Education in Malawi is regulated nationally by the Ministry of Education. The system is different from the school system in the Netherlands. For example, there is no kindergarten in Malawi, and children start school only from the age of six (primary school).

Almost every village has its own primary school. This is necessary because public transport in Malawi is very limited and very expensive.

Although education is regulated nationally, the school itself is owned by the village. This means that the locals themselves have to take care of the building of the school as well as houses for the teachers. Only when these conditions are met one can apply for teachers at the ministry.

The primary school education system consists of eight classes, from standard one to standard eight. At the end of the eighth grade children will do a national test. The result of this test determines to what kind of secondary school a child can go to. Different secondary schools have different ‘qualities’. Most families, however, cannot pay the tuition fees for secondary schools (€ 50 a year), which means that for most children education stops after having attended primary school.

That is why it is so important that the quality of the primary school is up to standard. If, thanks to good education, the children have a solid basic knowledge, they can benefit from that for the rest of their lives.