GOAL 2: ACHIEVE UNIVERSAL PRIMARY EDUCATION

NATIONAL TARGET THREE: ENSURE BY 2015 CHILDREN EVERYWHERE, BOYS AND GIRLS ALIKE, WILL BE ABLE TO COMPLETE A FULL COURSE OF PRIMARY SCHOOLING

Status and Trend

Most indicators in education have registered improvement over time. By 2006, net enrolment rates had risen to 94.8 per cent and 77 per cent in the Mainland and Zanzibar respectively. There is near gender parity with regard to enrolment of girls and boys at the primary school level. Primary School retention rates (proportion of children enrolled in Standard I who complete Standard VII) have improved from 71 per cent in 1997 to 79 per cent in 2004 in the Mainland. Retention of girls is slightly better than that of boys. There is still concern about the performance of girls in Standard VII (Primary School Leaving) Examinations. Transition rates indicate that Secondary School enrolment is up with a near gender balance at entry. However, after Form IV the retention of girls drops substantially with a ratio of 2 boys to 1 girl when they reach Form VI.

Adult illiteracy remains high. According to the 2002 Population census data, literacy rate among age 15+ is 70 per cent (78 per cent for men and 62 per cent for women). Overall, about 28.6 per cent of Tanzanians cannot read and write in any language. There is more illiteracy among women (36 per cent) than men (20.4 per cent). The target of eliminating illiteracy by 2015 remains challenging particularly for rural women.

Supportive Environment

Implementation of the Primary Education Development Plan (PEDP) has greatly helped Mainland Tanzania be on track to achieving MDG 2. PEDP is being rolled over to 2011. A similar programme exists for Zanzibar. Recruitment of more teachers is being fast tracked by reduction of years in training and by putting in place accelerated training plans. Poor families have been provided for, by allowing their children to attend school free of charge. Expansion of secondary school infrastructures has resulted in increased intake of Primary School leavers thus adding motivation to staying the full course of primary schooling.

Measures to improve the quality of education and the environment, including those for the disabled ,are in place and are planned to be implemented. Legislations prescribing deterrent punishment have been enacted to ensure that school age children are being enrolled and are kept in school.

Major Challenges and Priorities

Despite the achievement, policies and actions need now to be directed at ensuring that pupils complete the full course of primary schooling in addition to safeguarding standards. In a nutshell these challenges call for stepped up efforts to be directed at addressing causes that keep children out of school after
enrolment (such as labour demands, early marriages, pregnancies, and the inability to meet costs), addressing quality of service delivery (ensuring availability of adequate quality teachers, textbooksand other learning materials, and an enabling teaching and learning environment) and to facilitate access and enrolment of disabled children.

Quick Impact Interventions