There are currently significant shortages of Physical Education, Music, Arts, and Craft teachers across the country.

Permanent Secretary for Education Selina Kuruleca highlights that despite developing a quality framework for PEMAC in 2018, the education sector is still facing challenges to fill these critical positions.

She adds many teachers are leaving the workforce in search of better opportunities, leading to a substantial gap for this subject.

Kuruleca states that there are numerous community workers who possess the skills for teaching PEMAC, but the Fiji Teachers Registration Authority remains hesitant to provide licenses to these individuals.

“I think in Suva alone we have about four big schools that don’t have a PEMAC teacher. So PEMAC and I say this because I think there’s an assumption by many of us including us at the ministry, the general public that PEMAC is easy you know its physical education, art, music and craft but it’s not as easy as we sometimes make it out to be.”

Kuruleca adds the shortage of PEMAC teachers not only affects the quality of education but also limits students’ exposure to physical fitness, creative arts, and musical education.