AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE government has expressed its commitment to double enrolment of children with special needs into public primary schools.
Deputy Permanent Secretary, Office of the President, Regional Administration and Local Governments, Mr Gerald Mweli said this year they have registered 54,000 pupils with special needs.
Moreover, he said the government had further selected secondary schools to accommodate children with special needs.
He said the new development comes at a time when children with special needs had either limited or schools without necessary infrastructures since independence.
“We have registered 54,000 children, this is twice the number of children registered in 2015,” he said.
The deputy was briefing reporters on the progress of government investment on infrastructure for children with special needs.
He said an increase in the number of schoolchildren with special needs is part of the government’s bold decision to execute a free-education initiative, the plan that has enabled many parents to take their children to school.
“Most of the kids were hidden. I can tell you the registration has doubled since the government moved to implement free education policy,” he said, insisting that it is the government priority to ensure every child access their education rights.
