Over 50,000 teachers from Primary and Secondary schools around the country, yesterday, started a five-week English language training course.

The official launch of the programme, presided over by Dr. Mathias Harebamungu, the State Minister in charge of Primary and Secondary Education, was held at College APAPE in Gikondo, Kicukiro District, where part of about 1, 300 teachers from the district converged.

The training, supported by the British Council and United States Agency for International Development (USAID), is the second of its kind, and aims at equipping teachers with communication skills.

A total of 1,022 facilitators, 500 from neighbouring countries, were hired to conduct the training.
Harebamungu, observed that about 84 percent of the teachers turned up for the training on the first day, but warned that those who will not attend the training risk losing their jobs.

"We will not tolerate such teachers and all departments we work with were informed on this issue. We cannot continue working with teachers who fail to attend such an essential training which the government has spent huge sums of money,” Harebamungu warned.

Each foreign trainer is expected to earn about Rwf 25,000 per day, while a local trainer will be paid Rwf20,000 daily. The training is scheduled to end on December 24.

"These will be the same teachers who will complain that they can’t teach in English,” Harebamungu, said in reference to those who did not show up on the first day of the course.

He called on the trainees to effectively use the knowledge they will acquire in the training to raise the country’s education standards.

The minister also noted that the use of French as a language of instruction in schools will officially end this year.

"All Primary and Secondary Schools will now be using English as a language of instruction, and all the exams will be set in English,” the Minister observed.

This year, only Primary Schools had their examinations set in English, while only few Secondary Schools had their exams in English.

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