Govt Promotes 11, 500 Teachers, Highest Number in Decades

In an historic move, the Malawi government is to promote 11,500 primary and secondary school teachers by June this year, the highest number of teachers to be promoted within a single The teachers union said the promotion is a result of talks between the union and the country’s President Joyce Banda recently.

“During these meetings with President Joyce Banda she got touched and concerned that teachers stay on one grade for 20 years or even more without promotion,” said Secretary General for the union, Denis
Kalekeni at a news conference on Sunday in Lilongwe, Malawi’s capital.

“I’m pleased to inform the nation that we have finalised the data collection process in all primary and secondary schools in the country. And the Teachers Services Commission has released vacancies for Grade K and Grade J for Primary School teachers,” he said.

“The number of vacancies are 5, 099 for Grade K while Grade J has 3, 879 making a total of 8, 978 vacancies.”

According to Kalekeni, in February another 2, 515 vacancies will be made available.

“This makes a total of 11, 493 primary school teachers to be promoted between now and June this year.”

Within the same period, a number of secondary school teachers will also be promoted beginning with Grade I, promoted from Grade J, filling 1, 169 vacancies.

He urged the Teachers Services Commission to provide ample time to teachers to apply for the vacancies as most teachers are in rural areas and information would reach late.

“No eligible teacher should be left out,” said Kalekeni.

Inadequate promotions were one of the many challenges TUM has been calling upon government to address.

Other challenges rocking the teaching service include high teacher-pupil ratio, inadequate housing for teachers, low and delayed salaries.