Questions and Replies

Reply:

(a) The increase in the remuneration of the CEO of Umalusi from 2013-14 to 2014-15 financial years was not as a result of a long service award as previously reported. The spur of the moment response given in the meeting of the Portfolio Committee on 3 May 2017 was informed by the fact that such an award was given to the CEO in recognition of his 30 years’ service in the public service albeit a year earlier. The decision for the long service award was guided by the long service policies of the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) and Umalusi.

The table below outlines the remuneration components of the total package reported in the annual reports of the abovementioned financial years:

	Remuneration component	13/14	14/15	%
		R'000	R'000	increase
1	Basic remuneration	1 618	1 729	6.9%
2	Pension contribution	149	160	7.1%
3	Medical contributions	–	12	100.0%
4	Cost to company package	1,767	1,901	7.6%
5	Bonus & Performance payment	99	114	14.9%
6	Leave pay-out	–	220	100.0%
7	Long service award	–	–	–
8	Total package	1 867	2 235	19.7%

In the 2013-14 to 2014-15 financial years the leave pay-out was the remuneration component that led to the high increase. In 2014 the Remuneration and Human Resources Committee of Council (REMCO) noted that 12 employees had accumulated more than 50 leave days. In May 2014, REMCO recommended to Council to pay out a maximum of 30 days to employees. The recommendation was subsequently approved by Council in June 2014 and the pay-out was actioned in July 2014. Ultimately, only 7 employees were reimbursed, and one of them was the CEO.

(i) The long service award was given to the CEO in January 2013 i.e. the 2012/13 financial year, as stipulated in the policies of the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) and Umalusi.

(ii) The amount of the award was R15 000. The employee also encashed 30 days’ annual leave as per the Umalusi policy. The total amount of leave paid out was R188 270.

(iii) The CEO is employed at salary level 16 of the DPSA levels.

(iv) The table below summarises the employment history of Dr Rakometsi from 1 January 1983 to date.

Years	Position held	Institution	Date appointed	Date resigned / promoted
Total to date: 34 years 5 months
8 years 5 months	Chief Executive Officer	Umalusi, Pretoria	Jan 2009	To date
3 years 4 months	Superintendent General (Head of Department)	Free State Department of Education, Bloemfontein	Sep 2005	Dec 2008
4 years 5 months	Chief Director: Curriculum and Professional Development and Support	Free State Department of Education, Bloemfontein	Apr 2001	Aug 2005
2 years 3 months	Director: Education Institute	Free State Department of Education, Bloemfontein	Jan 1999	Mar 2001
3 years	Chief Education Specialist (Deputy Director Professional) - Examinations	Department of Education, Arts and Culture, Sport and Recreation, Mmabatho North-West Province	Jan 1996	Dec 1998
3 years	Deputy Chief Education Specialist (History)	Free State Department of Education and Culture, Welkom	Jan 1993	Dec 1995
3 years	Head of Department Professional Subjects and Student Affairs	Tshiya College of Education, Qwa Qwa	Jan 1990	Dec 1992
1 year	Senior Lecturer (Student Affairs)	Tshiya College of Education, Qwa Qwa	Jan 1989	Dec 1989
1 year 7 months	Lecturer	Tshiya College of Education, Qwa Qwa	Apr 1987	Dec 1988
3 year 3 months	Teacher	Thokoana-Makaota Senior Secondary School, Qwa Qwa	Jan 1984	Mar 1987
1 year	Teacher	Rearabetswe Senior Secondary School, Odendaalrsrus	Jan 1983	Dec 1983

(v) A submission regarding the long service award for the CEO is recommended internally, but ultimately submitted to the Chairperson of Council for approval.

All remuneration aspects of the CEO as the Accounting Officer are recommended to Council as the Accounting Authority and only paid out with Council’s approval. The cost to company is paid in line with the rates as determined by DPSA. To this end, Council is requested annually to approve all annual cost of living adjustments.

Bonus and performance payments are made on an annual basis in line with the performance management and development policy. The award ranges from 2% to 8% of cost to company, limited by the 1.5% of the total remuneration budget. The scores are moderated by members of the Executive Committee of Council (EXCO) and signed off by the Chairperson of Council.

(vi) Legislation informing the long service award is the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) and Umalusi policies.

Reply:

1. (a) (i) and (ii)

The suspension of Hill High School principal was as a result of the alleged financial mismanagement of the school funds. The principal was found guilty and sanctioned to suspension without pay and subsequently returned to work after completing the suspension.

(b) The allegation levelled against him was financial mismanagement of the school funds.

2. (a) Yes, an investigation was undertaken by the Gauteng Department of Education. (b) and (c) An internal investigation was conducted and concluded within 60 days.

3. (a) The principal of the school and the Department were the only parties involved.

(b) and (c) The matter was investigated internally and therefore no costs were incurred by the Department.

Reply:

a) None of the classrooms have currently been repaired. 10 Schools have been identified for repairs in the 2017/18 financial year.

b) R177 million was made available during November-December 2016. This has been utilised to fund 10 Vuwani/ Malamulela protest damaged schools, and contractors have been appointed. However, due to the intermittent unrest that have been going on in the area, no progress has been registered. The service provider will proceed with the work as soon as the situation is back to normal.

c) Currently security officials have been deployed to the schools affected and fencing has been included into the scope of work that is to be done at the schools.

Reply:

(a) Nil

(b) Nil

Reply:

1. My Department has no records of school staff members who were found to be administering corporal punishment in each school and/ or district. This is more relevant to provincial administration duties. Therefore, the question was referred to the PEDs for response. Out of nine (9) PEDs only two (2) have responded as indicated in the below table. The information will be updated as and when the responses are received from the PEDs.
2. The Department of Basic Education cannot confirm if matters were reported to the SACE as the SACE is independent from the Department. However, the question was also referred to the SACE for response.

	SCHOOL STAFF MEMBERS FOUND TO BE ADMINISTERING CORPORAL PUNISHMENT	TOTAL
	2014	2015	2016
	REPORTED IN THE PED	REPORTED TO SACE	REPORTED IN THE PED	REPORTED TO SACE	REPORTED IN THE PED	REPORTED TO SACE
WC	352		430		501		1 283
NW	1		4		7		12
GP
FS
NC
KZN
MPU
EC
LP
TOTAL	353		434		508		1 295

PROVINCE	No. OF CASES RESULTED IN DISCIPLINARY ACTION
	2014	2015	2016	TOTAL
WC	160	204	222	586
NW	1	3	7	11
GP
FS
NC
KZN
MPU
EC
LP
TOTAL	167	207	229	597

1. Sanctions ranged from final written warning coupled with a fine not exceeding one month salary or suspension without pay for a period not exceeding three months to dismissal in more serious cases.

