Zimbabwe: Education Country Brief

January 2024
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Background

This brief provides data and references to the literature on issues that matter for education in Zimbabwe. It is part of a series that provides a brief introduction to the state of education systems in Africa. The work was prepared for country pages on IICBA’s website and a digital repository of resources at the country, sub-regional, and continental level. The brief series also informs work conducted in the context of (i) the European Union’s Africa Regional Teachers’ Initiative and (ii) the KIX (Knowledge and Innovation eXchange) Africa 19 Hub for anglophone countries that promotes the use of evidence for policy making and benefits from funding from the Global Partnership for Education and Canada’s International Development Research Center. This brief and its associated webpage are meant to be updated as new information becomes available, at least on a yearly basis. 

Key resources: This brief provides the following resources: 

  • Educational outcomes: Estimates are provided for learning poverty (the share of 10-year-old children not able to read and understand a simple text), educational attainment and/or enrollment rates at various levels of education, the components of the human capital index, and human capital wealth as a share of national wealth. 
  • Selected literature: Links are provided to selected publications at the global, regional, and country levels with a focus on six themes: (i) learning assessment systems; (ii) early childhood education; (iii) teaching and learning; (iv) the data challenge; (v) gender equality; and (vi) equity and inclusion. 
  • Country policies: Links are provided to key institutions (including Ministries) managing the education system, selected policy and planning documents, and websites that aim to provide comparative data on policies across countries.
  • Knowledge repositories and other resources: Links are provided to a dozen digital repositories that collate publications and resources on education issues in Africa. 
  • Data: Links are provided to data sources that can help inform education policy.

This country brief provides a brief introduction to selected issues and research relevant to Zimbabwe’s education system and links to resources that may be useful to official of Ministries of Education and other education stakeholders. A special focus is placed on thematic areas from the KIX (Knowledge and Innovation eXchange) initiative for which UNESCO IICBA manages the Secretariat of the Africa KIX 19 Hub. Together with the associated webpages on UNESCO IICBA’s website, the brief is to be updated as new information becomes available, typically every year. The brief starts with a review of basic data on educational outcomes including learning poverty, educational attainment, and the human capital index. The focus then shifts to information related to the thematic areas of focus of the KIX Africa 19 Hub, namely: (i) learning assessment (ii) early childhood education; (iii) teaching & learning (iv) data challenge; (v) gender equality; and (vi) equity and inclusion. The brief also includes links to country documents and processes as well as a range of other resources and websites.

Educational Outcomes and Human Capital

Zimbabwe, like many other African countries, is facing a learning crisis. In sub-Saharan Africa, learning poverty, defined as the share of children unable to read and understand an age-appropriate text by age 10, is estimated at 89 percent by the World Bank, UNESCO, and other organizations. While specific country estimates are not available for Zimbabwe, the World Bank Capital Index suggests concerning developments.  Zimbabwe as many other African countries is facing a learning crisis. According to their data, students in Zimbabwe score 396 on a harmonized test score scale where 625 represents advanced attainment and 300 represents minimum attainment. This benchmark corresponds to the advanced achievement standard set by the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study. It is imperative to improve the quality of the education provided in schools. 

Schooling does not imply learning, but lack of learning increases the likelihood of dropping out of school. According to the World Bank and UNESCO Institute of Statistics, the primary school completion rate was at 84 percent in 2021 for boys and 86 percent for girls. In the same year, the lower secondary completion was at 59% for men and 57% for women. Gross enrollment in tertiary education was at 8 percent for men in 2017 versus 10 percent for women. 

The Human Capital Index for Zimbabwe also provides useful statistics based on five other variables: (i) the probability that a child will survive past age five (95 percent); (ii) the years of schooling that a child is expected to complete by age 18 (11.1 years); (iii) the learning-adjusted years of schooling that a child is expected to complete, a measure combining  the years of schooling and average harmonized test scores (7 years); (iv) the adult survival rate (65 percent of 15-year olds surviving until age 60); and finally (v) the probability that a child will not be stunted in early childhood (77 percent). Based on these five variables and the harmonized test score, the expected productivity in adulthood of a child is estimated in comparison to full productivity that could be expected with full education and health. The estimate is that a child born in Zimbabwe today will reach only 47 percent of its potential. This is higher than the average for sub-Saharan Africa region but lower than Lower middle-income countries.

