizing the need for increased educational funding to benefit both students and teachers.
ARTUZ highlighted Zimbabwe’s failure to meet the Dakar Declaration’s goal of allocating 20% of the national budget to education, with budget allocations remaining critically low in recent years
The union pointed out that education funding was 0.8% in 2020, 2.3% in 2021, 2.4% in 2022, 2.9% in 2023, and 2.8% for 2024, contributing to deteriorating education quality, especially in rural areas.
ARTUZ proposed abolishing BEAM, launched in 2001 to support vulnerable children, in favor of student equity grants.
They suggested providing each learner with at least US$10 per term to address the rising poverty and climate-related challenges affecting families.
The union argued that this shift would better serve the growing number of children struggling to remain in school.
Earlier this year, it was revealed that the government owed schools US$57 million in BEAM arrears by the end of 2023, underscoring the scheme’s financial challenges.
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