Rwandan President Paul Kagame’s remarks on Zimbabwean teachers at the inaugural Rwanda Zimbabwe Trade and Investment Conference on Wednesday, have set social media on fire with some professionals showing interest in working in the tiny central African nation.
A video clip captured by the Rwanda Broadcasting Authority’s Rwanda Television, circulating on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and WhatsApp, shows Kagame telling Zimbabweans that he is interested in hiring the country’s teachers.
Zimbabwean teachers are currently demanding salary increases of up to US$580. An ordinary family of six in Zimbabwe now needs ZWL$39,924 to cover its monthly expenses, according to the Zimbabwe National Statistics Agency (ZIMSTAT).
Kagame is quoted by Rwanda TV as saying:
I heard the presentations made to us, very important things we can do together, what each country offers so on and so forth. I want to emphasize one thing. I think there is a deputy CEO of RDB (Rwanda Development Board) who mentioned in passing what Zimbabwe can offer in the area of education. He talked about equipment or something.
Before equipment, I want people. I think Zimbabwe can offer us good teachers. So please work on that as a sense of urgency … You can find whatever number you find of quality teachers. I think we can absorb.
Zimbabwe’s education is highly rated worldwide. According to Africa Check, which identifies important public statements, interrogates the best available evidence and publishes fact-checking reports to guide public debate, ZIMSTAT’s labour force survey estimated that 97% of people over 15 were literate in 2011.
Africa Check further notes that the country’s 2011 Demographic and Health Survey estimated that 96% of men aged 15 to 54 and 94% of women aged 15 to 49 were literate.
Africa Check said to evaluate Zimbabwe’s literacy rate in Africa, it consulted the most recent global literacy list produced by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, released in June 2013.
More: VOA Zimbabwe