Reply:

PROVINCE	MISCONDUCT CASES ON SEXUAL RELATIONS BETWEEN STAFF MEMBERS AND PUPILS REPORTED AND INVESTIGATED BY SACE
	2014	2015	2016
	REPORTED	INVESTIGATED	REPORTED	INVESTIGATED	REPORTED	INVESTIGATED
WC	1	0	0	0	1	0
NW	1 Bojanala 1 Kenneth Kaunda	0	1 Ngaka Modiri Molema	0	1 Bojanala	0
GP	Not responded
FS	Not responded
NC	Not responded
KZN	Not responded
MPU	Not responded
EC	Not responded
LMP	Not responded
TOTAL	3	0	1	0	2	0

The Department of Basic Education cannot confirm if matters were investigated by the SACE as the SACE is independent from the Department. However, the question was referred to the PEDs and the SACE for response. Out of nine (9) PEDs only two (2) have responded. The information would be updated as and when the responses are received from the PEDs and the SACE.

Reply:

(a)-(b) There are no entire inappropriate structures remaining in Limpopo and KwaZulu- Natal provinces.

Reply:

The status on the delivery of top-up textbooks and stationery to schools as at 11 January 2017 in all provinces was as follows:

Province	(a) Top-up Textbooks	(b) Stationery
	%delivered	% delivered
Eastern Cape	26.7%	97%
Free State	98%	100%
Gauteng	95%	100%
KwaZulu Natal	99.8%	100%
Limpopo	94%	68%
Mpumalanga	100%	100%
Northern Cape	99%	95%
North West	99.4%	100%
Western Cape	84%	100%

Notwithstanding the fact that the data regarding delivery was not static at the time as provinces were conducting mop-ups.

Reply:

983. The inclusive basket of performance indicators is a more integrated approach to reporting that reflects the key indicators of learner performance. The key indicators together with their weighting are as follows:

1. Overall pass percentage (35%)
2. Mathematics pass percentage (10%)
3. Physical Sciences pass percentage (10%)
4. Bachelor attainment percentage (15%)
5. Distinction percentage (10%)
6. Mathematics Participation Rate (10%)
7. Throughput rate (10%)

The above indicators are captured in a consolidated format which includes a weighting based on the importance attached to each of these indicators. A computation of the percentage obtained for each of these indicators at school, district, provincial and national level, will be provided.

The Table below shows the performance of each of the Provincial Education Departments (PED’s) in terms of the Inclusive Basket Criteria:

Province	Weighted Basket Scores
	Overall Basket Score	Overall Pass % (W: 35%)	% Maths Passed (W: 10%)	% Physics Passed (W: 10%)	% Bachelor Passes (W: 15%)	% Distinctions (W: 10%)	% Maths Participation (W:10)	% Throughput Rate (W: 10%)
Western Cape	60.7	30.1	7.7	7.3	6.1	0.7	3.1	5.6
Free State	59.4	30.9	7.1	7.5	5.4	0.4	3.9	4.2
Gauteng	57.9	29.8	6.9	6.9	5.4	0.5	3.7	4.8
North West	53.8	28.9	6.3	7.0	4.1	0.3	3.3	4.0
Mpumalanga	51.0	27.0	5.4	6.4	3.4	0.2	4.3	4.4
Northern Cape	50.7	27.5	6.1	5.7	3.9	0.2	2.8	4.5
KwaZulu-Natal	46.1	23.2	3.8	5.8	3.7	0.4	5.5	3.8
Limpopo	44.1	21.9	5.4	6.2	2.8	0.2	4.3	3.3
Eastern Cape	40.5	20.8	3.8	5.0	2.8	0.2	4.8	3.2
NATIONAL	49.4	25.4	5.1	6.2	4.0	0.3	4.3	4.0

The above computation has also been determined for the provincial, district and school levels.

Reply:

(a) Academic – Learners who have fallen pregnant are encouraged to remain in school as long as they are able to, until they deliver their babies. They are supported, like all learners, to perform optimally.

(b) Financial – No specific financial assistance is given to pregnant learners. They benefit through other Departmental programmes like the provision of nutritious meals through the National School Nutrition Programme, no-fee paying schools or exemption from fees in fee-paying schools, and scholar transport if they qualify as per the set criteria for these programmes.

c) Medical assistance – The Department of Basic Education collaborates with the Department of Health to make available school health services through itinerant school health teams. In addition, schools are encouraged to establish a relationship with their nearest health facility, to which learners are referred for medical assistance as is needed.

Reply:

1. There is no data certainty about learner pregnancy cases resulting from sexual relations with educators. All suspected cases of sexual violation in schools should to be reported to the relevant authorities for further investigation. This data is self-reported and relies heavily on learners and their families coming forward with this information.

2. Provinces carry out investigations through their provincial Labour Relations including those of sexual offences against children by teachers.

3. If provinces find cases, SACE is contacted. Further investigations take place through SACE and any teacher found guilty of committing sexual offences or having a sexual relationship with a learner is struck off the teachers’ roll.

Reply:

(a) The total number of new and replacement schools delivered by Provincial Departments of Education as at the end of the third quarter of the 2016/17 financial year is 708. The number, however, did not include schools built through the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative, which is implemented by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), which were included in the number referred to in the State of the Nation Address.

Reply:

The Department has forwarded the question to the nine Provincial Education Departments and is awaiting the response. The response will be forwarded as soon as the Department receives it.

Reply:

(1) The works of Shakespeare, unlike any other writer, are prescribed and compulsory for Grades 10, 11 and 12 and therefore constitute a significant emphasis on the English Literature.

(2) Yes, the works of Shakespeare are still relevant in terms of thematic material and character analysis, so that teachers have a standard against which to measure other classical dramas. For example, a classical play includes all literary features such as exposition, rising action, conflict, climax, falling action/anti-climax and resolution/denouement. It also includes timeless motif/themes and/or background and settings.

(3) No, the works listed above do not require a review and are currently included on the national catalogue of prescribed works.

However, the life span of a national catalogue is ideally five (5) years and therefore these catalogues will be continually reviewed to ensure that more African writers and South African writers in particular are included.

Reply:

The DBE has forwarded questions 1, 2 and 3 to the Eastern Cape Provincial Education for a response. Once received the response will be forwarded to the National Assembly.

(1) Waiting for a response from the EC.

(2)(a) Waiting for a response from the EC.

    (b) Waiting for a response from the EC.

3.Waiting for a response from the EC.

(4)(a) UNESCO has published much literature on the importance of mother tongue education. Provisions for education in mother tongue are contained in several international conventions, namely, the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention (1989), the Convention on the Rights of the Child (1989) and the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (1990).

(b) Section 29(2) of the SA Constitution makes provision for everyone “to receive education in the official language or languages of their choice in public educational institutions where that education is reasonably practicable.”

The Language in Education Policy, which is premised on the imperatives of the Constitution, provides for learners to learn through any of the eleven official languages. Learners and schools have an option from Grade 4 onwards to select a language of their choice for learning and teaching, and that includes English or Afrikaans.

5.The Eastern Cape Province, upon concluding the evaluation of their Mother Tongue Based Bilingual Education pilot initiative, will present their findings to the Department of Basic Education. Thereafter a determination for a demand of mother tongue in the other official languages will be made.

