The Sunday News
THE Ministry of Public Service, Labour and Social Services is conducting an audit to verify the authenticity of Basic Education Assistance Module (Beam) beneficiaries.
According to the ministry, the exercise is meant to ensure that pupils benefiting are deserving, noting that previously there were some pupils who could afford paying their school fees who were unscrupulously benefiting from the fund.
In an interview with Sunday News Deputy Minister of Public Service, Labour and Social Services, Cde Tapiwa Matangaidze said the exercise was already at an advanced stage, saying it was their hope that they have the results of the audit by the beginning of next year.
“We are running this exercise because we want to know and verify the authenticity of some of the beneficiaries of Beam. It is essential that we ensure that this fund is used for its original purpose rather than a situation where benefitting pupils are forced to drop out because they cannot afford and are also not part of the Beam facility.
“It’s not like we are on a witch-hunting exercise but it just a routine audit where we want to establish the full list of beneficiaries, their backgrounds and whether they qualify for the facility,” said Cde Matangaidze.
The Deputy Minister further revealed that they had since cleared what they owed schools for the year ending 2014 and were now working on clearing the 2015 debt.
“I know that previously schools have complained on the late payment of Beam funds but I am happy to report that we have managed to clear school fees up to the end of 2014 but 2015 is still outstanding, of which we are closely working with the Finance Ministry for these to be cleared as soon as possible.
“But due to financial challenges which the Government is experiencing, I am not sure that we will be able to clear what is outstanding by the end of the year but we are pushing that it be cleared by the first quarter of next year,” said the Deputy Minister.
According to a 2013 Education Management Information System (EMIS) report more than 165 000 orphans and vulnerable children are failing to access the Beam owing to bureaucracy and inadequate resources.
The report released early this year stated that the delay in the disbursement of funds has affected thousands of vulnerable children who wanted to write examinations or collect results.
“A total of 141 757 children consisting of 71 874 boys and 69 883 girls were secondary school children on outstanding Beam payments. More concerning is the high rate of claims unpaid, with Matabeleland North and Manicaland provinces having more than 70 percent of Beam claims outstanding,” read part of the report.
“At primary level 23 865 children, consisting of 12 052 females and 11 813 males had debts yet to be settled by Beam, presenting a challenge to the Beam programme, with Manicaland having the highest number of 3 412 females and 3 007 males.”
Beam is a collaborative cash transfer programme between the State and donors that seeks to keep children in school.
It is one of the largest social safety nets aimed at reducing the number of orphans and vulnerable children dropping out of school by covering their tuition fees and other charges.
