Umamah Bakharia | ub@radioislam.co.za

2 min read
22 December 2022 | 10:30am CAT

Education activist Hendrick Makaneta has called on the ANC to reflect on the broader challenges faced by township and rural schools and to take a resolution to prioritize school safety as a matter of urgency.

Photo credit: SowetanLIVE

In a statement, Makaneta says “although private schools seem to be doing fine on safety, it’s clear that public schools still have a long way to go in addressing the issue of safety.”

Speaking to Radio Islam, Makaneta says the education department has lost educators and learners because of the failure of the government.

“What is becoming clearer is that government on its own has not been able to resolve these issues as we have seen this has continue to happen despite the fact that we have a government [and] a minister of basic education who has called [onto safety],” he says.

Amidst this, the Department of Basic Education (DBE) has announced plans to implement curriculum changes to better equip learners for the future world of work.

However, Makaneta says before these changes can be made, the government needs to prioritise school safety.

“The ANC as a leader of society has to take some resolutions so that we can address this issue of school safety in our different schools, particularly the ones in the townships,” he says.

According to recent findings by the Teacher Demographic Dividend project, an increased number of teachers have retired or are facing retirement by 2029.

In 2013, 7,800 teachers retired compared to 12, 500 in 2021 with an estimated 17,300 teachers due to retire in 2029. This will leave the education sector critically short of teachers in the years ahead.

Listen to the full interview with education activist Hendrick Makaneta here: