PRESIDENT Hakainde Hichilema has reiterated that State House is open to all citizens but emphasised the need for organised engagement.
Addressing teachers from the region through the Association of Non-aligned Teacher Unions of Southern Africa festival in Livingstone yesterday, President Hichilema said the UPND administration remains committed to dialogue with stakeholders, including teachers.
“State House is a people’s State House. We have opened it to all of you, of course, come in an organised way,” he said.
He encouraged teachers’ unions to engage Government through structured dialogue to resolve challenges in the education sector.
“And I want to confirm here that nothing is outside the dialogue table. Any challenges you face are for dialogue. Any issues that the teaching fraternity, the learning and teaching environment needs to address, let’s deal with those issues. Let’s sit on the table,” President Hichilema said.
Southern Province Minister Credo Nanjuwa underscored the importance of collaboration, saying progress in education requires partnership, cooperation, and shared commitments.
Basic Education Teachers Union (BETUZ) CEO and general secretary Henry Sinkala welcomed government’s openness to engagement while singing praises of achievements attained by the government in the education sector, such as free education, school feeding programme, among other Interventions.
Sinkala added that dialogue between leadership and teachers is critical in advancing the education agenda.
Meanwhile, the Association of Non-aligned Teacher Unions of Southern Africa (ANTUSA) has called on Zambia to take a leading role in promoting quality free education across the Southern African region.
ANTUSA president Mkhuseli Dubula said while progress has been made in expanding access to education, maintaining quality remains a key concern.
“As ANTUSA, we are worried about quality. How do we get to this quality?” Dubula said while highlighting that Zambia’s progress with free education provides a model for the region.
He said the organisation, representing teachers across SADC, is looking to Zambia’s leadership to help drive reforms that balance access with standards.
President Hichilema, who committed uncompromised education quality in era of free education, acknowledged the regional responsibility, pledging to take the education agenda to continental and global platforms.
And BETUZ noted that Zambia’s experience shows that expanding access can go hand in hand with improved outcomes, citing increased enrollment and improved performance during examinations.
In last year’s Grade 12 examinations, pupils in Zambia achieved a historic 70.26 percent pass rate, the highest ever.
The Ministry of Education attributed the improvement to increased teacher recruitment and better learning materials, marking a steady five-year upward trend from 63.93 percent pass rate in 2020.
Kalemba April 5, 2026
