Aaron Motsoaledi, at the Limpopo Provincial Legislature
11 May 2007
Honourable Speaker
Honourable Premier
My colleagues in the Executive Council, MECs
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Mayors and executive mayors
Teacher unions and other labour unions
Head of Department (HoD) of Education and your managers
Principals of schools
Ladies and gentlemen
1. Introduction
Honourable Speaker, during this era and time it is assumed that everybody
understands the value of education and that assumption cannot be contested.
But this morning, I wish to outline four major issues about education which
I want all of us to understand.
These four issues will help us understand why the department is going to
follow certain strategies but not others.
* Firstly education is essential for accelerated human development. We do
not know any country on this planet that has ever been able to develop without
education.
So whether you are in America, Britain, China, Russia, Australia and Japan
or indeed on our own African continent education will remain a driving force
for development.
* One of the most potent weapons individual can use to fight poverty, i.e.
all political factors being equal is education. Other methods employed to fight
poverty will always fall short if education is not in the forefront.
* In many countries around the globe, the rate at which their economy is
able to grow is influenced by and large by the quality of education the
citizens receive.
* The continued survival of democracy also depends on the type of education
received in a particular country.
Hence, honourable Speaker, the theme of our budget speech this year is:
"Education: a pre-condition for development".
If education occupies such status in societies, then it becomes a right for
all citizens and not a privileged of the few. That education is a right has
long been accepted in our country. But we know that the exercise of this right
is impeded by financial resources in individual families.
We have not yet attained the state of free education. But to move closer to
that, the state has come with a system of "no-fee schools".
2. "No-fee schools"
While this concept has been spoken about before, many people, among them
political leaders, are still asking lots of questions. It is essential that we
speak about this issue again and again.
Honourable Speaker, last year we informed this House that poverty scores for
each municipality ward have been obtained from Statistics South Africa (Stats
SA).
These scores were used to divide schools into quintiles. There are five
quintiles.
Quintile one schools is the poorest schools and quintiles five are the
richest schools. Put differentially, quintile one schools is in the poorest
municipality ward and quintile five schools are in the richest ward.
We wish to emphasise that all schools in a similar ward shall automatically
fall in the same quintile. Where there are discrepancies, these need to be
corrected according to this understanding.
While all schools in the same ward belong to the same quintile, we made an
exception to farm schools. All farm schools are regarded to be poor and in
quintile one regardless of which ward they belong to.
Secondly no boarding school will ever be placed in quintile one or two
because they are regarded to be better off.
Let me remind this house what happened in the last financial year.
2.1. 2006/07 school funding norms
A total amount of R316 194 840-00 was distributed to schools as follows:
2006/07 school funding norms
Quintiles: Q1
Number of schools: 1 042
Enrolment: 512 687
Subsidy per learner: R270
Total subsidy: R138 425 490
Quintiles: Q2
Number of schools: 1 268
Enrolment: 474 558
Subsidy per learner: R270
Total subsidy: R128 130 660
Quintiles: Q3
Number of schools: 915
Enrolment: 417 702
Subsidy per learner: R70
Total subsidy: R29 239 140
Quintiles: Q4
Number of schools: 646
Enrolment: 283 956
Subsidy per learner: R50
Total subsidy: R14 197 800
Quintiles: Q5
Number of schools: 337
Enrolment: 206 725
Subsidy per learner: R30
Total subsidy: R6 201 750
Total
Number of schools: 4 208
Enrolment: 1 895 628
Total subsidy: R316 194 840
Honourable Speaker, Limpopo decided that Q1 and Q2 schools i.e. a total of 2
526 schools with a total learner population of 987 245 be declared "no-fee
schools".
