Teachers in Zimbabwe struggle with shrinking pay, heavier economic burdens

Zimbabwe's schools have opened their doors to young learners as a new academic year gets underway, but concern is rising among the country's teachers who say they are facing more difficulties under the weight of economic hardship and low wages.

As pupils nationwide return to classrooms full of enthusiasm, some educators say they are demoralized as they struggle to survive on salaries they describe as inadequate, especially as the cost of living continues to rise.

Charles Mubwandarikwa, a teacher with 37 years of experience, is among those frustrated by the steady decline in working conditions.

"In the 90s, the salary of a teacher was 15 times the poverty datum line that was there at that time. If we look at today's salary, you will see that it's just a small fraction of the poverty datum line, which stands well above 600 [U.S.] dollars now. Back then it was a marvel to be in the education sector," he said.

Teachers today earn just over 200 U.S. dollars a month, an amount that barely covers basic needs such as food, transport, and rent. And as the gap between living costs and income continues to widen, Mubwandarikwa said morale is being eroded across the profession.

"We are more de-motivated. We are at our lowest level," he said.

Beyond low pay, teachers are also grappling with heavier workloads. Curriculum changes and growing class sizes have stretched an already strained workforce. Past strikes have yielded little change, prompting unions to demand a fundamental shift in negotiations.

Sifiso Ndlovu, CEO of the Zimbabwe Teachers Association, is calling for legal reform to level the playing field.

"We are encouraging the Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare to amend the public service act and provide for social dialogue, which is collective bargaining in essence, which is absent at the present moment. This is where we are saying: the groundwork which has been created so far is not very normal, it's skewed in favor of the employer. Let's create a groundwork where everybody feels comfortable to engage," said Ndlovu.

So far, however, these critical negotiations have stalled, leaving teachers in limbo.

Despite immense challenges, schools remain open, lessons continue, and exam preparations press on, a testament to the commitment of educators. This dedication underscores the pivotal role education plays in Zimbabwe's ambition to achieve upper-middle-income status by 2030.

"It enhances economic growth output and also probably acts as a poverty alleviation mechanism because an education system means a working population and a working population has better prospects of prosperity," said economic analyst Malone Gwandu.

Yet for the teachers at the heart of this vision, the irony is hard to ignore: those entrusted with building Zimbabwe’s future are themselves struggling to make ends meet.

Teachers in Zimbabwe struggle with shrinking pay, heavier economic burdens

Floods triggered by rounds of torrential rain in the aftermath of Typhoon Maysak have left 39 people dead and nine reported missing in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said on Thursday.

The death toll includes casualties resulting from a severe breach of a reservoir dam in the regional capital city of Nanning, according to a flood control and disaster relief press conference held at noon on Thursday.

However, officials noted that the death and missing tolls may overlap, as technical identification of some victims is still ongoing.

Following further verification, it was determined that the breach in Liulan Reservoir in Nanning has resulted in 26 deaths, including five unidentified individuals, and seven reported missing cases, said Ding Wei, vice mayor of Nanning.

Nanning had evacuated and resettled a total of 64,500 residents to safer places by Thursday morning. Meanwhile, the city has delivered 100,000 essential items to affected residents, including clothing, drinking water, food, medicine and power banks.

Following the dam breaches at Liulan Reservoir and Yunbiao Reservoir, local authorities invited water experts to the site to provide guidance on emergency rescue and disaster relief.

The experts mainly focused on assessing the dam breaches, and studying relevant measures to lower water level.

"Starting from Wednesday, we have repaired roads leading to the Liulan Reservoir. As of this morning, access to the dam crest is restored. Starting today, we will start dredging work," said Zhai Jianjia, deputy director of Nanning's water resources bureau.

Communication base stations in disaster-hit Hengzhou and Binyang County, both under the jurisdiction of Nanning, are now operating at 87.7 percent of regular capacity. Power has been restored to 63,000 households in these two areas, while traffic flow has resumed across several highway sections and major roads.

"Over 4,200 personnel and more than 1,300 vehicles have been mobilized to clean up silt, garbage and debris, and to conduct post-disaster epidemic prevention work. Over 300 specialists have been dispatched to severely affected areas such as Yunbiao Town and Xiaoyi Town in Hengzhou City, and Gantang Town in Binyang County to conduct environmental monitoring and disinfection," said Ding.

For the transportation of emergency supplies, Nanning relies on expressways and national and provincial highways to transport supplies to distribution points at the boundaries of flooded road sections, and then uses inflatable boats, drones, and other means to transfer them to resettlement sites for the affected people, ensuring their basic needs are met.

Floods in south China's Guangxi leave 39 dead, 9 reportedly missing: authorities