Hansard: NCOP: Unrevised hansard
House: National Council of Provinces
Date of Meeting: 08 Jun 2021
Summary
No summary available.
Minutes
UNREVISED HANSARD
NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES
TUESDAY, 8 JUNE 2021
Watch video here: NCOP Plenary (Virtual )
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES
The Council met at 10:03.
The Chairperson took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Just to remind delegates that the rules apply and the processes are equally applicable for the virtual sitting.
Before we proceed, hon members, I would like to remind you of the following: Firstly, that the virtual sitting of the NCOP constitutes a sitting of the NCOP.
Secondly, that delegates in the virtual sitting enjoy the same powers and privileges that apply in the sitting of the NCOP.
Thirdly, that for the purpose of the quorum, all delegates in the virtual platform shall be considered present in the House.
Fourthly, that delegates must always switch on their videos.
Fifthly, that delegates should ensure that the microphones on their gadgets are muted and must always remain muted unless you have permission to speak.
Sixthly, the interpretation facility is active.
Lastly, that any delegate who wishes to speak must use the
‘raise your hand’ function.
Having done all of this, I’ve been informed, hon members and delegates, there will be no Notices of Motion or Motions Without Notice.
The hon delegates, before we continue with the policy debates I would like to welcome the Minister of Basic Education, the Minister of Higher Education and their Deputies to the House.
We will now proceed to the First Order of the day.
APPROPRIATION BILL
(Policy debate)
Vote No 16 – Basic Education
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, let me acknowledge you, Cabinet colleagues present, members of the NCOP, MECs present, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, on behalf of the entire Basic Education Sector, we wish to thank the NCOP for inviting us to table our 2021-22 budget at this debate of 2021-22 Budget Vote 16 – Basic Education.
Chairperson and hon members, as much as the Basic Education sector, working with its partners, including teacher unions, national governance associations, our civic associations, the public and private sectors, ... [no sound] ... tried to save the academic year of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic had a devastating ... [no sound] ...
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: We are losing you, Minister. just to speak on the mic and be a bit slower.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair!
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Please proceed and don’t change
your position.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: ... ok, thank you, Chair. I am saying as much ourselves, the teacher unions, parents, governing associations, the private and public sectors, tried to save the 2020 academic year, but indeed the coronavirus pandemic had a devastating ... [no sound] ...
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: We are losing you, Minister. Definitely there is something that is not right. You on breaking.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: ... I keep on breaking? I am
sorry, don’t know what is happening. Am I clear now?
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Yes, if you can just keep it at that.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: ... thank you very much, Chair. It’s making me tense. As I have said, we lost a lot of valuable time but also lost a number of our people. We lost the head of department, HOD, of the Eastern Cape, we lost the President of National Teachers’ Union, NATU, and also lost an
MEC because of the pandemic. We continue to say, may their souls rest in peace.
Chair, we have lost lots of teaching time but we can’t be complaining because we tried ... [Inaudible.] ... to make sure that we can salvage whatever was left of the year. The adjustments that happened last year did affect our allocations that we are going to be reading now. And that the allocations we are reading now are allocations of a reduced budget from 2020.
For instance, our overall budget for this year comes to
R27, billion, which is an increase of 15,5%, but it is a 15,5% of what would have been reduced last year. On Conditional Grants, we have been given R20,7 billion, which is an increase of 20,2%. We have also been allocated R16,2 million for systematic improvement of language and numeracy in the foundation phase. We have also been allocated R19,9 million to make sure that we can start allocating money to technology for Grade 7-9. We are very grateful of this allocation because indeed they help us to roll in some of these new initiatives that we had started in the current financial year.
We also have an allocation of R3,7 billion, as transfers to school and it is an increase of 5,7%. And we have also been allocated R1,6 billion, which is a transfer that comes through Department of Basic Education, DBE, and again, is an increase of 1,4%.
The presentation that we are making to the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement, MTBPS, in October 2020, the Minister of Finance did give to us as a department R7 billion last year, which was used for the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative. That money was divided as follows. The national department got R1,2 million which was used for project management, support and monitoring. We allocated more than R6,9 billion to provinces which was used by provincial departments to pay stipends of teacher assistants, and Unemployment Insurance Fund, UIF and R2,4 billion of that money was used to save posts, because some of the schools especially the independent schools – because of the covid challenges were unable to pay salaries posts, so the state gave them R2,4 billion to save posts. And from that process we saved quite a number of posts.
From the Presidential Youth Employment Initiative, we can report that we created more than 320 000 employment
opportunities for the youth, and the money that was given to us in the saving of posts, we have managed to save 27 662 posts.
Chairperson, I will also read through the allocations that have been given to different provinces. For instance, the Eastern Cape Department of Education has been allocated R35,1 billion, which is a reduction of 3%, the Free State Department of Education has been allocated R15,5 billion, which is a reduction of 0,1%, Gauteng Department of Education has been allocated R53,5 billion, which is an increase of 1,1%, KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education has been allocated R53,2 billion, which is a reduction of 5,3%, Limpopo Department of Education has allocated R32,6 billion, a reduction of 3,5%, Mpumalanga Department of Education has been allocated R22,3 billion, which is an increase of 0,4%, the Northern Cape Department of Education has been allocated R7,1 billion, which is an increase of 0,6%, the North West Department of Education
is allocated R18 billion, an increase of 1,8%, and the Western Cape Department of Education has been allocated R24,5 billion, which is a reduction of 0,4%.
Therefore, the total adjusted budget allocation for Provincial Education Departments combined, is R288,7 billion, which is a
total reduction of 2,4% for all the provinces combined. Specifically, the total provincial 2021-22 budget allocations, were reduced by 8,4%, as five of the provincial Departments of Education saw reductions in their baseline allocations. As I have indicated before that the reductions of this year’s budget is based on the reductions that we experienced last year.
With regards to the strategic realignment of the Basic Education Sector priorities, we want to remind the members of the NCOP we had prioritised a number of areas. That the basic education sector priorities, we had committed ourselves amongst others, to build a very solid foundation for a quality and efficient education system, as well as contribute in providing permanent solutions to the architecture of our education system.
We therefore, wish to remind the House of our Action Plan for 2024. “Towards the Realisation of Schooling 2030”, giving expression to the following areas which are informed by the declaration in the Constitution, the National Development Plan, NDP and also by our international and continental commitments. Therefore, the Constitution, the NDP, and all other commitments and conventions they do provide us with the
moral imperative and a mandate as government both at the national and provincial levels, to make the social justice principles of access, redress, equity, efficiency, inclusivity and quality educational opportunities, to be available to all citizens. Our collective role, as the basic education executive and administrative authorities, is to ensure that the social justice principles, provide a uniform foundation for our work.
At the outset, we advise the hon members of this House and the public to visit our DBE website, where we have posted more details on our programmes.
We want to remind members that our first priority in this term has been to priority the strategic relocation of Early Childhood Development, ECD, from the Department of Social Development, DSD, and the Department of Basic Education.
Chairperson, we must concede that the complexities of this process were major but were not overwhelming, can report that great progress has been made. I am happy to report that, as the two Ministries, we have managed to crack the codes and many processes have begun. A systematic process for the relocation of ECD from the DSD to the DBE is at an advanced stage and proclamations are going to be signed. We are going
to cater in the first phase the two years of ECD before Grade One, on section of compulsory education. We are also realigning the process to our amendments to the Bill.
The second priority which we also have to remind members was around the realignment of our curriculum so that we have a strategic implementation of a curriculum with skills and competencies of a changing world in our public schools.
Amongst others, I did report that we were introducing robotics and coding in our schools. I can report that on 19 March 2021, we gazetted our coding and robotics curriculum for comments, in preparation for training of officials and the appointment of service providers that are going to help us in this sector. I can report that the Education, Training and Development Practices Sector Education and Training Authority ETDP-SETA, has assisted us with amount of about R7 million towards this process. I am happy to also report that the private sector like Sasol has really worked hard very hard with us to make sure that we finalise the curriculum and are benchmarking it.
Chairperson, last year, I did also report that we are expanding our programmes and can report that for instance, the Maritime Studies have become part of the bouquet of subjects we already offer and particularly as part of the ocean-based
economy which contributes about $6 billion towards our
country’s Gross Domestic Product.
We are also excited to say at the end of this year there is going to be a cohort of learners which are going to write Marine Sciences.
We also have to say in partnership with the Gauteng province and the Department of Transport, we have introduced Aviation Curriculum. we are proud that the country will introduce another unique South African subject offering, that includes all the occupational work-areas within the aviation milieu.
I want to report to this House that we are also excited that we have established the guidelines and management of Focus schools which are going to help us to enrich our curriculum by providing additional skills which are skills of the future. We have a total of 103 schools in all nine provinces, have been audited, to pilot the occupational subjects.
Chairperson, I also want to say, we reported last year that we will up our game around the Information Communications Technologies, ICTs in our sector. Fortunately, with the advent of coronavirus, we were forced to leapfrog and can say that
since then, we have provided 191 special schools with the ICT devices, assistive technologies, as well as appropriate software for teaching and learning. We were supported by Vodacom, MTN, Liquid Telkom, and Cell C. They made a number of devices available to our schools.
Again, Last year, I had reported to this House that the Ministerial Task Team on the Development of History for Grades 4-12 had developed the History content framework for Grades 4- 12, including a review of topics including historiography, material culture and archaeology, African history, heritage and local history, including labour history, language, gender and culture history, inland history, and world history.
Currently, the Ministerial Task Team, its packaging dedicated in in writing sessions, to sequence and packaging the identified content, to ensure that there is alignment in terms of articulation, sequencing, progression, and conceptual development.
We can report that the next area we are focusing on is the Incremental Introduction of African Languages. Even in that respect we have made lots of progress. We also can say that in the list of subjects that we have brought into the milieu we have looked at Khoi, Nama, San languages, as well as the South
African Sign Language. We had thought that by last year we would have brought in Kiswahili, but because of covid challenges and the pressure that we had we were not able to start with Kiswahili programme.
The other exciting programme that we want to report on is the introduction a General Education Certificate, which has been provisionally approved by Umalusi and the standardisation process has happened. And we do plan that we will roll out the programme of the General Education Certificate in 2023.
We have again drafted the National Assessment Framework, which will serve to co-ordinate assessments conducted in the General Education and Training Bands. It’s a basket of purpose-driven assessment from entry levels to Grade 9. We also have finalised our work around systemic evaluation.
Chairperson and hon members, we have repeatedly presented national and international evidence that learning outcomes in our entire education system have been on an upward trajectory. However, we are mindful that the gains we have made, are currently threatened by the COVID-19 pandemic.
We feel that despite the gains in learning outcomes we have realised, we are currently faced with mounting evidence from our researchers of significant and continuing learning losses. Hence as the sector have agreed that in the third terms, depending what the infections are we will start inviting all our primary learners back to school so that we can have some normality in the sector. Because it is affecting us badly.
On 19 May 2021, the Council of Education Ministers, CEM, unanimously supported full attendance of primary school learners at the beginning of the third term. CEM also unanimously agreed to suspend contact sport, and all events related to the 2021 South African Schools Music Competitions. We were doing that in view of the reported incidents of infections that came from our schools.
Chairperson, I can report that as the basic education centre we will continue to intensify compliance with the non- pharmaceutical COVID-19 protocols, and ensure that our educators and support staff are also prioritised for vaccination.
In conclusion, Chair, I wish to report that we recently conducted School Governing Bodies, SGB, elections which were
very successful. We have in total more than 250 000 SGB members. We are in the process of training and inducting them in the sector.
We also want to thank our international partners, sister departments which have helped us a lot. I want to take this opportunity to single out the South African Council for Educators, SACE, Umalusi, National Education Collaboration Trust, NECT, our teacher unions, the national SGB associations, the principals’ associations, for assisting us and continue assisting us through counsel and advise and giving us impeccable support that we need.
I wish to thank the Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, the NCOP Whippery, and the hon member in the select committees. We cannot forget to acknowledge the members of CEM and the heads of education departments that have also assisted us to be this far. Finally, I really want to thank my colleague, the Deputy Minister, Dr Reginah Mhaule, the director-general and officials, from both national and provincial departments, for the ongoing support and co-operation they have been given to the sector. I thank you, Chair.
Mr M E NCHABELENG: Good morning and thank you.
Hon Chairperson, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, hon members and the people of South Africa. I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate the MEC for Education in Limpopo, Mme [Ms] Boshielo, for having performed very well, particularly with the procurement of personal protection equipment, PPEs. They’ve done the right things and done them the right way. We thank you and we are proud of you.
The ANC supports Budget Vote 16: Basic Education. In order to create a national democratic society, we need to educate our society to build such a democratic egalitarian society which does not discriminate others on the basis of race and class.
The Department of Basic Education is entrusted with a critical mandate for our nation. Educating children and the youth is a foundation and cornerstone of developing a country and to improve the socioeconomic wellbeing of its people.
The cognitive development of children is honed by their education; hence the quality of education contributes in the learning outcomes. This is why the ANC has placed Education as an apex priority of government to address the inequalities in education and to improve the quality of education for all.
This is important due to the centrality of quality education for human capability development.
The inequalities in our education system due to its history of the two education systems during apartheid one been privileged for white people and the other underprivileged for black people.
Closing this inequality gap has been a key priority of the ANC government in order to enable all South Africans equal opportunities through opening the doors of learning and culture, as the Freedom Charter says.
In this month of the youth let me also remember the 1976 generation who fought against bantu education. Their struggles where not in vain as we today have schools across the class divide becoming top performing.
The Basic Education budget vote responds to the various challenges facing our society and the education sector. The fact that we have made progress in many areas does not mean that we have realised the education system we want for the country. This is because the inequality in the sector
continues to exist and those who are impacted are the poor and black in the main.
The coronavirus pandemic laid bare the backlog in closing the gap of basic services such as water and sanitation. The pandemic also exposed how the sector requires more infrastructure development in dimensions as many schools have less and/or poor infrastructure capacities.
The learner/teacher ration target should be the standard we attain in order to enable quality teaching and learning.
Access to digital devices is also skewed amongst provinces and schools. During the hard lockdown learners from privileged back grounds had digital devices to continue learning while the poor did not have any. The Department of Basic Education had to develop a multi modal approach in order for learning to continue, through radio, tv and workbooks delivered to learners. This was a real show of love and commitment by the Minister and her team.
This is an are the department should focus in expanding access to digital devices and connectivity in our schools.
The changing world of the Fourth Industrial Revolution requires digital skills.
Despite the difficulties of the pandemic we must commend the department for supporting schools to continue learning under the pandemic during a period of a lot of unknowns and during the current conjuncture. It requires leadership and commitment from all public sector workers and we salute the department for this.
The impact of learning loss due to closure of schools has a severe impact on the learner in the long term. This impact is estimated at 74% for the year 2020. This is the impact of school closures for learning. Recovering the loss time is as good as not possible as the period of schooling has not been extended and not even under consideration due to its ripple effect on higher education and market skills demands.
We also welcome the matriculants outcomes of 2020, hon Minister, because they demonstrate the correctness of the decisions taken by the Cabinet in ensuring that schools are reopened. And you were the champion of this campaign, hon Minister, we celebrate you.
The department is still continuing with the Accelerated School Infrastructure Development Initiative, ASIDI, to eradicate the mud schools and schools with inappropriate infrastructure. The ASIDI programme also addresses issues of water and sanitation.
For the financial year 2021-22, the ASIDI programme will build
21 new schools and provide 1 000 schools with sanitation facilities at the tune of R2,3 billion. This is not the only infrastructure programme in basic education as our provincial department also spent significantly on infrastructure from their provincial allocations and the Infrastructure Grant managed by the national department. So, together with the provincial departments we will definitely win this war, much towards winning it.
The education infrastructure grant is allocated R36,7 billion over the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF. This is to realise the Medium-Term Strategic Framework to eradicate learning under the trees, eradicate mud schools through, eradicate the sanitation backlog in schools; and all this will be done by the Department of Basic Education.
One of the issues which have led to a great financial loss for the department is the vandalism which we saw during the year
2020, this, during the hard lockdown. This is an issue all social partners working with law enforcement state agencies to speed up this process and ensure that those involved get arrested and it happens in due course, and that some of the things, if they can be retrieved, we should also retrieve those stolen properties from the schools. These school infrastructures are properties of the community and should be protected for generations to come.
Another impediment in the sector is the disruption of construction works by groups of business forums which do not follow procurement processes to provide services but yet they want to provide the services. This causes delays in the projects that are under implementation.
Local economic development is an important imperative of distribution of income across the country but local contractors should follow due processes, for them to participate. National and provincial departments should ensure that procurement processes take local economic development into consideration, this will avoid the disruptions which are negatively impacting delivery of infrastructure resulting in funds been returned due to lack of spending. This delays economic development. But again, we need to intensify our
public education in the form of public participation meetings to explain to our developers and our immediate business people what processes to follow when you want to participate in the construction of schools or participate in the business within the education system.