2.2 The situation in 2007/08 i.e. this financial year is in actuality
different. We have markedly improved it for many of our schools:
2007/08: School funding norms
Quintiles: Q1
Number of schools: 1 609
Enrolment: 617 910
Subsidy per learner: R329
Total subsidy: R203 292 390
Quintiles: Q2
Number of schools: 948
Enrolment: 398 618
Subsidy per learner: R329
Total subsidy: R131 145 322
Quintiles: Q3
Number of schools: 1 177
Enrolment: 563 589
Subsidy per learner: R259
Total subsidy: R145 969 551
Quintiles: Q4
Number of schools: 185
Enrolment: 134 226
Subsidy per learner: R124
Total subsidy: R16 644 024
Quintiles: Q5
Number of schools: 97
Enrolment: 65 544
Subsidy per learner: R50
Total subsidy: R3 277 200
Total
Number of schools: 4 016
Enrolment: 1 779 887
Total subsidy: R500 328 487
As you can see, honourable Speaker, while last year 987 245 learners
benefited from "no-fee schools" this year 1 016 528 learners are going to
benefit and with more increased amounts per learner than last year!
While the total money spend last year on the quintiles was R316 194 840,
this year we are going to spend R500 328 487 i.e it has grown by an additional
R184 133 647 over last year!
We wish to apologise to those schools that struggled to get their funds in
the last financial year. We believe that with the experience we have gained we
will do better this year. We also believe that whatever bitterness occurred
last year, it will be sweetened by the fact that this year many more schools
are going to find themselves in much more favourable quintiles than last
year.
Please note that we did not include money for Learner Teacher Support
Material (LTSM) as we did last year. The monies mentioned here are what schools
will receive in cash. A whooping R5 billion!
2.3. With this money, all the Q1 and Q2 schools, i.e the 2 557 which are
declared "no-fee schools" are directed as follows:
2.3.1. put up good security fencing around the school
2.3.2. put up a borehole and insert a water pump
* if there are no toilets, put up temporary corrugated iron toilets until the
Department constructs a proper environ-loo toilet for you
* repair all broken windows and doors.
We require that all these be done in order to put these schools at the same
level with the other well-to-do schools in the province. Hence, we are putting
more money in this Q1 and Q2 schools.
However, we wish to advise all schools that they can only carry on these
instructions after having budgeted for normal running cost of the school for
the whole year because no other money will be send to any school!
It is essential to understand that the aim of this "quintile money" is to
promote the delivery of a successful curriculum in our schools. The other
things mentioned are there to support the curriculum.
We call upon the wisdom of principals, school government bodies (SGBs) as
well as other leaders in our communities to help with proper guidance on the
spending of these monies.
We have heard rumours of principals planning trips to Durban using this
money while learners are short of very basic school necessities.
While the Department obviously supplies books i.e LTSM for schools but to
find a school short of only five books while quintile money is used for
luxurious items, will indicate management bankruptcy on the side of the
principal.
What should we make out about the mentality of the principal if toilets are
blocked and sewerage is overflowing while the school is purchasing luxurious
items or undertaking long distance trips?
Honourable Speaker, I wish to deal once and for all with the issue of the
municipality services in our schools. We are faced with a problem with some
mayors breathing heavily upon our neck about schools which renege on payment of
services.
I wish to make it very clear and I want mayors to understand this wherever
they are:
* It is not the responsibility of the Department of Education to pay for
electricity or municipal services of a school. It is the sole responsibility of
that school. We is giving them money in the form of these quintiles to pay up.
They must budget. If they fail to pay, municipalities must chase the individual
schools and not the Department of Education. Take action against the school and
we as a Department will demand an explanation from the principal.
3. Human resources
Honourable Speaker, a country is as rich as its human capital. However, in
Limpopo Department of Education our biggest headache is caused by lack of
personnel. From schools through to circuit and district offices, right up to
head office there is a very serious shortage of personnel.
We are undeniably the most understaffed department in the whole country.
However, we are happy that both treasuries at national and provincial level as
well as the provincial Cabinet have become aware of this disturbing state of
affairs and are helping out to solve the problem.
Honourable Speaker, let me inform the House what we did since our last
budget speech:
3.1 We have absorbed 8 651 temporary teachers into permanent posts.
3.2. We have appointed 3 800 HoDs in schools.
3.3. We have appointed 450 deputy principals.
3.4. We have appointed 600 principals.
This year we shall do the following:
3.5. add 1 330 extra teachers into schools
3.6. add 77 extra deputy principals into schools
3.7. add 438 extra HoDs into schools, so that the biggest secondary schools can
have up to nine HoDs instead of the present four.