Reply:

1. (a) India was included to widen the scope of international research in Asia,

(b) Rwanda was included to widen the scope of international research in Africa,

(c) Zimbabwe was included to widen the scope of international research in Africa,

(d) Nigeria was included to widen the scope of international research in Africa,

(e) China was included to widen the scope of international research in Asia and as part of BRICS as suggested by stakeholders during the Round Table discussion of December 2015,

(f) Tanzania was included to widen the scope of international research in Africa,

(g) Russia was included to widen the scope of international research in Asia and as part of BRICS as suggested by stakeholders during the Round Table discussion of December 2015, and

(h) Brazil was included to widen the scope of international research in Latin America and as part of BRICS as suggested by stakeholders during the Round Table discussion of December 2015.

2. International research shared at the History Round Table indicated that the majority of African countries teach history as a compulsory subject only in primary and lower secondary schools. In European countries History is mostly compulsory up to Grade 9 and a popular elective offered as part of various streams. It was also indicated that the subject is packaged differently in both African and European countries. In some countries, it forms part of a subject or learning area called Social Sciences or Social Studies, or People and Society or Social, Political and Environmental education; while in other countries it is offered as a stand-alone subject. The curriculum content thereof, in most of these countries focuses on the historical, social, geographic, economic and political changes that have shaped these societies within the broader global environment.

3. It is envisaged that various stakeholders would be invited to form part of these consultative meetings such as representatives of Teacher Unions, School Governing Bodies, principal associations, Higher Education Institutions, heritage institutions, members of civil society, History associations, curriculum advisors, etc.

Reply:

Yes. The Draft Guidelines on the Employment of Foreign Educators in South Africa (public schools) were approved by the Heads of Education Departments Committee. The guidelines are currently being implemented by Provincial Education Departments (PEDs).

Reply:

1. (a) No

(b) Provincial Education Departments are autonomous. DBE does not have access or control over their procurement processes.

(i) N/A

(ii) N/A.

2. None.

Reply:

a) After following internal processes in the Department of Basic Education (DBE), the report was submitted to the Minister in March 2017. Having engaged with the report, the Minister approved that it be made public by posting it on the website of the DBE. To this end, the report is being formatted and will be posted on the DBE website as soon as this is completed.

b) In addition to posting the report on the DBE website, NEEDU findings and their implications for the education sector will be shared in different forums between May and June 2017. These forums include different branches and structures within the DBE, HEDCOM and its sub-committees and the Council of Education Ministers. Presentations will also be made in the forums where the DBE interacts with stakeholders e.g., Principals’ Association of South Africa (PASA) and the consultative forum of National School Governing Body Associations.

Reply:

(a) and (b)

The following tables indicate the number of un-and underqualified educators per district in 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively.

Overall, the numbers of un-and under-qualified educators has been reducing over the last three (3) years.

On average, about 60% of all un-and-under-qualified educators are appointment in KwaZulu-Natal with a significant number in the rural districts such as Zululand, uThukela and uThungulu.

Table 1: Number of un-and underqualified educators per district in 2014

(b) PROVINCE/DISTRICT/CIRCUIT	Number of Teachers
EASTERN CAPE	370
BIZANA DISTRICT OFFICE	70
BUTTERWORTH	10
COFIMVABA	21
CRADOCK	2
DUTYWA EDUCATION	20
EAST LONDON	6
FORT BEAUFORT	1
GRAAFF REINET	1
GRAHAMSTOWN	5
KING WILLIAM'S TOWN	9
LADY FRERE	6
LIBODE	27
LUSIKISIKI	34
MALUTI	19
MOUNT FLETCHER	6
MOUNT FRERE	40
MTHATHA	27
NGCOBO	16
PORT ELIZABETH	3
QUEENSTOWN	10
QUMBU	14
STERKSPRUIT	6
UITENHAGE	17
FREE STATE	274
FREE STATE: EDUCATION	274
GAUTENG	435
D3 TSWANE NORTH	15
D9 JOHANNESBURG EAST	2
EN: EKURHULENI NORTH INSTITUTION	18
ES: EKURHULENI SOUTH INSTITUTION	76
GE: GAUTENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	78
GN: GAUTENG NORTH INSTITUTIONS	3
GW: GAUTENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	80
JC: JOHANNESBURG CENTRAL INSTITUTIONS	23
JE: JOHANNESBURG EAST INSTITUTIONS	38
JN: JOHANNESBURG NORTH INSTITUTIONS	13
JS: JOHANNESBURG SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	29
JW: JOHANNESBURG WEST INSTITUTIONS	14
SE: SEDIBENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	15
SW: SEDIBENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	6
TN: TSHWANE NORTH INSTITUTIONS	1
TS: TSHWANE SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	1
TW: TSHWANE WEST INSTITUTIONS	23
KWAZULU/NATAL	4558
SISONKE DISTRICT	446
UMKHANYAKUDE DISTR	443
UMLAZI DISTRICT	163
AMAJUBA DISTRICT	97
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT	508
PINETOWN DISTRICT	244
ZULULAND DISTRICT	957
UGU DISTRICT	290
UMZINYATHI DISTRICT	405
UTHUKELA DISTRICT	512
ILEMBE DISTRICT	291
UMGUNGUNDLOVU DISTRICT	202
LIMPOPO PROVINCE	19
BALTIMORE CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
DWAALBOOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
ELLISRAS CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
GROBLERSDAL CIRCUIT OFFICE	5
MAPELA CIRCUIT OFFICE	3
MOUTSE CENTRAL CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
NGWAABE CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
NGWARITSI CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
NYLSTROOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
TUBATSE CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
WARMBATHS CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
MPUMALANGA	265
MDE BOHLABELA INSTITUTIONS	5
MDE EHLANZENI INSTITUTIONS	52
MDE GERT SIBANDE INSTITUTIONS	174
MDE NKANGALA INSTITUTIONS	34
NORTH WEST	209
DR.KENNETH KAUNDA DISTRICT	4
DR RSM	99
NGAKA MODIRI MOLEMA	100
BOJANALA	6
NORTHERN CAPE	388
FRANCIS BAARD	46
JOHN TAOLE GAETSEWE	147
NAMAQUA	13
PIXLEY KA SEME	55
SIYANDA	127
WESTERN CAPE	201
CAPE WINELANDS EDUCATION DISTRICT	18
EDEN & CENTRAL KAROO EDUCATION DISTRICT	31
METRO CENTRAL EDUCATION DISTRICT	38
METRO EAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	12
METRO NORTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	64
METRO SOUTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	26
OVERBERG EDUCATION DISTRICT	2
WEST COAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	10
Grand Total	6719

