New US$600,000 Globe And Phoenix Primary School Commissioned

The government has commissioned the new Globe and Phoenix Primary School in Kwekwe, a US$600,000 facility that can accommodate over 1,000 pupils.

For the past two years, these children had been learning in makeshift tents after the original school was decommissioned when classroom floors collapsed into a mineshaft caused by illegal mining activities.

The new school was handed over by Minister of Primary and Secondary Education Torerai Moyo during a commissioning ceremony last week. The facility was built by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Minister Moyo said illegal mining had severely damaged the school’s infrastructure, culminating in the collapse of a classroom due to ground destabilisation.
The incident affected 1,348 learners — 698 girls and 650 boys — along with 45 teachers (39 women and six men).

Pupils faced a shortage of toilets, harsh weather, heavy dust and noise, and no sporting facilities, making learning extremely difficult.

Damage to furniture and textbooks in the insecure tent classrooms further hampered education, and many parents withdrew their children, leading to a noticeable drop in enrolment. Said Moyo:

“Recognising the urgent need for a sustainable solution, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints stepped in to address these issues.

“They undertook the construction of seven learning blocks, an administrative block and an ablution block, equipping the classrooms with a 10kVA solar system, 600 desks, 600 chairs and 14 tables with chairs for teachers.”

Moyo said the new Globe and Phoenix Primary School is now ready to accommodate 785 learners — 409 girls and 376 boys.

The minister praised The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for its substantial contributions to education in Zimbabwe.