Recently, at a parliamentary briefing, the Auditor-General, Tsakane Maluleke submitted a report on how 21 of the government's 41 national departments consistently incurred fruitless and wasteful expenditure in the past five years.
It has been reported that the Department of Basic Education is among the departments that incurred the highest fruitless and wasteful expenditure, at R106.8 million. Maluleke also mentioned that there was underspending of vital programmes.
Portfolio Committee on Basic Education
This comes after the Portfolio Basic Education Committee had done an oversight visit at at least 15 schools in all four Districts of the Mpumalanga Department of Education.
In an interview, the Committee’s Chairperson, Bongiwe Mbinqo-Gigaba pointed out:
There were challenges in the transportation and accommodation for learners with special needs.
Mbinqo-Gigaba also said that the transport that is currently being used is not conducive for the learners.
The Committee was also concerned by how the Education Department has been handling these schools.
Another important issue that had been raised included the importance of appointing qualified teachers with relevant skills in the for Special Schools.
Committee chairperson, Bongiwe Mbingo-Gigaba says such schools cater for different disabilities so they need to be resourced with capable teachers with relevant skills.
Both the Provincial Education Department and the Department of Basic Education are expected to work together in making sure that they address the challenges faced by learners in the province.
It is for this reason that even lobby groups continue to advocate for safe learning environments for learners.