Table 2: Number of un-and underqualified educators per district in 2015

(b) PROVINCE/DISTRICT/CIRCUIT	Number of Teachers
EASTERN CAPE	339
BIZANA DISTRICT OFFICE	58
BUTTERWORTH	13
COFIMVABA	18
CRADOCK	2
DUTYWA EDUCATION	18
EAST LONDON	4
FORT BEAUFORT	1
GRAAFF REINET	2
GRAHAMSTOWN	6
KING WILLIAM'S TOWN	10
LADY FRERE	4
LIBODE	24
LUSIKISIKI	22
MALUTI	13
MOUNT FLETCHER	7
MOUNT FRERE	54
MTHATHA	27
NGCOBO	12
PORT ELIZABETH	2
QUEENSTOWN	8
QUMBU	12
STERKSPRUIT	6
UITENHAGE	16
FREE STATE	285
FREE STATE: EDUCATION	285
GAUTENG	461
D3 TSWANE NORTH	17
EN: EKURHULENI NORTH INSTITUTION	20
ES: EKURHULENI SOUTH INSTITUTION	58
GE: GAUTENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	78
GE: GAUTENG EAST OFFICE	2
GW: GAUTENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	94
JC: JOHANNESBURG CENTRAL INSTITUTIONS	28
JE: JOHANNESBURG EAST INSTITUTIONS	35
JN: JOHANNESBURG NORTH INSTITUTIONS	17
JS: JOHANNESBURG SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	26
JW: JOHANNESBURG WEST INSTITUTIONS	9
SE: SEDIBENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	16
SW: SEDIBENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	6
TS: TSHWANE SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	1
TW: TSHWANE WEST INSTITUTIONS	54
KWAZULU/NATAL	3629
AMATHUBA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	176
BAMBANANI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	189
BERGVILLE CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	151
BHEKUZULU CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	163
DANHAUSER CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	78
DURBAN CENTRAL CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	48
DURBAN NORTH-WEST CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	72
EMTSHEZI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	274
HLABISA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	237
INGWAVUMA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	143
IXOPO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	270
MAFUKUZELA-GHANDHI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	114
MAHLABATHINI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	130
MAPHUMULO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	157
NDWEDWE CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	63
NONGOMA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	183
PAULPIETERSBURG CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	259
PHOLELA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	98
PHUMELELA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	64
SAYIDI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	99
SCOTTBURGH CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	152
UBUMBANO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	33
UMNGENI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	59
UMSUNDUZI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	49
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER A	213
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER B	68
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER C	87
LIMPOPO PROVINCE	14
BALTIMORE CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
DWAALBOOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
ELLISRAS CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
GROBLERSDAL CIRCUIT OFFICE	3
HLOGOTLOU CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
MAPELA CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
MOUTSE CENTRAL CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
NYLSTROOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
WARMBATHS CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
MPUMALANGA	276
MDE BOHLABELA INSTITUTIONS	36
MDE EHLANZENI INSTITUTIONS	46
MDE GERT SIBANDE INSTITUTIONS	160
MDE NKANGALA INSTITUTIONS	34
NORTH WEST	310
BOJANALA	4
DR KENNETH KAUNDA	11
DR RSM	115
NGAKA MODIRI MOLEMA	180
NORTHERN CAPE	394
FRANCIS BAARD	61
JOHN TAOLE GAETSEWE	146
NAMAQUA	13
PIXLEY KA SEME	47
SIYANDA	127
WESTERN CAPE	322
CAPE WINELANDS EDUCATION DISTRICT	23
EDEN & CENTRAL KAROO EDUCATION DISTRICT	46
METRO CENTRAL EDUCATION DISTRICT	48
METRO EAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	22
METRO NORTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	82
METRO SOUTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	73
OVERBERG EDUCATION DISTRICT	11
WEST COAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	16
WESTERN CAPE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT:HEAD OFFICE	1
Grand Total	6030

Table 3: Number of un-and underqualified educators per district in 2016

(b) PROVINCE/DISTRICT/CIRCUIT	Number of Teachers
EASTERN CAPE	261
BIZANA DISTRICT OFFICE	37
BUTTERWORTH	12
COFIMVABA	17
CRADOCK	2
DUTYWA EDUCATION	14
EAST LONDON	3
FORT BEAUFORT	1
GRAHAMSTOWN	4
KING WILLIAM'S TOWN	10
LADY FRERE	2
LIBODE	12
LUSIKISIKI	21
MALUTI	7
MOUNT FLETCHER	7
MOUNT FRERE	46
MTHATHA	21
NGCOBO	10
QUEENSTOWN	8
QUMBU	8
STERKSPRUIT	4
UITENHAGE	15
FREE STATE	303
FREE STATE: EDUCATION	303
GAUTENG	293
D3 TSWANE NORTH	26
D9 JOHANNESBURG EAST	2
EN: EKURHULENI NORTH INSTITUTION	10
ES: EKURHULENI SOUTH INSTITUTION	35
GE: GAUTENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	32
GW: GAUTENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	47
JC: JOHANNESBURG CENTRAL INSTITUTIONS	24
JE: JOHANNESBURG EAST INSTITUTIONS	23
JN: JOHANNESBURG NORTH INSTITUTIONS	17
JS: JOHANNESBURG SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	18
JW: JOHANNESBURG WEST INSTITUTIONS	2
SE: SEDIBENG EAST INSTITUTIONS	7
SW: SEDIBENG WEST INSTITUTIONS	3
TS: TSHWANE SOUTH INSTITUTIONS	1
TW: TSHWANE WEST INSTITUTIONS	46
KWAZULU/NATAL	2875
AMATHUBA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	131
BAMBANANI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	132
BERGVILLE CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	113
BHEKUZULU CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	118
DANHAUSER CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	64
DURBAN CENTRAL CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	34
DURBAN NORTH-WEST CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	55
EMTSHEZI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	231
HLABISA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	193
INGWAVUMA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	107
IXOPO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	219
MAFUKUZELA-GHANDHI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	84
MAHLABATHINI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	109
MAPHUMULO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	124
MNAMBITHI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	1
NDWEDWE CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	45
NONGOMA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	151
PAULPIETERSBURG CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	228
PHOLELA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	82
PHUMELELA CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	33
SAYIDI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	84
SCOTTBURGH CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	117
UBUMBANO CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	27
UMNGENI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	45
UMSUNDUZI CIRCUIT MANAGEMENT	39
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER A	163
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER B	69
UTHUNGULU DISTRICT : CLUSTER C	77
LIMPOPO PROVINCE	15
DWAALBOOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
ELLISRAS CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
MAPELA CIRCUIT OFFICE	2
NGWAABE CIRCUIT OFFICE	3
NYLSTROOM CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
PIETERSBURG CIRCUIT OFFICE	4
WARMBATHS CIRCUIT OFFICE	1
MPUMALANGA	223
MDE BOHLABELA INSTITUTIONS	17
MDE EHLANZENI INSTITUTIONS	40
MDE GERT SIBANDE INSTITUTIONS	134
MDE NKANGALA INSTITUTIONS	32
NORTH WEST	432
NGAKA MODIRI MOLEMA	218
DR RSM	201
BOJANALA	5
DR KENNETH KAUNDA	8
NORTHERN CAPE	400
FRANCIS BAARD	56
JOHN TAOLE GAETSEWE	172
NAMAQUA	10
PIXLEY KA SEME	47
ZF MGCAWU	115
WESTERN CAPE	337
CAPE WINELANDS EDUCATION DISTRICT	29
EDEN & CENTRAL KAROO EDUCATION DISTRICT	42
METRO CENTRAL EDUCATION DISTRICT	42
METRO EAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	43
METRO NORTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	82
METRO SOUTH EDUCATION DISTRICT	73
OVERBERG EDUCATION DISTRICT	9
WEST COAST EDUCATION DISTRICT	15
WESTERN CAPE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT:HEAD OFFICE	2
Grand Total	5139

(c) Which subjects are most affected?

