THE ministry of education and training is seeking guidance from Parliament on whether to review the 2017 school uniform policy or continue implementing it in its current form, particularly on the ban of trousers at schools.
Principal Secretary Naniki Mnisi said this while addressing Members of Parliament (MPs) during the second day of their three-day retreat at Sibebe Resort yesterday.
Mnisi acknowledged that Emaswati have constitutional rights, including freedom of expression, but these rights should be exercised responsibly and should not undermine the rights of others.
She said every school fell under a chieftaincy and that pupils were expected to observe a standard of dresscode that respected the country’s traditions and way of life.
The PS said it was customary for locals to dress decently when visiting places such as royal kraals and argued that the same respect should be observed at schools.
She clarified that the ministry’s position did not mean it was encouraging female pupils to wear short skirts simply because trousers were not permitted. Instead, she said parents and guardians had a responsibility to ensure that children were properly and decently dressed.
Mnisi said the ministry was concerned about the safety of pupils, particularly girls, alleging that some men viewed those dressed inappropriately as targets for their sexual desires rather than as pupils whose futures needed to be protected.
She said these men included teachers, workers in the transport industry and others. The PS said the ministry could not fold its arms and do nothing while pupils faced the risk of sexual abuse, adding that some eventually became rape victims.
Mnisi further clarified that the dresscode was not her personal policy but a government policy dating back to 2017. She said the policy had been deliberately developed with relevant education stakeholders before receiving Cabinet approval.
According to Mnisi, she was simply an instrument of government tasked with implementing its policies and was not imposing her personal beliefs on schools. She said she should therefore not be regarded as being ‘offside’ for enforcing the policy, as some people had concluded. Instead, she said, any criticism of the policy should be directed at government, which had approved it.
“We have just celebrated the Teachers Day recently where each selected school won a prize of E5 000 for dressing decently. That is what we encourage as a ministry. We want to see pupils dressed properly and decently,” she said.
Mnisi also pointed to school uniform practices in other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries, saying pupils wore uniforms that covered their knees and were presentable. She said the ministry wanted similar standards to prevail locally.
However, Mnisi acknowledged that there had been informal feedback suggesting that many parents and guardians wanted their children to be allowed to dress as they considered fit and proper. She said the ministry could not do much about that without further guidance from Parliament, on whether the existing policy should be reviewed or maintained. The ministry recently moved to stop the adoption of trousers as part of the official school uniform, with Mnisi warning headteachers against deviating from the existing policy.
| Dimension | Details & Arguments Presented by Ministry |
|---|---|
| Policy Authority & Origins | Policy dates back to 2017, formulated alongside education stakeholders and approved by Cabinet. PS Mnisi emphasized she enforces government policy rather than personal preferences. |
| Cultural & Community Norms | Schools fall within chieftaincies where customary decorum applies, comparable to standards expected when visiting royal kraals. Regional SADC benchmarks emphasize knee-covering, presentable wear. |
| Pupil Safety & Protection | Ministry raised serious safeguarding concerns, warning that inappropriate dressing exposes girls to sexual predators, including public transport workers and rogue educators. |
| Parental Feedback & Rights | Acknowledged informal feedback from parents wanting flexibility to dress children as they see fit; balanced against constitutional freedom of expression exercised without violating societal norms. |
| Current Action Required | Legislative guidance requested from Parliament during Sibebe Resort retreat on whether to initiate a formal policy review or continue enforcing the current ban. |
Summary of submissions made by Principal Secretary Naniki Mnisi to Members of Parliament at Sibebe Resort.
