HARARE
–
More
than
532,000
students
risk
missing
out
on
their
final
examinations
this
year
after
the
government’s
Basic
Education
Assistance
Module
(BEAM)
debt
to
the
Zimbabwe
School
Examinations
Council
(ZIMSEC)
has
ballooned
to
$6,4
million.
The
debt
accrued
is
in
respect
of
2023
and
2024,
Public
Service
Labour
and
Social
Welfare
Minister
July
Moyo
told
parliamentarians
on
Thursday.
BEAM
is
a
scheme
that
was
introduced
by
government
to
assist
some
less
privileged
primary
and
secondary
school
students
with
their
fees.
But
Treasury
has
struggled
to
settle
its
obligations
with
the
national
examinations
body,
falling
behalf
by
a
massive
$6,4
million
in
terms
of
arrears.
Moyo
said
ZIMSEC
was
threatening
to
bar
BEAM
beneficiaries
from
sitting
for
the
crucial
examinations
this
year.
“An
equivalent
of
US$6.4
million
is
owed
to
ZIMSEC
as
exam
fees
for
532,963
Grade
7,
Forms
4
and
Form
6
students.
“Even
now,
I
was
being
asked
by
the
permanent
secretary
to
say
there
are
students
who
definitely
are
not
going
to
write
their
examinations.
“If
we
don’t
give
a
promissory
note
to
ZIMSEC,
they
will
not
be
able
to
write,”
he
said.
Moyo
said
government’s
failure
to
settle
its
arrears
was
drawing
unnecessary
stigmatisation
around
beneficiaries
of
the
scheme.
He
said
BEAM
was
covered
in
the
national
budget
for
this
year
but
disbursement
has
been
elusive.
He
added,
“In
2023,
a
partial
payment
was
made
in
local
currency
totalling
ZW$19.9
billion
to
cover
fees
for
434,705
primary
school
students.
“However,
no
secondary
schools
were
paid.
Schools
that
submitted
claims
in
United
States
dollars
were
not
paid.
“There
are
some
schools
which
submitted
and
say
‘we
were
owed
in
USD,
but
that
we
have
not
paid’.
“As
of
2023,
a
total
of
USD
$56.7
million,
primary
and
secondary
schools,
and
US$83,825
for
special
schools
remains
outstanding.
So
we
have
huge
arrears
in
2023.”