Educated nations prosperous, says UK envoy

Educated nations prosperous, says UK envoy

By Fanny Kalonda

BETTER educated countries are likely to be more prosperous, says United Kingdom (UK) High Commissioner to Zambia Rebecca Terzeon.

Speaking when she paid a courtesy call on the Minister of Education Douglas Syakalima in Lusaka, Terzeon said her government had been a proud supporter of education in Zambia for many years, both through development programmes and the work of the British Council.

Terzeon said the British government was committed in securing the right of children to a safe, inclusive and quality education.
“Better educated countries are likely to be more prosperous, which is a win-win, benefiting those in the country itself and also those who will trade with them now in and in the future,” Terzeon said.
She commended Zambia for the progress it had made in getting children into school through the Education for All policy and the efforts involved in the development and roll-out of the new school curriculum.

“Through our Girls Education Programme, reaching more than 70,000 children, we are working with your government to improve access to quality secondary education with an innovative model of delivering education to under-served populations,” she said.

Terzeon cited the support rendered to the Keeping Girls in School (KGS) programme that provided grants to over 30,000 schoolgirls as a social safety net to support access to secondary education.
“We look forward to discussing with the government on how we can further cooperate to ensure sustained efforts to keep learners in school and to deliver quality education,” she said.

In response, the Minister of Education Douglas Syakalima described the continued bilateral ties of boosting the local education sector as uplifting for citizens that previously faced inadequacy.
“It is our resolve that an inclusive education system prevails in every sphere of our people and that quest is ongoing,” Syakalima said.

He said because of the free education policy that was supported by the School Feeding Programme had led to a sharp reduction in absenteeism.

“This year, we will have 106 districts on the School Feeding Programme which will further boost numbers of healthy learners,” Terzeon said.