Allexer Namundjebo
The education ministry plans to address overcrowded classrooms, mainly in urban schools.
The ministry’s executive director, Mbumba Haitengela, said the ministry identified schools with teacher-to-learner ratios above the norm.
The ministry is conducting a provision norm audit to develop a three-year regional decongestion plan.
“Schools identified will be addressed in the envisaged plan. This means all schools identified will be addressed,” he said.
The ministry’s formal education circular four outlines the steps towards decongestion, including short, medium, and long-term actions, with overcrowded classrooms a priority.
Haitengela explained that the platoon system currently operates two schools on one premises.
The morning shift has different teachers and learners from the afternoon shift.
This system is implemented only in junior primary schools.
“Regions are encouraged to phase out afternoon sessions by constructing temporary classrooms where land is available,” he said.
In the 2024/25 financial year, the government constructed 1 344 classrooms at existing schools.
The ministry also provides 700 to 800 new teaching posts annually to match population growth.
The president of the National Alliance for Education Graduates Union, Tjihinga Edward, said reducing unemployment should not lower education quality.
He said some learners perform better in the afternoon and that two shifts should not only solve overcrowding but also maintain quality.
“Instead of that, the government should just construct more schools and focus on increasing the number of classrooms at schools,” he added.
Edward said the government should support youth-led initiatives to reduce dependency.
“The government should try necessary reforms that will also create jobs. If the government can fund youth initiatives, then the youth will not only depend on the government for funding,” he said.
On Monday, unemployed teachers staged a protest march in Windhoek from the Katutura Youth Centre to the Ministry of Education.
They demanded mass recruitment and the removal of job interviews, citing corruption and nepotism.
They proposed a platoon system in primary schools where two teachers share one class across morning and afternoon sessions to reduce overcrowding and create jobs.
Joyce Liswaniso, Chairperson of the Unemployed Teachers Committee, stressed the need for mass recruitment to ensure employment and quality education.
The teachers gave the government a 72-hour ultimatum to respond or face a sit-in at the ministry.
Meanwhile, the executive director for higher education, Gerard Vries, received the petition, acknowledged their concerns, and urged compliance with legal procedures.
He also met privately with committee representatives.