One of the recent social ills which affects learners is bullying in our schools. This was placed in the public domain through the incident of Lufuno Mavhunga who ended up taking her life due to the humiliation she endured; may her soul rest in peace. There are many other learners who are bullied in our schools. It is important, hon members, that we make sure the department continues to address this issue systematically.
Incidents of sexual harassment and rape in our schools should disturb all of us in this House and society as a whole.
Perpetrators of such acts should not be allowed nowhere near the education system even at an administrative level, they must be far away from schools. If we are to build a society which embraces values of human dignity such persons should not be allowed in the public service.
Gender-based violence and femicide, GBVF, is the second pandemic, as described by the President. We should unite
against these social ills which are a manifestation of patriarchy.
Our basic education curriculum should focus on these aspects to ensure we embed the values enshrined in our constitution.
Our education system should not only respond to the current material conditions but it needs to adapt to the changing world of production. The Fourth Industrial Revolution is going to significantly change production and economic activities.
The future will surely be more technological and digitally based.
The President, in his state of the nation address, spoke of the introduction of coding and robotics in our education system to prepare our learners for the current emerging skills need and a future of technology, robotics, artificial intelligence, internet of things, block chain technologies and other inventions.
The only constant thing in society is change itself. The conditions in which I grew up as a child and the conditions the youth of the 80’s and 90’s grew up in is are also different. Our children today, unlike us, grow up in a period
wherein the flow of information is rapid. The advent of internet and the expanded access to digital technologies have meant that our children are highly able to use these instruments like cell phones and play games in the internet.
This means that we need to expand access to connectivity and digital devices. The department has to adapt its educational content to respond to this changing conditions and to teach learners on how to use the internet as different cyberbullying and adult content is easily accessible in the internet; also the parents must play an important role in ensuring that their children do not go beyond what they are allowed to peruse in their phones and laptops.
The department’s entities such as the South African Council of Educators, SACE, and Umalusi have been allocated budgets which support their mandates. These entities are critical in supporting the education sector and the department to ensure the quality of teachers and their conduct and the quality of the education standards.
The South African Council of Educators should be supported to ensure that all teachers reported for sexual harassment and other abuses are processed in an efficient manner as this acts
impact learning and psychosocial stability of students in our schools.
The teacher development programme by the department is commendable through the Funza Lusaka bursary scheme which provides support for many students who are absorbed in the department with an 86% absorption rate. The department will be awarding 11 500 bursaries. This is a welcomed intervention for the current and future needs of our education system.
The ANC supports Budget Vote 16 of Basic Education Department and I thank you. [Applause.]
Ms D C CHRISTIANS: Hon Minister and hon Chairperson, the COVID-19 pandemic has left deep and indelible effects on the lives and learning of children in South Africa. A recent study has found that, although children have not been friend and face of the pandemic, they are in fact amongst its biggest victims. It is no secret that because of decades of inequality, later further exacerbated by a failing government, that many vulnerable children were further deprived from their only hot meal or reprieve from abuse, because of the extended periods they are unable to attend school.
These inequalities, have further highlighted the challenges such as the disparities in digital literacy, access to the internet and internet enabled devices, which are of course, are key considerations in remote learning. The impact on educational staff also needs to be acknowledged. At the start of 2021, it was estimated that more than 2000 teachers have lost their lives. Teachers were placed under additional strain, when they were required to provide remote learning, even though most teachers and learners, do not have the required technology, or pedagogic understanding, to undertake effective remote and online learning.
This has placed an added moral and emotional burden, on teachers around the country. Chairperson, quality education is a constitutional and international human right. It includes access to safe, clean and adequate school facilities. However, this undisputable right, is clearly being denied to too many learners across this country. This downward spiral of education continues, despite the fact that the department receives one of the largest budgets, specifically the increase to R27 billion for the 2021-22 financial year.
However, Chairperson, the department is also seeing cuts to its salary budget, while funding for consultants is one of the
biggest increases in its budget. This means, less money for internal capacity in government, while more money flows to private parties. Minister, while the School Infrastructure Backlog Grant that funds the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative receives R2 billion in 2021-22, it is discouraging that over R400 million, will be taken from the grant over the next three years. The enduring question is, when will this department commit and allocate sufficient funds, to address longstanding, and ongoing infrastructure failings at our schools.
By March 2020, just before COVID-19 struck, it was reported that only 266 out of 3,988 schools that needed it, had benefitted from the President’s own 2018 Sanitation Appropriate for Education Campaign to address inadequate sanitation. Only 30 schools were built from the Sanitation Appropriate for Education, SAFE, budget, and only 21 earmarked in this 2021-22 financial year. Minister, I would like to invite you to the Northern Cape to show you exactly which schools should urgently be allocated funding for infrastructure.
In Kimberley, for example, Homevale High School, which serves an impoverished community, is on the verge of collapse. All
the classroom windows are shattered, the desks and chairs are in an advanced state of decay. There’s also a broken pipe that has been leaking water for the past year. They need seven additional teachers, and even more concerning, Minister, is the fact that a section of the school building has been held up by scaffolding for the past five years. The provincial department visited the school after I wrote to them, however, nothing has been done to date. What are they waiting for?
Another tragedy like the collapsed bridge at Driehoek High School in Vanderbijlpark?
Additionally, this very same school had a matric pass rate of only 37%, and the school next to them, Emmanuel High school had a 7% matric pass rate. It is no secret, Minister, that the Northern Cape also had the lowest matric pass rate last year. Additionally, Minister, in Barkly West, also in the Northern Cape, community members have embarked on a strike action in Mataleng, because of a half built school which has been left undeveloped for the last five years. In Kimberley alone, Chairperson, there are at least a dozen dilapidated school structures, many of these deficiencies, are in breach of the government’s own minimum norms and standards for educational facilities.
Furthermore, across the country, there are still more than
3 100 pit toilets, yet, only 1000 have been targeted in the budget. This, leaves thousands of learners vulnerable to accidents and possible death. There are still mud school structures, asbestos structures, vandalized schools and thousands of schools deemed unsafe due to no fencing. Chairperson, the budget shows approximately R8 billion been allocated to the National School Nutrition Programme for 2021-
22. This is the same amount that the government originally said it would spend on the program, when it published the previous budget in February 2020.
How is this humane, considering that so many parents have lost their livelihoods during this past year, and more children than ever before go to school hungry every day? Chairperson, the scholar transport system remains an additional concern for thousands of children. Recently, we saw more than 37 000 Eastern Cape pupils have been left stranded without transport to schools, because of the transport department’s budget cuts. It remains a concern for thousands of children who are exposed to danger and hazardous terrain as they walk to and from school every day.
Underspending on basic education is a further concern, as the budget shows a concerning trend of underspending. Recently, published data shows that government spending per learner on basic education, decreased by an average of 2,3% between 2009 and 2018. The February 2020 budget showed a further downward trend by cutting the total basic education budget in real terms, possibly, the first time this has happened in the democratic era, a trend that is now continuing in the current budget. Since 2016-17, funding for education as a percentage of the total budget has decreased from almost 19% to around 15%.
Minister, education departments must be held accountable for how allocated money is spent. Last year, the Department of Basic Education spent R818 million irregularly which is up from R210 million in the previous year. A further concern, Minister is that, our learners and the effect the long-term effect the cancellation of school sports is having on the youth. Studies show that while all COVID-19 protocols should be observed when participating in sport, sport and other physical activities offers a lot of benefits for children and young people.
It improves cardiovascular health, strength, body composition, and overall fitness. Exercise even has immune system benefits. The youth in our country need a positive outlet to express their energies and frustrations, and sport has always been a healthy alternative. Minister, lastly, it is policy implementation on provincial level that is failing our country as well as our young people. The poor implementation of policies and the funds been stolen by cadres, will see the complete destruction of basic education and further drive already vulnerable communities further into poverty and inequality. I thank you.
Ms M N GILLION: Hon Chairperson, hon Minister, Deputy Minister, MECs, hon members, the people of South Africa, our country is officially in the third wave of the global corona virus pandemic. The third wave poses a lot of risks, socially and economically. It also poses a risk to the education sector and how the department should approach this time of turbulence and uncertainty. More losses of time for teaching and learning in our schools will be tragic and will require significant efforts to cover the lost ground due to closure of schools last year.
One of the key policy priorities of the ANC in the Sixth Administration is the early childhood development (ECD) migration from the Department of Social Development to Basic Education. This is to ensure that the provision of education for the cognitive development of the children is done through Basic Education. This will support efforts of the department in ensuring that Grade R and Grade RR are compulsory for all children to make sure that they are ready for Grade 1.
When children are taught correctly at an early stage, the prospects of academic excellence and progress is greatly enhanced. Reading with meaning is one of the priorities of the department and in order to improve such learning outcomes, the foundation of every child I s important.
The President, in his Sona, emphasised the ECD migration as a priority of this Sixth Administration because when our ECD sector is effective and lays a good foundation, our children will perform better when they get in the schooling system.
This is a long-term strategic importance for the sector.
The ECD migration will be concluded in April 2022. The committee urges the two departments to speedily confront he complexities of this migration and Basic Education should be
prepared to take our ECD sector to a high level of learning outcomes for all, particularly the poor.
The department’s target of increasing the number of five-year- olds in Grade RR of 95% by 2024 is important to improve the preparedness of children before they start schooling. The complexities in the sector will create a lot of challenges in transitioning to a comprehensive ECD sector, which provides quality childcare and teaching for all.
Mathematics and Science remain a key area of priority of the department, as these subjects support the urgent demands of our economy, in order to increase industrial production and innovation. In order to be competitive amongst other nations, we need to continue to improve our Science and Mathematics learning outcomes.
The 2019 trend in international Mathematics and Science study indicated that there is progress that is being made in our education system. This is a positive indicator that the opposition will never acknowledge.
Poverty, unemployment and inequality are endemic in our society. It is for this reason that the Department of Basic
Education allocates significant resources to support two programmes, which focus on alleviating poverty and supporting the poor. This is the National School Nutrition Programme, which provides healthy food for learners, addressing the problems of food hunger in our schools which impacts negatively on the learners’ performance. The department also provides meals during this pandemic to spike the low uptake.
This demonstrates how the department prioritises the wellbeing and success of learners. This Budget Vote supports 19 950 schools, which will be provided with nutritious meals on each school day.
Another aspect, which mainly affect the poor and those living in rural areas is the fact that other learners stay in far- flung areas from school. Other students would have to walk tens of kilometres to go to school, which exposes children and the girl child to various safety risks and abuses. The National Scholar Transport Programme is an important intervention by the department to address the problem facing many learners across our country.
One of the key policy areas we should begin to access and evaluate is the impact of the scholar transport, as it relates
to learners who travel to far-flung areas, whilst passing a number of schools next to their homes. This is also enabled by the right of parent to place the learners in the school of their choice, subject to availability of space.
It is also very unfortunate, Minister, that the so-called best-run province in this country is currently being taken to court by the parents because of unplacement of learners in the Western Cape. Shame on you, MEC Debbie Schafer.
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Jou onderrok hang lelik uit.
English:
Learners drop out of schools due to various reasons and the department’s policies provides support for the wellbeing of learners so that they become focussed on the education. Though the he drop-out is not extremely high, any learner who leaves the education system should always be of great concern. We urge our communities and all political parties to continuously campaign and encourage our children and our youth to be committed to their education.
The overall programme of the department of school improvement is important to ensure that all our schools should be able to provide quality education with good performance outcomes. The fact that good performing schools are not just reserved ... [Inaudible.] ... urban areas or schools with ... [Inaudible.]
... but our schools in rural areas and the townships also have high-performance outcomes and matric results.
Issues of governance and management of schools are important to provide support for the functionality of all schools.
Schools’ institutional cultures are important. leadership provided by principles should earn a high level of discipline and commitment of learners to perform to thebest of their ability.
We welcome the smooth running of school governing bodies across the country. Our SGBs should strengthen the efforts in developing and supporting our schools to improve the learning outcomes and to also ensure that schools’ safety is on top of the agenda. The ANC supports this Budget Vote because in this Vote lies a better future for our country and its children. I thank you.
Mr F GADE: Thanks hon Chair of the NCOP, Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP, hon members of the House, Minister of Basic Education and Deputy Minister of Basic Education, participants through virtual platforms and media houses. Chair allow me to reflect just on the policy priorities of the sector. Chair, the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us that the teaching and learning should take place anywhere, anytime. This means that the parents have indelible responsibility and the role to play in the teaching and learning of our own children.
Thus, Eastern Cape Reading Plan comprises of providing readers every year for all young children from grade Reception Year, R to grade three, to take home and meet with the families. The department will also make an available some guidelines on how parents can assist their children to read for minute. We remain, hon Chair committed to the country’s vision of providing children with to access to quality, holistic childhood development, so that the children reach their full potential.
The Department of Basic Education and the sector in general, is preparing its own system for the early childhood development, ECD, function from the Department of Social Development to Basic Education.
It is crucial, Chair to note that at the centre of this function is still the process to improve the development of the children and the quality of the ECD education and providing the best support to the children from the early age and onwards.
The sector has established relevant governing structures, hon Chair, to support the migration phase, namely, the human resource, finance, budget, legislation and contracts, immovable and movable assets, communication and stakeholders’ engagement, monitoring and evaluation, data information and as well as the ECD programme implementation.
These work streams are to ensure simplest transfer of the function and are providing regular feedback to relevant ministries.
Key, in the ECD function hon Chair and members, the shift to migration will be to ensure there is no interruption on the service delivery. As the department we are really thankful and appreciate the support of the Member of the Executive Council, MEC for the Social Development, the support of the Minister for Basic Education and the support of the Minister for Department for Social Development.
Chair, as a province currently, we are having 228 projects in various stages of construction. The department construction programme and the build environment economy has been severely affected by the pandemic of COVID-19. It is worth noting that these construction programmes will be resuscitated in current financial year and as well the next financial year in 2022.
With all project under construction resuming phase in manner of approach. Chair, I wish to reiterate that the importance of partnership in the execution of our own school infrastructure programme. As submitted at this august House, the
private-public partnership can be a leverage and the important mechanism for addressing our school infrastructure backlog, Chair.
We will continue to engage with Treasury and other relevant government structures including private sector and civil society partners, in exploring all options to resourcing and supporting our role out of our school infrastructure programme.
The Department of Basic Education has put a circuit school landscape plan to ensure that the rationalisation process is implemented orderly to make sure that learners have access to
quality education within the schools in the same circuit. Where a school is closed resourced like learner support material, furniture and finances are going to be transferred and relocated to other schools nearby.
Chair, our basic education sector plan states that the
COVID-19 pandemic and associated closures have brought to the fore the weakness of information and communication technologies in many schools in the province in particular and gaps with the regard to digital content for the learners and teachers in the country in general.
It is for that reason Chair, that the pandemic undoubtedly presented a new challenge but it can also be served as a catalyst for innovations in areas of e-learning and
e-governance and as well as e-administration for the province and generally for the country entirely.
The Eastern Cape Department of Education services is in excess of 5000 schools, the bulk of which are situated in the rural areas, hon Chair. To facilitate bridging of the gab and considering the difficulty in rolling out the infrastructure in deep rural areas of the province.
The department is exploring a project targeting a minimum of 1000 schools, in the poorest ... [Inaudible.] ... using satellite technologies so as to bridge the digital divide. All learners no matter their social economic circumstances, must be afforded the best opportunities to participate fully in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, hon Chair and members.
The Department of Education has approved the piloting of coding and robotics programme in primary schools, these include Grade R, Grade 1, Grade 2, Grade 3 and Grade 7. This is response to the rapid technological advancement brought about by the Fourth Industrial Revolution in education.
Learners will be provided with the foundation for future work and careers in computerised base programmes solving in line with emerging trends and how to live and work. This contributes to one of our four pillars which is based on education transformation plan, hon Chair.
Chair, sited here in this august House, we should always be reminded that we are here on behalf on behalf of the people that had voted us and mandated us to lead the society in general.
Formulate relevant policies, coordinating resources so that goods and services can be distributed to the public. Hon members, through you, hon Chair, this calls for a certain calibre of leadership, because for any task or project to be achieved in a meaningful manner to fulfil the public desire and the responsibility. We are not only required to have a budget, relevant resources and strong systems for a particular or the project to be catered out and successful.
We are required to have an element of trade of ethics, this is an element that is necessary for any leader of any nation to institutionalised an organization to ensure that tasks are accomplished in the interest of the people that all of us we seek to lead, Chair.
Hon Chair, it is in the absence of ethical leadership, that in times of this turmoil we have people benefiting unlawful in the personal protective equipment, ppe, contracts which are currently a subject of investigation by the Special Investigative Unit, SIU. It is also in the absence of ethical leadership that are constantly receiving reports of unlawful activities or irregular spending on our institution and organisation that deprived the poor, the marginalised communities in the entire country in general.
Hon Chair, we also want to ... [Interjection.]
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Your time is up, hon member.
Mr F GADE: Thank you Chair, thank you so much, thanks for the opportunity you have given to us [Time expired.]