Honourable Speaker, by the end of December last year we had advertised 817
posts. For the past three months we have been working around the clock to fill
these posts.
We have appointed:
* senior general manager (DDG): 1
* general manager (chief director): 2
* senior manager (director): 11
* chief education specialist (CES): 8
* deputy chief education specialist (DCES): 22
* senior education specialists (SES): 161
The remaining part of this year we shall appoint 147 CES, 84 DCES, 50
managers and five deputy managers.
The most disappointing aspect of what we are going through is that out of
430 posts for SES or curriculum specialist for maths, science and technology,
accounting and commerce we could only find 150 people appointable. The search
is still on for the rest.
This new posts has cost R250 million this financial year.
Honourable Speaker, we are happy to announce that each of the five districts
in Limpopo has a new senior manager since last week.
We are specifically pleased because out of these five appointments three are
women. It is a first for our Department.
These three are not the only women who made us proud.
It is my pleasure to introduce to this house three more women luminaries who
made us very proud. These are women who obtained position one in the national
teacher awards awarded annually by the Deputy President.
* Tinyiko Florence Baloyi obtained position one in excellence in Adult Basic
Education and Training (ABET). She is from Rivoningo ABET Centre.
* Mokgaetji Johanna Mabusela obtained position one in excellence in secondary
school leadership.
For the past five years she wakes up daily from Mahwelereng travels 130
kilometres and back to Tlou-Nare Secondary School in Ga-Radingwane in
Sekhukhune. She found an ordinary unknown school there. Since her arrival, she
pushed its results to 100% pass rate. Last year she pushed it into the top 40
schools of the province. What a woman!
* Matshidisho Esther Mashishi obtained position one in Lifetime Achievement
Award for dedicating her whole life in the service of disabled learners of
Thušanong Special School in Bela-Bela.
Sorry guys, no male in Limpopo got any prize at the national teacher
awards.
4. Infrastructure
After shortage of maths and science teachers our second most serious
challenge is the issue of infrastructure.
This infrastructure challenge is daily in the media to the extent that
people have come to believe that we are doing nothing about it.
Honourable Speaker, by 1994 when we took over government we had a backlog of
350 classrooms. Since then 170 have been build. But we have a new enemy which
we did not envisaged when we took over in 1994.
A study by Deloitte and Touche engineers conducted province by province
shows that in Limpopo:
* 50% of our schools are classified as very weak
* 20% are classified as weak
* 18% are good
* 12% are excellent
The 50% classified as very weak and the 20% classified as weak i.e. a
whopping 70% cannot be renovated or refurbished. They must be built from
scratch.
Honourable Speaker, these are the schools that communities build on their
own without any help from the government during the era of apartheid. They
built these with very meagre resources without any architect, any quantity
surveyor or any engineer.
Honourable Speaker, 70% of schools in Limpopo means 2 700 schools. A number
of them are collapsing annually. Last year alone 239 of them became storm
damaged and we are finalising their construction from scratch i.e. no
repairing, but building of brand new classrooms. Due to this storm damage and
collapse, honourable Speaker, in Limpopo you may not find any learner under any
tree today but tomorrow you may find a couple of them. That is the disturbing
reality of our situation.
It is a very serious problem because when you announce that there are no
learners under trees today and tomorrow they are there, you are branded a
liar.
Since the President directed that there should be no learners under trees,
we have supplied more that 700 mobile classrooms to supplement classroom
construction.
But so serious is the shortage that the demand of mobile classrooms in
Limpopo far outstrips the capacity of companies to supply. Some schools have
been waiting for a very long time and they blame the Department for that. I
usually tell them that if they can come across any company selling mobile
classrooms which are ready we shall buy immediately on the sport!
Before announcing our plans for infrastructure for this financial year let
me report to the House what we did last year as far as classroom construction
is concerned.
