Free Education Drives National Growth, Says Education Minister

Education Minister Douglas Syakalima has hailed the country’s free education initiative as a pivotal step toward achieving long-term national development.

Speaking during a courtesy call from a visiting Liberian delegation at his Lusaka office, Mr. Syakalima emphasized that a nation's strength lies in its people and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to ensuring that education is inclusive and accessible for all.

Mr. Syakalima revealed  that since the free education policy was rolled out in 2021, over 2.3 million students have returned to school, more than 40,000 teachers have been employed, and schools across the country are undergoing infrastructure upgrades.

He also praised the Liberian officials for their initiative to learn from Zambia’s education model and stressed the importance of inter-African collaboration.

The visiting team from Liberia, composed of six officials, is in Zambia for five days on a benchmarking mission focused on the country’s education framework, particularly the Teacher Management System run by the Teaching Council of Zambia (TCZ).

Meanwhile, Deputy Minister of Instruction Hon. Amos Fully, speaking on behalf of the delegation, expressed gratitude for Zambia’s openness and noted that Liberia is in the process of digitizing its teacher records.

And Registrar of TCZ, Dr. Ebby Mubanga, noted that Liberia is the seventh country in recent months to visit Zambia for educational benchmarking.

The Ministry of Education continues to support regional cooperation and the exchange of best practices to enhance education systems throughout the continent.