Ms S B LEHIHI: Chairperson, 74% of South African youth are unemployed. This is directly related to the broken-down education system we have in this country.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Try to speak louder and closer to the microphone.
Ms S BLEHIHI: It is young black people ...
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: You are loud and clear. Please proceed.
Setswana:
Moh S B LEHIHI: A wa nkutlwa Modulasetulo?
MODULASETULO WA KHANSELE YA BOSETŠHABA YA DIPOROFENSE: Ee, ke
a go utlwa.
English:
Ms S B LEHIHI: Chairperson, 74% of South African youth are unemployed. This is directly related to the broken-down education system we have in this country. It is young black people who have to endure a lifetime of suffering, because they are failed by the government. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated for all to see that well-resourced schools, with properly trained teachers, and social support services for both learners and teachers, can withstand almost any challenge.
While schools were closed during level 5 lockdown, many well to do schools managed to keep learning going, while millions of poor black students in townships and villages had nowhere to go. At the end of each year, we see the exclusive Independent Examination Board schools prospering, because they are able to put the basic structures needed for a prospering education system in place.
Many public schools continue to operate under the logic of colonialism and apartheid, so many years after democracy, with schools serving white communities properly resourced and schools serving black communities being no different to dumping sites. As a consequence, today a child’s experience of
education still very much depends on where they are born, how wealthy they are, and the colour of their skin. We still have two education systems in one. One is white, well-resourced and prosperous, and the other is black, under-resourced, and forever in crisis.
Lack of school infrastructure, non-delivery of textbooks, unqualified teachers and shortage of qualified teachers, poor mathematics and physics teaching, violence inside classrooms. All these are problems exclusively faced by schools that cater for black children. Schools in rural areas, in townships and in farms, which cater primarily for black and poor leaners, are littered with problems of underperformance, of poorly trained teachers.
And as we have argued before, the department has done very little to stem the tide of dropouts in these poor schools. Every year for the past seven years, we have noted that only half of those who enter Grade 1 are able to finish their Grade
12. Almost half a million learners get lost to the system every single year. They will grow up to be unskilled, unemployed and unemployable. All of them are black. A black government makes it difficult for these half a million black learners to get an education. Apartheid may have fallen from
statute books, but it is very much alive in the manner we provide education to our children.
There are many causes for this, which are solvable if the department can get its house in order. These are: Pervasive poverty which makes it difficult even for the most capable of learners to focus productively on their school work. Undue influence of South African Democratic Teachers Union, SADTU, over the functioning of schools, to an extent that they have practically taken over powers to even appoint teachers. Poor planning and execution of existing plans. This leads to such terrible deeds such as non-delivery of text books, poor school infrastructure, and no interventions at chronically poor performing schools. Deeply embedded corruption and ineptitude within the department, leading to employment of unqualified teachers to teach leaners in rural provinces. Lack of content knowledge by the teachers of the very subjects they are meant to teach.
These problems require comprehensive solutions, one that won’t be implemented by the department of education alone, but which must be led by it. This is what needs to happen to solve basic education problems in this country: The department must lead a process to restore back the dignity of teaching. This must
entail reviewing the salaries of teachers, to ensure that they are properly paid. There must be universal standards for quality basic education for all. This must mean that there must be the same norms and standards for school infrastructure, for learning and teacher support materials, for provisioning for pupils with disabilities across all schools, be they rural or urban.
There must be a comprehensive review of the funding model for schools. The current funding model promotes inequality. Well to do public schools are allowed to charge school fees to make up for the inadequacy of government funding, while poor schools are made to be no-fee schools, with very little government support. Quality of education must never be directly proportional to wealth; it must be universal. We reject this Budget Vote. Thank you, Chair. [Time expired.]
Mr X NGWEZI: Thank you very much, hon Chairperson, and greetings to the hon Minister, colleagues in the NCOP, please bear with me with the background, hon Chairperson, its work, work and everywhere work.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: No, I understand. [Laughter.]
Mr X NGWEZI: Both our education departments continue to suffer due to the pandemic and the uncertainties in these departments. For basic education, the situation is worse. The uncertainty in the Department of Basic Education and the choices made by this department makes things harder for our children and our teachers. For instance, how is it possible to go ahead and open schools when the COVID-19 infections are rising each day? And we are in the 3rd Wave.
Where is the considerations of the health and wellbeing of the learners? While acknowledging the importance of educating our children at a young age, and while we are aware that it will be difficult to recover the lost ground, the IFP does not believe that education must come at the expense of human lives. We certainly don’t want to place our teachers in a position in which they have to worry about their lives and learners.
The Department of Basic Education must also adopt urgent matters to create a conducive environment for children in the schools. The bullying of learners must be addressed so that no learner finds themselves in a position in which they fear going to school because of bullies.
Concerning the Department of Higher Education and Training, the IFP is very concerned about the abuse of funds at the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS. This wastage occurs at a time when NSFAS is dropping students every year for lack of funds. Sustainable solutions must be found so that no university student is left behind. This can only happen if we cut wasteful expenditure and protected the funds entrusted to NSFAS.
Also, the department must ensure that NSFAS makes funds available to students on time so that they don’t have to suffer indignity while waiting for their funds to be processed. Hon Chairperson, the IFP will support this Budget Vote No 16 and Budget Vote No 17, so that the challenges that our teachers and learners are facing in schools can be addressed and also in the higher education sector. Thank you very much, Chairperson.
Ms P BOSHIELO (Limpopo): Hon Chairperson and Deputy Chairperson, the Minister of Basic Education and Deputy Minister, hon members, colleagues, ladies and gentlemen, I greet you all.
Hon Chairperson, I thought we were debating the budget on higher education when I heard the previous speaker speaking. I thought it was Budget Vote No 16 – Basic Education.
We thank you for this opportunity as we take part in this virtual debate of the Department of Basic Education Vote No
16. The times we are operating in are different and unprecedented for us as a sector as we endeavour to provide quality education to all the learners in Limpopo.
In basic education, we are continuing under these very trying and difficult circumstances presented by COVID-19 to protect the rights of all children in our schools. We continue to play our role with our school communities in the global efforts to change the cause of COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring that we comply with all the health protocols to slow the spread of the virus.
Needless to say, we have worked with partners in the province, from teacher unions, government associations, civic society, private sector and our communities to save the academic year. As we speak, Limpopo is occupying position seven in the national rankings, two places above where we were in 2019. We applaud the resilience of our learners who fought tooth and
nail to perform excellently despite the COVID-19 challenges. We shall continue to work together in this academic year, to ensure that the difficult and different circumstances are made bearable for the sector in the interest of our children whose future we must secure.
We understand fully well our mandate and it has been made very clear in our Constitution that education is an alienable right for all. The Constitution of our country serves our children’s rights and stresses it in section 21(a) the respect and protection of the right of the basic education for everyone.
We do not take for granted this constitutional mandate because basic education is an essential function for our nation.
Hon Chairperson, the advent of COVID-19 had implications of what resources are allocated to the Department of Basic Education. Resources to deliver on this mandate are required so that learners receive their education under the safe environment as per the safety protocols and the health guidelines that we need to adhere to, in our endeavour to slow down the spread of the virus. Ultimately to flatten the curve and save lives.
In the midst of the COVID-19 and its disruptive nature, we need to protect the right to basic education to our children. We need to educate our people on what they must do in order to avoid COVID-19 infections. We need to actively build a bridge to a prosperous future. However, at the same time with the understanding that the storm is still very much with us.
COVID-19 has changed us to rapidly learn to live in the new normal.
Hon Chairperson, the COVID-19 pandemic has compelled us to accelerate our efforts towards embracing the Fourth Industrial Revolution. Access to technology is no longer meant for the privileged few, but it is a basic necessity for all.
The pandemic has compelled us to accelerate our interventions on the use of digital means of education. For this purpose, we have in this financial year 2021-22, allocated a total budget of R228 million, to roll out our e-learning. A two pronged approach will be followed in the roll out of the e-learning strategy. The first one is being implemented at 106 Mathematics, Science and Technology, MST, schools which have been provided will all the smart classrooms.
The second one will be the provisioning of tablets to learners and laptops to educators in schools in the province.
Given the available budget, the department will be implementing e-learning to two grades. Grade 1 and Grade 8. There are 142 123 learners in Grade 1 and 125 645 learners in Grade 8. To this effect, we will need R355 million to cater for Grade 1 learners and R340 million to cater for Grade 8 learners.
With the available budget of R228 million, we have decided to stager the provision of tablets to R19 000 in Grade 1 and
R16 000 in Grade 8 in Quintile 1 to 3 schools with the goal of covering all the schools when funding becomes available.
Laptops will be provided for educators from the R228 million budget that we have since set aside so that our learners can be taught accordingly.
Hon Chairperson coding and robotics are designed to provide learners with knowledge, values and skills needed for the Fourth Industrial Revolution. As part of rolling out this project, in the 2021-22 financial year, the province will be piloting this project in a 133 primary schools.
As the department we will be offering in house training course to 200 targeted educators through the department’s coding club. This club is composed of educators who are knowledgeable in this field and will thus be used as an important resource in rolling out this project.
We have also taken a decision to resuscitate the 16 former Dinaledi school to increase performance of maths, science and technology in the province. This 16 schools are now part of the MST Conditional Grant.
Hon Chairperson, knowing that Limpopo is endowed with natural resources, we are working very hard to collaborate with the private sector and other key stakeholders to strengthen and support technical high schools to equip learners with relevant skills in the province, especially in the area of mining.
Agriculture is identified in the Limpopo Development Plan as a strategic economic development sector. It is critical that our agricultural schools are supported to be able to produce learners who are ready to pursue farming as a career and also pursue education studies in the field of agriculture to specialise. The department is working hand-in-hand with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to provide
professionals and technical assistance in the identified eight agricultural schools in the province.
Hon Chairperson, we also need School Governing Bodies, SGBs, to advance the democratic transformation of the schooling system and to provide a platform for the active participation of school communities. As we speak, our schools have constituted their School Governing Bodies where there are disputes in terms of eligibility, such matters are being handled as per the available prescripts, so that in the end, we have credible governing bodies playing a critical role in the management of the governance function in schools.
With regard to the basic education employment initiatives, 52 055 employment opportunities were filled by youth, between the ages of 18 and 35.
The other aspect of the Basic Education Employment Initiative, BEEI, was the fact that we saved 2 258 jobs from Quintile 4 and 5 and independent schools. We did this in order to save the posts and protect the curriculum delivery at schools given the hardships imposed by the pandemic which affected the payment of salaries of SGB appointed educators.
At the moment the teaching and learning is taking place at our schools. Our schools are also implementing differentiated timetabling as part of adhering to the strict requirements of the safety and health COVID-19 protocols. We continue to emphasize the importance of wearing masks which we have provided to our schools, the importance of sanitizing from time-to-time and keeping the safe social distances in order to keep each other safe in our schools.
Chairperson, we wish to appreciate the good work that our schools continue to do under the most trying times. Our stakeholders across our province, are also playing their role in ensuring that our schools are supported and learners are not interrupted from going to school.
These are indeed difficult times and the virus has outstretched our limited budget. Nevertheless, as a sector we are expected to fulfil our constitutional mandate and ensure that services reach the deserving members of the community, particularly children of this province.
Our plea to the NCOP is to support us, so that we are able to provide quality education to all our learners during this uncertain and difficult times. It is important to remind all
stakeholders and the broader community that education is a societal matter and that together we can do a lot more as we build the future for our children. Let us grow South Africa together. Thank you very much, hon Chairperson. [Applause.]
Mr M A P DE BRUYN: Thank you, Chairperson. It is a fact that the coronavirus 2019, Covid-19, had a devastating and lasting impact on our education, but it’s also important to admit that there were devastating failures before Covid as well. As we depend on education to provide the future leaders and the workforce of tomorrow, we must ask ourselves, what is the quality of those leaders and workforce going to be? With the current standards I fear that we have a lot to be worried about in the future.
Afrikaans:
Om waarlik ons jongmense te bemagtig vir die toekoms is gehalteonderwys en standaarde nodig. Dit kan slegs realiseer as daar aan die nodige infrastruktuur voldoen word, ’n kwaliteit kurrikulum en onderwysers wat bemagtig is om hul werk te kan doen. Die verhoging in die begroting is ’n positiewe, maar soos met elke ander departement, is die groot vraag, gaan die fondse reg en verantwoordelik bestee word? En as ons die verlede as ’n voorbeeld moet gebruik is dit
ongelukkig baie onwaarskynlik. Mens kan nie help om te wonder Waar is al die miljarde rande wat vir onderwys begroot was in die laaste 26 jaar heen nie, veral nie as ons kyk na honderde skoolgeboue oor die land, wat in ongebruik staan of waar die toestande so haglik is, dat dit net sowel in ongebruik kon wees nie.
Waar is al die tegnologie wat voor begroot is? Waar is die basiese hulpmiddels vir onderwysers waarsonder hulle elke dag steeds moet klaarkom en dan steeds van verwag word dat ’n sekere slaagsyfer gehandhaaf moet word? Soos met elke ander departement word die Onderwys besteel en dit ten koste van ons jeug wat in die nabye toekoms die leisels gaan moet oorneem.
English:
Instead of empowering our youth with quality education, this department rather fall’s back on practices where grades have to be adjusted by schools to ensure the required pass rates to ensure funding, or systems where a student can only fail once per phase and then passes based on age instead of merits.
Surely, this can’t be seen as empowerment, but rather as a setup for failure in the future, and once again the youth are the ones that will be suffering in the future. The promises and budgets of the past two decades have amounted to very
little and only by prioritising new schools, decent curriculums, sufficient aid and equipment for teachers and reinstating mother tongue education and better standards will there be hope for south Africa’s and its education. Thank you, Chair.
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Thank you, Chair. I
wish I’m audible.
The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Yes, you are audible.
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Thank you, House
Chairperson. Greetings to the Ministers present, especially Minister Motshekga, Deputy Ministers, hon members, the Deputy Chairperson of the House, permanent delegates, member of the executive council, MECs, for education, ladies and gentlemen sanibonani [greetings.] This month of June, House Chair, is always known as a Youth Month and this year we commemorate the 45th years anniversary of the class of 1976, under the theme “The year of Charlotte Maxeke, growing youth employment for an inclusive and transformed societies.” This class of brave and courageous young men and women was not just distinguished; it was distinguishable in its generational mission of freedom in their lifetime. This was the rallying call for ...
[Inaudible.] ... their struggle against the brutal and unjust regime which was declared a crime against humanity.
Our sector honours this outstanding young people in our continued efforts and commitment towards improving the lives of South Africans by restoring and growing the economy in the wake of Covid-19 pandemic which was exacerbated other challenges the country has been experiencing including the quest to provide quality basic education to all South African children.
House Chairperson, we are pleased as a department that the allocation of curriculum policy support and monitoring has increased to R2,4 billion which is an increase by 10,3% from the 2020-21 baseline. This will certainly assist to boost the department stable and progressive curriculum does not only international benchmark, but also transformative and fully incorporates the 21st century skills and skills for a changing world. The department in collaboration with a provincial education departments and teacher unions have developed the recovery annual teaching plans for monograde and multigrades schools for the 2021, academic year. The Annual Teaching Plans, ATP, were mediated by teachers to teach us by the provinces. The ATP and the presentation to meditate them are
available on the website of the department. The focus of the ATP is on prior foundational skills.
In the Foundation Phase baseline assessment were administered in home languages and first additional language to determine the learning losses of the previous year. We have made inroads on all official languages and South African Sign Language enjoys the status of an official language in the education sector. The department has collaborated with several stakeholders including Pan South African Language Board to start work on the promotion and development of the Khoekhoe Nama language. We are conducting an audit to Khoi, Nama and San communities in the Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, Western cape and Free State provinces in order to plan on how these languages should be phased into the schooling system.
The introduction of Kiswahili in the National Senior Certificate, NSC, will go a long way towards decolonising education in the continent. It will promote social cohesion and also assist in the Africa continental free trade area and world’s largest free trade that was launched in January 2021, to unify Africa as a single market to develop the continent. Kiswahili the widely spoken language in the continent is projected to be the business language of Africa and will play
a significant unifying role. To get the system ready for implementation we have collaborated with the national education collaboration trust and develop Grades 4 to 6 South African language toolkit to incremental introduction of African languages, in IsiZulu, IsiXhosa, IsiNdebele, SiSwati, Tshivenda, Sepedi, plus Nama and Kiswahili. The Grades 4 to 6 toolkit includes structured learning programmes and have been integrated in the electronic resource packs.
A few samples of material will be printed to the districts and provincial officials. Provincial and district language subject advisors and teachers who were trained on the utilisation of the Grades 4 to 6 South African language toolkit in March to May 2021. Hon House Chair, in response to the 2019-20 state of the nation address mandate of ensuring that every 10-year-old can read for meaning by 2020, the department has conceptualised the integrated reading sector plan which has informed the development and implementation of reading strategies in all provinces. Central to the sector plan is primary school reading intervention program which comprises four sub-programmes that is early grade reading assessment, early grade reading study, read to lead campaign and national reading coalition.
