Snapshot: Tanzania Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (MOEVT)
The Ministry of Education and Vocational Training is a state agency that oversaw the provision of education throughout Tanzania. The ministry’s head office was situated in Dar es Salaam. Under the initial cabinet of President John Pombe Magufuli, the ministry was saddled with other responsibilities and became the new Ministry of Education, Technology, Science, and Vocational Training.
Ministry of Education and Vocational Training Tanzania Organization
The permanent secretary, Sifuni Mchome, functions as the chief accounting officer and the primary custodian of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training’s assets. The division of policy and planning and the management information unit are directly overseen by the secretary
Under the permanent secretary, the commissioner of education is the chief academic adviser in all aspects of parastatal organizations and professional departments. The commissioner is in charge of primary and secondary education, adult and non-formal education, special needs education division, vocational and technical education division, teacher educational unit, distance learning unit, school registration unit, the school inspectorate division, and higher education division.
The key responsibility of the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training are regulated through the following units and divisions:
- Primary education unit (including pre-primary education)
- Secondary education unit
- Adult and non-formal education division
- School registration unit
- Teacher education division
- School inspectorate division
- Distance learning unit
- Vocational and Technical education division
- Higher education division
- The special needs education division
- Cross-cutting issues unit
The following units and divisions handle the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training’s support functions:
- National Commissions for UNESCO
- Legal services unit
- Procurement management unit
- Finance and accounts unit
- Administration and human resources management division
- Policy and planning division
- Information, education, and communication unit
- Education management information system unit
- Internal audit unit
Education Agencies, Institutes, Boards, Authorities, Commissions, and Councils
There are other educational institutions in Tanzania, some of which are under the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training’s jurisdiction. They include the following but not limited to:
- Tanzania National Examinations Council
- National Council for Technical Education
- Tanzania Library Services Board
- Institute of Adult Education
- Agency for the Development of Educational Management
- Tanzania Commission for Universities
- Higher Education Students’ Loans Board
- Vocational Education and Training Authority
- Tanzania Education Authority
- Tanzania Institute of Education
The Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE)
TIE is a parastatal organization under the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training. TIE is “saddled with the responsibility of maintaining the education standard in Tanzania at the pre-school, primary, secondary and teacher training levels.” It was established in 1963 through a legislative act that placed TIE under the University College of Dar es Salaam, then a part of the University of East Africa. In 1975, the legislature made TIE a state corporation by lawfully separating it from the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM).
National Examinations Council of Tanzania
The council was created in 1973. It administers all national examinations and awards primary, secondary, and post-secondary official diplomas.
National Council for Technical Education
The National Council for Technical Education was founded in 1998. It oversees the provision of formal technical training and education in Tanzania.
Tanzania Library Services Board (TLSB)
The Tanzania Library Services Board was created in 1963, although now controlled by a law made in 1975. The board establishes, aids, provides, and develops libraries, documentation centers, and information centers. TLSB provides information to all categories of people, including children, teenagers, youth, disadvantaged groups, adults, and the underprivileged. In carrying out these roles, the board obtains, sorts out, and gives out books, non-book materials, and several forms of information materials to schools, institutions, individuals, and the public.
Institute of Adult Education
The Institute of Adult Education was founded in 1975. The institute manages continuous and non-formal education schemes for adults, specifically focusing on rural communities.
Agency for the Development of Educational Management
The Agency for the Development of Educational Management was created under the Executive Agencies Act, 1997. Its function is to ensure orderly and organized educational management and administration training for all classes of academic administrators and management staff in the education system.
Tanzania Education Authority
The Tanzania Education Authority is a corporate body set up in 2001. Its motivation is to deal with the Education Fund, which upholds instruction projects put together by colleges, specialized universities, and full-enrolled schools.
Tanzania Commission for Universities(TCU)
The Tanzania Commission for Universities was founded in 2005 as the replacement to the Higher Education Accreditation Council. Before TCU was created, each higher education institution carried out its required responsibilities as laid down in its individual constitution or Act of Parliament. Parliament annulled the previous institution-specific laws in the same legislation that founded TCU. Each institution was then mandated to register with the Tanzania Commission for Universities.
TCU is a corporate body required to accredit, validate, register, and approve universities operating in Tanzania and local or foreign university-level schemes offered by non-TCU registered higher institutions. TCU is also in charge of the actual performance of all university institutions in Tanzania to promote a coordinated higher education system in the country.
Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB)
The Higher Education Students’ Loans Board (HESLB) was founded in 2004. HESLB is in charge of giving students loans in pursuit of advanced diplomas and degree studies at approved higher education institutions within or outside the country. HESLB is also mandated to receive repayment for all loans given to students since 1994 in order to make the program sustainable and thriving.
Vocational Education and Training Authority
The Vocational Education and Training Authority was founded in 1994. It is an independent government organization entrusted with the general roles and responsibility of providing, promoting, financing, regulating, and coordinating vocational education and training.
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