by Christopher Makaza

Government through the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has promised to review retention allowance for rural school teachers and increase their withdrawal limit in an effort to minimise cost of travelling to the banks.

This was revealed by RBZ Governor Dr John Mangudya in a meeting he held with the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) leadership in Harare last week to discuss on the current economic situation in the country and how it was affecting rural teachers.

Discussion on entrepreneurship training and funding for rural teachers was also part of the meeting`s agenda.

ARTUZ Secretary General Robson Chere was leading the rural teachers` union delegation

Responding to the concerns of ARTUZ leadership on review of withdrawal limits, Governor Mangudya said banks would set a figure of $1 000 that can be withdrawn at once by rural teachers adding that the figure would be revised based on the availability of hard cash.

On the same note, the governor highlighted that Government will liaise with banks so that they set up cash withdrawal service centres in rural areas to minimise cost of teachers travelling to far away towns to withdraw their money.

The above system is not new as it is also being implemented by some banks that take cash to uniformed forces in barracks during pay days for withdrawal.

The Governor also promised that RBZ would empower teachers using Homelink loans, adding that through Homelink, rural teachers would receive individual funding for projects of their choice. The Governor further revealed that Government was going to review rural retention allowance for rural teachers which is currently pegged at $20 so that teachers are lured and motivated to work in the rural areas.

The Government is appreciating the services offered by teachers and other Government employees, through among other incentives increasing their salaries and cushioning them especially under these current harsh economic conditions.