THE bustling community of Caledonia in Mashonaland East province is at a crossroads, grappling with a pressing issue that strikes at the heart of their children’s future.
Concerned citizens, armed with a deep sense of purpose, are rallying together to ensure that the right to affordable and accessible education, as enshrined in the Constitution of Zimbabwe, is upheld in their rapidly expanding
neighbourhood.
For years, residents of Caledonia have watched with growing unease as land barons have been selling off parcels of land to private developers, who, in turn, have been establishing expensive private schools.
This trend has left the community feeling sidelined, as their children face the prospect of being priced out of quality education.
“We’ve been knocking on the doors of senior government officials, trying to draw attention to this serious problem,” says Tatenda Moyo, a long-time Caledonia resident, who is also leading a fledgling concerned citizens’ association.
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“The land that was meant for public schools is being gobbled up by private interests and our children are the ones who suffer,” she stated.
The allocation of land in Zimbabwe has emerged as a complex and contentious issue, with overlapping jurisdictions between the ministries of Lands and Local Government.
As one senior government official noted: “There’s a clear misunderstanding of who owns the land.
“Currently, Caledonia is still State land, but the Ministry of Lands and the Ministry of Local Government seem to have different mandates.”
The development politics behind the land ownership issues in Zimbabwe have created a complex and troubling scenario.
The overlap between the Ministry of Lands and that of Local Government has allowed land barons to thrive, particularly in urban and peri-urban areas.
These unscrupulous actors have been able to exploit the ambiguity in land governance, snatching up parcels of land that were intended for public use and selling them off to private developers.
This has stripped away crucial land reserves that could have been utilised for crucial public infrastructure, like schools and healthcare facilities so desperately needed by communities.
The lack of clear delineation of responsibilities between the two ministries has enabled this shadowy world of land baronism to flourish.
As another government official lamented: “There’s a clear misunderstanding of who owns the land.”
This power vacuum has empowered the land barons to dictate the development agenda, prioritising their own profits over the wellbeing of the people.
Until there is concerted effort to address these entrenched power dynamics and establish robust, transparent land governance systems, the people of Zimbabwe will continue to suffer the
consequences.
The development politics at play have betrayed the trust of citizens, who deserve equitable access to the resources that should rightfully belong to them.
However, the Primary and Secondary Education ministry has responded to community’s concerns, recently convening a series of meetings to address the issue.
Officials have assured residents that institutions like Belvedere Teachers College will be involved in establishing public schools, with teachers on attachment being assigned to teach full-time in these institutions.
“The government has acknowledged the need for more public schools in Caledonia,” explained Tendai Chikukwa, a senior ministry official, in minutes of one of the
meetings.
“We’re working to ensure that there is at least one public school for every 500 to 750 households, as per the established minimum standards.”
Conversely, the residents remain sceptical, pointing to the already established private school, a preparatory school, as a prime example of the problem.
Located on land that was initially reserved for a government-owned primary school, the school has already caused a stir in the community.
“We have the capacity to build our own schools,” argues Themba Ndlovu, a community leader.
“We have well-wishers and donor partners who have promised to help us recompense the private developer and take back the land for a public school.”
Caledonia Member of Parliament Washington Zhanda offered a more nuanced perspective on the government’s response to the land baronism challenge.
As he noted in a recent interview with NewsDay: “The government has responded positively towards these developments in terms of its contribution towards building public schools.”
He explained that while there were many private schools in Caledonia, “with the consent of government these will be reduced accordingly,” pointing to the operational Runyararo Primary and Secondary schools built by the government.
The residents’ concerns extend beyond the encroachment of private schools.
They have also raised issues of accountability, citing incidents where school administrators have allegedly mishandled funds and even threatened students with firearms.
“In 2024, a principal ran away with registration fees and it took the intervention of President [Emmerson] Mnangagwa to get the money back,” recounted Moyo.
“And at another private school, a student had a gun pointed at him for no apparent reason.
“These are the kind of things we want to avoid in our community.”
The Higher and Tertiary Education ministry has leveraged drone technology to map Caledonia’s geography and demographics, providing critical data to guide development strategies aligned with Zimbabwe’s Vision 2030, according to government officials.
“We’re committed to ensuring transparency and accountability in the allocation of land and the establishment of schools in Caledonia,” assures Chikukwa.
“A special task force has been set up to investigate how the private school in Phase 9 was approved and we'll be using that information to guide our decision-making, going
forward.”
As the community waits for concrete action, the residents of Caledonia remain steadfast in their determination to secure a brighter future for their children.
They are united in the belief that access to quality, affordable education is a fundamental right that must be upheld, regardless of the challenges they face.
“We’re not going to give up,” declares Ndlovu.
“This is about the future of our community, and we’ll keep fighting until our children have the same opportunities as those in more affluent areas.”