MBABANE:Life is literally a struggle for qualified contract teachers with Degrees in the Kingdom of eSwatini, they are paid less than five thousand Rands(R5,000.00) and the State failed to double their payment for the month of December 2023 as per a contract agreement.
The amount paid to the contract teachers is equivalent to $257.00 when calculated with the current Rand-US Dollar exchange rate.
Efforts to reach Owen Nxumalo,the Minister of Education and Training proved unsuccessful at the time of compiling this report.
Reached for comments on Sunday afternoon,Lot Vilakati, the Secretary General(SG) of the Swaziland National Association of Teachers(SNAT) confirmed that, the contract teachers were not paid their ‘thirteen(13th) cheque’ but clarified that, the matter was being addressed.
“We are aware of the matter and we contacted Government regarding this and the response was that, there were certain challenges, the payment will be released this week”, said the SNAT Secretary General when responding to editor Zweli Martin Dlamini.
On another note, Zweli Martin Dlamini, the editor of this Swaziland News has called upon media colleagues to prioritize the issue of the education system before it’s too late.
“Just like the health crisis, the education system has collapsed and we need to prioritize it as the media so that relevant stakeholders can take action.No scholarships for University students, no working equipment for teachers in schools and Lecturers in Universities.Qualified teachers with Degrees are underpaid, this is a crisis and the sooner we realize that this government has failed the better,” said the editor.
The editor described the low salaries paid to the qualified contract teachers in eSwatini as an insult to the teaching profession that was once held in high regard and produces all other professions in this world.
A proof of payment for a contract teacher.