Storm damaged schools, re-built in 2006/07 financial year
A. Primary schools
District: Waterberg
Number of schools: 8
Number of classrooms built: 64
Number of desks supplied: 1 280
District: Capricorn
Number of schools: 26
Number of classrooms built: 176
Number of desks supplied: 3 520
District: Vhembe
Number of schools: 54
Number of classrooms built: 372
Number of desks supplied: 7 440
District: Mopani
Number of schools: 17
Number of classrooms built: 124
Number of desks supplied: 2 480
District: Bohlabela
Number of schools: 13
Number of classrooms built: 128
Number of desks supplied: 1 900
District: G-Sekhukhune
Number of schools: 16
Number of classrooms built: 96
Number of desks supplied: 1 920
Totals
Number of schools: 134
Number of classrooms built: 960
Number of desks supplied: 18 540
B. Secondary schools
District: Waterberg
Number of schools: 14
Number of classrooms built: 56
Number of desks supplied: 1 960
District: Capricorn
Number of schools: 12
Number of classrooms built: 100
Number of desks supplied: 3 500
District: Vhembe
Number of schools: 29
Number of classrooms built: 268
Number of desks supplied: 9 380
District: Mopani
Number of schools: 19
Number of classrooms built: 140
Number of desks supplied: 4 900
District: Bohlabela
Number of schools: 13
Number of classrooms built: 116
Number of desks supplied: 2 600
District: G-Sekhukhune
Number of schools: 17
Number of classrooms built: 124
Number of desks supplied: 4 340
Total
Number of schools: 104
Number of classrooms built: 804
Number of desks supplied: 26 680
Learners under trees and in shacks
C. Primary schools
District: Waterberg
Number of schools: 6
Number of classrooms built: 32
Number of desks supplied: 640
District: Capricorn
Number of schools: 11
Number of classrooms built: 80
Number of desks supplied: 1 600
District: Vhembe
Number of schools: 14
Number of classrooms built: 96
Number of desks supplied: 1 920
District: Mopani
Number of schools: 11
Number of classrooms built: 72
Number of desks supplied: 1 440
District: Bohlabela
Number of schools: 8
Number of classrooms built: 68
Number of desks supplied: 420
District: G-Sekhukhune
Number of schools: 12
Number of classrooms built: 60
Number of desks supplied: 1 200
Total
Number of schools: 62
Number of classrooms built: 408
Number of desks supplied: 7 220
D. Secondary schools
District: Waterberg
Number of schools: 1
Number of classrooms built: 8
Number of desks supplied: 280
District: Capricorn
Number of schools: 8
Number of classrooms built: 44
Number of desks supplied: 1 540
District: Vhembe
Number of schools: 12
Number of classrooms built: 124
Number of desks supplied: 4 340
District: Mopani
Number of schools: 4
Number of classrooms built: 32
Number of desks supplied: 1 120
District: Bohlabela
Number of schools: 3
Number of classrooms built: 36
Number of desks supplied: 1 120
District: G-Sekhukhune
Number of schools: 5
Number of classrooms built: 32
Number of desks supplied: 1 120
Total
Number of schools: 33
Number of classrooms built: 276
Number of desks supplied: 9 660
Total primary and secondary schools
Number of schools: 333
Number of classroom built: 2 448
Number of desks supplied: 62 100
4.1 Our 2007/08 to 2009/10 medium term expenditure framework (MTEF) plan is
as follows:
Summary: Capex budget required â infrastructure plan 2007/08 to 2009/10
Number of sub-programme:
1. New infrastructure
1.1 New school (rural)
Year 2007/08: 310
Year 2008/09: 0
Year 2009/10: 0
1.2 New schools (Polokwane)
Year 2007/08: 170
Year 2008/09: 350
Year 2009/10: 210
1.3 New schools (SDM)
Year 2007/08: 90
Year 2008/09: 400
Year 2009/10: 200
1.4 Off-shoot schools
Year 2007/08: 51 904
Year 2008/09: 82 068
Year 2009/10: 92 500
1.5 Circuit offices
Year 2007/08: 300
Year 2008/09: 480
Year 2009/10: 480
2. Replacement/rehabilitation
2.1 Condemned schools (phase 1 to 89)
Year 2007/08: 96 183
Year 2008/09: 0
