Limpopo Education MEC Mavhungu Lerule-Ramakhanya has reflected on the goals set for the province which included the improvement of school infrastructure, school attendance and the national school nutrition programme (NSNP) to name a few.
She was delivering her budget vote speech earlier today where she said she believes that in the past 30 years, these important aspects have improved the quality of school learners.
She says the excellent service delivery and the light of democracy is shining on the learners and that the gap between rural and urban schools is significantly closing up.
“Limpopo is now counted amongst the best because the light is shining on us. It is the light of democracy that led us to prioritize school infrastructure to ensure that our children have proper and dignified shelter over their heads. We are today boosting over a million children in the classroom compared to the low numbers we counted in the past. Breakfast in the morning, something that they hardly had in the past,” Lerule Ramakhanya said.
Lerule-Ramakhanya said the vision and promise for equal education was not all talk but an implemented vision. She says that learners in the rural parts of Limpopo now have access to the same resources as learners in the urban parts of the province, such as the internet and tablets. She described the improvement of rural schools as a testimony of light and life.
“In order to make reading enjoyable, we have created reading corners in all our primary schools in the province. The reading corners are used as enrichment centres for learners who struggle to read with understanding. We also provided 45 431 readers to primary schools and introduced digitalization ebooks to enhance reading capabilities to learners with reading problems,” she said.
The department has invested in capacitating teachers and learners with the relevant technological knowledge and has trained and graduated over 900 ICT teachers to prepare learners for e-learning. The teacher development has been a huge milestone.
“The department has trained school management teams, principals and deputy principals on Advance Certificate in school Management and leadership through the University of Venda, University of Limpopo and University of Pretoria.”
The Limpopo Department of Education received a total budget of R40.029 billion in 2024/25 financial year which is made up of the following elements: Equitable share (R35.654 billion), Conditional Grant (R3.614 billion) and Own Revenue (R760.498 million).
The funds have been allocated to the following priorities:
- R1.741 billion for the National School Nutrition Programme
- R1.503 billion for Education Infrastructure
- R238.002 million for Early Childhood Development
- R50.827 million for Maths, Science and Technology
- R36.062 million for Learners with Severe Profound Intellectual Disability
- R28.087 million for HIV/AIDS (Life Skills Education)
- R14.707 million for Expanded Public Works Programme Social Sector Incentive
- R2.224 million for Expanded Public Works ProgrammeIntegrated
“We know of two schools that still use pit toilets as a sight of shame that will soon be challenged. We will push and finalize the remaining projects under the current administration,” Lerule-Ramakhanya said.
Lerule-Ramakhanya added that all mentioned departments contribute tremendously to teaching and learning quality, especially in the rural areas.