Deputy-Minister of State, President's Office Regional Administration and Local Government, Mr. David Silinde, has reaffirmed government's commitment to encourage provision of inclusive education to ensure learning opportunities to all citizens.
Mr. Silinde made the remarks in Dodoma recently at the opening of a meeting organised by the Association of Special Education Officers in Mainland (UMEMTA). "Special education officers as experts in this area you are suppose to continue educating the public by observing the required procedures, taking into account that you are responsible to oversee the provision of education to students with special needs who are divided into various groups," he said.
Silinde added that in January this year, the Government embarked on a nationwide process to identify children with special needs and came out with a total of 28,698 children. "This process helped to identify parents and guardians of these children and they were advised to enrol the children in nearby schools basing on the type of disability," he said.
He advised them to make close follow up on the children to ensure that they are all registered in schools. Mr. Silinde also said the Government continues to address various challenges in provision of special education by investing in various infrastructure, including classroom, toilets, dormitories, procurement of equipment and improving the school environment as well as hiring professional teachers.
He said for the year 2020/2021, the Office of the President - PMO - RALG procured and distributed special equipment worth 4,5bn/- to the relevant schools and instructed respective authorities at the regional and council levels, to ensure the equipment reaches the targeted students. The Deputy-Minister added that, the Office of the President PMO - RALG is aware of the challenges facing the councils and assured them that they plan to address them to improve the provision of special education in the country.
In addition, Mr. Silinde urged council directors in the country to make good use of the special education officers in assisting students with special needs at all levels of education. On his part, Mr. Joshua Kitiku who represented UMEMTA Secretary-General, commended the Government for improving the lives of people with disabilities by providing them with appropriate services.
Mr. Kitiku said that despite the great work being done by the Government there were still some challenges in serving students with special needs, among others, shortage of equipment and teachers who are experts in special education and friendly infrastructure for students with special needs.