Year 2009/10: 0
2.2 Condemned schools (phase 2 â admin blocks)
Year 2007/08: 550
Year 2008/09: 198 507
Year 2009/10: 282 414
2.3 SDM cross-boundary schools
Year 2007/08: 60
Year 2008/09: 180
Year 2009/10: 200
2.4 Refreshment: full service schools
Year 2007/08: 60
Year 2008/09: 0
Year 2009/10: 0
2.5 Refurbishment to education multi purpose centres
Year 2007/08: 160
Year 2008/09: 200
Year 2009/10: 100
2.6 Additional funding for EU funded schools
Year 2007/08: 100
Year 2008/09: 0
Year 2009/10: 0
2.7 Refurbishment of DoE warehouses
Year 2007/08: 0
Year 2008/09: 180
Year 2009/10: 150
2.8 refurbishment of DoE HQ
Year 2007/08: 10 254
Year 2008/09: 120
Year 2009/10: 120
3. Providing services
3.1 Water for schools
Year 2007/08: 100
Year 2008/09: 500
Year 2009/10: 500
3.2 Electrification of schools
Year 2007/08: 0
Year 2008/09: 250
Year 2009/10: 250
4. Temporary accommodation
4.1 Mobile classrooms
Year 2007/08: 100
Year 2008/09: 200
Year 2009/10: 250
5. Management services
5.1 TA support
Year 2007/08: 20
Year 2008/09: 30
Year 2009/10: 40
5.2 EU supervision
Year 2007/08: 20
Year 2008/09: 10
Year 2009/10: 0
5.3 Annual planning
Year 2007/08: 30
Year 2008/09: 50
Year 2009/10: 70
Total
Year 2007/08: 365 341
Year 2008/09: 575 575
Year 2009/10: 631 914
4.2 School furniture
One of the most disturbing characteristic of our public schooling system in
Limpopo is the glaring shortage of school furniture or school desks.
Since last year we have worked around the clock to solve this problem. The
Department working mostly with upcoming entrepreneurs was able to kick-start a
very important programme whose effects will be felt even outside our
schools.
Forty-three companies have been encouraged to establish factories to
manufacture desks to supply our schools.
Honourable Speaker, I am very happy to announce that just between January
and March this year within a period of three months they have been able to
supply 62 300 desks to our schools at a cost of R33 551 112. We are now going
to be very aggressive in our supply of school furniture to ensure that every
learner has furniture on which to sit and write.
Honourable Speaker, the Department has put aside an amount of R80 million in
this financial year for the supply of school furniture.
However, I wish to warn the province that the shortage in our schools is
such that it may take us up to five years at the rate of R100 million per annum
to catch up with the backlog. It is not something that can be dealt with in a
year or two.
5. Early Childhood Development (ECD)
Honourable Speaker, this budget speech is taking place just three weeks
after Limpopo Department of Health and Social Development, Department of
Education, Department of Housing and Local Government, Department of Public
Works and Department of Safety and Security together held a very informative
and successful ECD Summit.
This summit was addressed by Mr Macharia Kamau from the United Nations
Children's Fund (UNICEF). Mr Kamau made a very strong case and demonstrated
graphically the rate of return to investment in human capital when such
investment is skewed heavily in the pre-school period v/s when such investment
is made during the schooling period or worse still during the post school
period.
He quoted James J Beckman, Nobel laureate in economic science when he said,
"The real question is how to use the available funds wisely. The best evidence
supports the policy position, invest in the very young."
Honourable Speaker, since education is a vehicle for political agenda it
means starting early in life in the ECD will set a very early political
agenda.
So, honourable Speaker, our conclusion from the summit is that while Limpopo
is far ahead of the rest of the country in ECD, e.g. we have by far the highest
number of grade R learners than any province the summit really exposed our
shortcomings, very serious shortcomings.
