Inside Education Reporter
Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga, together with the Eastern Cape Department Of Education MEC Fundile Gade and USAID, handed over new classrooms and renovated ablution facilities to Zwelemfundo Primary School in Scenery Park, East London, on Monday.
This project – one of similar projects currently undertaken by the US government, in partnership with the DBE, nationwide – is a result of the collaboration between the Governments of South Africa and the United States of America, through its agencies, in areas of education.
The handover ceremony was a symbolic event on behalf of all the past building projects by the US in the Eastern Cape.
During the event, Minister Motshekga said: “Significant strides have been made in building essential school infrastructure, with the United States Office of Defense Cooperation providing critical support in constructing educational facilities that directly impact our students’ learning environments.
“This support, a testament to the power of diplomatic engagement, demonstrates how bilateral cooperation can navigate the complexities of global geopolitics to produce tangible benefits for our communities.”
While in East London for the infrastructure handover in Scenery Park, Motshekga, also visited Mthombolwazi Daycare Centre to engage with the Early Childhood Centre (ECD) practitioners there.
Since the ECD function shift, Motshekga has demonstrated her unwavering commitment to engaging with ECD practitioners. She believes it is crucial to hear the voices on the ground, stating: “This is critical following the ECD function shift, as we seek to support the practitioners and sector as a whole. I am dedicated to this cause and will continue to engage whenever the opportunity arises.”
In January 2024, Motshekga announced that a Mass Registration Drive would be launched to pull every early learning programme (ELP) into the regulatory net. This will ensure that all ELPs, including those in low-income communities, can be supported to comply with regulatory requirements and receive ongoing oversight.
It will also ultimately ensure that the ECD subsidy can benefit more of the children for whom it is intended.
The DBE is currently in the process of testing the new Mass Registrations system.
INSIDE EDUCATION
