About Us

  • Zimsec
  • About Us

About ZIMSEC

The Zimbabwe School Examinations Council (ZIMSEC) is a parastatal under the Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education created by The Zimbabwe School Examinations Act [Chapter 25:18] It is an internationally accredited examinations board. Its syllabuses were evaluated by the National Academic Recognition and Information Centre (NARIC) in the UK and found to be equivalent to the General Certificate of Education Standard offered in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, United States of America and the other English-speaking countries, hence the internationally recognized qualifications conferred by the Council.

Our Vision

“To be an international centre of excellence in assessment by 2030.”

Our Mission

“To provide quality assessment of the candidates’ performance and award internationally recognised certificates in the school system.”

Core Values

Integrity
Innovation
Accountability
Excellence
Inclusiveness

Affiliations and Benchmarking

ZIMSEC is a dynamic and results-oriented organisation that is striving to meet contemporary trends in educational assessment. As such, the organisation has embraced the available technology such as the use of the GradeMaker to develop items and bank, electronic registration, online marks capturing, and online publication of results, all in a bid to enhance its assessment business. ZIMSEC is also a member of associations for assessment bodies namely; the Southern Africa Association for Educational Assessment (SAAEA), the Association of Educational Assessment in Africa (AEAA) and the International Association for Educational Assessment (IAEA). Such platforms offer opportunities for ZIMSEC to share ideas on best educational assessment practices and to align its activities, strategies and vision with regional and international initiatives and trends in educational assessment for the improvement of educational assessment methods. 

Organisational Structure

ZIMSEC organises and coordinates its business through divisions which include Examinations Administration (Exams Admin), Information and Communication Technology Examinations Systems Development (ICTESD), Test Design, Educational Assessment and Measurement (TDEAM), Human Capital (HC), Finance, and Internal Audit. Departmentalisation ensures specialised and coordinated output and accountability. While these divisions are domiciled at the Head Office, there is a Regional Office in each of the ten provinces in the country to ensure easy accessibility and smooth functioning of business at regional level.

Terms of Reference

The terms of reference provide guidelines on ZIMSECs operations. These are: –

  • The Zimbabwe School Examinations Act [Chapter 25:18]
  • Labour Act (Chapter 28:01)
  • Public Entities Corporate Governance Act (Chapter 10:31)
  • Public Procurement and Disposal of Public Assets Act Chapter 22:23
  • Public Finance Management Act (Chapter 22:19)
  • Constitution Of Zimbabwe
  • Ministry of Primary and Secondary Education 2021 to 2025 Strategic Plan
  • National Development Strategy 1