One of the most glaring shortcomings is that in the child population Stats
SA, when you divide children from age 0 to 19 year into four categories, the
highest category is the age 0 to four years, followed by age groups five to
nine years then comes age groups 10 to 14 years and lastly age groups 15 to 19
years.
But in our education system the biggest investment in time, money and
personnel is in the last and smallest age group of 15 to 19 yrs. The summit was
simply telling us that it is too late to invest when somebody is already so
old.
We have decided honourable speaker that we shall present to this province
next year, a completely different picture of our investment in ECD in an
appropriate manner.
So for this year, we shall say no more than what we are saying here about
ECD. We will have to go back to the drawing board.
6. Further Education and Training (FET) colleges
Honourable Speaker, when the Cabinet took a decision that the country must
target an economic rate of six percent per annum, they also realise that a
programme is needed to achieve that. One if the most identifiable programmes to
that effect is the Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa
(AsgiSA).
I am afraid, honourable Speaker, that unless something drastic is done, the
skills level in the country is such that AsgiSA will remain a pipe dream.
The fact that the honourable Minister of Home Affairs had to give the
country permission to import 350 skilled people is a clear indication that we
must more than redouble our efforts in education.
Redoubling our efforts is indeed what the country is doing in the FET
sector.
We have been given money to recapitalise our FET colleges. To this end
Limpopo was given R43 million in the last financial year to prepare learners
for new courses.
I am happy, honourable Speaker, to announce that the money was put to good
use. We have established in our FET sector the following new courses:
6.1 civil engineering and building construction with an intake of 481
students
6.2 engineering and related design with an intake of 758 students
6.3 electrical infrastructure constructions with an intake of 684
students
6.4 finance economics and accounting with intake of 211 students
6.5 management with an intake of 965 students
6.6 hospitality studies with intake of 175 students
6.7 information technology and computer science with intake of 225
students
6.8 marketing with intake of 77 students
6.9 office administration with intake of 397 students
6.10 tourism with intake of 75 students
6.11 primary agriculture with intake of 95 students
This, honourable Speaker, gives us a total of 3 274 students who enrolled in
2007 for these 11 new recapitalised courses in our FET colleges.
We shall continue to build upon this intake until our FET colleges are fully
recapitalised and are no longer regarded as poor cousins of our
universities.
7. Maths, science and technology
Honourable Speaker, I have already mentioned earlier the shortage we are
experiencing in the Department in terms of personnel.
However, one of the most desperate shortages we are experiencing is that of
maths and science teachers.
This shortage is even experienced in what we regard as the most unlikely
schools.
I got gooseflesh last month when we were at our best school in the province,
Mbilwi High school. Mbilwi did not get 100% exemptions last year as they always
do. They got 91% exemptions.
This is because seven of their best teachers, especially in maths and
science, were offered higher promotional posts by other schools last year. My
fear was generated on discovery that by last month they had not yet been able
to replace these maths and science teachers because none is available around
the province or dare I say, around the country.
My agony has compounded when vhoThovhele, vhokhosi Mphaphuli who addressed
the ceremony told the crowd that he is prepared to go against tradition and
kneel in front of the MEC and ask him to give Mbilwi maths and science
teachers.
On this occasion, honourable Speaker, Anglo Platinum was handing over state
of the art laboratories which they build for Mbilwi. But the question was with
no maths and science teachers, how will the state of art help the learners?
So, honourable Speaker, I declare that hard work won't be enough to help the
province.
We need to go to war. We need to take our forces to war on this issue of
maths, science and technology.
Hence, honourable Speaker, we have fired the first volley. We have
established this year a special directorate on maths, science and technology
manned by a senior manager, a chief education specialists and three deputy
chief education specialists.
This everyday talk and dream in the Department will be maths, science and
technology.
Our second volley is that preparations are advancing to reopen Mathematics,
Science and Technology (MASTEC) as in-service training for our teachers by
January next year.
The third section we have declared upon is to design a special teaching
degree for Limpopo.