The subjects most affected include Mathematics, Sciences and Technology at all levels and African Language teaching, particularly at Foundation Phase.

(d) What action has her department taken to address the problem?

The focus of the Department, at a national level, is to address the supply of educators through various initiatives.

These include the Funza Lushaka Bursary Scheme which focuses on Mathematics, Sciences, Technology and African Languages, and the appointment of foreign educators qualified to teach scarce skills.

Reply:

Whether her department has engaged with the office of Women in The Presidency to discuss the roll-out of its Sanitary Dignity Campaign to provide sanitary towels to vulnerable and poor girls;

Yes, the Department of Basic Education serves on the Sanitary Dignity Campaign Task Team as coordinated by Department of Women in the Presidency.

(a) in what ways will her department be involved

The Department has been participating in the task team meetings with the view to contribute to the campaign. There are no adequate resources in the DBE voted funds to address the provision of sanitary towels to poor girls. However, provinces such as Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal are providing sanitary towels to various degrees.

(b) what are the further relevant details in this regard

The Department is engaging its partners to consider supporting the initiative but this will be informed by empirical evidence of the need for sanitary towels among affected learners of school-going age and by identifying locations of greatest need for a more focused intervention.

Reply:

1. (a) The Department of Basic Education did not participate in the mentioned event.

(b) Umalusi Response: Umalusi did not participate in the Dialogue with the President: Unpacking of the SONA 2017 on Radical Economic Transformation Implementation event hosted at the Oyster Box Hotel in Umhlanga, Durban, on 25 February 2017.

SACE response: N/A

2. (a) The Department of Basic Education did not participate in the mentioned event.

   (b) Umalusi response: Umalusi did not participate in the auction of the souvenirs or personal belongings of the President of the Republic, Mr Jacob G Zuma.

SACE response: N/A

Reply:

(a) The question has been referred to the provinces and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received Provincial Education Departments (PEDs).

(b)(i)(ii)and (iii)

The question has been referred to the PEDs and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received.

(c) The question has been referred to the PEDs and the response will be forwarded as soon as information is received.

Reply:

Below is the extract from a speech made by the Minister of Transport on the occasion of the handing over ceremony torch of peace, at Soshanguve East Secondary School in Shoshanguve –Gauteng, on 17 January, to provide context to the response:

“RTMC is currently implementing numerous road safety school projects. To mention just two, for the purposes of brevity, the RTMC’s drivers licence project gives unemployed youth opportunities to obtain drivers licenses through training on simulators and on the roads and they also facilitate the Scholar Patrol project which offers scholar patrol training to schools.”

“Part of the long term initiative to establish and enhance road safety relates to the skilling of our drivers, particularly those who will be acquiring licenses for the first time. Our intended purpose is to work with the Department of Basic Education to include the Driving lessons at high school as part of the curriculum.”

 (a) The Department of Basic Education intends to pilot the driver simulator lessons in partnership with the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC).

 (b) Driver Simulator lessons are a practical method of training drivers before they drive a vehicle on the roads. The intention is to have competent drivers at the point when learners are eligible to test for a driver’s licence. This will not be in the curriculum but will be an enrichment programme.

 (c) No, there would not be any cost to be incurred by the Department of Basic Education.

Reply:

1. The Department is aware of the role domestic migration plays in the large number of learners who wish to register not only in the Western Cape school system but in all big cities of all our provinces. The relevant details of the Western Cape are provided in the table below as follows:

Table 1: Number of learners to the Western Cape

FROM	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	TOTAL
Eastern Cape	20.990	22.286	21.283	20.200	14.291	99.050
Free State	351	400	506	608	258	2.123
Gauteng	1.609	1.499	1.704	1.698	780	7.290
Kwa-Zulu-Natal	365	390	589	490	572	2.406
Limpopo	139	136	225	173	75	748
Mpumalanga	171	191	236	185	79	862
North-West	155	165	187	229	102	838
Northern Cape	795	788	834	744	421	3.582
Other Country	2.033	2.100	1.812	2.053	1.397	9.395
Total	26.608	27.955	27.376	26.380	17.975	126.294

The table below indicates the number of learners moving from province to province:

Table 2: Number of learners from one province to another, by province, in 2016

Province	Previous Province
	Eastern Cape	Free State	Gauteng	Kwazulu-Natal	Limpopo	Mpumalanga	North West	Northern Cape	Western Cape	Grand Total
Eastern Cape		1 068	6 259	3 678	159	406	701	445	10 310	23 026
Free State	1 980		6 581	1 004	341	719	1 732	1 161	740	14 258
Gauteng	6 964	3 102		6 368	10 151	23 872	21 481	589	3 560	76 087
Kwazulu-Natal	4 715	614	7 291		248	1 993	3 267	126	923	19 177
Limpopo	172	325	9 536	162		2 877	3 091	70	146	16 379
Mpumalanga	679	470	6 249	2 350	11 205		3 314	113	237	24 617
North West	1 599	1 344	9 370	362	1 793	784		1 261	192	16 705
Northern Cape	462	741	1 161	86	157	173	2 425		1 547	6 752
Western Cape	77 952	1 871	8 054	2 012	653	853	728	3 085		95 208
Grand Total	94 523	9 535	54 501	16 022	24 707	31 677	36 739	6 850	17 655	292 209

Source: 2016 LURITS

2. (a) The impact that the high number of learners who move to any province including the Western Cape is that the majority of the learners arrive late in such provinces, often between January and March. They place a huge pressure on the receiving province to accommodate them and provide all the necessary resources and support. The financial impact and cost to the Provincial Education Department is huge as this is not factored into the norms and standards allocation.

(ii) The impact on provinces from which learners migrate is that provincial departments in rural provinces are forced to merge or close some of the schools and teachers deployed to where their services are required.

Reply:

(1)(a) The Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) have allocated their 2016/17 Learning and Teaching Support Material (LTSM) budgets as follows

PROVINCE	TEXTBOOKS	STATIONERY
EC	R 835 620 697	R 304 693 907
FS	R54 000 000	R51 5 00 000
GP	R1 006 583 271
KZ	R514 000 000	R384 000 000
LP	R489 339 000	R149 000 000
MP	R 7 281 067	R198 740 602
NC	R79 590 165	R22 337 831
NW	R336 846 462	R163 920 770
WC (S20)	R 196 311 000	R 34 798 247
(S21)	R 495 019 000

(1)(b)(i)(ii)

Retention and retrieval of textbooks are deemed to complement each other and therefore targets have not been separated for each. The department has provided the sector with guidelines which aims for a retention and retrieval rate of 95%.

(2)(a)(b)

Textbooks and other LTSM are maintained through the Retention and Retrieval Guidelines, which is also managed in context with the asset management policies of each provincial department and district. The Guidelines seeks to promote preservation of learner teacher support material as well as holding managers of schools accountable for low retention and retrieval.

In addition, schools are encouraged to implement effective retrieval and retention practices in order to reach universal coverage of textbooks. The attainment of universal coverage is incentivized by allowing schools autonomy to divert textbook budgets towards other learner teacher support materials that the school may deem necessary to promote teaching and learning.

