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Minister of basic education says 3 000 learners in Mpumalanga yet to be placed

On January 6, the MEC for education, Cathy Dlamini, said 7 924 Grades Rs, Ones and Eights still had to be placed throughout Mpumalanga.

The minister of basic education, Siviwe Gwarube, said of the 7 924 Grades Rs, Ones and Eights who still had to be placed throughout Mpumalanga, there are about 3 000 left.

She was leading a governmental Back-to-School Campaign visit at KaMagugu Special School, joined by deputy minister Dr Reginah Mhaule and the Mpumalanga MEC for education, Cathy Dlamini. They visited various other schools in Mpumalanga, too.

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The schools opened for the 2025 school year on Wednesday, January 15. However, some of the parents of the unplaced children have raised their concerns, saying they do not know what will happen to them.

Gwarube said the province had briefed her that it started with a large number of unplaced learners, and this has now decreased.

“We want every learner to be placed immediately to make sure they don’t miss out on crucial learning and teaching time. However, we also understand that provinces like this are experiencing tremendous amounts of pressure from people who are moving, immigrating, particularly in the metro areas. The province has managed to halve that number in a week, and the MEC has committed that they are going to work hard to try and get the rest of those learners placed,” she said.

The Mpumalanga MEC for education, Cathy Dlamini, the minister of basic education, Siviwe Gwarube, and the deputy minister, Dr Reginah Mhaule.

In terms of school infrastructure, she said the ministry understands that infrastructure is an issue in Mpumalanga. “We also understand that budget constraints are a huge challenge in the province, however, we are pleased to see that the province’s expenditure so far as the infrastructure budget is concerned is ticking up, which means there is commitment from their side to deliver.”

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Gwarube said there are still gaps, and that the province is struggling, as are some of the other provinces.

“That is why, as we head into the cabinet lekgotla in the next week or so, the deputy minister and I will be delving into the case. As the South African government, we need to make sure that we are prioritising funding for education,” she said.

On Friday, January 17, the DoE’s spokesperson, Gerald Sambo, said Mbombela currently has 187 Grade Ones and 225 Grade Eights who have yet to be placed. The eMalahleni Local Municipality has about 180 unplaced learners.

“The department’s intention is to work collaboratively with the parents to ensure that every child of schoolgoing age is in school, learning. To this end, we request that parents co-operate with the departmental officials to fast-track the process of admission of learners,” said Sambo.

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