The Swaziland National Association of Teachers (SNAT) has raised fresh concerns over the poor state of teachers’ accommodation and working conditions in some schools in the Shiselweni region.
This follows site visits conducted by the Government Negotiating Team (GNT) this week.
According to the SNAT platform, which is the formal communication page used by the union to update the public and teachers, teachers’ houses at Holy Family Primary School were being covered with damp-proof membrane and bricks.
The union further stated that the head teacher of the school was said to have converted a room in her house, in the teachers’ quarters, into an administrative office.
Meanwhile, at Mboke TX Foundation High School, the teachers’ houses, according to the union, are located just five metres away from the classrooms.
This was revealed by the union after its site visits to three schools on Wednesday.
Before the visit by the GNT to the schools, the team had also visited veterinary officers last month to ascertain their working conditions.
Veterinary officers were also reported to be living in dilapidated houses, which indicates a broader challenge for workers in the public service.
The Deputy Secretary General, Mxolisi Ngcamphalala, while updating the public in a livestream by the SNAT platform on the site visits, stated that many schools were not in good condition.
He said they would be visiting more schools next week with the GNT.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Public Service Principal Secretary, Mthunzi Shabangu, confirmed that, together with the GNT, they conducted a monitoring and assessment visit to selected rural schools in the Shiselweni region.
He said the visit formed part of the government’s exercise to identify schools eligible for the payment of hardship allowances, in line with the recommendations of the salary review.
He said the assessment exercise formed part of the government’s broader commitment to improving the welfare of public servants while ensuring that policy decisions were informed by on-the-ground realities.