Reply:

a) The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) was not informed of the protest prior to the protest day, and therefore, permission to protest was not granted. The number of learners that participated in the protest led by COSAS on 15 March 2017 is estimated to be around 2 000 and not 5000.

b) The demands of the protesting learners, as captured in the attached memorandum, Annexure A, submitted to the MEC on 15 March 2017 include the following:

1. Termination of contracts between GDE and the National School Nutrition Programme service providers who distribute food to schools.
2. National School Nutrition Program to include breakfast.
3. Provision of Economic Empowerment (Entrepreneurship) lessons in the school curriculum.
4. Provision of still water and not Rand water to schools.
5. Provision of scholar transport to learners that walk for more than 5Km.
6. Provision of sanitary towels for girl learners.
7. Provision of free uniforms to learners.
8. Replacement of chalkboards with smartboards in all schools.
9. Construction of swimming pools in townships schools.
10. Construction of schools of excellence in all townships.

c) The GDE will be engaging the learners through COSAS with regard to all their demands. However, the Department takes exception to the violent behaviour displayed by the learners during the protest.

Reply:

1. (a) – (e) The Department has forwarded the question to the Provincial Education Departments and is awaiting the response. The response will be forwarded as soon as the Department receives it.

(f) As part of the process of rationalisation, merging and closing of schools, learners who will need to be transported from their current schools to the host school are identified, the routes finalised and approved. These are then factored into the transport plan that is submitted to the Department of Transport for the transportation of these learners.

(g) The LTSM resources of the closed school are transferred to the host school that has been identified to accommodate the learners from both schools that are merged. Where there are shortages, additional orders are placed to ensure the requisite LTSM resources are supplied to the school.

However, it must be noted that provisioning of educators at receiving schools is in terms of the post provisioning norms, which takes into account the number of learners as one of the factors.

2. The Department has forwarded the question to the Provincial Education Departments and is awaiting the response. The response will be forwarded as soon as the Department receives it.

Reply:

 

1. The Department was made aware of the letter when an anonymous caller wanted to confirm the legality of the letter sent out to parents by Eastleigh Primary School a few days after its distribution.

2. A school principal is the representative of the Provincial Head of Department at schools level. The principal is required in terms of Section 14-21 of the National Education Policy Act, 27 of 1996 which deals with documents required for admissions to verify all submitted documents for the purpose of admissions of all learners in a school.

3. The Department will not investigate the matter as the matter was addressed with the School Management Team and the School Governing Body. The letter of 22 February 2017 was withdrawn by the school and an apology letter was sent to all parents of the school. The Gauteng Department of Education is working with the Department of Home Affairs in the area to assist affected parents and prevent the repeat of the incident.

Reply:

a) How many volunteers have been investigated for fraud to date?

The Department has been investigating alleged cases of fraud that were reported.

90 volunteers were allegedly involved in fraud and corruption. All reported cases of fraud have been dealt with decisively.

The Department continuously updates its internal controls which assists in strengthening the validation processes and financial management of the campaign.

(b) Was any volunteer found guilty?

Yes, 90 volunteers were found guilty through the Departmental internal processes.

(c) What amount of money was involved?

90 volunteers were identified to have been paid an amount of R282 297.22 without any learners.

(d) Will the volunteer be criminally charged, and

The identified volunteers were removed from the Campaign and the monies deducted.

(e) What steps have been taken to recover the amount in each case?

The Department has recovered R 281 838.53 (99.84%) to date.

To recover monies, the Department deducted the funds owed from the stipend payments due to volunteers. The Department employs volunteers in a hierarchical structure, which are; Monitors, Coordinators, Supervisors and Volunteer Educators.

Detailed Steps:

Deceased Learners registered in the Campaign

Step 1: Once the deceased learners have been identified by the Department of Home Affairs, the volunteers who submitted list of deceased learners are identified.

Step 2: The actual stipend is determined as per the sliding scale.

Step 3: The determined amount of stipend related to the fraudulent transactions is then deducted.

Step 4: The identified volunteers are removed from the Campaign.

 

Reply:

The Department engaged the Hawks regarding the matter who advised that the relevant body that needs to deal with the matter is the Asset and Forfeiture Unit.

Reply:

(a) The correct amount is R1 549 899. At 31 March 2017 an amount of R474 737 was already deducted/recovered from the affected volunteers, leaving the balance of R1 075 161. The balance will be deducted from the affected volunteers when remaining payments are processed where possible.

(b) The Auditor-General based their findings on the information presented to them for audit purposes. Some irregularities were identified during the audit. If the Department disagreed with these findings, the Department had to provide evidence to prove the Department’s case. However, there was not enough time for the Department to agree or disagree with the findings. The investigation of the process would have gone beyond the time of the audit and, in the absence of the evidence the Department disclosed the amount as per the findings of the Auditor-General.

Reply:

The Department has forwarded the question to the Northern Cape Provincial Education Department and is awaiting the response. The response will be forwarded as soon as the Department receives it.

Reply:

1. (a) The ASIDI Programme was allocated an amount of R 2 046 825 000 for the period ending 31 March 2016 (2015/16).

(b) The table below indicates expenditure per province:

Province	Allocation in 2015/2016 Financial Year	Expenditure
Eastern Cape	R 1 084 091 000	R 1 036 314 282.84
Free State	R 478 416 000	R 187 121 154.00
Gauteng	R 11 202 000
KwaZulu-Natal	R 138 097 000	R 40 545 596.00
Limpopo	R 104 316 000	R 18 233 998.00
Mpumalanga	R 128 569 000	R 47 164 814.00
Northern Cape	R 33 638 000	R 6 439 905.00
North West	R 68 496 000	R 15 062 193.00
Eskom (All Provinces)		R 24 806 781.00
Total Capital Expenditure		R 1 375 688 723.84
Add: Operational Expenditure		R 246 731 387.91
Programme Support Unit		R 107 446 255.23
Operational Expenditure		R 33 132 264.97
Furniture & Equipments		R 106 152 867.71
Total	R 2 046 825 000	R 1 622 420 111.75

2. a & b (i & ii), R 424 404 888.25 m was returned to the National Treasury as a result of underspending. The underspent amount was returned to the National Revenue. The primary reason for the under expenditure was the mergers and rationalisation programme undertaken by the EC DoE which resulted in the projects allocated to the Implementing Agents on the ASIDI Programme having to be suspended. The process has since been completed and all the affected projects are in the process of implementation.

Reply:

The process of sharing the findings and recommendations of the report of the South African Human Rights Commission with the key structures of the sector commenced as soon as the DBE received the report in September 2016. Flowing from this, the DBE has constituted an internal multidisciplinary team that will not only respond to events, but that will also develop and institutionalise proactive mechanisms to ensure the protection of the right to a basic education. To guide the work of the team, the DBE has developed terms of reference of which consultations are currently underway within the Department.

Reply:

1. During the Section 100 (1) (b) Intervention in Limpopo Department of Education pay performance incentives to qualifying employees were authorised by the Administrator. The value of the performance incentives paid to qualifying employees was R11 918 310.16

2. The bonus pay-outs were authorised by the Administrator only for salary level 1 – 12 employees and SMS members were only paid pay progression.

Reply:

The list does not include schools with access to only improved ventilated pit latrines.

