Kavango East school overcrowding reaches 'crisis' point, parents say

Learners at some Kavango East schools are forced to sit and crouch on bare floors and use their laps as desks, as overcrowding worsens and additional grades are added without corresponding classroom capacity.

Ngcangcana Junior Primary School is among the most affected. Originally designed to accommodate learners up to Grade 3, the school has since taken in four additional grades, leaving it without enough classrooms, desks or chairs.

Teachers and parents say some learners have no choice but to sit or lie on the floor during lessons. 

Due to space constraints, several lessons are conducted in tents, while pit latrines at the school were reportedly closed last year, forcing pupils to use nearby bushes.

Water shortages force parents to fetch water for their children.

In response to the ongoing challenges, parents staged a protest yesterday, calling for urgent improvements at the school.

They threatened to withdraw their children from Ngcangcana Junior Primary on 16 February if their concerns are not addressed.

The parents also criticised the school principal, alleging that the head rarely attends work and has been on the premises only twice this year.

Frustrated and worried 

A concerned parent told Namibian Sun that overcrowding has reached crisis levels at the school.

“The classrooms are overcrowded and our children are forced to sit on the floor. As a community, we even contributed chairs so that our children could at least sit,” the parent said.

Teachers at the school also raised concerns, saying the working environment is not conducive to effective teaching and learning.

They said hygiene remains a serious problem, with both male and female teachers reportedly sharing a single toilet.

Inadequate facilities

Kavango East education director Christine Shilima acknowledged the challenges yesterday, saying many schools in the region were pushed to accommodate higher grades after repeated requests from parents who wanted their children to attend schools closer to home, even when facilities were inadequate.

“Ngcangcana was originally designed for Grades 1 to 3 but now accommodates up to Grade 7,” Shilima said. “Overcrowding and limited facilities are a challenge we are actively monitoring.”

She added: “We cannot have a school in every village. Communities must organise themselves and send their children to schools that can accommodate them, because we do not have unlimited resources."

She explained that when parents plead with the ministry to add more grades and infrastructure problems arise as a consequence, complaints follow.

"The ministry cannot continue approving expansions beyond a school’s capacity without proper planning and resources,” she noted.

The director also announced that the ministry will no longer approve grade expansions at schools unless such requests are matched by adequate infrastructure, warning that unplanned growth has placed unsustainable pressure on classrooms, sanitation and water supply across the region.

Shilima acknowledged the school's leadership concerns and said the matter would be investigated.

“I will get to the bottom of the issue regarding the principal’s presence,” she said.