MANEB to consider increasing allowances for JCE exams markers
The Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB) says it is considering increasing allowances it gives to teachers who mark the Junior Certificate of Education (JCE) examination.
This comes a week after over 90 teachers who were expected to start marking Malawi Junior Certificate examination at Chilema Centre in the eastern city of Zomba on Monday, boycotted the exercise with some returning home due to meager allowance.
The teachers vowed to resume marking once Malawi National Examinations Board (MANEB) increases their allowance from K12.70 per paper to K25.00 per paper.
Spokesperson for MANEB Simeon Maganga told a local radio on Sunday that the examination body would consider revising the rates upwards but emphasized that it cannot happen anytime soon.
“This is a budgetary issue. And considering that MANEB is a nonprofit making organization the increment cannot happen overnight,” he said.
However, during the meeting held last Tuesday at Chilema in the eastern city of Zomba with the concerned teachers, Director for Education at MANEB a Mr Mutala told the boycotting teachers MANEB cannot increase the allowance and if anything they should just pack u and go back home.
Magangaalso concurred with Mutala saying there is no way MANEB could do because it’s an issue to do their budget.
“So those who can love to be marking at the K12 rate paper can continue but those who can’t are free to go,” Maganga told Nyasa Times in an earlier interview.
He said it is surprising that the teachers have started to boycott this time around while in their invitation letters the rate was clearly indicated.
But one of the teachers marking Geography told Nyasa Times that MANB hired them without disclosing the amount to be given to them only to realize later they will only get away with about MK 15,000 after the two week exercise.
“We thought this is unreasonable considering how expensive the cost of living is. We agreed MANEB should at least double that mount so that we should go home with about K30 000 or more after the two week’s job.”
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