The requested information can be found on the link to the following webpage: http://www.education.gov.za/Newsroom/ParliamentaryQuestions/2017NA670.aspx containing the Annexure of the list of schools with Ventilated Pit Latrines.

Reply:

(a) (b) The Director-General of the Department of Basic Education, Mr HM Mweli, has directed each Provincial Department of Education to implement principal competency testing in writing (i) on 27 January 2016.

(ii) Provinces have not complied with the directive because the matter has not been finalised at the Education Labour Relations Council (ELRC). It is important for the matter to be concluded by the Council as it affects the basic conditions of employment of educators.

The Western Cape has a functional competency testing system for appointment of principals but it is not mandatory yet. School Governing Bodies are still given an option to utilise the system if they so wish.

Reply:

a) The Department has instituted measures to ensure that the annual registrations for schools proceed smoothly in each province by holding scheduled meetings with all provincial co-ordinators who are at director level and responsible for admissions on a regular basis. They analyse the admissions processes in order to review and amend such processes to ensure that annual registration proceed efficiently from year to year. Provincial admissions co-ordinators share best practice as a way of bringing uniformity in the sector while taking into consideration provincial differences.

b) The following methods have been put in place for Provincial Departments to implement:

(i) Review Regulation/Circular;

(ii) Determine the admission period with a comprehensive management plan (timeframes) mapping out:

• Application Period – distribution of admission forms, when parents return forms, information on documentation needed;
• Management of registration – clear criteria for waiting lists and process to rank applications using feeder schools and residential information as examples, depending on provincial Regulation;
• The period to inform parents on the status of their children’s application;
• Period of placement of learners with information on period to lodge appeals, where to find support if a learner is not placed with contact details of provincial and district officials responsible admissions; and
• Clear strategies on admission of non-citizens.

(iii) Establish admission teams at provincial and district level;

(iv) Mediate admission Circular to schools;

(v) Ratify admission policies of schools;

(vi) Conduct advocacy campaigns to inform parents about early registration and provide all the necessary information about admission processes;

(vii) Place all admission information on the provincial website;

(viii) Monitor admission processes in schools and intervene where there is non-compliance with policy;

(iX) Identify hotspots and develop strategies to address them;

(x) Create a rapid response team to handle grievances and appeals;

(xi) Resolve/ mediate appeals within the shortest period possible;

(xii) Compile report and update figures monthly for the DBE is attention as per the requirement of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education; and

(xiii) Make requisition for additional resources (classrooms, teachers).

The most recent inter-provincial meetings on admissions took place on 6 and 7 December 2016, 7 March 2017 and 29 March 2017. Follow-up meetings focusing on progress reporting in terms of planned admissions activities are scheduled quarterly on the following dates:

1. 7 May 2017;
2. 6 August 2017; and
3. 28 November 2017.

c) Late registrations are centralised in districts as a measure to address disruptions caused by late registrations. This is also meant to prevent parents from disrupting teaching and learning by moving from school to school seeking placement for their children. Districts establish admission teams which collect admission information on available spaces in schools so as to direct learners seeking admission late to such schools accordingly. Letters are issued by disticts directors to schools with spaces available to ease the challenges of late registration.

Reply:

1. The independent was appointed to investigate the alleged fraud and corruption in the Kha Ri Gude programme for the 2014/15 and 2015/16 financial years.

2. (a) There was no tender issued to appoint the service provider because the threshold allowed the Department to source the service through the quotation process. Quotations were sourced from the audit companies registered on Central Supplier Database;

(b) The selection process was based on the 80/20 point system whereby 80 points were for price and 20 points for B-BBEE because quotations were only sourced from the audit firms.

(c) The Terms of Reference required:

• The appointed service provider to investigate the alleged fraud and corruption in the Kha Ri Gude programme for 2014/15 and 2015/16 financial years;
• During the 2015\16 financial year audit, the auditors found that there was registration of deceased learners before the start of the campaign resulting in the overpayment of stipends to educators, supervisors, coordinators and the project management company on account of fraudulent claims and the educators having less than 18 learners. This resulted in alleged fictitious payments made to educators.

(d) The findings and recommendations were as follows:

Findings

• Payment made to individuals with invalid, non-existent ID numbers
• Overpayment of stipend
• Anomalous data

Recommendations

• The Department must recover the money lost with immediate effect and a clear recovery plan must be formulated and implemented. (Recovery has already started. At 31 March 2017 an amount of R474 737 had already been recovered and the recovery continues).

Reply:

The following table reflects the spending, per-learner, with regard to the school allocation. The spending, per-learner, is the same for both primary and secondary school learners.

		2016 School allocations per-learner
Province	Per learner allocation to no fee learners	Per learner allocation to fee paying learners in Quintile 4	Per learner allocation to fee paying learners in Quintile 5
EC	R 1 177	R 590	R 204
FS	R 1 177	R 590	R 240
GT	R 1 177	R 590	R 590
KZN	R 955	R 522	R 179
LP	R 1 102	R 590	R 204
MPU	R 1 010	R 503	R 173
NC	R 1 125	R 698	R 326
NW	R 1 177	R 605	R 204
WC	R 1 144	R 573	R 198

 

Reply:

1.  Yes, the Department has set the deadline for provinces to ensure that all the necessary Learning and Teaching Support Material (LTSM) is delivered to schools. The deadline is end of October annually. Between November of the same year and January of the following, provinces, districts and schools are conducting mop-up processes to accommodate the learner migration and late registration phenomena.

2. The Department has monitoring and oversight systems in place to ensure that provinces deliver all necessary LTSM to schools on time. These systems include reports to the Council of Education Ministers (CEM) meetings, Head of Education Committee Meetings (HEDCOM), Teacher Development and Curriculum Meetings as well as quarterly LTSM forum meetings. These meetings are platforms where provinces are held accountable, where applicable, and assisted where there are challenges.

Reply:

a) The impact of the progressed learners on the overall results of the 2016 National Senior Certificate examination, is 3.7%.

b) The overall pass rate with the progressed learners included is 72.5% and the overall pass rate with the progressed learners excluded is 76.2%. The difference between these two figures is 3.7%

c) The impact was calculated after the standardisation process.

Reply:

According to the layest information received by the Department of Basic Education, the results of the Southern and Eastern Africa Consortium for Monitoring Educational Quality (SACMEQ) IV Project will be made publicly available by the SACMEQ Coordinating Centre by the end of the second term of the 2017 academic year.

Reply:

The following legislative framework is applicable:

• The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (hereinafter, "the Constitution").
• The South African Schools Act, 84 of 1996 (hereinafter, "SASA").
• The Admission Policy for Ordinary Public Schools (hereinafter, "the Admission Policy"), which was published in terms of section 3(4) of the National Education Policy Act, 27 of 1996 (hereinafter, "the NEPA").
• The Immigration Act, 13 of 2002.
• The Refugees Act, 130 of 1998.

 

The Constitution

Chapter 2 of the Constitution guarantees certain fundamental rights for everyone in the Country. One of them is the right to a basic education, and various pieces of legislation strengthen this right.

