Honourable Greg Schneemann, MP
Ladies and gentlemen
When this administration lead by President Zuma, took office in 2009 it made education an apex priority amongst others. By making education our priority we made it clear that education is not the responsibility of government alone. Every sector in society has a role to play to ensure that South Africa develops and produces the type of citizens required by a modern society, which are enabled to meet the demands of a knowledge economy.
Our motto when elected in 2009 was and is still ‘working together’. This motto is truer than ever before as I continue to say no single person can achieve change in a society alone. As a Deputy Minister alone, I cannot change the learning and teaching environment of this school, it is only through partnership and collaboration like this one with Cell C, ZTE and New Age Holdings that together we can better the lives of South Africans.
I wish to plead with you as a school community to work together as parents, educators, learners and non-teaching staff for the development of our community. I am part of this community and the school and I want to see you succeeding in producing the leadership of tomorrow as we begin a journey of building a knowledge economy.
Information and communications technologies (ICTs) are changing our society, men and women, whether rich or poor, young or old, urban or rural, employed or unemployed. Their effects are felt in all sectors, by schools, companies, households, associations, governments and parliaments, in private lives and in all countries. Gone are the days when an African child in poor and rural communities will experience the usage of computers after completing their school education or when they start a new job.
Technology has proven transformative through its singular capacity to enable us not just to do familiar things better or more efficiently, but to do familiar things differently, and new things that have never before been possible or even imagined. ICTs are the catalysts that are changing the behaviour and culture of most institutions in society, including education institutions.
ICTs are more than modern media. Their ability to facilitate horizontal, interactive and democratic communication represents a major qualitative step forward. In the African information society, the intangible elements of knowledge thus assume an importance that cannot be compared with the tools and techniques (information technology, internet, and telecommunications) which enable dissemination and sharing.
As, I handover this computers I wish to encourage parents to take part in the education of their children and work very close with educators in moulding of our future leaders to become better citizens demanded by modern society. Elections of school governing will ensue soon as parents we must participate not only by just being elected in School Governing Body (SGB’s) rather shaping schools policy and implementing government policies.
Diepsloot team I am humble myself as I handover these computers and to enable you to reclaim our future as we change the face of our community, through ICTs. Allow me to thank our partners Cell C, ZTE, New Age Holdings and Mzumbe-Ekheya Consulting for making show this event becomes a success and I wish to urge you to continue supporting poor and rural community so with you partnership and support we can bridge the digital divide.
I thank you.
