Publishers stuck with Sh9bn textbooks

TIE director general Anneth Komba

Dar es Salaam. Textbooks worth Sh9 billion – published by private publishers – will remain in warehouses as a 2014 change in policy renders them almost irrelevant.

This has prompted some of the publishers to close business.

Textbooks have been piled up in warehouses following introduction of the new Education Policy in 2014 which virtually replaced the preceding policy.

But the government, through the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE), says the policy was changed after thorough research.

TIE director general Anneth Komba said the government changed curriculum from use of multiple key textbooks to one key textbook and multiple supplementary textbooks after a thorough research by education experts.

“I’m not sure if the books you are referring to conform to the new curriculum or not. If they do, it is up to the government to decide. But, if they were published based on the old curriculum then the books are irrelevant,” Dr Komba said.

The new policy brought about major changes in the teaching syllabus, making the books irrelevant.

But publishers are of the view that pupils must read many books if the competency-based learning policy is anything to go by.

“No textbook has been purchased since these changes came into force. Publishers dealing in educational materials are seriously affected. I have been locked out of the office due to failure to pay rent. I’m at home - and workers have been sent home as well,” said one publisher who requested anonymity.

Another publisher said it was only those who shifted to publishing non-educational books who are somehow making both ends meet.

“However, they are struggling to service loans they acquired from financial institutions, some of them being threatened with insolvency,” he said, also speaking on condition of anonymity.

The Publishers Association of Tanzania (Pata) chairman, Gabriel Kitua, confirmed last week that its members have Sh9 billion-worth of textbooks in warehouses.

“The textbooks were approved by the Education Materials Approval Committee (Emac), and were later accredited by the Tanzania Institute of Education (TIE). Therefore, they can be supplied to public and private libraries, as well as to schools that have serious shortages of reference books,” he told this paper.

But The Citizen is aware that publishers are in discussion with the ministry of Education on various issues including the possibility for textbooks to be procured by the government for use in schools.

“Whenever policy changes involving textbooks, the government used to purchase all textbooks in order to prevent suppliers from incurring losses that could be prevented,” a reliable source said.

The Citizen also understands that the two sides held the first round of discussions on January 9, 2020 where three other issues were discussed.

The issues included a proposed introduction of a National Books Policy, existing conflicts of interest by having TIE as the sole ‘author,’ and the worsening low readership in the country.

Speaking to The Citizen, Ms Eliesh Lema of E&D Vision Publishing Limited said grievances facing private publishers now were a result of lack of participation in decision-making.

“Circulars on changes of syllabus are released when textbooks are transported by ship from publishing companies abroad. They just can’t be thrown into the sea, they are cleared at the port and are taken to warehouses for storage,” she lamented.

“Why is the private sector in the publishing industry not invited to participate inthe decision-making like their colleagues from the other sectors? It should be understood that education is a crosscutting issue and a foundation for other sectors.”

Mr Ebrahim Sokwala of Best Deal Publishers called for a review of the textbooks policy in order to create a conducive environment for participation of private sector players in the production of better textbooks for schools.

“Involvement should ensure textbooks are equally available in urban and rural areas in both public and private schools,” he said.

According to him, since the publishing industry was unpredictable due to frequent and sometimes abrupt changes, there was a need for dialogue between the government and other players.