CHAIRPERSON of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Primary and Secondary Education Priscilla Misihairabwi-Mushonga has called on government to come up with an education policy which caters for vulnerable children as the COVID-19 pandemic has left many orphans. BY Evans Mathanda Misihairabwi-Mushonga said this on Tuesday during a meeting with officials from Mashambanzou Care Trust (MCT) at an event where the organisation presented a paper titled Education for Life. MCT is a private voluntary organisation that works with vulnerable communities to deals with HIV/Aids and its effects. It is currently working on implementing an education for life project aimed at ensuring quality education for marginalised children. “The issues that you have raised (in the paper) are the same issues that we have been observing as we work on the ground as a committee and we need to work with CSOs to come up with that policy,” Misihairabwi-Mushonga said. “We had a zoom meeting with Unicef (United Nations Children’s Fund) were they raised issues of gender and girl's rights, and you are also allowed to petition Parliament with regards to the introduction of an inclusive education policy,” she said. MCT projects officer Tinashe Zimondi said there was need for policies that promote early childhood education, disability and girl child inclusion. “The government has made efforts in assisting vulnerable children through programmes like the Basic Education Assistance Module and the recent Education Amendment Act. We recognise that our work is only complementary to these and other government efforts, and our main focus is on marginalised children that have been affected by HIV/Aids,” he said. MCT runs six schools in Zvimba and five in Harare, including Hopley and Mbare. Follow Evans on Twitter @EvansMathanda19