The Gauteng MEC for Education, Lebogang Maile, recently hosted an Early Childhood Development (ECD) open day at Dr WK du Plessis School in Springs.

The event allowed Maile to engage stakeholders directly on the importance of quality early learning and strengthening the ECD sector in the province.

He also addressed ECD registrations, funding, and Grade R preparation. Maile said Gauteng has the largest number of ECD programmes in South Africa, with 10 288 as of the end of September 2026. Of this, 3 185 are registered on the department’s ECD master-list.

“On ECARES, we have a total of 5 256 on Bronze, which must still comply to be registered. In total, 8 441 ECDs in the province still require registration and compliance support. There are 130 Social Services Professionals who will be providing this support across all 15 districts in the province,” he said.

Despite human resource challenges, Maile added that Gauteng has made significant progress in helping unregistered ECDs come forward and make themselves known, which is the first stage of the Bana Pele Mass Registration Drive.

“We presently have 5 256 Bronze qualifiers, whom we will be aiding through the full cycle of the registration and compliance process. However, we must confront our challenges with honesty.”

“The number of unregistered ECD centres remains unacceptably high, particularly in informal settlements, dolomitic areas and rapidly growing peri-urban areas.

“Every unregistered centre is a place where we cannot guarantee the safety of children, where we cannot track their nutrition, and where we cannot assure their developmental stimulation,” Maile said.

He explained that the department recognises that Gauteng has many informal settlements where the land is not proclaimed, which makes it difficult for ECDs to meet some of the most basic compliance requirements related to spatial configuration.

“For this reason, part of our focus in the Bana Pele initiative includes working closely with municipalities to ensure adherence to municipal by-laws by ECDs,” he said.

Addressing late payments and, in some cases, the withdrawal of ECD subsidies, Maile said the department is assessing each case to understand the merits and will implement necessary interventions.

“Our principle is that non-compliance on the part of ECDs should be remedied to ensure that children do not have to bear the consequences of administrative pitfalls of institutions meant to protect and nurture them,” he said.

He added that each district must identify and support at least 7 to 10 unregistered centres per week to meet minimum norms and standards.

“This will be done in a structured collaboration with municipalities and several non-governmental organisations that are working in the ECD landscape.

“Social work managers and EMIS officials must ensure that approvals are done on time and issue registration certificates.

“We must have the listing of names of children enrolled in registered ECDs to enable us to track their developmental and nutrition progress and status,” he said.

One attendee, principal Audrey Makhubo from Kelebogile Centre for Children Development in Duduza, called on the department to ensure funding reaches ECD centres on time, saying delays affect their ability to operate and ultimately disadvantage the children in their care.

“We also appeal to the department to assist ECD centres that are still trying to register. Many of these centres get stuck because the school fees they collect from parents, particularly in township communities, are not enough to cover the costs of meeting the department’s requirements.

“Sometimes, the amount required is more than what an ECD centre makes in an entire month,” Makhubo said.

Patricia Botha from Pinky Ponky Daycare in Nigel said she was happy with the issues the MEC addressed and the questions he clarified.