IThe Zimbabwe government will pay full school and boarding fees for all students in public schools who register for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subjects this year, higher education minister Jonathan Moyo announced yesterday.
President Robert Mugabe’s government has targeted the development of STEM skills as a key part of Zimbabwe’s long-term human capital objectives.
In a statement, Moyo said his ministry had launched a multimedia programme to encourage students who took their O-Level examinations in 2015 and who register at least a ‘C’ in Mathematics, Biology and Chemistry to take a combination of these subjects at A-Level.
The programme intends to trigger an increase in students who will enroll for STEM degrees at the country’s universities from 2018, Moyo said.
“The ministry will pay full school and boarding fees for all students in public schools who register for STEM subjects in 2016,” the minister said.
The ministry will also run a competition which will see 10 STEM students getting the opportunity to visit Microsoft and other Silicon Valley STEM firms. There are also cash incentives for schools promoting STEM enrolment.
“There is solid evidence that the fastest growing and highest earning careers in future will be in STEM fields,” Moyo said.
“Available evidence supports the view that currently sustainable socio-economic transformation is driven by investing in STEM disciplines.”- The Sourcey
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