Gwarube outlines immediate priorities for education, training council

Basic Education Minister, Siviwe Gwarube, has urged the new members of the National Education and Training Council (NETC) to approach their responsibility with courage and humility.

The members have been appointed after the department received a total of 119 nominations, following a public nomination process.

Gwarube says the council supplements the work of existing statutory bodies such as the Council of Education Ministers or the Head of Education Departments Committee.

“You are entrusted with a responsibility to fearlessly provide advice grounded in evidence and aimed at the best interests of learners. Yours is not the task of government, but the task of knowledge, expertise and wisdom,” says Gwarube.

Gwarube says the immediate priorities of the council include reviewing the current school resourcing system.

“Too many schools face misclassification, inadequate per-learner allocations, unpredictable procurement of learning and teaching support materials, and persistent infrastructure backlogs,” says Gwarube.