Sierra Leone’s Opposition Blasts Government Free Education Initiative for Failing the Poor
Sierra Leone’s Free Quality Education (FQE) initiative, launched by President Julius Maada Bio in 2018, was initially seen as a game-changer for the country’s educational system. The program was designed to ensure that every child had access to quality education, irrespective of their socio-economic background.
Many hoped
it would re-establish Sierra Leone as an educational hub in West Africa, as it
once was. However, six years after its introduction, critics argue that the
initiative has failed to meet expectations, leaving many parents and students
disillusioned.
Rising Costs and Broken Promises
Despite the government's assertion that the FQE initiative has made significant strides, many families report that education has become more expensive. According to opponents of the program, particularly Abdul Karim Kamara MP, the opposition's Chief Whip in Parliament, the initiative is burdening the very people it was meant to help.
Kamara argues that while the FQE was designed to alleviate the financial strain on parents, the reality is that education has become unaffordable for many families. Public school fees, although capped at NLe 30.00 per year, do not cover essential costs such as uniforms, books, and examination fees, leaving parents struggling to afford a "free" education.
Furthermore, the cost of private education has surged, with private schools charging thousands of dollars annually. This has created a wide disparity between public and private schooling, according to Kamara, ensuring that only the wealthy benefit from what he describes as “true quality education.”
Inequality in Education
Kamara’s criticism goes beyond rising costs. He points to the stark inequalities between Sierra Leone’s public and private schools, which, in his view, undermine the principles of fairness and inclusion that the FQE was meant to uphold.
Public
schools, he argues, are severely underfunded, lacking essential resources such
as clean water, proper sanitation, and adequate classrooms. Teacher welfare has
also been largely neglected, which has a direct impact on the quality of
education being delivered.
In contrast, private schools, which cater predominantly to the children of wealthier families, are better equipped, offering smaller class sizes, superior infrastructure, and better-paid teachers.
This, according to Kamara, creates a
two-tiered system where the children of the elite receive a high-quality
education, while the majority, including the voters who elected the current
government, are left behind.
“The
radical inclusion is excluding the people that vote for us,” Kamara stated,
highlighting the growing frustration among parents who feel betrayed by the
government's failure to deliver on its promise of free and equal education for
all.
Exam Malpractices and Teacher Welfare
Another issue plaguing Sierra Leone’s education system is the persistence of exam malpractices. Despite the government's efforts to curb these incidents, cheating remains rampant in public schools.
This further erodes the credibility
of the FQE initiative and undermines the academic integrity of the education
system. Students from wealthier families who can afford private tuition are
often seen to have an unfair advantage when it comes to national exams,
perpetuating the cycle of inequality.
Teacher welfare is another major concern. Kamara highlighted the fact that many teachers in public schools are poorly paid and lack the motivation to deliver quality education.
Without proper incentives, teachers struggle to meet the
educational needs of their students. This results in lower teaching standards
and poor student outcomes, particularly in public schools, where resources are
already stretched thin.
Inadequate School Subsidies
Kamara also criticized the government’s inadequate school subsidies, which have left public schools without the means to provide basic services. According to him, the government’s failure to increase subsidies has led to overcrowded classrooms, poor learning environments, and a lack of essential materials.
He
called on the government to boost its financial support for public schools to
improve conditions and bridge the gap between public and private education.
In
his view, a comprehensive overhaul of the subsidy system is necessary to ensure
that public schools can offer a comparable level of education to their
private counterparts. Without this, Kamara argues, the FQE will continue to
fall short of its goal to provide equal opportunities for all children in
Sierra Leone.
Regulating Private School Fees
Kamara’s
closing remarks addressed the issue of private school fees, which he believes
are contributing to the growing inequality in the education system. He urged
the government to step in and regulate private school fees, emphasizing that
the current disparity in costs is unfair and undermines the principles of
inclusion and accessibility that the FQE was meant to achieve.
Without regulation, private schools will continue to operate as exclusive institutions for the wealthy, while public schools struggle to provide even the most basic educational services.
Kamara stressed that if the government is serious about reforming the education sector, it must take action to ensure that all students, regardless of their socio-economic background, have access to quality education. The criticism from opposition leaders like Abdul Karim Kamara MP reveals deep-rooted challenges in Sierra Leone’s Free Quality Education initiative.
While the government may claim progress, the reality for many families is far different. Rising costs, inadequate funding, and a widening gap between public and private education have left many feeling disillusioned with a program that was supposed to be a beacon of hope.
If
the government does not address these issues soon, it risks alienating the very
people it promised to uplift through education reform. For the FQE to truly
succeed, it must become more than just a political slogan; it must deliver on
its promise to provide quality education for all children, regardless of their
background.