MBABANE – Public primary schools across Eswatini are facing a severe financial crisis following the Ministry of Education and Training’s prolonged delay in disbursing free primary eeducation (FPE) grants specifically designated for Grade 1 pupils.
The ongoing funding hitch has left head teachers stranded midway through the 2026 academic calendar. Compounding the crisis is government’s crackdown on top-up fees, leaving school administrators barred from requesting emergency contributions from parents, yet they lack the funds required to keep their institutions running.
Under the Free Primary Education Act of 2010, government is constitutionally mandated to cover tuition, stationery and learning materials for all primary school pupils. While the ministry recently announced successful FPE rollout for higher grades, Grade I disbursements have faced systemic delays, starving schools of critical early-year operational capital.
Speaking on condition of anonymity in fear of professional reprisal, one head teacher said: “We are effectively running on empty. Grade I represent our largest intake this year. Without their FPE grants, we cannot buy fundamental items like exercise books, chalk, or even basic cleaning detergents. I have had to beg local suppliers to give us cleaning chemicals on credit just so we can maintain proper hygiene in the ablution blocks.”
The financial squeeze is felt just as acutely in rural communities, where alternative resources are non-existent. A head teacher from a community school in northern Hhohho explained how the funding delay has crippled daily operations.
“The ministry expects us to run schools like standard businesses, but they have cut off our working capital. We cannot pay our electricity bills or maintain our school feeding programme kitchen properly. When we try to explain this to the regional education office (REO), we are simply told to wait. But the children cannot wait to learn, and the bills certainly do not wait.”
The head teacher said the crisis is severely exacerbated by the ministry’s current unyielding stance on extra levies. He said Minister for Education and Training, Owen Nxumalo, recently issued a stern warning to school administrators, threatening show cause letters and disciplinary action against anyone charging unauthorised top-up fees.
“The top-up ban would be completely fair if the government paid on time,” countered the head teacher.
The head teacher added that the situation of also worsened by the newly introduced Competency-Based Education which requires a lot of resources to be purchased.
The Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Education and Training, Nanikie Mnisi, confirmed that government has not yet paid for Grade I. She stated that the delay was caused by the ministry experiencing some technicalities. She explained that the current technical difficulties with the new system are with the treasury department, where officials are still familiarising themselves with it, and they are working on how they could fast-track the process to facilitate the payments. She also mentioned that they did engage with SNAT and explained the situation to them.
“We will be paying for Grade I next week, from June 23 – 24,” she said.
Mnisi apologised to headteachers and teachers for the delay in the payments, which is causing a challenge in running the schools.
SNAT urges government to admit financial crisis
MBABANE – SNAT has urged government to declare if it is broke, adding that the union could lend them money.
The Swaziland National Association of Teachers Secretary General, Lot Vilakati, said the government’s failure to pay for Grade I is a major issue for schools. He said there is currently no food in the schools, and whilst they are not allowed to charge top-up fees, these levies previously enabled the institutions to function without disruptions.
“Then what are we supposed to do as teachers?” he asked.
Vilakati said that, as SNAT, they are demanding the government state clearly if it lacks the necessary funds, as SNAT could government money through their SNAT SACCU.
“We can lend the government serious money, but they must first come clean and admit that they are broke. We could then lend government money. They only need to declare that they are broke,” he said.
Public primary schools across Eswatini are facing a severe financial crisis following the Ministry of Education and Training’s prolonged delay in disbursing free primary eeducation (FPE) grants specifically designated for Grade 1 pupils.