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EDWIN NAIDU
THE Gauteng provincial government had budgeted R6 billion to build new schools in high pressure communities. It indicated that the education system would collapse if nothing was done to alleviate overcrowding, which was exacerbated by high levels of in-migration.
Matome Chiloane, Member of the Executive Committee (MEC): Education, and his senior officials briefed the Committee. Allocated funds would focus on building more schools to avoid the issues of unplaced learners in Grades 1 and 8.
The Select Committee on Education and Technology, Sport, Arts and Culture of the National Council of Provinces was briefed on this development during a virtual meeting by the Eastern Cape, Free State and Gauteng provincial education departments on their 2022/23 annual performance plans and budgets.
Kwazulu Natal, Mpumalanga an d Limpopo Provincial Education Departments have also presented their Annual Performance Plans in the National Council of Provinces.
Gauteng had received a major boost of R1.5 billion from the National Treasury to demolish mobile and asbestos schools, and 18 new schools would be built. Resources would be accessed from private sector financial institutions to fund infrastructure projects upfront, after which they would be built, maintained and transferred to them.
To provide Gauteng learners with a competitive edge and prepare them for the post-matric world, the province would continue to roll out schools of specialisation (SOS). To date, it had 21 SOS, and 35 of these schools should have been built by the end of the current administration.
The Department was pleased with the increasing number of children registered at the Early Childhood Development (ECD) facilities. As part of the process to bolster its education system, Gauteng was now ready to build an ECD of the future, starting with Tshwane, in Soshanguve.
They were committed to rolling out ECDs of the future across the five corridors.
In the Free State, more than R128.8 billion had been allocated to the Department of Education to deal with projects in the province over the medium term expenditure (MTEF) period.
The province had claimed top position in the 2022 matric results and for this, National Treasury had allocated R109 million for infrastructure investment in the province.
This allocation was part of the performance-based incentive programme aimed at improving effective planning and driving efficiencies within the infrastructure delivery chain.
In the Eastern Cape, the Department had faced severe budgetary pressures which had impacted its ability to carry out some of its planned activities, coupled with the service delivery challenges experienced in different facets of its operational spectrum.
Despite this, the notable improvements in 2022, particularly in examination outcomes, should be seen in the context of the Department’s system-wide education system transformation plan. Its strategic thrust was to maximise the opportunities for learners to achieve a good pass in the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations whilst improving performance in the whole system.
Reprioritisation of the baseline budget had been undertaken to increase the funding provision for learner-teacher support material (LTSM), school furniture, coding and robotics, vocational and technical equipment, agricultural schools, maintenance of early childhood development (ECD) centres, and information communication technology (ICT) in schools.
Members asked about the rationalisation and realignment of unviable schools for optimum resource distribution; the continued provision of an appropriate package of support to viable secondary schools in quintiles 1 to 3; improved financial efficiency and re-distribution of resources to where they were most needed; and infrastructure revitalisation and development that was aligned to the rationalisation process.
They also called for accelerated eradication of pit toilets, and for the beautification and fencing of various schools.
INSIDE EDUCATION