R4 billion school funding crisis

Some of the money the province's education department has retained since 2020 could have funded other school essentials

- Rod Amner and Laney van Wyk

The question isn't whether the Eastern Cape can afford to transform literacy outcomes. The question is why it chooses not to.

In the province's overcrowded classrooms, most Foundation Phase learners lack access to classroom libraries, quality literacy materials and even an adequate supply of stationery. Since 2020, the Eastern Cape department of education has withheld over R4 billion from no-fee schools.

This year alone, when Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube mandated National Norms and Standards for School Funding of R1 748 per learner for 2024/25 for poorer Quintiles 1-3 schools, the department withheld 33.75% of the amount — an estimated R932 million.

"How can you live with yourself?" Madelaine Schoeman, the former principal of Ntsika Secondary School in Makhanda, asks of education officials. "It really is unconscionable when you know there are children who didn't get food, proper education because of you."

The retained R5 billion represents a staggering missed opportunity. Provincial school datas show there are 16,950 Foundation Phase classrooms in no-fee schools (housing 508 491 learners). The vast majority do not have basic book libraries.

High-quality, multilingual classroom libraries with 100 books per classroom (at R200 per book) would cost R340 million - just 7% of the retained R5 billion. That's approximately R200 per learner over the five-year life of each library.

Research indicates that classroom libraries with a wide selection of books significantly enhance reading achievement, particularly for students from low-income backgrounds. A 2010 meta-analysis found that learners with classroom libraries read 50-60% more than those without.