YESTERDAY marked the opening of the 2013 academic year for Namibia's primary and secondary schools, as well as the first day of school since the government announced free education for grades zero to seven.

For many of the primary school pupils in Windhoek, the process went smoothly, with many first-graders getting placement at schools such as Van Ryn Primary in Windhoek West, AI Steenkamp in Katutura and MH Greeff in Khomasdal.

The education director in the Khomas Region, Thea Seefeldt, announced on radio yesterday that placements for Grade 10 pupils in the region would not be a problem, as the pass rate had not changed much from the previous year.

Last year, 33 428 full-time Grade 10 students registered for the national examinations. Out of that number, 17 407 have qualified for admission to Grade 11. This means that 52,1 percent of the candidates have qualified for Grade 11 compared to 51,5 percent in 2011.

Meawhile, the education directorate in the Kavango Region said there were close to 300 places in schools in the region to accommodate Grade 8 pupils.

Deputy Minister of Education David Namwandi yesterday told The Namibian that the ministry will be making an announcement today regarding those Grade 10 learners who did not obtain enough points in last year's final examinations to be promoted to Grade 11 this year.

"The first day of school seems to have gone well, especially in the Khomas Region, as no major problems have been reported to us yet," Namwandi said.

According to him, Government will from this year take full responsibility of schools' financial operations. For the next financial year, N$110 million has been set aside and the grant will supplement the day-to-day operations of schools.