Through these partnerships we have been able to train more than 30 000 teachers on how to more effectively teach reading for understanding, who in turn supported about 1,5 million children since the inception of the program. We have also upskilled more than 7 000 senior management teams to be able to support their teachers. As part, House Chair, of the Basic Education employment initiative, we have placed 23 000 young South Africans as reading champions in schools in all nine provinces to be part of the massive reading revolution drive. Furthermore, we have heeded the President’s call for a reading movement by establishing the President’s reading cycle through hosting virtual reading clubs. We are doing this in collaboration with ... [Inaudible.] ... under the banner of read to lead. All South Africans are invited to join this exciting monthly events which happened every last Thursday of the month and we also invite members of the NCOP to this.
House Chairperson, with the severe shortage of health professionals, social workers, psychologists and counsellors in the country, it’s important to find implementation modalities that can reach as many learners and educators as possible. At the same time, building the resilience of teachers to adapt to the challenges they may face, the department has collaborated with the Department of Social
Development and other partners in ensuring the provision of psychosocial support. In addition, the provincial education departments have received immense support including human resource in the form of social work interns. These are in the different provinces; additional personnel are being provided for psychosocial support. Free State Department of Education has partnered with the Department of Social Development for the placement of social worker interns at district level. 54 social worker interns have been placed in the respective district and hotspot areas within the circuit and in addition
50 change agents have been appointed by the province.
In Gauteng, House Chair, the Department of Social Development employed 110 social workers and attached them to education districts before the Covid epidemic. In Limpopo 170 learner- support agents have been appointed. In additional, 121 learner-support agents were appointed and their term ended in March 2021, and 117 social workers have been appointed to date, in Limpopo province. The KwaZulu-Natal province has set up transversal teams which consist of Department of Health, Social Development and nongovernmental organisations to respond to various crisis that arise in schools.
Hon House Chairperson, the past year was very hard on the infrastructure programme. There was no construction in quarter one due to the hard lockdown, even quarter two was tough as we still experience restrictions in the number of workers ... [Inaudible.] ... and restrictions on the travelling of workers between provinces. Despite all of these, we managed to make significant progress in the provision of school infrastructure during 2020-21. The Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative, Asidi, and the safe programs are both scheduled for completion in 2022 to 2023. In Asidi there are sub-program to replace 362 inappropriate structures, we have already completed 281, the remaining 81 will be done in the next two years.
On water supply there were 1 228 school projects, 1 104 have been completed and the rest will be completed in the next two years. On electricity supply, hon House Chair, 373 schools were identified and they were all completed. On appropriate sanitation, 984 schools have been identified and 925 are completed, and we are just remaining with 59 which we will complete in the next two years. Under the same programme, House Chair, focusing on the eradication of basic kits toilets at 2 850 schools, the department has already completed 748 sanitation projects, the remaining 2 102 projects are schedule
for the next two years. In this regard, we wish to express our gratitude to our valued partnership with China, South Korea and the United States of America for extending hand on water and sanitation. Hon House Chair, on the safety where members are complaining about we launched a programme of school safety intervention initiative on the 28 of May and that program is continuing and it will be taken to all the other provinces.
As I conclude, hon House Chairperson, I must thank and commend the resilience and the leadership of our Minister, the MECs in all the nine provinces, parents, teachers, learners school management teams, community leaders, and valued partners including the Select Committee on Education, Culture, Sports and Recreation for trusting us with the mandate of providing access to quality basic education for the children of South Africa. I thank you House Chair.
Mr M R BARA: Hon Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, Ministers and members of the House, I want to greet you this morning. Chairperson, Covid-19 has proven that its impact cuts across human beings in different ways. It has affected lives negatively whether you are young or old. That is why it is important that we safeguard particularly the young ones to the best of our ability. The young ones are the future of our
country and therefore we must have them in our hearts and minds all the time.
In these dark times the one thing we must and can give them is a proper education so they can have a brighter future.
However, during this period students or learners spend 50% of their time at schools. This is the time when they do five days in two weeks at schools. This is due to the Covid-19 induced mode of attendance. What remains of interest is whether there is an ability to cover the normal school work in half the time and what strain this may have on the students and teachers.
The longer the students stay out of school the higher the risk of dropping out. Additionally, students who are out of school, particularly girls are at an increased risk of vulnerability, exploitation, teenage pregnancy, etc. In spite of the call to return back to school by the department, it remains to be seen in the light of a third wave upon us this time around. At this point, I want to say that there are learners in Gauteng, not only in the Western Cape who are not yet back at school but are looking for schooling around in Florida, in Gauteng. So, I just wanted to correct that in the light of what hon Gillion stated that it is something that needs to be looked at and highly considered.
We need to find ways and means to make schooling more accessible to learners without internet or rather make internet more accessible to the learners. That would be meeting learners half way instead of having to be at school under the current circumstances. These are the measures we have to take as our teachers have not been vaccinated. In Zambia, there is a district like Chikuni where children stay far from school. The distance from would be about 50 kilometres and therefore they cannot travel to school because of poverty. These boys and girls also have to assist at home in farming due to lack of income. These children access education through radio broadcasting and they are doing well.
The Zambian modern partners partnered with big business getting them to sponsor radio broadcast as part of their corporate social investment span. It is very successful and noting the low levels of literacy in Zambia parents are tuning in too. This calls upon the private sector to play its role in the future of our children. There must be a rethinking of how to make a success out of different circumstances.
Public-private partnership is therefore essential for the success of our learners. There is quite a number of schools that require social development within this department. The
budgetary cuts of R1,9 billion when there are mud schools that must be removed from the priority list, how is that possible if there have been such budgetary cuts? How is that going to be achieved? There are schools that were damaged by fire during the Covid-19 lockdown. These schools require budgetary increase in order to deal with those damages.
There is R122,8 million cut from getting rid of pit toilets while there are still 2 111 other schools with children at risk of using pit toilets. There is R123 million cut on school nutrition while most learners are already without meals. How does the department expect meaningful learning when learners do not get food at schools? A hungry child cannot learn, Minister. Gauteng senior government officials pay R63,5 million to companies whose contracts were deemed irregular by a Special Investigative Unit.
In a matter of weeks, the directors of seven companies were in a shopping spree of designer watches, jewellery, luxury cars, plastic surgery, etc. They have amassed this cash in endeavours to decontaminate Gauteng schools during the Covid-
19 lockdown and blew more than R40 million at a go. How do you allow acts like these to occur when we know our children are sitting in classrooms hungry?
With the coming new wave of Covid-19 it is a concern what situation of educators in our schools is going to be. With the number of educators who have comorbidities, it would be interesting to know as to how many of the teachers have chosen to take early retirement or just resign that would leave the department in a bad situation in trying to find placements especially with the limitation on the budget.
It would be critical that teachers get Covid-19 vaccines as soon as possible as they are also frontline workers. That would ensure that education at schools continue without hindrance of Covid-19. Until such time, it would be irresponsible to have Grade 1 to Grade 7 learners return to school particularly with the third wave of Covid-19 upon us in South Africa.
The exposure of these learners to unvaccinated teachers poses a risk that should have been avoided by the vaccination of teachers. Covid-19 remains a huge setback of our Department of Basic Education. Job losses of parents due to Covid-19 has extended to more learners on the school nutrition programme.
It is therefore more important for the department to find creative ways of curbing the impact of this ordeal on the young ones. I thank you Chairperson.
IsiXhosa:
Mnu M NHANHA: Mama uNgwenya ...
English:
... order Chairperson.
IsiXhosa:
USIHLALO WENDLU (Nks W NGWENYA): Nhanha thetha ndikumamele.
English:
Mr M NHANHA: Hon House Chair, on a point of order: I do note that the chat function is disabled. Is there a reason for that, Chairperson?
IsiXhosa:
USIHLALO WENDLU (Nks W NGWENYA): Andazi ukuba uthetha ngantoni sana.
Mnu M NHANHA: Mam’uNgwenya, apha kuZoom asikwazi ukubhalelana sithumelelane apha entlanganisweni njengoko siqhele ukwenza njalo.
English:
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms W NGWENYA): Okay!
Mr M NHANHA: So, it says chat is disabled and I wanted to check if there is any reason for that. Thank you.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms W NGWENYA): Thank you, hon Nhanha. I will ask the Table to assist me. Hon Phindela?
Adv. M PHINDELA: House Chairperson, the function is active. I have just confirmed now.
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms W NGWENYA): Thank you very much Adv. M Phindela.
IsiXhosa:
Nksz N NDONGENI: Enkosi Sihlalo weNdlu, ndiyabulela ngeli thuba nindinike lona. Ndicela ukulungisa ilungu elihloniphekileyo uNgwezi. Ilungu elihloniphekileyo uNgwezi udibanisa izinto ezingadibaniyo, ulila kumngcwabo ongenguwo. Bekufaneleke ukuba ulila kumngcabo we-17 ngoNsfas hayi umngcwabo we-16. Siyabulela ke kodwa nangokulila oko kwakhe, siyathemba ukuba noko kwilixa elizayo uzakuyazi. Enkosi Sihlalo.
English:
House Chairperson, hon Minister, Deputy Minister and hon members, the quality of education of a country has a relationship to the prospects of economic development. Beyond the economic aspect, education is a right in the Bill of Rights in our Constitution. It is a right which enables the creation of equality to opportunities to participate in the economy socially. Education, learning and knowing is the only way humans can self-produce.
This Budget Vote on Basic Education is a critical vote if we are to realise the society our Constitution seeks to create. Our education is an important component of creating a national consciousness of the value and principle enshrined in our Constitution, and the objectives of creating a national democratic society. Many of social lists such as gender-based violence, abuse, racism, and sexism requires education as contributing factor to change the social behaviour.
National consciousness is important for the nation, as it enables the understanding and responds to the challenges which face our society, which is mainly the triple challenge of poverty, unemployment and equality. House Chair, as the ANC we send our condolences to those who have lost their lives on duty due to the pandemic. We also salute the commitment of our
teachers and sector stakeholders. This Budget Vote responds to the vision outlined in the Ready to Govern Document of the provision of free and compulsory education, being based on the equalising of the per capita expenditure between black and white education.
This will be done within a framework which ensures that, resources are redistributed to the most disadvantaged sectors of our society, in particular rural women and mental or children with physical disability. The distribution of resources by the democratic government responds to the development depth among our schools has been on of it milestone. Addressing inequality in our society requires the redistribution of the revenue collected by the state to better the poor, thus addressing poverty.
The narrative of the DA and the EFF on government not closing the infrastructure and resources gap is unfounded and not based on evidence, contrary to the narrative by the opposition which is oppositionist, illogical even on matter of progress of the nation. The balance of evidence demonstrates the significant progress made. We today have the top performing students coming from your most rural areas, and schools in rural areas and townships have laboratories and other
educational facilities, which only existed in schools in urban areas or schools designed for the privileged minority.
The department will also be piloting the implementation of robotics and coding, which should enable dynamism of our learners in the global political economy which is based on completion. Reading is one of the areas of learning which needs to be strengthened. The weaknesses of reading with meaning by the age of 10 impacts negatively on the cognitive development of the learner. The strengthening of early childhood development, ECD will contribute in decreasing these weaknesses. The sustainable and effective pedagogics to improve reading is through building and reading culture in the country, as a reading nation is more conscious and free.
If we ensure that schools have libraries and children are taught reading books at a young age, this will positively contribute to improve reading with meaning. This does not only apply to learners at lower grades, but all grades. Critical thinking skills are developed through reading and expose to various knowledge. The comprehensive development of children and youth is important.
The level of sickness related to obesity and other health ills can be decreased through ensuring our schools have adequate sporting facilities. This is good for the wellbeing of the students. Psychosocial support is an important service our schools should be linked to. Abuse in our society is prevalent such that, our society do note to effectively to act of abuse when they simmer.
The ANC resolves that, working with the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture and other social partners such as the association of various sports, South African sports clubs and sport sponsors should develop a special compact to ensure sport as the integral part of the education life of all students. The fact that other students have adequate sporting facilities and others don’t, is an inequality which requires government to implement programmes which will address the anomaly. Many sports players develop in their schools and are part of schools within institutional culture to the development of the learners.
Hon members, the lesson from the bullying incidents in Mbilwi and many schools across the country, is a societal problem of violence and weak social relations. The family is an important
unit which has a unique cognitive development of children and the social behaviour they adopt.
We welcome the support the department has provided in creating awareness and ensure that they strengthen school safety committees. The Deputy Minister has been leading campaigns in this regard. Let us all unite against bullying and cyberbullying. Let us protect learners from abusing and create a culture of reporting these incidents in our schools.
The rollout of the campaign themed, “School safety violence and bullying prevention initiative’s” aim is to mobilise learners, parents, teachers and key stakeholders in promoting a safety learning environment for equality education. The influence is not only limited to the family. but social institutions such as religion, education and friends. This shows the importance of moral generation at a family level and broader society.
With the digital world and the influence of social media, it is important that our efforts in the education sector encompasses all role-players including school governing bodies, SGBs, quality learning and teaching committees and traditional leaders. In essence, it is a societal
responsibility. W Leal Filho emphasises the importance of critical engagement in society to bring about transformation.
The problems of drugs and alcohol which at all times find their way to schools and communities requires enforcement, because this erode the focus of learners. Enterprises which sell alcohol should be monitored to comply with the legal requirements of purchasing alcohol. The department should also continue its programme within the SA Police Service and conduct random checks in schools to fight drugs and violence, due to learners carrying dangerous objects to schools.
The societal efforts have to assist in identifying dangerous weapons and drug syndicates which target learners. In this regard, it is our societal responsibility to report such incidents to law enforcement offices, as this is the stage where a lot of learners lose focus in their education. The ANC supports Budget Vote 16 of Basic Education. This vote is a key priority of the ANC and the future of the nation. Education remains a weapon to fight poverty, inequality and unemployment. Thank you Chair.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: Chair, let me take this opportunity to thank members of the NCOP and members from
different provinces for engaging with us on this budget. I found their points very helpful and we have taken note. Chair, I would just comment on the few, so those I have not commented to doesn’t mean that we are not taking note of them. But I want to appreciate the chairperson of our committee who raised an issue around the vandalisation of schools. We continue to appeal to communities to say the breaking in of schools by those few people, who do it, are a major setback for us. We do continue to have challenges with infrastructure, but also to venture to thank communities that go out of their way to volunteer, repair our schools and clean our schools. Indeed, those are their assets and we appreciate their partnership.
Chair, the other thing I also wanted to raise to member, Christian, until sometime members have the humility to admit to say we are where we are because of where we come from.
Then, I don’t think people can speak about any morality. We are where we are with a legacy which is difficult to eradicate because we come from a sad history where all these things of undermining the majority and their rights. The majority of people has been undermined. Member, Christian, you can’t talk about the moral of what ... without acknowledging the scene of apartheid which has landed us here. So, start there where the scene ... [Inaudible.] ... once you are counting the two,
count the hundreds that we have built which are of the high gravity.
The other point of eradicating the pit latrines, it doesn’t mean we have a magic ... [Inaudible.] ... If you are still going to count programme of year three and say they are ... [Inaudible.] ... by scholar transport ... It is not correct. Sometimes it is ... [Inaudible.] ... but the parents will replace themselves. It is the problem that we are acknowledging and as she correctly says it creates a number of problems. We are looking at that with the Treasury and also the Department of Transport. We are aware of the problem and we are trying to deal with it.
Regarding the member of the EFF, I couldn’t even write her speech. I knew what she was going to say – pass rate of pupils, who have not passed, corruption and what ... I really want to appeal to members to say they are indeed very important. It would help sometimes if they could bring a different narrative that would be helpful to debate and not repeat the same story. It’s as if it’s a script written each time we take a platform on education, speak about old textbook that were not delivered or talk about pass rate and everything else. I think it is a problem. I would really appreciate if a
member indeed could help, counsel with new ideas that will take us forward and not repeat the same story – it’s boring.
Mr D R RYDER: You should have new ideas.
Ms B T MATHEVULA: We are not repeating, Minister. We are not repeating our speeches and you must not tell us what we must write.
The MINISTER OF BASIC EDUCATION: On the question of Afrikaans Chair, and also to the member of the FF Plus, I also knew what they would expect from us. I knew they would raise a question of Afrikaans, as if Afrikaans is the only language. There is a
... we agreed. It doesn’t matter whether there is a problem or not ...[Inaudible.] ... We agreed on the mother tongue instruction. That is why in the Eastern Cape there is a major problem around mother tongue instruction. So, we agreed.
That’s why there is a problem of mother tongue in the Eastern Cape. So, it cannot only be mother tongue instructions because is in Afrikaans. All languages, that is why we are speaking about teaching Khoi language, sign language, your South African ... deaf language because we value all first instructions.