Zimbabwe table
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Selected Literature

Supporting countries in using evidence for policymaking is an objective shared by many organizations and initiatives. Under the KIX initiative for which UNESCO IICBA manages the KIX Africa 19 Hub and collaborates with KIX Africa 21, the focus is on six themes: (i) learning assessment systems (ii) early childhood education; (iii) teaching and learning (iv) the data challenge; (v) gender equality; and (vi) equity and inclusion. For each topic, a link is provided to the GPE-KIX Discussion paper written at the start of the initiative in 2019 and additional publications that could be useful for policy. By necessity, to keep this brief short, only a few resources can be mentioned, but additional resources can be accessed through digital repositories listed below. A brief note on UNESCO IICBA research is also provided.

Learning Assessment Systems [GPE-KIX Discussion Paper]. Learning assessment tools and systems are essential to gauge and improve learning outcomes for students. A primer on large scale assessments from the World Bank provides guidance on such assessments, as does a review of learning assessments in Africa from UNESCO IIEP. Among regional assessments, PASEC (Programme for the Analysis of Education Systems) for francophone countries in West and Central Arica and SEACMEQ (Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality) for anglophone countries in East and Southern Africa are the best known. These instruments target primary schools. Other tools that focus and assess the learning outcomes of young learners include the Early Grade Reading and Mathematics Assessments (EGRA/EGMA). Supported and funded primarily by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), these assessments are administered by different agencies such as the World Bank, RTI International and others across the continent. The West African Examinations Council also provides guidance on examinations and certificate accreditation in Anglophone countries of West Africa. Also interesting is PISA for development which is being piloted in secondary schools in a few African countries. 

Zimbabwe participates in regional and international assessments such as SEACMEQ. In addition to these external assessments, Zimbabwe has its own national assessment system coordinated by the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMS) under the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education (MoPSE). ZIMSEC has its own strategic plan (2022-2025). ZIMSEC is responsible for administering national examinations, including the Zimbabwe Early Learning Assessment at the Early Childhood Development level, the Grade 7 Exam at the end of primary education, the “O” Level Exams at the end of lower secondary, and the “A” Level Exam at the end of upper secondary education.

In 2015, MoPSE introduced a new assessment model, that incorporates both summative and continuous assessment components, known as the Assessment Framework for Primary and Secondary Education. The 2022 Primary and Secondary Education Statistics Report prepared by MoPSE presents results of the 2022 school census providing important data on enrollment, teacher numbers and school facilities. 

Research studies such as Mapendere & Masvimbo (2023) and Chindedza & Sithole (2019) have explored the implementation of continuous assessment and the strategies used by teachers to assess pupils in secondary schools, respectively. These studies provide insights into the challenges and opportunities associated with implementing different assessment approaches. Furthermore, Manokore (2021) unpacks the competence-based curriculum framework in Zimbabwe, examining the strategies used by teachers to assess pupils in secondary schools.

Improving Teaching and Learning [GPE-KIX Discussion Paper]. How teachers and students interact and engage is key to improve learning outcomes. Cost-effective approaches pr ‘smart buys’ to improve learning in low-income countries are discussed in a World Bank report. Teaching is paramount, and therefore so are teacher policies to ensure that successful teachers make for successful students. Standards for the teaching profession were proposed by Education International and UNESCO with regional standards available from the Africa Union Commission, including a framework for standards and competencies. 

Zimbabwe’s school system uses a 2-7-4-2-3+ structure, beginning with two years of early childhood development, seven years of primary school, and secondary education is segmented into two phases: lower secondary encompasses grades 8 through 11, while upper secondary comprises grades 12 and 13. Tertiary education at the undergraduate level is typically three years; however, this may be longer for some programs.  

To enhance the quality of teaching and learning, Zimbabwe embarked on a curriculum reform process, leading to the finalization of a new competence-based curriculum framework in 2015 by the MoPSE. Recognizing the important role of teachers in enhancing leaner outcomes, UNICEF and the Education Development Trust have partnered to implement TEACH (Teacher Effectiveness and Equitable Access for All Children) in Zimbabwe to strengthen teacher professional development.

Strengthening Early Childhood Care and Education [GPE-KIX Discussion Paper]. Experiences children undergo in early childhood can affect their entire life. Nurturing care is essential. Essential interventions in early childhood include pre-primary education.  Yet less than half of young children in Africa benefit from pre-primary education according to the Global Education Monitoring report 2021.  The Early Childhood Development Index (ECDI) is a tool by UNICEF that can be used to measure the overall well-being of children aged 2-5. It does this by assessing their development in key areas such as literacy and numeracy, physical development, social-emotional development, and learning capacity. The ECDI is made up of a series of simple tasks that are designed to be age-appropriate The Office of Research at UNICEF maintains a webpage with useful links to organizations working on child-related themes organized by subject, including early childhood. 

In 2004, the government introduced an ECD program integrating it into the primary schooling system, extending the total duration to nine years.  To further strengthen the ECCE sector, stakeholder consultations were held in 2017, culminating in the development of the Early Childhood Development Policy.

