Tanzania: No Plans to Transform Sengerema School Into College

THE government has no plans whatsoever to transform the old Sengerema Secondary School into the Mining and Fisheries College, Parliament heard here on Friday.

Deputy Minister of State, President’s Office, Regional Administration and Local Government (PO-RALG), Mr Deogratius Ndejembi issued the government’s stance when responding to a question asked by Sengerema Member of Parliament (MP), Tabasam Hamis (CCM).

In his question, the Sengerema lawmaker had wanted to know the government’s plan to use the Sengerema Secondary School buildings to become a college for minerals and fisheries.

Responding, Mr Ndejembi said that Sengerema Secondary School was among the country’s oldest schools which enrolls students from form one to form six from across the country.

“The government’s plan is to increase enrollment of Advanced Level students due to the fact that students sitting for four examinations has kept on increasing each year, therefore, the plan to transform Sengerema Secondary School into a college for minerals and fisheries cannot be possible,” he noted.

The reason behind that, according to the deputy minister, was the fact that sengerema secondary school was highly needed and that transforming the school into a college would increase scarcity of positions needed to enroll more students pursuing form five and form six studies.

Mr Ndejembi further told the National Assembly that the PO-RALG was not involved at all in all the plans to transform the Sengerema secondary school into a college for minerals and fisheries.

“We ask our colleagues in the ministry of minerals to come on a roundtable to discuss with our ministry on this issue baring in mind that as of now we have a higher demand of advanced level schools,” he said adding:

“We equally advise the ministry of minerals to look for another area and funds to construct a college which will deal with training minerals experts, instead to changing the use of Sengerema secondary school.”