On the question of the other member of DA from Gauteng comparing ... every time you speak about Gauteng doesn’t have schools. We are not playing hide and seek to say the ANC this and the DA that. So, it’s just sad that half the time, members of the DA will always want to compare this rabbit and elephant and want to say yes, the rabbit can run fast. Our kids in our care belong to all of us and we care about them. If there are children who have not found space in the Western Cape, it’s a fact. Don’t worry about the fact that in Gauteng the children did not find space. What difference does it make? We are working with the provinces to make sure that indeed we can find placements for all learners. Indeed, both provinces, including your urban areas like Natal, your Pietersburg where there is rapid urban migration, as a sector, we are experiencing problems of placements. I can admit even to both the ANC and the DA that the provinces have gone out of their way to make sure that we can place learners.
In the Western Cape, the province had issued new budget, which we were not part of the Education Department to make sure that we can accommodate learners. The same thing happened to Gauteng and it is a national crisis that we are constantly on the lookout for. On the question of vaccination, again we agreed. It’s not even a political. We agreed that teachers
must be vaccinated. We agreed that they are very indeed very important so that we can create more space. The vaccination of teachers is not necessarily linked to the return of children to school. We are losing more time and we are beginning to observe high levels of juvenile delinquency. When young people are not adequately engaged ... about them. So it is important. Chair, let me ... [Inaudible.] ...
The last speaker spoke about sports to say ... [Inaudible.]
... it’s quite correct ... [Inaudible.] ... it is important to work with the department if we are engaged. Chair, let me take this opportunity to thank all the members who participated in the debate and say indeed we benefitted from the engagements.
IsiZulu:
Ngiyabonga Sihlalo.
The HOUSE CHAIRPEPRSON (Ms W Ngwenya): Thank you very much, hon Minister, hon members and Deputy Minister. Hon members, we now continue with our speaker’s list but now on Policy Debate on Budget Vote No 17 Higher Education and Training Appropriation Bill B4-2021 National Assembly-section 77.
APPROPRIATION BILL
Policy Debate on Budget Vote No 17- Higher Education and Training:
The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY: Hon
Chairperson, hon members of the NCOP, Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation, hon Buti Manamela, the Director General of the Department of Science and Innovation who is also acting at the moment as the Director General for Higher Education and Training Dr Phil Mjwara and senior management, chairpersons and CEOs of entities, heads of our post-school organisations and institutions as well as science councils, student and trade union leadership, invited guests, ladies and gentlemen and comrades, our NCOP Budget Vote address comes at the time as we mark 45 years since the June 16 student uprising of 1976. We commemorate Youth Month through a theme linked to Mam Charlotte Maxeke’s 150th birthday anniversary. The year of Charlotte Mannya Maxeke – growing youth employment for an inclusive and transformed society.
IsiZulu:
Malibongwe igama lamakhosikazi.
English:
Roar young lions, roar!
Hon Chairperson, our Department of Higher Education and Training seeks to provide education and training opportunities to all South Africans and those who are out of school to acquire further education and skills they require.
Through our programmes we offer in our universities, Technical and Vocational Educational and Training Colleges, TVET, in our Sector Education and Training Authorities, SETAs, in our community education and training colleges, to cater for youth and adults in our system. We acknowledge that the need for education skilling and reskilling of our society is a joint and collaborative effort that requires all our spheres of government as well as all key stakeholders to always work together in a commitment to build a better life for all.
In response to the negative socioeconomic impact of COVID-19, Cabinet approved the strategy of the Department of Science and Innovation to drive a multipronged national vaccine production and development strategy to secure our nation’s long-term pandemic preparedness.
Through the Department of Science and Innovation we are working closely with ... [Inaudible.] ... 47% called Biovac as the state, to increase the scope of public participation, and leveraging capital investment by domestic private and international vaccine players, to build South Africa’s vaccine production capacity.
To manage the effects of COVID-19 in all our institutions, our Department of Higher Education and Training has since established a COVID-19 team comprising Universities South Africa, the South African Public Colleges Organisation, Higher Health and health experts to co-ordinate our sector response and collate institutional case management reports on this pandemic.
Working together with these stakeholders we managed to conclude the 2020 academic year and commence with the 2021 academic year as per our COVID-19 risk adjusted strategy. This team has also been replicated in all our institutions and includes students and trade union representation.
Hon members and Chair, as you might be aware, our department is a national department that does not have a fully established provincial or local footprint. However, we are
working to fully capacitate what previously has been our regional offices responsible for TVET colleges to be fully functional representatives of our Department of Higher Education and Training in provinces. We have six such offices in various provinces.
We are also exploring workable solutions for the co-ordination of all our science, technology and innovation interventions in all our provinces. We participate also through the District Development Model through the Ministerial District Development Model initiative that I am running, to ensure that we reach to the ground and to all the provinces. Through this model we have officially launched a fleet of 10 roving district campus health and wellness fleet mobile clinics ...
IsiZulu:
... omahamba nendlwana ...
English:
... at Ondini for instance in KwaZulu-Natal. These mobile clinics are managed by Higher Health which is our agency responsible for health and safety of all our post-school education and training institutions and they are now to be found in these mobile clinics in all of our provinces.
The district campus health and wellness fleet provides primary health care to underserved TVET colleges and community education and training colleges, as well as rural and disadvantaged university campuses in all our provinces.
In order to align our skills development and innovation strategies much closer together and to facilitate an innovation-led, skills based, economic growth and development strategy, I am pleased to say that I am revitalising and expanding the Imbali Education and Innovation Precinct as a project which is a pilot to explore and test an alternative modality of education delivery, based on closer multi- educational institutional co-operation, closer articulation with science and innovation linkages. These includes local high schools, schools for the disabled as well as a TVET college campus and a university of technology campus.
Effectively, this means that we intend to integrate our universities, TVET colleges, SETAs and our national system of innovation in order to produce a well-rounded student who is ready to take up their positions within our economy and society. This project is also intended to be the first of three such education and innovation precincts to be established as part of the new National Plan for Post-School
Education and Training, with the next one set to be established in Giyani in Limpopo, where will be setting up a new university campus as well. I do invite members from KwaZulu-Natal in particular to visit this Imbali Education Precinct to see what I am talking about.
One of our exciting projects also is to expand and relocate the University of Zululand teacher training faculty to the former Zululand Parliamentary Precinct at Ulundi. We are exploring offering culture and tourism studies at this campus as well.
This ANC-led government, working together with the University of Zululand, is currently in the process of conducting the feasibility study for this project so that we can in earnest begin with the renovations of the current building and the construction of the new infrastructure to realise this campus. Through the Regional Innovation Support Programme we are engaged in a concerted effort to increase our spatial footprint of innovation support so that innovation can enable localised socioeconomic development. I am also pleased to say that we will also be studying provincial growth and development and local economic development strategies so that our department is better able to align its post-school and
innovation-support interventions with the District Development Model.
To this end, we will be piloting technologies that facilitate service delivery to ensure appropriate technology deployment, for instance, for waste management, water and wastewater management, housing, sanitation and energy provision, among others. As you will notice, hon Chair, this is a strategy that integrates both higher education, science as well as innovation. We will also use our Technology Stations Programme to deepen our provincial spatial footprint for higher education and training. These stations will have stronger links to TVET colleges. We are also expanding the rural living labs concept in each province in this current and the forth coming 2022 academic year.
These labs will expand programmes aimed at equipping young people with 21st century digital skills for employment, supporting grassroots innovators to develop solutions that will help resolve some of the community challenges.
Hon Chair and hon members, one of our critical interventions in our Department of Higher Education, Science and Education landscape is the Higher Education, Science, Technology and
Innovation Institutional Landscape, HESTIIL, review which has just been completed and was ably led by Prof Ihron Rensburg former Vice Chancellor of University of Johannesburg. I will soon be releasing this review for public comment as part of strengthening the institutions and agencies supporting higher education, science and innovation.
I must mention that I regard post-school education and training system infrastructure as critical for both teaching and learning for students, as well as for student accommodation. Further, there is an opportunity for our built environment students to have the opportunities to participate in in the post-school and training infrastructure development process as artisans, interns and for their registrations with occupational bodies to be seamless.
To address the fragmentation that always existed in the provision of our post-school education and training infrastructure, I have tasked the planning branch of our Department of Higher Education and Training with overall co- ordination of all of our infrastructure in the department.
Equally, to ensure that we have strategic and technical support I have also appointed a team of technical experts to advise me and constituted as what I call the Ministerial
Advisory Committee on infrastructure in short MACI which
translates to mean “builder” in Nguni languages.
The sector has improved its spending — I am pleased to say — in the College Infrastructure Efficiency Grant which now has reported a commitment and spend, as of 31 March 2021, of R601 million which is 24%of the expenditure, and with the
commitment of R589 million already in supply chain management processes which then represents 48% committed expenditure on R2,5 billion expenditure targeted at TVET college infrastructure.
A process is underway to assess the total maintenance needs of our colleges. However, at present we have identified 50% of the demand which, when extrapolated, comes to R11,2 billion.
In addition to the roll out of the maintenance of TVET colleges, priority construction of new infrastructure is continuing within a downscaled budget as a result of the impact of the COVID-19. I am however pleased to report that of the 16 sites which we started to construct in 2014, Thabazimbi, Nkandla A, Umzimkhulu, Graaff Reinet, Nongoma, Aliwal North and Bhambanana Phase 1 are already now being occupied by their recipient colleges. This is indeed an important achievement. Msinga and Kwagqikazi sites are
scheduled for completion within this quarter of 2021-22, with Balfour in Mpumalanga and Ngqungqushe in the Eastern Cape in the third quarter of this year, and Greytown in the fourth quarter of this financial year.
Again this financial year there are a further three TVET campus sites which are under construction, that is Vryheid Engineering Campus, the Giyani Campus and Nkandla B. In addition, there is a co-funded project with Chinese in Tshwane North and Tshwane South TVET Colleges which is scheduled to commence in the third quarter of this financial year.
We have also established together with the Development Bank of Southern Africa a Student Housing Infrastructure Programme to centrally facilitate the construction of student accommodation. I was opening a 2000 bed accommodation of this nature under this programme at the University of Fort Hare last week. Our aim is to address the acute shortage of student housing and accelerate the development of at least 300 000 beds over a 10-year period in order to provide the much needed student housing infrastructure in our 26 public universities and 50 TVET colleges. However, much more than this will have to be done. We have completed feasibility studies for about
14 000 student beds as part of our Student Housing
Infrastructure Programme Phase 1 developments, spread over six public universities.
I have already mentioned the University of Fort Hare which has recently been completed just over 2000 beds which is actually state of the art. I invite hon members from the Eastern Cape just to visit the University of Fort Hare Alice Campus just to see what I am talking about. Not it is making Alice to begin to look like a mini-town in the true sense of the word.
As part of its 2 000 student beds development, Nelson Mandela University also completed 200 ... [Inaudible.] ... 1 800 student beds at its main campus in ... [Inaudible.] ...
University of North-West and the University of the Western Cape are currently under construction, with 2 700 and 1 700 student beds, respectively, expected to be completed by the end of the 2022.
There are also additional 5 500 student beds included in the this programme for the University of Limpopo and Sefako Makgatho University in Gauteng, which are at mature stages of funding. Phase 1 ... [Inaudible.] ... have enabled an investment of about R3,5 billion ... [Inaudible.] ... DBSA
commitment of debt funding of R1,6 billion for 12 000 student beds.
Phase 2 of this programme will comprise about 24 000 student beds that are made up of 12 institutions — six universities and six TVET colleges in KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, Limpopo, the Western Cape, Gauteng, the Eastern Cape ... [Inaudible.]
... and you are more than welcome to visit as to observe the progress that is being made. Feasibility studies for these 12 institutions are under way and scheduled for completion by ... [Inaudible.] ... next year.
We are also working with my other entity, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, CSIR, to develop a tool aimed specifically at developing greenfield student housing projects to determine the optimal cost per bed. This will also include the use of innovative green solutions such as energy and water efficient technologies ... [Inaudible.] ... building materials and other technologies that are climate or environmentally friendly.
Hon members, our SETAs are also ... [Inaudible.] ... and responsive to our skills demands of our economy currently and preparing for the post-COVID-19 situation. We have re-licensed
our 21 SETAs and we are producing, I am pleased to say, 15 106 artisans annually, with Gauteng leading the pack.
Our top 10 trades, which are very much associated with the President’s announced Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Programme, by order of priority include electricians, mechanical fitters, diesel mechanics, plumber, millwright. We are indeed providing opportunities for our young people to become artisans. We are also strengthening work-based learning opportunities and we have signed an agreement with the German government to introduce and shift our TVET college system to be apprenticeship-based.
Let me concluding by saying, hon Chair and members, I am really gratified for the support I am receiving from yourselves as the NCOP and the committee, critical as it is necessary sometimes. I also wish to thank our President Matamela Cyril Ramaphosa and my Cabinet colleagues for all the support I am getting from them. Gratitude also goes to my wife, my staff in the Ministry and to the executive management of both my departments as well as the boards and executives of our entities, and everybody who contributed toward the achievement of our mandate as the department. I therefore
request the NCOP to support this Budget. Thank you very much hon Chair and hon members.
Mr M E NCHABELENG: Hon Chairperson, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, hon members and the People of South Africa.
The 2021-22 budget vote is tabled in the context of a global coronavirus pandemic which has changed life as we know it today. The virus continues to threaten our health, social and economic life.
Many of our universities and Technical and Vocational Education and Training, Tvet, colleges had to extend their schedules to complete the 2020 academic year. The pandemic has changed academic calendar periods as we know them.
The Post School Education and Training Sector, PSET, has also been negatively impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. The closures of institutions and the migration from contact classes to schooling virtually is the new normal imposed by the pandemic. This required a quick transition particularly for historically disadvantage institutions despite them addressing the challenges effectively in other institutions whiles others faced challenges.
For the Technical and Vocational Education and Training Colleges, these were negatively impacted as they do not have the capacity and systems for distance learning. Despite this limitation, our Tvet Colleges have been adapting and using different multi-modal approaches to ensure continued teaching and learning.
Higher education and training is critical in building the human capability to develop and sustain our nation. The pandemic has demonstrated the importance of knowledge and research in solving socioeconomic challenges. We are not having human capacity challenges in our health system in defeating the pandemic though challenges can arise in other areas. Our investment in the human capability development through education and training will improve our efforts of creating an inclusive economy and to create the much needed economic opportunities.
The student protests in the beginning of the academic year did not significantly distract teaching and learning. We should commend the department for responding to the call of students in various campuses and institutions. It is important that the department is responsive as it exists to serve all the people of South Africa.
Through strengthened relations amongst stakeholders in the sector, the stability of the sector was prioritised by all social partners.
We can characterise the critical challenges of students been that of access and how they succeed in the Post Schooling Education and Training sector. Access challenges can be due to not qualifying for the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS. Those who do not qualify are mainly the missing middle who have debts with the universities or colleges. Thus being unable to register the following year because they still owe universities some money. Like I said, this hinders them from registering.
Issues of success are in the availability of food, student accommodation, psychosocial support, transport, safety and other factor which create a conducive environment for the success of the student. This budget vote responds to both areas.
Financial resources are never abundant as capitalism, which is the ... [Inaudible.] ... social system based on profit is an economic system of scarcity. The department has a
responsibility to prioritise funds according to the mandate and priorities of the department.
The government’s priority of building an ethical and capable developmental state is a crucial one as incapability will result in government resources not been deployed efficiently to ensure services are provided.
Management in Tvet colleges have different capability limitations particularly financial and technical skills. The inability of Tvet colleges to plan and implement infrastructure projects is a major area of concern. The budget allocation for infrastructure development has been reduced in this vote to the incapacity within the colleges. We seriously need to deepen and broaden the theatre of skills of development and training in these institutions, particularly the Tvet colleges that I’m talking about.
Our success of expanding higher education can also be a source of crisis if we do not expand the capacity of higher education and the development of appropriate infrastructure to provide quality education. Technical support should be provided in order to ensure much needed infrastructure is delivered and timeously.
Infrastructure development is also a challenge for some universities, particularly historically disadvantaged institutions. This is also due to multiple interests that exists on university procurement.
Procurement processes and policies in universities should be monitored to ensure compliance with established supply chain practices. Universities with these challenges have seen an increase in project costs and in other instances poor workmanship ... it’s poor products that will be produced.
From a policy point of view, hon Minister, we need to begin to talk about the financial management standards of our universities. It is important for the government to ensure that universities follow Public Financial Management Act, PFMA, because the PFMA is the policy which should guide spending of public finances; universities are using our public finances. The rising incidents of corruption and abuse of university resources requires urgent attention.
Consequence management is one critical element of ensuring an ethical government, failure to ensure consequences exposes the financial systems to be continually abused.
Skills development is a backbone in ensuring that goods and services are developed. Globalisation subjects out domestic economy to a global competition. In order for South Africa to industrialise and grow its manufacturing base, we need to ensure that training and education are linked through in service training and learnerships, which expose students to various industries as part of their education qualifications.
Our skills revolution requires optimum support by the private sectors, the responsibility of skilling the people of South Africa requires all social partners. Every workplace should create space for young people who are unemployed to get exposure and work experience in order to find work opportunities.
