More than 1.8 million learners in the country’s 61 districts have been registered to benefit from the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM) programme, reported The Sunday News.
This was said by the Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Welfare Paul Mavima while responding to questions in the National Assembly on Wednesday.
Mavima said schools should not shut out registered learners if their fees have not been remitted to their schools. He said:
The BEAM programme has 1 800 000 learners registered. Schools already know of the identity of the learners and they are not supposed to turn these learners away because monies have not been remitted to the schools.
That is the policy of the Government. As we push for those funds to be transferred to the schools, the learners should continue to learn.
BEAM was up to date up to the third term of 2022, and we are in the first term of 2023.
There is no reason whatsoever for schools to turn away the BEAM registered learners.
He said it is a crime for school heads to “humiliate” learners on BEAM by sending them home because the government has delayed paying their fees. Mavima said:
It is a policy of Government that payment arrangements have to be made with parents and that learners should not be humiliated in the manner that he has referred to.
It is a crime for a head or a school authority to turn away learners on BEAM knowing that the Government will pay the fees.
If that happens, we need to know so that the relevant Ministry can deal with those headmasters.