More than 800 Early Childhood Education (ECE) teachers have already received their payments under a new salary structure as part of a wider re‑levelling programme backdated to January 2024.
This is part of government’s commitment to recognising and improving teachers working condition and welfare, the Education Minister and South Choiseul Member of Parliament (MP) Tozen Leokana has declared.
Speaking during the Motion of Sine Die in December 2025 Minister Leokana said, the government had honoured its agreement with the Solomon Islands National Teachers Association (SINTA) by implementing a new classification and salary framework across early childhood, primary, secondary and vocational institutions.
“Our commitment to teachers is unequivocal,” he said. “By delivering the new classification and salary structures, we are recognising the central role teachers play in national development.”
He told Parliament that on 11 December 2025, a total of 883 early childhood teachers were paid under the new scheme, a move Leokana described as a milestone in the government’s education reform agenda.
The broader re‑levelling programme, backdated to January 2024, is scheduled for payment in the first quarter of 2026, he added.
The Minister thanked the Ministry of Finance for allocating funds to ensure the payments were made, adding, the reforms would strengthen teachers’ morale and professional standards across the system.
He framed the initiative as part of a wider strategy to invest in human capital, arguing that teachers are the backbone of the education system and essential to preparing students for a changing economy.
By ANDRIANAH DELASALET KOLE
Solomon Star, Honiara