If we do not ensure that our youth are in workplaces and education institutions, we will be contributing in reproducing poverty and inequality in our country.
The recent report by Stats SA points to the rising unemployment in our country particularly among the youth. The increase in social ills and petty crimes in our country is due to idling young people. The youth are inherently full of ideas and energy and all social partners, from government, labour
and business should contribute in creating a conducive environment to harness the potential of our youth. I remember hon Motswaledi, in one meeting in Limpopo, I think he was talking about dropouts, people who leave school for different reasons, mostly being that conditions are not really that welcoming for them, he once said: mistakes made by doctors, we see them in cemeteries, smaller graves of children who died of diseases that should not have killed them; but those of teachers, we live with them every day ...
Setswana:
... ba tshwara poo ...
English:
... and are involved in crime and all other things. So, we should ensure that young people don’t idle, that we keep them in schools and ensure that they do not actually dropout.
We are pleased that there is a significant support provided by the department through the Sector Education and Training Authorities, Setas, which support thousands of students across various economic sectors.
Entities which support the delivery of the mandate of the department should continuously be strengthened in order to ensure they bring about the change we seek to create.
The National Student Financial Aid Scheme is one of the success stories of the ANC government. This entity contributes in providing financial assistance for the poor. It is designed to alleviate poverty and close the inequality gap in our country.
Hon Minister, this entity has I past been riddled with challenges of financial mismanagement and poor governance systems which necessitated the entity to be placed under administration. We welcome the appointment of the new NSFAS board and new chief executive officer, CEO, we wish them well in strengthening the entity to deliver its mandate. The future of this country is dependent in your performance in supporting young people to financially participate in education through providing those resources.
The entity, NSFAS, should adapt to the changing world of digital technologies and adopt digital technologies which address challenges such as non-payment of recipients with their allowances to provide much needed financial assistance.
This is what the Tvet colleges need to use, being supported by us and NSFAS. Many students suffer during periods of non- payment of allowances. We should commend NSFAS for their continued role in expanding access to higher education.
The management of bad debt at university is what spurred this year’s student protest as this hinders students from registering in subsequent years. The development of models to support the missing middle should be expedited as this will drastically address the challenges of access.
The department was also affected by a budget reduction due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. It is important to note that the department has tables its Annual Performance Plan, APA, which reflects the impact of the reduction as this has led to an overall decrease on particular targets by the department.
The revised strategic plan outlines the changes on some of the Medium-Term Strategic Framework, MTSF, targets. R3 billion was reprioritised from the skills fund and infrastructure for universities; which is really not ideal. In this regard it is critical to encourage an increase in private financial bursaries and financial support to increase the number of
students doing postgraduate studies. It is also important to improve investment in research in universities.
Private companies should be encouraged to ensure that they have skill development opportunities for the youth. It is only through a combination of stakeholder contribution that we will be able to support the majority of students.
Our post schooling system should contribute in combatting social ills such as gender-based violence and femicide, GBVF, and other acts of abuse and bigotry. The fight against social ills cannot be addressed by strengthening law enforcement agencies because there are various socioeconomic factors which contributes to the social ills we have and prevalence of violence.
In order to change this social behaviour, we need to inculcate the values of dignity, respect, dispute resolution and protecting the rights of others as contained in the Bill of Rights.
We welcome the allocation of R60 million over the Medium-Term Economic Framework for gender-based violence and femicide.
Mental health has become a major issue in our society and universities with many youth committing suicide. The work of higher health should be strengthened to ensure easy access to psychosocial support in our higher education and institutions.
We should not despair due to the challenges which continue to affect the Post School Education and Training sector but we should continue to support the department in its endeavours to improve the conditions of the poor and underprivileged.
As the ABC we support this budget vote of higher education and training and I thank you. [Applause.]
Ms D C CHRISTIANS: Hon House Chairperson, hon Minister and fellow South Africans, earlier this year when Finance Minister Tito Mboweni dedicated a very small paragraph of his 2021 budget speech to funding transformations in the Higher Education sector it was a clear indication that Higher Education and Training was not going to be a priority for the 2021-22 budget.
Despite this sector being burden by funding crisis it was a clear indication of the extent of the problem the sector is facing when Minister Mboweni was tight-lipped about tackling
the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, monitory wells and the further financial impacts the department of Higher Education and Training would face during this financial year.
This was in clear contrast with President February 2021 state of the nation address which focused on inclusive growth and address the critical priority of the Higher Education and Training sector
It is of no surprised then that when the department presented to the select committee, the extensive Cabinet approve reductions to the department baseline funding amounting to R24,6 billion over the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework period. These reductions include R6,8 billion on the allocation of NSFAS loans and bursaries R5 billion on universities subsidies and a whooping R947,1 million on Tvet colleges and infrastructure grants.
Of a huge concern is the decrease of the R6,8 billion on the allocation to the NSFAS which will adversely impact access to Education and Training for those coming from impoverished and working class families especially given the impact of the
Covid-19 pandemic on households’ income and the livelihoods
lost by countless people in the country.
This will mean more and more students are financial excluded as universities and Tvet colleges are expected to alleviate the financial burden left by NSFAS funding and so affecting operations at these institutions.
The NSFAS has plunged from one crisis to the next over the past decade. The funding scheme has been placed under administration twice to meet demands for free higher education which in turn have led to countless students’ progress.
Fairness faces rate up R6,8 billion on irregular expenditure while auditors raised concerns about a further R50 billion that was irregularly spend but not disclosed. All these irregular expenditure R6,3 billion is as a carryover balance for the previous year and R522,3 million was incurred in the 2019-20 financial year. This also evidence of a syndicated fraud operation and corruption that led to R4 040 ghost students being funded.
Chairperson, furthermore the R500 billion cut on the universities subsidies is a clear indication that the
university sector has been abandoned by the government. Outstanding student’s debts oat South African universities now stand just short of R14 billion.
This huge debts burden is carried by students from the so- called missing middle households defined as households with the income of between R350 000 and R600 000 per year. More than 106 000 students from these missing middle households have now not received their certificates. This due to debts owed to universities and further impacting the huge challenge of the youth and graduates’ unemployment that the country currently faces.
Additionally, this R5 billion decrease to university subsidies will further cripple the growth of higher learning institutions. This decrease will much likely lead to a decrease in the number of first year enrolments at universities and a longer term negative impact on the number of new graduates merging from the system from the first year to come.
Minister, it is necessary to ensure that institutions remains sustainable and can offer quality education. The sector may also need to consider revising its funding policy position on
supporting the poor and working class students in Higher Education and Training because, Minister, the truth is that for accommodation, transport and food this funding is often just not enough.
Universities will now be left grabbling with payments of tuitions and residence fees by students. If students’ debt is estimated at R14 billion and the cut in the subsidies at
R5 billion this will cost institutions to increase fees to make up for this funding shortfall.
Hon House Chairperson, by far the most problematic reduction is the R947,1 million on Tvet college infrastructure grants. This budget cut will delay existing infrastructure development plans as well as plans for new projects. The government should be spending more on skills development supporting growth for skills and entrepreneurship development through Tvet colleges. This delays projects for Tvet accommodation, workshop equipment and the overall expansion of the entire sector.
Additionally, the cutting Tvet infrastructure has a direct impact on the safety of students. Accommodation has historically been problematic for Tvet college students and they now face further delays.
There have been numerous reports of students sleeping outside Tvet colleges or occupying unsafe rooms which leave them vulnerable to harm and possible death.
We will eagerly be watching the Minister’s promises on the development of more of accommodation for Tvet and universities students over the few next years.
Minister, in light of all these challenges perhaps it is now a good time to revisit the recommendations of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on Fee-Free Higher Education and Training because the current policy is instead failing as protests by students continue around the country. These student’s protests will continue as long as the department is not addressing the needs and realities of our students.
Minister, this is not the responsibility of universities alone. Perhaps there are political questions that we must answer. Do we need the provincial government in the current form? Do we really need so many senior government officials? Do we need these many government departments? And should we always be bailing out per circle?
The ongoing student’s protests has emphasised the structural weaknesses of the student funding model and the numerous funding related crisis threatening South Africa Higher Education. The immediate funding challenges need to be addressed urgently to ensure students continue to learn and universities remain stable.
Minister, South Africans needs a sustainable and resilient funding model that guarantees access and affordability for the poor as well as the missing middle. No student should be left behind. I thank you.
The HOUSE CHAIRPEPRSON (Ms W Ngwenya): Thanks very much, hon member. Hon members, I would like to make this announcement that as from now we are going to take a 15 minutes’ break and then after my ... hon Nyambi will take over. But for now let us take a break for 15 minutes.
The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms S E Lucas): Good
afternoon, hon members. I think now we can continue after the short break. Thank you for the break. ... [Inaudible.] ... We will continue and am I correct if I say that the next person for the debate is hon Ntsube?
The HOUSE CHAIRPERSON (Ms W Ngwenya): Yes. Yes, hon Deputy Chair.
The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms S E Lucas): The hon
Christians has concluded, now is hon Ntsube. Over to you, hon Ntsube.
Mr I NTSUBE: Thank you very much, hon Deputy Chairperson of the Council, hon Chief Whip of the Council, Minister, Deputy Minister and hon members, this policy debate on the Budget Vote 17 of Higher Education takes place during the historic month in our calendar, the Youth Month. A month which gives us the opportunity to deeply reflect on the role of the youth in the history of our country. It also gives us an opportunity to critically assess the ANC government what impact our policies have had on the youth of our country.
The ANC has played a visionary role for decades by encouraging the youth to place in education at the center of development. Education is our new AK-47 in realising economic freedom in our lifetime. It is a non-negotiable imperative to transform our society. Youth are an important generation for the future of any nation. The greatest concern for the ANC is the high number of unemployment and the youth who are not in
employment, education and training. We therefore, call on all the youth of our country to make the most of the opportunities that democratic government and the economy creates for them.
Even during the dark days of apartheid and colonialism, the ANC in Tanzania established the Solomon Mahlangu Freedom College which ensured that combatants are educated and liberated. With the increase of literacy in our country due to expanding basic education, our higher education system has been facing a continuous increase in the number of students registered. We are making a clarion to the department that it must build new universities and capacitate universities and Technical and Vocational Education and Training, Tvet, so that it can respond to the challenge.
This is a milestone we should welcome and commend. During this year of 150 years’ anniversary of Mom Charlotte Maxeke, we should continue to ensure that girls and women continue with their higher education studies to your highest level of doctorates in honor of Mom Charlotte Maxeke. Mom Charlotte Maxeke was the first female South African to attain a Bachelor of Science in the United States of America.
She planted the seed to ensure that women are liberated from the shackles of poverty and patriarchy. Today, 27 years since the democratic government of the African National Congress women have indeed been empowered through higher Education whilst much still needs to be done. The Higher Education Act preamble, amongst others, seeks to ensure that it; Restructures and transforms programmes and institutions to respond better to the human resource, economic and development needs of the Republic; redress past discrimination and ensure representativeness and equal access; provide optimal opportunities for learning and the creation of knowledge.
This is the critical role our higher education institutions should play. Our education system curriculum and academic programmes should be designed to respond to the economic challenges facing the country today. The misalignment of academic qualifications and the needs of the economy creates a skills mismatch resulting in many graduates not have relevant skills for the market. We need to ask ourselves the critical question of whether our higher education responds to these imperatives? Does it redress discrimination, representativeness and equal access?
The 2015 student protest on the Rhodes Must Fall and the Fees Must Fall movements were responding to this objective of the Higher Education Act. The fact that racism continues to rear its head in universities, with other dominated by white academics indicates the lack of transformation which sparked the 2015 student protest. The lack of transformation in other senates in your predominantly former white universities should continue to concern us. Hon members, representativeness in our universities are relatively representative. We should continue to ensure women become vice chancellors and other senior roles in the academia.
Our higher education system should be able to develop alternatives. Alternative ideas in order to transform our society, this includes; the heterodox approaches in the quest of providing optimal opportunities for learning and creation of knowledge. The department can contribute to this through supporting research projects and students who focus on developing alternatives from the current status quo. Noting that change is unavoidable in our world which is in constant motion our universities should be in the cutting edge of this change to shape it to create an equitable society which distributes income and assets in an equitable manner.
The democratic government should ensure all our universities have an orientation which resolves the problems of the ordinary men in the street while resolving broader complex problems affecting society. Hon Minister, academic freedom is a critical principle of higher education, but it should not be blind to the socioeconomic factors which are dominant in our society. Academic freedom should not be used to entrench dominance of knowledge by the dominant class in society who reproduce the inequality we have in our country today.
This is contained in the Preamble of the Higher Education Act to promote the values which underlie an open and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom. On equal access we need to unequivocally commend the government for ensuring that learning and culture continues to be a key priority in order to respond to our challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality. The fact that unemployment is lower for those with a degree indicates the significance of education in getting opportunities in the economy.
The Budget of 2021 is tabled at a time when our country is confronted with the coronavirus pandemic. The budget adjustments of the previous financial year in order to respond to the pandemic have had a significant in the budget
allocation of the department. This does not affect students who qualify for National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, and other student financing programmes of the department particularly the poor. However, we would edge the Minister to closely look at the mismanagement of funds of National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, because we have recorded a number of cases where students have been frustrated by the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, NSFAS, to this day. Also, the department should deal decisively with the accommodation for students.
In a time of such crisis and financial constraints the budget is designed to protect the poor and working class. This, we acknowledge, hon Minister and the department. The realisation of fee free higher education for the poor is an important milestone for the ANC government. This will result in positive developmental gains in the future for the coming generations.
The gap in higher education is mainly amongst those that come from households with an income above R350 000. This is the missing middles who are too rich for the current threshold yet too poor to sustain supporting a student in university.
Hon Deputy Chairperson of the Council, we are making a plea to the Minister and the department to visit the Central University of Technology, in Bloemfontein Campus, because for the past week students have been bullied and were served with High Court papers for demanding a just a basic need and a human right, free education.
We are glad that Cabinet has taken a decision to have the department develop proposals on how financial assistance can be provided for those in the missing middle. In conclusion, I am glad because the political heads of the department are both Karl Marks and Lenin students. Hon Minister, I am sure you’d relate to Oom Samir Amin when he said, and I quote:
The Right to Education is a fundamental human right, inseparable from people’s aspirations to a full and a wholly authentic democracy.
The youth of our country are demanding free education as when yesterday. Can the Minister and the sixth administration take the youth of our county into confidence that we will have free education? The hon Deputy Chairperson of the Council, the ANC supports this Budget Vote of Higher Education. Thank you very much.
Ms S A LUTHULI: Thank you, Chairperson and greetings to everyone ...
IsiZulu:
... siyi-EFF asisamukeli lesi sabelomali seMfundo ePhakeme.
English:
We must register as a point of departure that the budget for Higher Education is first and foremost a product of the
feeble-minded economic policy that defines South Africa today.
IsiZulu:
Ngalokhu sichaza ukuthi ...
English:
... there is a broader agenda in this country to chronically underfund and cripple social welfare and the developmental efforts through cutting public spending with no reasonable prospects of achieving people-centred growth.
Education, the cornerstone of any society and a fundamental developmental indicator and is a victim of this deliberate attempt to subject South Africa to permanent junior status in the world. The budget plan tabled here and ratified by the
Select Committee on Higher Education is nothing but an endorsement of failure. Failure that has defined this department ever since the so-called communist known as Mr Blade Nzimande occupied the position over a decade ago when the department was formed.
We will outline this by pointing to specific non-plans, and how chronic underfunding during a pandemic that requires comprehensive reconstruction of how the sector operates is a recipe for disaster. Firstly, we must note that to cut the baseline budget for Higher Education by R24,8 billion is indicative of a government that is allergic to knowledge production which is of no surprise if we are to consider where the country finds itself in terms of the economy and unemployment
IsiZulu:
Unyaka nonyaka kuthiwa kunokuboniswana eMnyangweni Wezemfundo Kanye nomphakathi mayelana nokuthi yini ekufanele yenziwe ukwenza ngcono ukutholakala imfundo ephakeme nokukhuthaza ukusebenza kahle kwezemfundo nocwaningo oluseqophelweni eliphezulu. Kubukeka engathi lokhu kuxoxisana kuwumbukiso nje ngoba asikho nesisodwa isinqumo esenzakalayo. Kubukeka labo abasuke bethatha lezo zinqumo benziwa izinhlekisa
nguNgqongqoshe woMnyango ngoba wenza okuhlukile. Umnyango onjani okwazi ukwehlisa isabelo sezimali ze-NSFAS ngo- R6,8 billion, eyamanyuvesi ngo-R5 billion kuthi eyezingqalasizinda yama-TVET nayo yehliswe ngezigidigidi zamanani.
