Media Alert: Basic Education Committee to Visit KZN to Assess School Readiness for 2023 Academic Year

Parliament, Sunday, 29 January 2023- The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education will over the next week visit KwaZulu-Natal to assess readiness of schools to roll-out the 2023 academic year. The visits form part of Parliament's constitutional responsibility to oversee the work of the executive and follow the money Parliament appropriates, to ascertain the impact on the lives of South Africans.

"The ability of the system to roll-out the academic year is dependent on adequate preparedness, the availability of Learning and Teaching Support Materials, adequacy and availability of learner Transport, effectiveness of governance structures such as school governing bodies at schools, adequate support by district and circuit offices. We will assess those multiplicity of issues to ascertain readiness," said Ms Bongiwe Mbinqo-Gigaba, the Chairperson of the committee.

The oversight visit programme follows the announcement of the 2022 National Senior Certificate results which saw KwaZulu-Natal achieve 83% matric pass rate. The committee will also use the opportunity to assess the results, find areas where there is potential for improvement to ensure further progress by the system. "But improvements at National Senior Certificate level are based on a functioning system at lower levels. Also, the inculcation of coding and robotics into the curriculum is necessary to produce a cohort that is needed by an evolving economy," Ms Mbinqo-Gigaba emphasised.

The visits to the province would include an interaction with the Provincial Department of Education including district officials, associations of school governing bodies, and organised labour. The committee will also conduct in-loco site visits to schools where members will hold meetings with school management teams and relevant stakeholders in order to learn first-hand the state of schooling and to discuss the challenges faced by schools with a view to support them in finding solutions.

The committee will visit three educational districts in the province namely: Zululand, Harry Gwala and King Cetshwayo.

Details of the visit (Day 1)
Date: Monday, 30 January 2023
Schools to be visited: Visits to School in Zululand Education District

• 08:30 - 10:00 Phumanyova Technical High School
• 10:30 - 12:00 Manzezulu ECD Centre
• 12:30 - 14:00 kwaMame Full Service School
• 14:30 - 16:00 Zamimpilo Special School

ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON BASIC EDUCATION, MS BONGIWE MBINQO-GIGABA.

For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson, please contact the committee's Media Officer:

Name: Malatswa Molepo (Mr)

Parliamentary Communication Services

Tel: 021 403 8438

Cell: 081 512 7920

E-mail: [email protected]

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