According to the 2021 MICS-EAGLE report, 71% of children aged 3-4 in Zimbabwe are developmentally on track according to the ECDI. On a national scale, 28% percent of children between the ages of 3 and 4 participate in ECE. Furthermore, there is a significant difference in the ECE attendance rates between children whose mothers attended higher education (66%) and children whose mothers did not attend higher education (21-29%). Notably, children who attend ECE are more likely to be developmentally on track than those who do not attend, by a margin of 9 percentage points. 

Sibanda (2018) provides a situational analysis of the ECD program by sampling responses from 100 teachers in 10 districts in Zimbabwe and identifies limited funding of ECD programs in rural schools. Nyamukapa (2016) explores the impact of the Harmonized Social Cash Transfer program, implemented in 2011, on under-eight children’s access to food, education, and health services. The argument is made that the impacts of the cash transfers could be greater if issues such as the insufficient size of grants disbursed per household and commodity supply-side obstacles were addressed. 

Basic data on early childhood development are available from a nurturing care profile and the African Early Childhood Network’s Zimbabwe: ECD Profile.

Achieving Gender Equality In and Through Education [GPE-KIX Discussion Paper]. The cost of gender inequality is massive, as is the cost of not educating girls, including in Africa. When girls lack education, this affects their earnings in adulthood, the number of children they will have and their health, as well as their agency, among others. When girls are not in school, they are also at higher risk of child marriage, with again high costs for them, their children, and society. In Africa, the African Union’s International Centre for the Education of Girls and Women in Africa supports member states on girls’ education. 

According to UNICEF MICS-EAGLE findings, at the primary level, girls finish primary school at a higher rate (92%) than boys (86%). However, this pattern changes at upper secondary school level with 17% of boys completing as compared to 14% of girls suggesting factors specific to girls that impede their education. 

One such factor is child marriage. The 2022 UNICEF report on Child Marriage in Eastern and Southern Africa estimates that one in three young women were first married or in union before the age of 18. This early marriage significantly impacts girls' educational attainment, with 63% of women aged 20 to 24 years who were first married or in union before age 18 having only a primary education as compared to 27% who had at least a secondary education.

Data Management Systems Strengthening [GPEKIX Discussion Paper]. Education management information systems (EMIS) are key for management. They can also support evidence-based policymaking. In Africa, the African Union’s Institute of Education for Development supports member states on EMIS. In addition to EMIS data, other data sources including household surveys, school surveys, student assessments, and impact evaluations of pilot interventions are essential to inform policy. 

In July 2023, the KIX Africa 19 Hub, led by the African Union’s Institute of Education for Development (IPED) organized a mission with internationally accredited peers from GPE partner Ministries of Education, including Lesotho, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, to support a review of the Ministry of Education, Zimbabwe’s national EMIS. The following is a summarized version of the policy brief on EMIS in Zimbabwe that resulted from the mission. 

Zimbabwe's Education Management Information System (EMIS) relies on an annual school census to gather data, with a focus on gender but limited attention to children with disabilities. Some data remains unused, and recent delays in reporting were due to COVID-19.

Efforts are ongoing to map schools and improve the water, sanitation, and hygiene status in schools. Registered, satellite, and unregistered schools play distinct roles. Special needs data integration is planned. Learning assessment data are analyzed annually, but data utilization for local planning needs improvement. The country is working on IT resources and capacity building for EMIS.

Zimbabwe achieved a high compliance score in a continental EMIS assessment but faces policy, resource, and data-sharing challenges. Plans include merging the Teacher Development Information System with EMIS and decentralizing data capture. Zimbabwe excels in education information reporting, meeting international standards by reporting on 10 of 12 key indicators to the UNESCO Institute for Statistics.

Equity and Inclusion/Leaving No One Behind [GPEKIX Discussion Paper]. Equity and inclusion are major challenges for education systems. Gender, disability, ethnicity, indigenous status, poverty, displacement, and many other factors may all lead some children to lack access to education. In Africa especially, gaps in educational outcomes between groups may be large, as illustrated in the case of disability. Equity must be at the center of education policy on the continent. The Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) are Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) are two major international frameworks related to disability-inclusive education exist.

Zimbabwe's constitution and the Education Amendment Act of 2020 guarantee the right to free and compulsory basic education for all children. Despite these legal provisions, access to quality education remains unequal with disparities resulting from differences in socioeconomic and geographic circumstances.

According to MICS EAGLE (2021) findings, children from the poorest quintile and rural areas are disproportionately represented amongst those with low completion rates. At all levels of education, children from rural and poor areas have completion rates below the national average, while children from urban and richer areas have completion rates above the national average. The disparity in educational attainment between children from the richest and poorest wealth quintiles widens significantly as they progress through the education system. For example, while 37% of children from the richest quintile complete upper secondary education, only 1% of children from the poorest quintile do so.

