South Africa: The National and Provincial Education Portfolio Committee visited the Groutville High School in the iLembe District. The team created for the oversight visit included the Member of the Executive Council for Education, Sipho Hlomuka.
The oversight visit is part of the province’s mandate to elevate the schools situation in KwaZulu Natal. The administration has shared that it is crucial for them to take responsibility for the maintenance of standard in the schools.
The visit was hosted on Tuesday, and the officers were welcomed by the School’s Principal, Simphiwe Gumede. The principal talked about the school and shared details of the school’s condition with the National and Provincial Committee.
The aim of the visit was to make sure that they can check on the the condition of the school system. The National and Provincial officials addressed the concerns raised by the management of the school.
The officials have recognized that Overcrowding, LTSM, NSNP, Infrastructure are some of the issues affecting the school. The management said that they are also worried about issues like teenage pregnancy, Bulling and safety of the students in the schools.
Joy Maimela led the National Education Portfolio Committee for the oversight visit. She delivered opening remarks at the event”It is crucial for the education portfolio committee to undertake such visits in the province. It helps to monitor the state of the School system. We are learning also about the issues faced by schools such as limited budget but still managed excell academically.”
MEC for Education, Sipho Hlomuka also spoke at the oversight visit. He acknowledged the concerns of the staff, management and students during this visit. He also assured the school management that they were happy to visit the school
He also thanked the education portfolio committee for visiting the province. He highlighted that they understand the challenges faced by the education sector. However, they have limited resources which is why the progress on addressing the issues is slow.
He appreciated the people who have helped the nation in achieving their education development goals.