Lezi zinqumo eziwubuphukuphuku ziholela ekutheni abafundi bazithole bengalutholi usizo babonakale sebegxile ebugebengwini nakwizidakamizwa. Umuntu uyazibuza ukuthi yini iphuzu lokuba iNingizimu Afrika ibe yilungu lwe-Brics uma ingafundi lutho ngezentuthuko. Kumele sizibuze ukuthi lo mnyango uyakwazi okumele ukwenze noma ulifanele yini igama lwawo. Kumele ngabe lo mnyango ugxile kakhulu ukutheni ufundise uthuthukise abafundi ukuthi bakwazi ukuzikhiqizela nokuzakhela imishanguzo ezokwazi ukuba isindise izimpilo zabantu abaningi eNingizimu Afrika
Akumangazi ukuthi izinhlelo ezifana no-Ketlaphela beyigobongo ebelizochitha imali ngoba lo Hulumeni akananhloso yokuthuthukisa abafundi bethu, ezemfundo nezocwaningo.
Umnyango onjani ovumela izinkampani ezizimele zonogada zizogada izikhungo zezemfundo ube uhlukumeza, ushaya uze ubulale abafundi bethu. Ukwamukela lesi sabelo sezimali kunezipoki sabasebenzi emnyangweni nezipoki zabafundi ezithola
isabelo zimali kuwukuthuka iNingizimu Afrika. Kudingeka ukuthi kube nokwanda okukhulu emalini ezokwabelwa uMnyango Wezemfundo Ephakeme ukwazi ukusiza abafundi. Ngeke kwenzeke lokhu umangabe ama-SOEs siwanikeza abazimele. Konke lokhu ngeke kwenzeke ngokuqina nje kwaNgqongqoshe.
English:
It is only through a decisive redirection of our wealth through nationalising of our minerals and the establishment of a state bank whose interests are controlled by a developmental state that education can become a viable sector with correct budgeting measures. Outside of this, we are all engaged in a collective exercise of breathing hot air, and for these reasons, the EFF rejects this budget. Thank you.
Afrikaans:
Mnr S F DU TOIT: Agb Adjunkvoorsitter, misleiding, populisme,verontskuldiging, blaamverskuiwing, skyn- pligsbesef, skyn-verantwoordbaarheid en skyn- verantwoordelikheid. Skynheilig. Is dit wat en wie sommige is?
English:
Is the National Student Financial Aid Scheme working, and who are the beneficiaries, the students or the cadres?
Afrikaans:
Die Departement van Hoër Onderwys het ’n begroting van R358 miljard rand oor die medium termyn. Daar is studentewat sonder hierdie finansiële hulp nie sou kon studeer nie, en wel ’n sukses van jul studies maak. Welgedaan aan julle. Maar kry die belastingbetaler en Suid-Afrika egter waarde vir geld wat spandeer word?
Op hierdie oomblik maak die Nasionale Finansiële Hulp Skema voorsiening dat sommige student se totale uitgawes, wat kos, verblyf, vervoer, leermateriaal en studies insluit, vir tot ’n jaar langer as die voorgeskrewe graadtydperk betaal kan word, vir ingeval die kandidaat ’n jaar druip. Dit was vantevore die koste van die graad pus 2 jaar, vir ingeval die student twee keer druip! Is dit nie ’n vermorsing nie? Wel, die Minister sien dit as ’n prestasie en ’n teken van ’n goeie, omgee regering.
English:
The culture of entitlement is nurtured.
Afrikaans:
Die VF Plus stel voor dat daar toeganklike lenings aan voornemende, kwalifiserende student toegestaan moet word, wat
na afloopvan hul suksesvolle studies, weer aan die fonds terugbetaal moet word, om ander student in staat te stel,om hulself te bemagtig en ’n sin van verantwoordelikheid te kweek, eerderas om slegs gratis hoër onderwyste ontvang. Ons moet die druk en las op die staat verlig. Hierdie inisiatief sal student ook aanmoedig om nie hul studies onnodig uit te rek nie en eerder op hul studies te fokus, as protes.
English:
The culture of entitlement is unfortunately ever present, especially among young disgruntled students that resort to violent protest action at tertiary institutions. In response to a question that I posed to the Minister with regards to the rand value of damaged caused to universities as result of violent protest actions that took place in the 2020-21 financial year, nine of 26 universities based on responses received form 21 universities, it totalled to a staggering R32,79 million.
South Africa is feeling the brunt of the culture that you, the ANC created. You set the example and your youth is following in your footsteps. Actions like these are acceptable for the so-called knowledgeable individuals that are supposed to get
further education to enter the world of professionals? Can this be?
One could ask if it is wise to allow people that resort to physical violence the opportunity bask in the sun of education.
Afrikaans:
In ’n opvolg vraag aan die Minister van Hoër Onderwys, rakende vandalisme by universiteite, het die Minister baie volledig, volgens elke universiteit geantwoord en was twee skokkende onthullings gemaak! In die meeste gevalle is daar nie stappe teen studente geneem wat vandalisme by universiteite gepleeg het nie. Die Universiteit van Fort Hare, het wel ses studente geskors. In sommige van die gevalle was die aanhitsers tot geweld, nie van die studente op kampus nie en was ’n interdik teen hulle verkry.
Verskeie universiteite het dié pad gevolg. Sestig studente is wel by Central University of Technolgy, in Bloemfontein gearresteer, maar by die Universitiet van Kwazulu-Natal was daar al verskeie sake by die polisie aan hangig gemaak, maar was die staat nie bereid om die sake deur te voer nie. Hoekom
nie? Isdaar iemand wat agter die deur staan of dalk daarby baat of iemand wat beskerm word?
English:
Who is feeding this monster of entitlement and destruction? Minister, through you, Chair, during an interview on Newzroom Africa on 14 April 2021, you acknowledged a few facts that there are school teachers without the necessary qualifications that act as lecturers at Technical and Vocational Education and Training, TVET colleges; and that you are aware of colleges where there are some of students that are teaching other students; in some instances, there were NO lecturers available to lecture at all. You said that you are aware of these issues. Acknowledging the mismanagement and failed leadership, does not solve the problems and do not hold people accountable, Chair. But taxpayers’ money is used to fund this circus of mismanagement.
Furthermore, the Public Protector is investigating the National Student Financial Aid Scheme for R7,5 billion rand it incurred in irregular expenditure. You must be proud to have achieved all this. Quite the legacy to leave behind.
I think it is time the Minister tenders his resignation.
In closing chair ...
Afrikaans:
Ontbloot die bedrog en bou aan ons toekoms! Ek glo in moedertaalonderrig; die VF Plus onderskryf dit. Instansies soos Soltec en Akademia verseker kwaliteit onderrig. Dit is instansies wat verantwoordbaar, voorbeeldig, eerlik en opreg is, instansies wat glo in waardes, regverdigheid en intergriteit en moedertaalonderrig.
Laat ons nie ons kinders se toekoms in die regering se onbeholpe hande laat nie, maar self die waardes vestig. Hierdie instansies ondersteun en belê in ons kinders se toekoms. Laat ons kennis kweek en voortbeur met ons oë op God gerig. Kennis is mag. Dankie
Xitsonga:
Man B T MATHEVULA: A va kona a hi hundzeni.
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND
TECHNOLOGY: House Chairperson, hon members of the National Council of Provinces, ladies and gentlemen, it is my honour and privilege to join the Minister in presenting the Budget Vote speech for the Department of Higher Education and
Training. This year we mark the 45th anniversary of June 16 youth uprising under extraordinary set of circumstances. We mark this import historical moment at a time where the global COVID-19 pandemic has altered the world as we know it. And it has changed the way, the very way in which we live. The livelihoods of millions of people across the world have been devastated by the pandemic. South Africa is not immune to this. We now understand the challenges we face much better than we did during the inception of the first and second waves of this pandemic.
In support of the national effort through our entity Higher Health some far interventions included the implementation COVID-19 protocols, screening stations, student volunteer programmes within campuses. These included the recent launch of the COVID-219 Warriors campaign. These are over 10 000 volunteers who have been trained by Higher Health to continue with the advocacy work that they have conducting across every campus. Higher Health is also at the forefront of the fight against gender-based violence. The gender-based violence, GBV, technical task team has been established to guide the implementation of the Department of Higher Education And Training, DHET, policy framework and implementation to address gender-based violence in the postschool education and training
sector. Related to this we also established the ministerial task team to advise the Minister on matters of sexual harassment and gender-based violence in the South African university sector. The task team will oversee the implementation of the national policy framework to address identifying gaps that require s gender-based violence in postschooool education system. It will also identify areas of good practice in reporting and managing gender-based harm and support mechanisms that could be replicated in the sector while identifying gaps that require further investigations.
The task team has already started doing its work and it has held engagements with various stakeholders in the higher education sector, and we wish them well in this endeavour and we will give them all the support that they need.
Our interventions are deliberately geared towards addressing the challenges faced by young people. This become even more urgent in view of the recent data around unemployment. In the current financial year, the priorities of the National Skills Fund will include artisan development, occupational programmes through the TVET colleges and interventions geared towards people with disabilities, digital skills and innovation.
The funding of artisan development through state-owned companies and private skills development providers is designed to boost the production of artisans for the country. The National Skills Fund artisan development request for proposals targeted at public entities and state-owned enterprises 4 500 apprentices in the first two years w,as launched in April this year. This follows the funding applications for the first phase of the artisan request for proposal, RFP, aimed at private skills providers that closed in 2020 and to benefit 4
500 apprentices in two years from 2021 to 2022.
The focus on artisan development is in pursuance of our campaign on the Decade of the Artisan that seeks to promote artisanship as a career of choice for South Africa’s youth within the postschool education and training system as well as highlight skills development opportunities for artisans.
The National Skills Fund, NSF, is also targeting the expansion of funding for small, medium and micro enterprises and co- operative skills development and rural-focused funding to support local and rural development initiatives through the district-led model. The various interventions of the National Skills Fund will support the skills development of 60 000 beneficiaries. Starting in the 2021 academic year, all our 50
public TVET colleges will benefit over 20 000 learners with access to training opportunities through the National Skills Fund’s R2,2 billion funding window. The funding is towards occupationally directed programmes up to 2024 and entails apprenticeships, learnership, skills programmes, work- integrated learning, capacity building as well as specialised equipment.
As part of our effort to strengthen our community education and training college sector we have been able to appoint all eligible employees in the continuing education and training sector who have been on annual contract to permanent employment with their retention of their conditions of service. This we believe will go a long way in creating employment turner and the stability in the sector.
Furthermore, we have also been working hard to implement standardisations of paying and benefits for eligible le academic staff in the community colleges which took effect on 01 May this year. This will ensure that across the board the system’s academic staff will enjoy equal work and qualify for medical aids, housing and other particular benefits. All community colleges are implementing the national sector plan as informed by the White Paper Peace Implementation Plans. The
pronouncement of the plan forms the core the of the 2020-24 quality strategic plans in terms of enrolment targets, institutional landscape programmes, diversification and accreditation of centres.
Despite the challenges posed by COVID-19 and its unprecedented lockdowns the sector managed to reconfigure the landscape from
3 276 to 1 791 in pursued of quality and efficiency. One of the major achievements for the sector is the progress made by Higher Health and the department in building the health and welfare infrastructure in community colleges. Our department has managed to reprioritised within its budget a total of R10,8 million to support the provision of health and wellness services in community colleges.
In terms of governance of community colleges this year marks the first year of the five-year term of the second core of councils in this colleges and we are confident that the calibre of councils that have been appointed will move the sector towards achieving its mandate. Yesterday, we officially conclude our second annual heritage career expo. There were series of exciting and interactive brands that we rolled out over the last month. And there is an initiative that we started last year at inception over 2 00 young people
participated. This year’s expo sought to expose and excite young people about the array of careers that are available within the heritage sector. These are just some of the many interventions that we have undertaken as a department for the period under review. We did all these with a view to respond to our historical mandate to improve the quality of lives of our people and that of young people in our country.
One of the factors that youth of 76 to rise up and confront the might of the repugnant apartheid regime with their bare hands was the believe that freedom assumes its true meaning when it empowers the individuals to take the destiny in their own hands.
To conclude, I wish to briefly share the remarkable story of a 20-yer-old young black woman from Tsomo in the Eastern Cape, Nolonwabo Hlatswo, who I had the pleasure of meeting yesterday as part of our heritage careers expo. She is a BSc (Hons) Chemistry graduate with honours. After noticing that her grandmother was suffering from an unknown skin condition in 2017, she enrolled for an Advanced Diploma in Cosmetic Formulation Sciences at the University of Cape Town, UCT. This has helped her to understand that what the problem was, but it also opened many doors for her. As a result of this
qualification she ended up securing permanent employment. Within two months of joining her current employer she has been given huge responsibilities within that employment. She has about 20 people reporting to her because of her rare skills.
She is highly sought after by many of the big companies. These are the kind of interventions that we continue to make if we are to really make the youth of June 16 proud that their blood was not lost in vain. It is my sincerest hope that we as decision-makers will draw from the courage of the 76 generation and a million more Nolwabos who will continue to make our country proud and continue to contribute into a better South Africa. Thank you very much, House Chair.
Mr M BARA: Hon Minister, Hon Chairperson, We can’t always wait for the beginning of the year in order to deal with the problems of student intake. We seemingly have to go through these challenges on annual basis and as the quote goes “the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different result”. The government should have had the foresight to note and plan accordingly before the beginning of the year, to at least take insanity of the table.
Gender Based Violence remains a thorny issue in our society. South Africa is confronted with gender-based violence-related
problems and challenges in South Africa as a whole on a daily basis. However, it is not clear as to how the budget for gender-based violence, GBV, is taken into account. It is also unclear as to how much is allocated to strengthen the fight against GBV. We have seen the extent to which students are exposed to GBV, and it can’t be that nothing is set aside in relation to budgetary terms in this regard.
Infrastructural development remains a key factor within our learning institutions. We have noted that in some institutions of Higher Learning and Training there have been instances of damage to property when students were showing their displeasure on financial exclusions. How is the department hoping to deal with such areas? Yesterday I became aware of thousands of students who wanted to join the universities or FETs, who cannot be accommodated financially. How is the department going to deal with that?
Having said that, it is commendable that the Department of Higher Education and Training has shown its support on the unfortunate fire disaster in the University of Cape Town. It would be great to see the positive work undertaken by the Department of Higher Education and Training, and the
university itself. It is also great to note how the South African public came out to assist during this kind of ordeal.
University education constitutes 83.1 % of funding as opposed to TVET and CET. This is the bulk of the departmental allocation. This happens while there are more students who are on the TVET and CET institutions and who also need financial assistance. Also, these institutions are embarking on key skills that are required for them to make a living and contribute meaningfully to the future skills of the country.
TVET college qualifications play a meaningful role in building the economy of the country. It is therefore important for the department to up their game in financing TVET and CET. We would like to see an increase in the allocation for TVET and CET.
The move by the Minister of Finance to steer clear of the Higher Education budget during his budget speech in February, was a clear indication that there were no funds and that National Student Financial Aid Scheme, Nsfas, would be the casualty of the budget squeeze with a R6,8 billion cut.
Year in and year out we deal with the inadequacies of funding for students. This has to do with inefficiencies and
maladministration on the part of administration when doing fund allocation. We have to deal with these Nsfas mistakes on an annual basis. This year only, we had more than 29 000 students who currently owe universities as a result of Nsfas.
This maladministration remains a great threat to many higher learning institutions across the country. It remains Nsfas responsibility to make sure that they put their house in order for students not to go through this ordeal on an annual basis. By now we can’t allow this to continue on an annual basis.
NSFAS has been around for some time and these irresponsible mistakes must come to an end.
While students are defunded from Nsfas, with the entity disregarding students’ financial plight and ambitions, auditors raised concerns that the entity racked R50 billion in irregular expenditure but was not disclosed, compared to
R6,8 billion in 2019.
To add salt to the wound, evidence of fraud and corruption led to 440 000 ghost students being funded. How is payment made to made to invisible students?
We must be occupied with finding more money as opposed to such mistakes.
It would be important for the department to provide an update on the provision of laptops for students. This would give a sense of whether we are winning this battle or not. It would also give a sense of whether the students are getting help during the COVID–19 lockdown or not.
Whilst we are on COVID-19, we can’t run away from the fact that most students come from low- and middle-class income households. Their circumstances have been aggravated by the COVID–19 pandemic. This would apply more to students who are on TVET colleges because most of them stay in communities who are at a higher risk of catching the virus.
What we have learnt from COVID–19 lockdown is that our tax base has shrunk, leaving little room for budget increases. The government must realize that higher education is both a private and a public good and a contribution to student finance is an investment and not merely an expense.
We call upon the Minister to make sure that students are catered for within the institutions of Higher learning. Thank you.
The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms S Lucas): Is there a
problem or have you concluded?
Mr M BARA: I have concluded, Deputy Chairperson, thank you so much.
The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP (Ms S Lucas): Because you look as if you are waiting for something! [Laughter.]
Mr M BARA: I’m only waiting for you, Deputy Chairperson!
[Laughter.]
Ms N NDONGENI: Deputy Chairperson, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, hon members and the people of South Africa ...
IsiXhosa:
... molweni (greetings).
