HARARE – The Schools Examinations Council (Zimsec) says it has extended the deadline for candidates to register for the November examinations up to July 30, 2021.

Zimsec had originally set last Friday as the deadline for candidates to register for the Grade 7, Ordinary Level and Advanced Level final exams.

Teachers’ unions had warned that thousands of pupils would miss the deadline as families go through Covid-19 induced hardship.

Zimsec spokesperson Nicky Dlamini said: “Normal registration closed on July 9. We will allow for late registration up to July 30, 2021.”

Dlamimi did not have statistics of those that had registered by July 9 for a comparative analysis with last year’s candidates.

Alarm was sounded in the last few weeks with schools reporting that many pupils would miss the deadline for registering. The government increased examination fees for both O’ and A’ Level. A typical O’ Level student with seven subjects is expected to pay Z$5,194, while candidates for three A’ Level subjects must part with Z$3,240. For many parents and guardians, the exam fees are too steep.

About 15,000 pupils that attended school up to Grade 7, Form 4 and Upper Sixth failed to register for their final exams in 2020 – and officials worry that the numbers could increase exponentially this year.

Matabeleland North provincial education director Jabulani Mpofu last week said by June 30 – just a week before the deadline – only about 40 percent of students had registered.

The Progressive Teachers’ Union of Zimbabwe has called for the deadline to be further extended to August.

“The government must bear in mind the current hardships, and the Covid-19 lockdowns that affect fundraising activities at family level,” the union’s secretary general Raymond Majongwe said – ZIMLIVE

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