Fifty teachers will Tuesday be recognised at the national level for their outstanding contribution to Rwanda’s education system.

The event takes place on the occasion of World Teachers’ Day, marked annually on October 5.

The day is being celebrated under the theme "Teachers at the heart of the education recovery”, which highlights teachers’ role in Covid recovery effort.

The awards event was set to take place at Kigali Convention Centre in the presence of teachers, headteachers as well as government officials and representatives of other education stakeholders.

According to the state minister in charge of primary education, Gaspard Twagirayezu, the teachers who will be rewarded today are drawn from all the provinces and the capital Kigali.

He said today’s event was preceded by district-level awards that were given to many educators.

The teachers being recognised are from both the classic education and Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) systems.

Prizes include cash awards, cows, electronic equipment, the minister said, without offering further details.

‘A gesture of gratitude’ 

"It is a gesture of gratitude,” he said. "The idea is to appreciate them for their dedication and contribution toward building a bright future for the country.”

Twagirayezu praised teachers for their role during their Covid-19 pandemic both at the time of lockdowns and after. Teachers were at the heart of remote schooling after the government ordered school closures as it battled the virus.

"They played a very important role in efforts to contain Covid,” Twagirayezu told The New Times Monday evening.

He pledged continued effort to further improve the social welfare and working conditions of teachers.

Laurence Uwambaje, the Director-General of Umwalimu Savings and Credit Cooperatives (Sacco), said teachers were critical for the economy, adding that the government will continue to facilitate them.

Established in 2006, Umwalimu-Sacco is an initiative set up to help improve teachers’ access to financing.  

"We have facilitated teachers to access loans through Sacco,” she noted. 

Challenges outlined

However, teachers are still faced with many challenges, said Faustin Abdon Nkotanyi, the secretary-general of a national syndicate of teachers in private schools.

"We appreciate several initiatives to improve teachers’ social welfare, but there are still more areas that need to be worked on,” he said.

He cited low salaries and unpaid arrears. "The salary is not commensurate with the standards of living.”

Nkotanyi also said that many teachers have a one-year contract "which means they have no job security.”  

He also said there is a need to urgently create a ‘teachers’ shop’ to help improve their conditions, adding that they have raised the issues with the Ministry of Education with little success.

There are 89,492 teachers under the classic education system and thousands of others under the TVET system.