English:
Hon members, and the people of South Africa, we must vehemently reject the notion which seeks to depict the ANC government as a government which does not provide for the poor. We must also reject the notion which depicts universities as institutions which should operate as ivory towers. The developmental state theory should not only be limited to the capacity of the state to direct economic activity, but also its capability to shape social institutions, such as our education system to contribute to the process of socioeconomic transformation.
The ANC at its 54th National Conference in Nasrec resolved on the plight of young people and agreed that a skills revolution is an absolute necessity if we are to fully exploit their energies for the greater good of society. It is for this reason that the ANC remains committed to the implementation of free higher education for children of the poor and working class at all public universities and TVET colleges starting from the 2018 academic year.
This is a clear commitment by the governing party and the leader of society to ensure that the democratic dividend of creating a better life for all is realised. As the African National Congress we are cognisant of the fact that the change
we seek to create does not happen in isolation of other factors beyond our control, but under circumstance given and transmitted from the past. It is this reason we support this vote. We support it because through it we seek to change the condition of the black majority who continue to be excluded from the mainstream economy of our country, and who constitute the lowest percentage of income and assets despite being the majority.
When we engage about the post-schooling education sector, we should also focus on the critical role of Community Education Training Colleges. These colleges are an important component of post-schooling because our education articulation should create pathways for South Africans in different socioeconomic contexts. Community Education Training Colleges are vital, as they create opportunities for those who may be older than the school going age, but who still want to obtain various skills and to progress with their education.
CET Colleges require support in order to improve the quality of education. It is important to expand and popularise these opportunities as we still have a high population without matric or any post schooling qualifications. Our youth and older persons should not be idle without work or learning.
The Fourth Industrial Revolution will require new skills. It thus becomes important that we begin to train and skill South Africans with skills of the changing world through our basic education and higher education curricula. We are pleased that our higher education curriculum is entrenching digital skills as a critical component of our education.
Hon members, it is important to note that the suspension of the skills levy as an economic relief programme by government has directly impacted the scale of the Skills Education and Training Authorities as the budget of the skills fund has been negatively affected.
The current retrenchment of workers at the SA Qualifications Authority, Saqa, is a sad situation with which we sympathise. The loss of employment under the current socioeconomic conditions will only compounds the challenges facing our people. We also wish the new leadership of the entity well in ensuring the entity plays its role of ensuring quality education.
Hon Minister, the improvement of governance of Sector Education Training Authority requires strengthening. The fight against corruption and poor governance should be advanced on
all fronts, and this requires implementation of various forensic investigation commissioned in entities and Auditor- General recommendation. Implementation of consequence management and recommendations by relevant bodies is what will entrench good governance and accountability across the public service.
The democratic government have realised the establishment of new universities namely the Sol Plaaitjie University in Kimberley Northern Cape and the University of Mpumalanga. We welcome the fact that the two universities continue to receive their specific allocations to support their growth and sustainability.
This approach, hon Minister, should be considered for historically disadvantaged institutions. What will be important is the identification of specific institutional needs and strengths in order to ensure such support improves the outcomes of our higher education.
Hon members, various concerns have been raised, particularly by industries and sectors, about the quality of graduates our system produces. The question is whether the majority of the students who graduate in universities for example have the
analytical and critical thinking skills? Is our higher education system producing graduates who will address unemployment by being creators of jobs?
This is the critical task of our current objective reality: The fact that our country remains one of the most unequal society in the world.
We welcome the feasibility studies on the establishment of the University of Science and Innovation to be established at Ekhuruleni in Gauteng. This university will positively contribute by focusing on innovation and the changing world.
Ekhuruleni as an industrial hub will be enhanced by this university through its focus on supporting the domestic economy through efforts of increased research and development.
The decision to amalgamate Higher Education and Training and Science and Innovation has demonstrated to be strategic, as it enables institutions of higher education to have a strategic alignment with the department of science and innovation.
It is important to note that the pass rate amongst Nsfas- supported students is higher than the general rate. This shows tremendous progress in ensuring good performance for the
disadvantaged. This is the impact Nsfas plays and we should continue to support it. The socioeconomic conditions of students has a direct impact on their academic performance.
Hon Members we need to encourage the youth to swell the higher education sector to improve their opportunities to alleviate poverty.
Our society, more than before, during this phase of the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan requires skills in order to ensure the task of reconstruction is supported by relevant skills aligned to government’s economic priorities. Reconstruction of the economy requires the development of skills of a changing world.
Hon members, the implications of not developing skills for the Fourth Industrial Revolution is the fact that as a nation we will continue to be users of technologies rather than developers of technologies. Our capability as a country should be evaluated on our ability to be involved in the productive side of the value chain. If we do not develop innovators as a nation, we will always adopt foreign inventions and thus boost other economies.
When the digital economy constitutes a significant component of the GDP of our country, it will mean that the ownership of the digital economy will be foreign and for the privileged minority.
The ANC Support this Budget Vote 17 of Higher Education and Training. The department has demonstrated the primacy of education in transforming society due to the many graduates who live in better conditions. Thank you.
The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY:
Thank you very much Deputy Chair of the NCOP, thank you to the hon chairperson of the ANC, hon Nchabeleng for the support, to all the members of the ANC who participated and supported the debate as well as the other parties who supported this Budget Vote. To hon Nchabeleng, thanks for acknowledging our achievements in concluding the 2020 academic year albeit under very difficult conditions and also only completing parts of it in 2021, even more so in the light of the budget cuts.
I would also agree with hon Nchabeleng, we need to expand the post-school education and training sector, that is why in my speech today I focused more on giving progress on the new TVET college campuses we are building as well as the intended
expansion of university campuses in Giyani and the University of Zululand. I do agree and welcome the comments about wishing the new leadership of the NSFAS well and I do want to clarify this matter.
Several of the members keep on repeating something we’ve clarified ad nauseam. There was no R50 billion expenditure that went astray, all we did not do was to gazette the new bursary scheme of the NSFAS that, according to the Auditor- General, was classified as irregular. We respect the Auditor- General of course but all that R50 billion did was to go to poor students. There was no cent of that amount of money that was misspent or corruptly stolen. So let's tell the truth and not repeat this thing as if it's R50 billion that was just stolen or wasted. There is no such.
I also wish to say that the emphasis put by the hon Nchabeleng on gender-based violence, we agree, that is why we've adopted now a framework for gender-based violence for the entire post- school education and training system that we expect institutions to translate into their local realities and also to give the necessary funding to support that. And also just to remind hon members that I wouldn't be going back to the Cabinet this month with a comprehensive proposal on student
funding as well as how to address the issue of student debt. So those matters are being dealt with.
Hon Christians, I’m surprised by the DA to say I must answer the question about the necessity of the provincial government. privilege. It was the DA with its predecessor the Democratic Party who were pushing us to have provinces as the ANC when we were negotiating the Constitution hopefully because they were hoping they would have one or two provinces to run. So don't ask me about provinces, ask yourselves. You wanted these provinces when we, as the ANC, wanted, at the very least the national and local government administration. I would also like to point out to hon Ntsube, thank you very much for your comments. All I can do to summarise what you are saying that academic freedom in the South African context must mean the total transformation of the relations of knowledge production so that you do away with the knowledge that is dominated by patriarchal, racist, as well as class bias attitudes, So the points that you are making about academic freedom I warmly welcome.
To the hon Luthuli, the EFF is not worth responding to, that is the EFF. They always say there's nothing being done because they know precisely what is being done. [Interjections.] So,
it's not worth responding to them. [Interjections.] Instead, they must go and tell their members to stop destroying university property by actually exploiting the conditions under which our students are struggling.
Lastly, on laptops, I just want to say that the NSFAS has begun to roll one small roll-out of the laptops, but we must bear in mind 64% of our university students already have laptops and some of them, by the way, are indicating they don't need laptops. So in so far as the government’s commitment is concerned, we are there. To the FF Plus, that's why usually there is hardly any difference between the EFF and FF Plus, they are almost the same. You are just posturing instead of engaging with the debate.
AN HON MEMBER: Don’t mix, don’t mix Minister us with the FF
Plus.
The MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING: Thank you very
much, hon Chairperson and thank you very much for the support to this Budget Vote and thank you to all the participants. [Interjections.]
IsiZulu:
Siyabonga. [Ubuwelewele.]
Setswana:
Re a leboga. [Tsenoganong.]
The DEPUTY CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Hon members!
[Interjections.] Can we have order.
DRAFT NOTICE ON THE DETERMINATION OF REMUNERATION SUBMITTED IN TERMS OF SECTION 2(3)(A) OF THE JUDGES REMUNERATION AND CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT ACT, 2001 (ACT NO. 47 OF 2001), DETERMINING THE RATE AT WHICH SALARIES ARE PAYABLE TO CONSTITUTIONAL COURT JUDGES AND JUDGES ANNUALLY, DATED 2 JUNE 2021
Ms S SHAIKH: Thank you very much hon Chairperson and greetings to all the members of the House.Hon Chairperson, in terms of Section 2(1)(a) of the Judges’ Remuneration and Conditions of Employment Act, 2001, Constitutional Court judges and judges are entitled to annual salaries and such allowances or benefits as determined by the President from time to time, after taking into account the recommendation of the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers.
Section 2(4) of the Judges’ Remuneration and Conditions of Employment Act requires that such notice be approved by Parliament.
Similarly, in terms of section 12(1) of the Magistrates Act, 1993, magistrates are entitled to an annual salary and such allowances or benefits as determined by the President from time to time, after taking into account the recommendation of the Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers. Section 12(3) of the Magistrates Act requires that such notice be approved by Parliament.
I would share the draft notices containing the President’s determination was submitted to Parliament for approval before publication and was referred to the committee for consideration and report on 13 April 2021
On 26 May 2021, the committee was briefed on the draft notice, as follows:
The Independent Commission for the Remuneration of Public Office Bearers having taken into account the country’s fiscal position, the state’s Wage Bill and the impact of an increment for public office bearers on the fiscus and the general state
of the economy which has been negatively affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, amongst others, the Independent Commission recommended a 0% increase for all public office bearers for 2020/21.
The President Having considered the serious economic situation of the country and the Independent Commission’s recommendation, has proposed to determine a 0% increment to the salaries of Constitutional Court judges and judges of other courts. Similarly, hon Chair, with regard to magistrates, the President has proposed to determine a 0% salary increment for the magistrates.
Hon Chair, the Select Committee, having considered the draft notice on the determination of remuneration submitted in terms of section 2(3)(a) of the Judges’ Remuneration and Conditions of Employment Act, 2001 (Act No 47 of 2001), determining the rate at which salaries are payable to Constitutional Court judges and judges annually with effect from 1 April 2020, recommends that the Council approve the draft notice on the determination of remuneration as tabled.
Furthermore, hon Chair, The Select Committee having considered the Draft Notice on the Determination of Remuneration in terms
of section 12(3) of the Magistrates Act, determining the rate at which salaries are payable to magistrates annually with effect from 1 April 2020, recommends that the Council approve the Draft Notice on the determination of remuneration as tabled. Thank you very much hon Chair
Debate concluded.
Question put: That the Report be adopted.
IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape. Report accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.
DRAFT NOTICE ON THE DETERMINATION OF REMUNERATION TABLED IN TERMS OF SECTION 12(3) OF THE MAGISTRATES ACT, 1993 (ACT NO.
90 OF 1993), DETERMINING THE RATE AT WHICH SALARIES ARE PAYABLE TO MAGISTRATES ANNUALLY, DATED 2 JUNE 2021.
Debate concluded.
Question put: That the Report be adopted.
IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape. Report accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.
CONSIDERATION OF REPORT OF SELECT COMMITTEE ON CO-OPERATIVE GOVERNANCE AND TRADITIONAL AFFAIRS, WATER AND SANITATION AND HUMAN SETTLEMENTS
Mr T S C DODOVU: Hon Deputy Chairperson, I present the report as follows – it should be pointed out from the onset that the principal instrument for intervening in local government in terms of section 139 of the Constitution is done in order to intervene – in order to resolve the problems that are facing our municipalities, but that also forms part of the integral part of institutional framework for developmental local government. It is a necessary corrective action whether municipalities fail to govern, and thus jeopardise the enterprise of development. It is also an aspect of intergovernmental relations and as such, it must be exercised within the spirit of co-operative governance in terms of Chapter 3 of the Constitution. It is very concerning to observe persistent nonco-operation between a provincial
government and a municipality as opposed to forging co- operation to accelerate service delivery.
It is important therefore that the spheres of government work together in a spirit of mutual co-operation and support in order to ensure that government delivers on its mandate to provide services to the people. One of the issues which the select committee had to address after receiving section 139 notice, relates to compliance with the requirements of the said section. At procedural level, section 139 (1)(a) and (b) of the Constitution places an obligation on a provincial executive who intervenes in a municipality to provide the Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the NCOP with written notices of their decision to intervene in municipalities within 14 days after the intervention began.
The NCOP has 180 days from the day the intervention began to approve or disapprove the intervention. In terms of the background on this matter at hand on 24 December 2024, the Free State MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs communicated the retabling of the notice of intervention in terms of section 139 (1)(b) of the Constitution at the Metsimaholo Local Municipality and
forwarded that report to the office of the Chairperson of the NCOP.
Subsequent to the communication, the office of the Chairperson referred the retabling of the notice to our select committee. As part of ensuring executive accountability and performing oversight, the select committee had a virtual meeting on 3 June 2021 with the MEC. It further had a virtual meeting with all the internal stakeholders and external stakeholders in the Metsimaholo Municipality, and all political parties which include the ANC, the DA, the EFF, the SA Communist Party, SACP, FF Plus and Metsimaholo community association for their views on the matter.
The MEC of the department reported that since the election of 2017, the council of the Metsimaholo Local Municipality had not appointed senior managers. And to make matters worse, the municipal manager was placed on suspension on 3 July 2018. The municipality has operated for some time with middle managers acting as section 56 managers as such. In trying to resolve the matter at hand, our view is that the department ought to ensure that it follows the processes in whatever it is doing. In trying to resolve the impasse, the Department of Co- operative Governance and Traditional Affairs in the Free State
seconded an official to support the municipality as its acting municipal manager in terms of section 154 of the Constitution. He was duly appointed by the executive mayor for three months. His work was made very difficult according to the MEC by some officials who wanted the abnormal practice of appointing people against the municipalities’ own policy to continue unabatedly.
The executive council of the Free State invoked section 139 of the Constitution in the affairs of Metsimaholo Municipality in its meeting on 11 February 2020. On 20 February, the department went in the municipality to communicate the executive council decision on the invocation of section 139(1)(b). The department communicated a notice with the NCOP, the Minister on 23 February 2020. The substantive matter on the matter relates to the fact that the department provided rational and justification for the invocation of section 139 of the Constitution in Metsimaholo. On top of that, there was a High Court matter that was ensuing in terms of opposing the intervention as made by the provincial government which rules in favour of the department.
The select committee has noted and observed with concern that the communication of the first notice of intervention in the
local municipality of Metsimaholo of 22 February 2020 to the Chairperson of the NCOP and the Minister of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs didn’t comply with the constitutional requirements and was procedurally flawed. And as a result of that, the select committee didn’t approve the intervention as such – or didn’t even process the intervention. Based on all of these particular issues and the fact that there was a discussion that ensued between the provincial government as well as the representatives of the internal and the external stakeholders of Metsimaholo, the following recommendations are placed forward. Having interacted through the visual platform with the Free State MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the internal and the external stakeholders of the municipality, the NCOP Select Committee recommends the following. The NCOP disapproves the notice of intervention in terms of section 139(b) of the Constitution in the Metsimaholo Local Municipality and that the intervention be terminated with immediate effect.
The select committee is of the view that the current situation in the local municipality doesn’t warrant section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution but continuous support is needed in terms of section 154 of the Constitution. The Free State MEC for Co-
operative Governance and Traditional Affairs should provide continuous support to the local municipality of Metsimaholo in terms of section 154 of the Constitution. The local municipality should fast-track the process of filling outstanding vacant positions of the senior managers in the local municipality.
The MEC of Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs should provide progress and termination report on the intervention in terms of section 139(1)(b) of the Constitution in Metsimaholo Local Municipality to the National Council of Provinces and to all its internal and external stakeholders.
As part of monitoring, the Select Committee on Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs should co-ordinate a joint proactive and follow-up visit with the relevant portfolio committee in the Free State provincial legislature in order to interact with internal and external stakeholders. It must be understood that the ultimate purpose of section 139 intervention is to assist the municipality to be functional, sustainable and self-sufficient so that it can fulfil the developmental mandate as set out in the Constitution.
Where interventions are undertaken, they should be done with integrity and in a manner that builds the municipality rather
than breaking the municipality further. They have to be constitutional and procedurally correct and should leave a municipality in a better position than it was before the intervention. That is the report that we present before the House this afternoon, hon Deputy Chairperson. Thank you very much.
Debate concluded.
Question put: That the Report be adopted.
IN FAVOUR: Eastern Cape, Free State, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape, North West, Western Cape. Report accordingly adopted in accordance with section 65 of the Constitution.
The Council adjourned at 14:32
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