Fedha za shule zitatumika kununua vitabu vipya.

Because za has to agree with fedha, not with shule.

In Swahili, the of-link is made with -a plus a noun-class agreement prefix. Here:

• fedha = money / funds
• za = of for the noun class of fedha
• shule = school

So fedha za shule literally means money of the school or more naturally school funds / school fees.

Literally, it means school money or money of the school.

Depending on context, it can mean:

• school funds
• school fees
• money belonging to the school

In this sentence, it most naturally refers to money connected with the school that will be used for a purpose.

The zi- is the subject agreement prefix. It agrees with fedha.

So the verb must match the noun class of the subject:

• fedha → takes zi-
• zitatumika = they / it (class-compatible) will be used

A very common feature of Swahili is that the verb shows the class of its subject.

-ta- is the future tense marker.

So:

• zi- = subject agreement with fedha
• -ta- = will
• -tumika = be used / serve for use

That makes zitatumika mean will be used.

No.

• kutumia = to use something
• kutumika = to be used, to be usable, or to serve for

So:

• Mwalimu atatumia vitabu. = The teacher will use the books.
• Vitabu vitatumika darasani. = The books will be used in class.

In your sentence, the money is not the doer of the action; it is the thing being used. That is why kutumika is the right form.

Because Swahili often uses the infinitive to show purpose.

So:

• zitatumika kununua vitabu vipya = will be used to buy new books

Here kununua means to buy. After a verb like kutumika, this infinitive can explain what the money will be used for.

English often says used to buy or used for buying. Swahili commonly uses the simple infinitive structure.

Because vitabu is the plural of kitabu.

• kitabu = book
• vitabu = books

This noun belongs to the ki-/vi- class pair:

• singular: ki-
• plural: vi-

Since the sentence refers to more than one book, vitabu is used.

Because adjectives in Swahili must agree with the noun class of the noun they describe.

Here:

• vitabu is plural, in the vi- class
• so -pya becomes vipya

Therefore:

• kitabu kipya = a new book
• vitabu vipya = new books

This agreement is one of the most important patterns in Swahili grammar.

Because Swahili does not have articles like a, an, and the.

Whether something is understood as the books, some books, or just books depends on context.

So vitabu vipya can mean:

• new books
• the new books
• sometimes some new books

The surrounding context tells you which meaning is intended.

Yes. It is very natural.

The sentence is structured like this:

• Fedha za shule = subject
• zitatumika = verb
• kununua vitabu vipya = purpose phrase

A very literal breakdown is:

• school funds
• will be used
• to buy new books

So the overall order is quite straightforward for Swahili.

This is a good question, because fedha can feel a bit unusual to English speakers.

In this sentence, it is being treated with class 10 agreement, which is why you see:

• za
• zi- in zitatumika

So here it is being handled more like funds / fees rather than a simple uncountable English money.

Also, many Swahili nouns do not change form between singular and plural, so agreement markers often tell you more than the noun shape itself.

Yes, and that is a very useful habit in Swahili.

zitatumika can be broken down as:

• zi- = subject marker agreeing with fedha
• -ta- = future tense
• -tumik- = verb root area related to use
• -a = final vowel

So the whole verb means will be used.

Learning to spot these pieces makes Swahili verbs much easier to understand.