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By Charmaine Ndlela
For the first time, all 75 school districts across South Africa have recorded matric pass rates of 80% and above.
Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube announced the milestone during the official release of the 2025 National Senior Certificate (NSC) results on Monday night in Johannesburg.
Gwarube said the achievement signals a significant shift in the education system, noting that performance gaps between districts and provinces are narrowing compared to previous years.
“District performance is one of our clearest quality indicators – because it shows whether improvement is spreading system-wide or remaining concentrated in pockets of strength,” she said.
She added that this marks a turning point where improvement is no longer limited to a few pockets of excellence but is being realised across all districts.
“[W]e see what is possible when schools are supported and districts are strong. Districts like uMkhanyakude and Umlazi remind us that outstanding outcomes can come from communities overwhelmed by lack and need,” she said.
Johannesburg West in Gauteng was the top-performing district, achieving a 96.20% pass rate. The district remained in first place nationally, after recording 97% in 2024.
Close behind was uMkhanyakude in KwaZulu-Natal with 93.63%, followed by the Overberg district in the Western Cape with 92.36%. Overberg was also listed among the most improved districts, with an increase of 4.06 percentage points year-on-year.
Despite the overall improvement, several districts ranked at the lower end of the national scale, although they still met the historic 80% benchmark.
Amathole West in the Eastern Cape recorded the lowest pass rate nationally at 80.34%. It was followed by Alfred Nzo East, also in the Eastern Cape, with a pass rate of 81.13%, while OR Tambo Inland recorded 81.17%.
Nationally, the Matric Class of 2025 achieved a record 88% NSC pass rate — the highest in South Africa’s history.
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