ZAMBIA: Education sector losing 800 teachers to AIDS

Zambia is losing 800 teachers every year to AIDS-related illnesses, the Zambia National Union of teachers (ZNUT) has revealed.

"The country has had a critical shortage of teachers, and this has been worsened by the pandemic," ZNUT secretary general Roy Mwaba told The Post on Sunday, a local newspaper. "This has made it critical for the government to employ a substantial number of teachers from colleges."

The permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education, Lillian Kapulu, said the government would employ 10,000 new teachers nationwide this year.

Official government figures show that some 16 percent of Zambians are living with the HI virus.

Theme (s): Care/Treatment - PlusNews,

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]