President abolishes school fees

Malawi's newly elected President, 85-year-old Peter Mutharika, has delivered on his campaign promise to make primary and secondary education free by abolishing almost all school-related fees, reports RFI. In a bid to improve literacy levels in the country, Mutharika has announced that tuition fees, examination fees, school development fees and fees for identity cards used during examinations have all been abolished. Secondary school pupils in boarding schools will still need to pay boarding fees, which remain substantial. The move is expected to increase enrolment and lower the drop-out rate. Although the latter has improved significantly for primary education – from 11.7%in 2009 to 3.2% in 2018, according to the national education sector investment plan – retention remains a challenge. The country has a primary school completion rate of 52% and a repetition rate of 24.5%. In 2024, 24 371 learners dropped out of primary schools and 24 371 of secondary school. Overall, only 33% of children complete primary school and 4% upper secondary school, according to figures quoted by Malawi's Nation newspaper.