STATEMENT BY THE RT HON PRIME MINISTER
DR B.SIBUSISO DLAMINI
AT THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF ST CHRISTOPHER’S HIGH SCHOOL NEW CLASSROOMS AND KITCHEN
AT ST CHRISTOPHER’S HIGH SCHOOL, LUYENGO
MONDAY 15 AUGUST 2016
Programme Directors
Honourable Ministers
Regional Administrator, Prince Gcokoma
Member of Parliament, Honourable Marwick Khumalo
St Christopher’s High School Principal
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
It is an honour and a pleasure for me to join you all here today at the official opening of the new classrooms and kitchen. The dancing and choral music have added an immensely enjoyable component to this happy occasion.
St Christopher’s High School has its own special place in the history of education in our country. Opened in 1957 it was one of only 31 schools in the secondary sector at the time of our Independence. Today we have 274 secondary and high schools which I believe is a really significant achievement, and clear recognition of the importance, for our society and economy, that we attach to having an educated Nation.
We do, of course, still look to increase the number in order, at the very least, to meet the growing numbers from a public primary sector enlarged from the now-completed programme of free public primary school education. Only the availability of public sector resources limits Government in that programme.
The history of St Christopher’s High School shows an impressive trend of moving with the times and responding to the needs of those whose education and welfare are of prime importance.
Within the vanguard of the movement that brought boys and girls together in an educational environment, St Christopher’s, having started as a boys-only school, admitted girls in the early 1970s. To the educationalist, sociologist, psychologist and other disciplines it was a welcome innovation, replicated in many countries of the world. There had hitherto been the somewhat over-cautious view that in the interests of social and sexual propriety you should educate boys and girls separately and then expect the two sexes to move seamlessly and harmoniously into collaborative and harmonious productivity in later life.
Noone expected co-education to be without risk, especially in the years of adolescence. Those risks will increase when boarding is also extended to both sexes, as was the case in 2010 for St Christopher’s High School. But if you ignore the need for change in order to avoid the existence of risk you get nowhere in the world of today. The essence of progress in education and societal development is to assess, evaluate and then minimise risk while exploiting all the positive aspects of a course of action – in this case girls and boys being educated together. As the old saying goes: those who grow together, understand each other and flourish together.
Over its half century of life, St Christopher’s has increased its student body from 400 to 793 with 43 staff members. Like all schools in the system it would like to reduce the student:teacher ratio in some of the subjects taught. This need is, of course, increased when the school does what I am pleased to say has happened at St Christophers – expanding the curriculum to meet the needs of a modern society and economy.
In this regard, in terms of impact on society, little can match the continuing progress of information and communications technology (ICT). The revolutionizing effect of ICT is being felt across every area of business, professional discipline and one’s personal life. We already know the effect that mobile devices have had – mostly highly beneficial though inevitably with some negatively distracting influences on the younger generation. That aspect aside, being well educated and equipped in ICT is essential for a future career in virtually every field. The future presents a tough life for dinosaurs.
I am therefore pleased to say that, in common with other high schools in our system, St Christopher’s is further empowering its students in a practical way in areas such as ICT, consumer science, and design and related technology.
The school’s embracing of agriculture in its teaching curriculum is similarly commendable. Agriculture has been, and will continue to be, the backbone of the Swazi economy. Making the sector more attractive to the youth is currently a challenge which our public sector is having to address. Yet the characteristics of commercial agriculture are constantly changing in proportion to the impact of ICT. ICT facilitates access to technical research and product performance, on-line purchasing of inputs and promotion, marketing and distribution of outputs. These factors are turning agriculture into a profession that can be as dynamic and stylish as any other. Swaziland wants her young people to learn as much about agriculture and what it can offer in terms of a future career.
This school cares deeply about its pupils and His Majesty’s Government likes to hear that. Recognising the existence of extensive poverty among its students, the School’s feeding unit has been built to ensure that no student is expected to study without food in the stomach. And what is additionally impressive about the project is that it was built solely by parents at a cost of nearly E200,000. What a tribute to the compassion of a school and the parents!
The other major component of today’s launch is the new classroom block. Again we see the coordinating drive, and the commitment and generosity of the parents, producing real and substantial benefits for the students. While Government contributed nearly E950,000, the parents more than matched that by raising E1.6 million. If there was a special medal for parents I would be handing that out now!
Clearly we would all acknowledge the huge contribution to this momentum by Ms Busisiwe Jean Ngidi, the former Principal of the School who served from 1982 to 2015. We extend our deepest appreciation to Ms Ngidi for her work.
There are, nevertheless, challenges that the School faces, mostly of an infrastructural nature – laboratories, departmental rooms, other offices and teachers houses – that require improvement or expansion. I am sorry to report that our 900 or so schools are all chasing the same money in this regard but I ask the Ministry of Education and Training to note the School’s needs and assess where these fit among the priorities of the education sector.
When notifying Government of their individual needs, we do expect our schools to be resourceful and enterprising at the same time, and, through their own endeavours, contributing as effectively as possible to the educational and pastoral needs of their students. The infrastructural improvements being opened today are an excellent example of that.
It is now my honour to thank you for inviting me today and declare the new classrooms and kitchen officially opened.
Thank you.