This degree has already been designed with the University of the
Witwatersrand (Wits). In this degree, the student teacher is majoring in maths,
science, technology and African language.
The degree is 100% sponsored by Limpopo Department of Education. This year
we had planned to sponsor 250 students, increasing to 500 next year and
reaching 10 per annum from 2009.
Unfortunately, honourable Speaker, instead of 200 students, only 37 enrolled
at Wits this year compounding our hardships.
All Wits want from a prospective learner is a matric exemption, C in
standard grade (SG) maths or an E in higher grade (HG) maths. If enough
students show up next year, the universities of Limpopo and University of Venda
Science and Technology will also offer the degree.
The Deputy President of the country has also joined the war. She has
announced that at the end of this year we are going to compare matric results
with that of 2006. Any school within the Republic that will produce one more
learner who passes maths and science HG above 2006 results, the Deputy
President will pay that school R10 per learner.
Honourable Speaker, this is more than three times what we are paying per
learner for no-fee schools. We are paying R329 per learner. She is giving to
pay R10 per learner. All the school needs to do is to produce a HG learner
above what they did last year.
What an offer, honourable Speaker!
You may also be aware, honourable Speaker, that of the 350 skilled personnel
which the Minister of Home Affairs declared in a government gazette that the
country can import, 10 are maths and science educators.
Last month we ran an advert on our three radio stations, Phalaphala,
Munghana Lonene and Thobela. We were calling to any teacher who is unemployed
but can teach maths and science in grade 10 and 12. We were hoping that at
least 300 unemployed teachers would respond because we would have hired all of
them. I regret to mention to you that only 45 responded. Out of this 45 only
four qualified to teach maths and science in grade 10 to 12.
So our situation is worsening!
We have no option but to hire teachers from other countries as per that
government gazette. In this case plans are far advanced to acquire such
services. If we don't do it, I am hereby informing this house that a sizeable
number of learners in Limpopo will face the end of year matric exams without
having seen a single maths teacher in their school.
7. ABET and Education for Learners with Special Education Needs (ELSEN)
We are aware of our shortcomings in the field of ABET and ELSEN. We have
been working around the clock to resolve these shortcomings. We believe that
next year, we will be able to announce new plans in these very important areas.
At the moment we are still running them like business as usual. We cannot be
comfortable because new innovations are needed. When we are ready, we shall
announce those.
8. Total budget
Honourable Speaker, I am presenting today a total budget of R11 948 413 000
for consideration of this House. The details by this, you will find in the
table of the back of the budget booklet.
9. Conclusion
Let me conclude by introducing to this house our other luminaries,
principals of schools that made us proud.
The ladies I introduced earlier, made us proud in the National Teacher
Awards.
The schools I am going to introduce made us proud in the most improved
school awards, also awarded this year by the Deputy President.
* Mathematics excellence goes to Capricorn High School. They had more
learners who passed maths higher grade in 2006 than 2005.
* Consistency improvement prize was given to Mudubatse Secondary School in
Mopani. They have had the most consistent improvement since 2004.
* South African languages category:
Xitsonga: Rivubje High School in Makhado
Tshivenda: Morude Secondary School in Thohoyandou
Sepedi: Phuselo High School in Lenyenye
Honourable Speaker, let me take this opportunity to thank the HoD, Rev ZC
Nevhatalu and his management team. He landed running in this Department and
despite the fact that he is only five months old in the position, he is already
ageing. But he has learnt the ropes very fast.
I will further thank the Treasury and the Cabinet for their understanding of
our situation. Without that understanding we would not be filing so many posts
as we are doing now.
Please continue understanding us. It is only the province that shall
benefit.
I will like to thank the chairperson of the portfolio committee Mrs Joyce
Ndimande and her committee members for also understanding what we are going
through. Your support is very much valued.
Let me thank all our stakeholders, the teacher unions, the SGBs, parents,
learners and student organisations, private sectors and all the people who work
with us and honoured this occasion.
I thank you from the bottom of my heart!
Issued by: Department of Education, Limpopo Provincial Government
11 May 2007
