Tanzania's education system

Yellow school buses driving through suburbia, bright navy sweatshirts with embroidered logos and hand-sewn name tags, lunch boxes sporting the most popular TV show characters (usually a talking animal of some sort), sandwiches cut into triangles and gap-toothed smiles in school photographs in front of a sky blue background. These are often the things that are dreamt about when we think of school.

These are the images familiar to most in the West. We see them as we step outside the front door. We live them as children and as parents. These images are shown in TV shows and films. The begrudged teenager sloping out the house late from a missed alarm to catch the bus, and the enthusiastic primary school kid with scabbed knees running across the playground to meet friends. But in Tanzania, the images of school can be very different. 

Unicef estimates that 2 million children between the ages of 7 and 13 are out of school in Tanzania. Government schools expect monetary contribution from students and their families, meaning that education is reserved for those who can afford it. Within rural areas, those who can attend a school are usually poorly prepared. They are likely to have responsibilities within their homes and work; and may have suffered loss and hunger, meaning they are often under-nourished and lack the stimulation and basic social skills required to do well and finish.

Personally, I was excited by the prospect of school. I credit the fascination that I had for learning to my living situation. Living in the children’s home, I was surrounded by English-speaking workers and volunteers and was curious about who they were and where they had come from. I wanted to speak like them and experience what they had. To do this, I knew I had to learn about the world that I lived in.

Despite dipping in and out of school, I did very well. In my final exams, I was one of the top students in Kilimanjaro and earned a place at a school for gifted children to continue my education. The District was able to talk to the children’s home and together they supported the opportunity. I was lucky. 

Only 30% of children aged 14 – 17 enrol for secondary education (Unicef). As well as financial pressures, there are other reasons for this. Typically, primary education is delivered in the native language of Swahili, but high schools teach in English. This is a barrier for many Tanzanian children who do not have the chance to learn the language. Further, secondary schools are usually located in larger towns. This makes it difficult for teenagers to move away from their homes where they may be responsible for looking after relatives or land.

I travelled to a new city, Dar es-Salaam, to attend secondary school. It was a Government school, called Pugu Secondary School. Located in the largest city of Tanzania, most students had come from rich backgrounds and were comfortable being able to pay for what they needed. Having been in Sonu for many years, I struggled to adjust to this new place and felt unsafe.

During my studies, I suffered from critical Malaria. Malaria is a disease spread by mosquitoes and it takes the life of an estimated 80,000 people per year in Tanzania (Malariaspot). Whilst being treated, my guardians from the orphanage came to visit. It was a lonely time suffering by myself in this strange and unfamiliar city. Scarily, I worried in case of any potential future emergencies where I had nobody close by for support.

Once I had recovered from the disease, it was decided that I was unable to continue attending the school.

There are many reasons for this. The school required more money from me than they had previously said, and I was unable to provide it. Additionally, the school had a critical water shortage. There had been a shortage for decades since the independence of Tanzania.

However, it was suggested that I start on a home-schooling course. They suggested a programme called Accelerated Christian Education (A.C.E). A.C.E operates in over 142 countries across 7 continents and gives responsibility to parents and guardians to educate children through the teachings of the Bible. You work through the scripture-based programme at your own pace, and it focuses on transferring Christian values and principles as well as knowledge.

The availability of home-schooling programmes was increasing across orphanages. They were popular as they allowed the children to learn the English language and the advancements of the Christian faith, that is usually instilled across homes. Additionally, by children studying the same programme from the orphanage, there were reduced costs for our fees and transportation.

When I started in 2003, it felt like the start of a new journey. The programme was international, and it opened my eyes to the rest of the world. I found A.C.E enjoyable and beneficial for providing me with a toolkit of both fact-based education and life experience.

The state government however does not agree with A.C.E and across Africa, it is not a recognised type of education. In Tanzania, there is a shortage of qualified teachers who can provide quality education, but A.C.E allows anybody to teach themselves and others.

In Tanzania, when you think about school you don’t think about paintings of square houses hung to the family fridge by magnets. You don’t think about Digestive biscuits and PTA meetings. You don’t think about signing permission slips for trips to the museum. Instead, it is a challenge with a wall that needs knocking down. Most children are not given the opportunity to learn to write their name or read a storybook. They are denied a safe space between the hours of 9 am and 3 pm where they can go and simply be a child; playing in a schoolyard sipping a bottle of milk and eating a piece of fruit. 

That is why I founded The Roof of Africa, to provide a fee-free school in Sonu, Tanzania. I wanted to give children like me access to an education that teaches beyond ABC and 123. A place where they can learn how to solve problems, think differently and creatively and be well prepared for life as an adult with self-confidence and practical skills. We started in a rented building (remember the children’s home from the blog before?) and now we have built our own school! We are currently fundraising to add more classrooms to allow children to stay learning past Primary level and to get more children attending.

The children of The Roof of Africa are taught in smaller class sizes than typical across Tanzania. This is something we strive for, to allow each child gets the attention and support that they need to grow personally and in their studies. Their teachers are fully qualified and teach Math, English, and Swahili in line with the curriculum. Though, we encourage singing, dancing, and arts and craft – which the children adore.

Vulnerable children live all across the country. Amongst the poor and those within rural areas, girls and those with disabilities are most likely to drop out of school if they can attend at all. It is estimated that 7.9% of Tanzanians live with a disability but less than 1% of children within a school have a disability (Unicef). 

For girls, they are vulnerable to early marriage and pregnancy causing them to drop out of school. Girls from poor families are twice as likely to be married early. In 2019 it was reported that at the time of the most recent Demographic and Health Survey that over a quarter of adolescent girls in Tanzania between the age of 15 – 19 years were married. 27% of these girls were either pregnant or had their first child at the time of the most recent survey.

At the Roof of Africa, we aim to support the most vulnerable within the community. To try and achieve this, we are extending the years of education that we can provide to keep children in education for as long as we can. We are also hoping to introduce lessons where women can learn the tailoring trade to support themselves and their families with a skill for a business.

Positioned as a transformational centre for the vulnerable, The Roof of Africa aim to safely reunite children with their biological relatives wherever possible. A family unit is key for children to develop their identity, and we aim to create that environment for as many children as we can.