Tanzania: Bible in High Schools


Overview


Three Anglican Dioceses in Tanzania are running a program to promote and support the teaching of the Bible Knowledge subject in secondary schools, and to provide all the teaching materials (free of charge) to schools that are willing to teach the subject.

Tanzania is the largest and most populous country in East Africa. It is a poor country, with nearly 70% of the 62 million people living in poverty. Government secondary schools (attended by 90% of students) are typically poorly equipped and some lack teachers for all the core subjects. The constitution provides for freedom of religion, which has enabled different religious groups to coexist peacefully. While the majority of Tanzanians identify as Christians (61.4%), their knowledge of the Bible is shallow because most households do not have a Bible. There is an optional subject in the government curriculum for all secondary schools in Tanzania — on Bible Knowledge. Unfortunately, only 3% of some 5,000 secondary schools offer this subject to students; In 2020, less than 4% of over 400,000 students doing their Certificate of Secondary Education Examinations sat the Bible Knowledge final exam.

Statistics

  • 70% of the population live in poverty
  • 61.4% of Tanzanians identify as Christians
  • Only 3% of 5,000 secondary schools offer Bible Knowledge
  • 2.5 million secondary school students in Tanzania

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