MARTIN MAWAYA
GWERU-THE Government has dismissed suggestions that learners in Zimbabwe can choose between the Heritage-Based Curriculum (HBC) and international curricula, insisting that the HBC remains the country’s sole mandatory curriculum framework for all schools.
In a statement yesterday, the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education said a recent communication by Cambridge University Press & Assessment had created a misleading impression that parents and learners had a choice of curriculum.
The ministry said the Heritage-Based Curriculum was compulsory for all pupils and that the Government’s position remained unchanged.
“There is no choice of curriculum. The Heritage-Based Curriculum is mandatory for all pupils in Zimbabwe. This position has not changed and will not be altered by any engagements with external examination bodies,” the ministry said.
Authorities reiterated that the first national examinations under the HBC would be written in 2028, while the Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) would become the sole examination body for all national examinations beginning in 2027.
The ministry stressed that it was not banning Cambridge or other international examination boards, but said such qualifications would only serve as supplementary credentials.
“Pupils may voluntarily sit for Cambridge examinations as an additional qualification, but this does not replace or exempt them from the mandatory HBC and ZIMSEC-administered national examinations,” the statement read.
Government further said any assertion that learners could opt out of the HBC was “incorrect and misleading” and did not reflect Zimbabwe’s education policy direction.
While expressing willingness to continue engaging Cambridge and other stakeholders, the ministry maintained that international qualifications could only complement, and not substitute, the national curriculum.
“There will be no deviation from the mandatory implementation of the Heritage-Based Curriculum,” the ministry said.