The South African Schools Act (SASA)

The SASA defines a learner as any person receiving education or who is obliged to receive education in terms of the SASA. The definition of a parent in terms of the SASA includes the biological or adoptive parent or legal guardian of a learner or the person legally entitled to the custody of a learner, as well as the person who undertakes to fulfil the obligations of the above-mentioned persons towards the learner’s school education.

The SASA also obliges every parent of a child of a prescribed age to ensure that such a child goes to school – section 3(1). Most significantly, the SASA makes it compulsory for any public school to admit learners and to serve their education requirements without unfairly discriminating against them in any way.

The SASA does not distinguish between citizens of the Republic and foreign nationals.

Admission Policy

Although the SASA makes no distinction between citizens and non-citizens, the Admission Policy does make provision for learners who are not citizens of the Republic and whose parents are in possession of a permit for temporary or permanent residence issued by the Department of Home Affairs (DHA). It also provides that persons classified as illegal aliens must, when they apply for school admission for their children or for themselves, show evidence that they have applied to the DHA to legalise their stay in the country.

This means that, when applying for admission to a public school, the parents of a non-citizen learner must present the documents stipulated in paragraphs 14 to 18 of the Admission Policy, as well as the documentation stipulated in paragraphs 19 to 21.

The Immigration Act

Learners (school-going children) who intend to study in the Republic for longer than three months must apply for a study permit. A study permit is issued on certain conditions, as stipulated in the Immigration Act.

The Director-General of the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) issues a study permit only if he or she is satisfied that the proposed institution of learning 

• Has been approved and is in good standing with the Director-General of the DHA;
• Certifies that it has received guarantees to its satisfaction that such foreigner’s tuition fees will be paid;
• Received the prescribed guarantees that such foreigner will have sufficient means to support himself or herself while in the Republic;
• In the case of a minor, provides the name of the person in South Africa who is, or has accepted to act as, such minor’s guardian while in the Republic;
• Undertakes to provide prescribed periodic certification that such foreigner is satisfactorily performing his/her curriculum of study; and
• Undertakes to notify the Director-General when such foreigner has completed his/her studies or is no longer performing them satisfactorily.

The Refugees Act

The Refugees Act provides for the manner in which asylum seekers should be received in the Republic and regulates applications for, and the recognition of, refugee status in the Republic.

Refugee status is granted to a person who, owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted by reason of his or her race, gender, tribe, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group, is outside the country of his or her nationality and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, or, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his or her former habitual residence is unable or, owing to such fear, unwilling to return to it.

Before a foreign national is formally recognised as falling within any of these categories, he or she is treated as an asylum seeker and is allowed to enter the Republic and to stay here temporarily, pending the outcome of the application to be accorded refugee status. Such an applicant receives an asylum seeker permit from a refugee reception officer, and this allows the applicant to stay in the Republic, pending the determination of his or her refugee status.

Once refugee status has been granted, an asylum seeker is a recognised refugee and, as is the case with permanent residents, a refugee is entitled to apply for an identity document and enjoys most of the rights of citizens, such as education and health care services. A person's refugee status remains valid until it ceases in terms of the provisions of the Refugees Act.

a) In terms of writing the matric examination, the Council of Education Ministers (CEM), has taken a decision that foreign learners that have been in the system, but do not have the appropriate documentation to register for the NSC examination, should be allowed to register provisionally, and on condition that they will not receive their results, until the appropriate documentation is provided.

b) Children are not allowed to open bank accounts and may only do so when they reach the age of majority (18)

c) Most children in general do not contribute to the economy as they only start working once they finish their school career.

Reply:

It is accepted that the maintenance budget does appear very low, however, the following has to be taken into account when the information is evaluated:

1. Due to the current state of the infrastructure at the schools in the Province of Limpopo, the maintenance work planned at the schools becomes capital expenditure when buildings need to be demolished and rebuilt, as such, the expenditure is not reflected as maintenance in terms of reporting;
2. The repairs to Storm Damaged Classrooms (R 250 million for current programme of 45 schools) should be classified under unplanned maintenance and have been indicated as repairs and renovations; and
3. Repairs and renovations form a substantial portion of the Departmental budget (R 300 million).

Reply:

The Mpumalanga Department of Education budgeted amount was availed to only cater for provision of new textbooks on the National Catalogues to be implemented in the 2017 school year. The budget was insufficient to provide for top ups to new schools.

Reply:

(a) As at the time of the State of the Nation Address, 895 schools had been built since 2009.

(b) (i) & (ii) The requested information can be found on the link to the following webpage: http://www.education.gov.za/Newsroom/ParliamentaryQuestions/NA673Annexure.aspx containing the Annexure with the name and location of the schools.

(c) Projects were implemented by the Provincial Education Departments as well as the National Department of Basic Education on the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative Project (ASIDI).

(d) Information on schools constructed by Provincial Education Departments has been requested and will be collated with the ASIDI projects and provided as soon as it is received.

(e) Information on the total cost of each school constructed by Provincial Education Departments has been requested and will be collated with the ASIDI projects and provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

Information has been requested from the Mpumalanga Department of Education and will be provided as soon as it is received.

Reply:

13 official international trips were made in the past five (5) years.

a) Destinations:

2012/13 Benin and Dar Es Salaam;

2013/14 Kenya and Ghana;

2014/15 Ghana, Canada and Namibia;

2015/16 Namibia, Ontario Teaching Council (Canada), and Zambia; and

2016/17 Ireland and Lesotho.

 

b) Purpose of the trip:

2012/13 Africa Forum of Teaching Regulatory Authorities (AFTRA);

2013/14 AFTRA;

2014/15 AFTRA/ International Forum of Teaching Regulatory Authorities (IFTRA);

2015/16 AFTRA/IRTIR and Conference; and

2016/17 AFTRA/IFTRA.

 

c) Cost of flights

2012/13 Benin R32 840; and

Dar Es Salaam R6 457.

2013/14 Kenya R15 145.53;

Ghana R29 523;

2014/15 Ghana R15 371.20;

Canada R33 102; and

Namibia R6 060.06;

2015/16 Namibia R6 777.72;

Ontario Teaching Council (Canada) R32 506.72;

Zambia R6500.96; and

Ireland and Lesotho R10 087.72.

2016/17 Ireland R20 470.23; and

Lesotho R5 304.23.

 

d) Cost of accommodation

2012/13 Benin R3 609.65; and

Dar Es Salaam R22 126.46.

2013/14 Kenya R17 124.00;

Ghana R26 307.47; and

2014/15 Ghana R16 932.00;

Canada R57 308.95; and

Namibia R8 412.37.

2015/16 Namibia R10 910.35;

Ontario Teaching Council (Canada) R57 726.35.

Zambia R46 216.71; and

Ireland and Lesotho R9 168.49.

2016/17 Ireland R38 315.00; and

Lesotho R3 404.00.

 

e) Car rental none

 

f) Subsistence costs

2012/13 Benin €356; and

Dar Es Salaam $774.

2013/14 Kenya $452; and

Ghana $516.

2014/15 Ghana $903;

Canada $1 503; and

Namibia R3 800.

2015/16 Namibia R5 700;

Ontario Teaching Council (Canada) € 984;

Zambia $595; and

Ireland and Lesotho $357.

2016/17 Ireland €834; and

Lesotho R2 250.