Masifundisane Graduation Ceremony held at the Royal Show Grounds in
Pietermaritzburg
11 September 2007
Programme Director,
MEC for Education, Ina Cronje,
Western Cape MEC for Education, Dugmore,
Members of the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Executive Council,
Chairperson of the Education Portfolio Committee,
Director General of the Province, K B Mbanjwa,
Senior Managers and Official,
Masifundisane Graduates,
Parents,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen
Protocol
Masifundisane is a response by the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government to
the high illiteracy rates which exist in our province. There are at least 1.2
million people who cannot read and write, and hence are functionally
illiterate. They are not able to benefit fully from the democratic processes of
our province and country because of this.
In this context, we announced during the State of the Province last year
that we would roll out the Masifundisane Campaign, a three-year programme which
seeks to eradicate illiteracy in our province. We are pleased to inform you
today that the programme has been running for 12 months now, and we are on
track to reach our target of eradicating illiteracy by 2009. Masifundisane is
supported by all departments and the broader community, and is being ably
implemented by the provincial Department of Education.
Challenges to literacy
Access to literacy for all is enshrined in the Constitution. There are
however many barriers which stand in the way of this access to literacy. These
include distance between home and a site of learning, the friendliness of the
education and examination system, time at which classes are held, the ability
to buy or access learning materials, eyesight problems, foreign language
challenges, and unfriendly and incompetent tutors, among others. The other
pressing challenge is relevance of the curriculum which does not appear to be
relevant to the immediate daily needs of the learners.
As we take this giant step forward, we are thus keenly aware that we must
address these challenges if we are to make a lasting impact in eradicating
illiteracy.
Classes are held in private homes, churches, crèches and community halls.
Learners determine the times on the provision that eight hours are taken every
week. We also ensure that learners are provided with the best learning
materials and stationery. Continuous assessment is conducted and examinations
are only utilised to validate the results given by the facilitators.
Rolling out Masifundisane
In our effort to affirm the central role of our youth in education and the
reconstruction of our society, we are using unemployed matriculants as
facilitators. During their time the matriculants receive a stipend. They also
benefit from the programme through receiving training on the provision of Adult
Basic Education and Training (Abet) and the administration of learning
sites.
Over the past 12 months, 76 000 learners have already been reached of which
8 000 have already completed their courses. The provision of learning is done
in conjunction with various partners including Amakhosi, Councillors, the
District and Local Municipalities, other provincial departments, sister
education departments, religious communities, ordinary citizens, Further
Education and Training (FET) Colleges and institutions of Higher Learning.
Learners are exposed to a pre-planned curriculum based on the national
outcomes as set by the Department of Education nationally and a parallel local
curriculum is set in conjunction with the learners.
Role of the private sector
We would like to invite the private sector to join us in this battle against
illiteracy.
We believe that an illiterate population undermines the wonderful effort of
private business in its quest, together with government, for job creation and
the eradication of unemployment.
Skills shortage has been identified as one of the binding constraints which
stand in the way of sustained economic growth in our country and province. The
eradication of illiteracy draws more numbers of people away from the periphery
of our economy and moves them closer to the centre. This is a small, yet very
critical, step in the overall development of our society and the creation
ultimately of a non-racial, non-sexist KwaZulu-Natal for all.
Effective co-ordination and monitoring
We are challenged in the monitoring of learning sites by the fact that many
of the learners are in areas which are not easy to access. We currently have 3
000 learning sites in the province and as many facilitators. In order to ensure
we are able to effectively monitor and maintain consistent standards across
KwaZulu-Natal, we are indebted to the community based monitors who are doing a
sterling job in this regard. We applaud these community volunteers for their
role. It is this intervention that has ensured that the Masifundisane Campaign
is owned by the communities in which it is implemented, and the monitoring
skills can be transferred to other community projects at a later stage.
Addressing poverty and unemployment
Masifundisane is part of a broader plan to restore dignity to our people. As
a province, we have developed the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy
(PGDS) which is based on partnership with all stakeholders including business,
government and labour.
The Provincial Growth and Development Strategy (PGDS) have the following
priorities:
* the eradication of poverty and inequality
* managing the impact of HIV and AIDS and reducing its spread
* re-engineering and enhancing service delivery in government
* investing in infrastructure
* strengthening of governance
* development of human capability
We cannot deal with the twin evils of unemployment and poverty without
ensuring, first of all, that all our people are literate. In the 21st century
there is no country or province that can hope to play an active role in the
world if the majority of its people are illiterate. Through the Masifundisane
Campaign we are sure to deal with this challenge in two years time.
At the next level we also need to constantly create a new skills base in our
province which is geared towards addressing the needs of our economy in order
to sustain its growth path. In particular, we have identified scarce skills
such as tool making and those of artisans, among others, as necessary in our
economy.
The role of FET Colleges
Beyond basic literacy, one of the questions we must answer is: how we can
better utilise our Further Education and Training (FET) Colleges to bridge the
skills gap and respond to the demands of industry? During the 2006/07 State of
the Nation Address, the President of the Republic of South Africa Thabo Mbeki,
identified Further Education and Training (FET) Colleges as a terrain where the
battle to correct this shortage of skills could also be realised.
FET colleges have the necessary resources and facilities to train people for
the 21st century. It is important that the programmes we offer, during skills
and literacy training, are eventually properly aligned towards the skills
requirements of our country and province. They must remain fully alive to our
changing needs. Through the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy we aim
to address the legacy of apartheid which gives a class and racial tone to the
skills shortage debate. This calls for the effective alignment of the FET
Colleges, the PGDS as well as the Sector Education Authorities in our province
in order to respond to the training needs of KwaZulu-Natal.
Our FET Colleges provide the following categories of learning:
* targets of the national skills development strategy
* custom-designed skills training for the local industry
* training for the Expanded Public Works Programme
* training for food production and poverty alleviation
* small medium and micro-enterprises (SMMEs) and co-operatives job creation
programmes
* integrated education and training for up-skilling and national qualifications
framework and the Department of Education qualifications
* training for 2010 and beyond.
Building a united KwaZulu-Natal
Skills provide an individual with an opportunity to fully participate in the
opportunities that are being created by our economy as it grows and develops.
By giving our people skills we will provide them with jobs. In the end, we will
return them to that place of dignified existence where every man, woman and
youth is able to put food on the tables of their family.
As we address literacy and skills training, we must not forget the
challenges faced by our young people in finding jobs and starting their own
businesses, wherever they are, in the urban and rural areas of KwaZulu-Natal.
If we are to move forward, young people will need to contribute to our economy
and our society. If KwaZulu-Natal is to have a solid and bright future, we must
empower our young people and women.
We must work towards taking more and more people off a total dependence on
the social grant system. In this way more and more of our people will take an
active part in fashioning their own future, gaining self-worth and dignity
through work, and being able to access other economic opportunities in our
province.
Masikukume sakhe KwaZulu-Natal!
Issued by: KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
11 September 2007
Source: SAPA
