I admit that the government cannot do everything simultaneously. But if I could put myself in the shoes of Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube, I would propose 10 budget priorities.
Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana announced in his revised Budget speech that the total budget for basic education amounts to R349.5-billion for 2025-26.
This is slightly less than the R349.6-billion that was allocated in the rejected Budget (R100-million to be exact) and about 6% of our country’s GDP — much more than the rest of the world’s 4,4%.
Worldwide, governments spend a significant part of their budget on education because the expectation is that it will deliver dividends that will benefit the country as a whole.
The question is — as it was put to me during the recent Klein Karoo Nasionale Kunstefees in Oudtshoorn — whether taxpayers get value for their money if we compare the inputs with the outputs. My answer is “no”.
I admit that the government cannot do everything simultaneously. But if I could put myself in the shoes of Minister of Basic Education Siviwe Gwarube, I would propose 10 budget priorities.
1 Pit latrines
We have done well since I first wrote about the 3,372 schools with pit latrines in 2019. For that we must thank Angie Motshekga. Currently only a few pit latrines remain in Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal (40 schools) and the Eastern Cape (100 schools).
It does not make sense then that the Eastern Cape Department of Education returned nearly R500-million of its budget to the Treasury in 2024. With that money they could have solved the problem of pit latrines once and for all. This speaks of a lack of political will and respect for children’s dignity and self-respect by acknowledging their rights to a safe toilet.
Therefore, it is gratifying that the Safe initiative (Sanitation Appropriate for Education) could mobilise resources and that many businesspeople contributed to the replacement of unsafe toilets at schools. This proves once again that there are many South Africans who want the new South Africa to work.
I would as a first priority get rid of pit latrines. We cannot afford another Michael Komape or Lumka Mkhethwa to die in a pit latrine.
2 Teachers
Teacher salaries amount to 76% of the budgets of provincial education departments. Budget cuts have placed immense pressure on provincial departments. The Western Cape had to declare 2,400 posts redundant.
Teachers have always been the heart of any education system. Aristotle once said: “Those who educate children well are more to be honoured than they who produce them; for these only gave them life, those the art of living well.”
To a child, it is irrelevant whether they were taught according to the Outcomes-Based approach (OBE) or the CAPs method. They remember the teacher who spent time with them after school on the sports field; who accompanied them to music concerts over weekends; the teacher who acted as father to the child who grew up fatherless.
Therefore, I welcome the additional R19-billion allocated to keep about 11,000 teachers in the classroom countrywide. Keep in mind that the money is just for three years, and thus not enough to offer a sustainable solution. But you must start somewhere.
3 Classrooms
If the judgment of a judge of a high court is to be taken seriously (when he indicated that the Overvaal High School was full because each class contained more than 35 learners as prescribed), nearly 80% of schools in South Africa are “full”.
Some are even overcrowded as these schools have much more than 35 learners per class. This means that hundreds of schools must be built, but we know the country does not have money at the moment.
The question is what to do to address the acute shortage of schools. In my view we should prioritise by building a few schools per province every year. The Western Cape, for instance, envisages building 29 schools in the next three years. However, the Cabinet ought to monitor the process to prevent a repeat of the events in the Eastern Cape in 2024.
4 Education assistants
It would appear therefore that at least for the foreseeable future we will be dependent on overcrowded schools. The burden of the teachers struggling with this challenge must be addressed. They are not paid more to perform this thankless task.
I believe the appointment of education assistants could be a solution. It is already being used successfully elsewhere in the world and in certain provinces here at home. The Western Cape will spend R113-million this year to appoint 4,370 assistants as part of their basic education employment initiative. Not only does it relieve the plight of the teachers, it also creates work for young people.
5 Grade R
In a previous article I elaborated about Grade R now being compulsory. Grade R has for a long time been neglected in South Africa and we now pick the bitter fruit of it. Making R10-billion available over the next three years for early child development is a step in the right direction.
I am excited to learn that the Western Cape will spend R845-million on the expansion of Grade R. This will increase the subsidy per child from R17 to R25. It is still not enough, but the additional funding will offer equal access to quality education to 700,000 more children. In my book that is a plus point.
6 Norms and standards
Anyone who is or was a school principal of a quintile 1 to 3 school, like I was, knows how important the norms and standards allocation are for the school. These schools are too poor to charge school fees and are completely dependent on government resources.
The national norms and standards for school finance are set annually by the minister. They provide clear instructions as to what the funding is to be spent on, such as textbooks, stationery, municipal services and maintenance. Currently this amounts to R1,672 per learner per year — R8 per day per child is still very little, but without it the poorer schools will not survive.
An increase would be welcomed. It comes as a shock therefore that the Eastern Cape Education Department last year held back one-third of last year’s norms and standards allocation (R890-million); this in a province where the poorest schools still have the most pit latrines.
Until now attempts by school governing bodies organisation Fedsas to ascertain why the funds were not spent have been fruitless. This is enough to make a mockery of any budget.
7 #BackOnTrack programme
The Covid-19 pandemic led to serious learning losses in schools’ learning and tuition programmes. The Western Cape has spent R322-million on their BackOnTrack programme, and has made significant progress in maths in Grade 9 and languages in Grade 3. All provinces should budget for catch-up programmes that will bring us closer to the international standards for literacy, maths and science.
8 Feeding schemes
No child can learn on an empty stomach. Learners’ access to basic food is guaranteed in the Constitution. Some learners must leave home in the early hours and have to walk long distances to school. That is why feeding schemes were instituted where schools do not have a hostel.
But truth be told, this is not nearly enough. The National Income Dynamics Study shows increasing hunger among learners, and this calls for a bigger slice of the budget cake.
9 Leadership training
I have mentioned that important decisions must be taken by the management of a school. It requires strong leadership, but not all principals and governing bodies are trained for this. The governing functions of the governing body are often confused with school management, which is the task of principals and their school management team.
One of the most unpleasant tasks I had as a circuit manager was when I had to resolve conflict between a principal and the governing body. If the governing body and principal work together in harmony, success is guaranteed. Investing more in leadership training will save us millions of rand.
10 School sport
Having played rugby and cricket myself, and being involved in the administration of school sport for many years, I have great appreciation for this part of the curriculum, the value of which is often underestimated.
There is a misconception that the curriculum only includes the academics, classes and examinations. As early as 1918, Franklin Bobbit referred to the curriculum as a course of experiences that includes academics, culture and sport. School sport is a mechanism for holistic development that teaches children that winning is not everything. Losing is as important as it contributes to character building.
That is why sport and culture should be part of the budget at every school. DM