In efforts to address disparities in learning outcomes, Zimbabwe’s commitment to inclusive education is reflected in its ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in 1990 and ratification the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) in 2013. The country’s National Disability Policy 2021 specifically addresses inclusive education. According to the MICS-EAGLE report, 10% of children aged 5 to 17 across the country have at least one functional difficulty. Children without functional difficulties have the same attendance rate at the primary level (91%) and a 10% higher attendance rate at the lower secondary level (58% vs 48%) than their peers with functional difficulties.

To promote inclusive education in the country, the MoPSE developed the national non-formal education policy for Zimbabwe to promote alternative pathways to increase access and quality education in Zimbabwe in in 2015. 

Studies, such as “Amplifying the voices of women and girls with disabilities in Zimbabwe: a comprehensive study” (2020), present findings that amplify the voices of women and girls with disabilities in Zimbabwe, addressing their unique needs in the education sector.  IIEP and UIS’s 2016 analysis of public expenditure on education in Zimbabwe offers an extensive analysis of the allocation of public resources in the education system, with particular attention paid to the efficiency and equity aspects of their distribution. For a comprehensive overview of inclusion in the education system, please refer to GEM report on Inclusion in Zimbabwe. 

Note on UNESCO IICBA Research. IICBA recently launched a new program of applied research on teacher and education issues in Africa. A total of 200 publications have been completed from January to September 2023, including studies, discussion papers, training guides, reports, knowledge briefs, event summaries, and interviews. Several of those publications focus on Zimbabwe. All publications are available on IICBA’s website. 

Country Policies 

Information on Zimbabwe’s education system and policies is available on the website of the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education which covers basic and secondary education. The Ministry of Higher Education and Tertiary Education is responsible for higher and technical education and vocational training (TVET). The Education Sector Strategic Plan  (2021-2025) is the flagship policy guiding the sector. UNICEF’s Education Sector Analysis (2020) provides a comprehensive sector analysis, taking the COVID-19 situation in consideration. In 2021, UNESCO, UNDP and UNFPA conducted a comprehensive situational analysis on persons with disabilities in Zimbabwe (2021) including the education sector.

Zimbabwe does not have a teaching service commission.  [TMM1] 

A few organizations aim to capture education policies on specific themes across countries, including Zimbabwe. UNESCO’s Profiles Enhancing Education Reviews (PEER) covering the themes of the Global Education Monitoring reports, including: inclusion in education (2020 Report), non-state actors in education (2021/22 Report), technology in education (2023 Report) and leadership in education (2024/25 Report, forthcoming). PEER also covers additional topics on key SDG 4 issues, including financing for equity, climate change communication and education, and comprehensive sexuality education. 

Knowledge Repositories

Only a few links to the literature on education by theme for Zimbabwe, Africa, and globally were provided earlier to keep the brief short, but repositories of digital resources facilitate access to the literature. A few of those repositories are listed below by alphabetical order:

Many organizations maintain websites that include country pages with useful information. Examples include the GPE Zimbabwe Country Page; World Bank Zimbabwe Country Page; UNESCO IIEP Country Page. Many organizations also maintain blogs on education issues, often with stories on Africa. Examples include Education for All (Global Partnership for Education), Education for Global Development (World Bank), Education Plus Development (Brookings Institutions), and World Education Blog (UNESCO). Beyond blogs focusing on education, blogs on Africa more generally may also provide useful resources. This includes Africa Can End Poverty and Nasikiliza (the World Bank’s two blogs for sub-Saharan Africa ) and  Arab Voices (the Bank’s blog for the Middle East and North Africa).

Data

It is often useful to download data for Zimbabwe and other countries from multi-country databases. The largest database on development, including education data, is the World Bank’s World Development Indicators (WDI). The World Bank also maintain the Education Statistics (EdStats) database. Both World Bank databases rely in part for education on data from the UNESCO Institute of Statistics. UNESCO also maintains the Global Education Observatory and the World Inequality Database in Education (WIDE), as well as a wide range of other databases. Specific estimates are occasionally maintained by other agencies. For example, UNICEF provides data on out-of-school rates, adjusted net attendance rates, completion rates, foundational learning skills, information communication technology skills, youth and adult literacy rates, and school-age digital connectivity. Another useful reference is StatCompiler which provides data at various levels of aggregation from Demographic and Health Surveys across countries and over time, including Zimbabwe. For comparison purposes, data from the OECD for member and partner countries (including South Africa) can be useful.

References

References are available through the links provided in this brief. 

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