Chairperson, Cabinet colleagues, our Deputy Minister, Prof Hlengiwe Mkhize; Chair of the Portfolio Committee, Mr Malale; hon MPs, the Director-General and staff of the department, the heads and executives of all our portfolio organisations who are here, my mother, who is 84 years old now ... [Applause.] ... and my family, sister Dimpho Hani, one of our special guests; honoured guests, comrades, ladies and gentlemen, in this, the centenary year of the ANC, job creation has become one of the key priorities for our government. Education and training are critical components of this priority, as reflected in the President's state of the nation address and the Budget allocations for the 2012 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework period.
Education now constitutes more than 21% of the government's total allocated expenditure for the 2012-13 financial year. Of this, my department receives R41,1 billion, of which R9,6 billion are skills levies that go to the Sector Education and Training Authorities and the National Skills Fund. The department's budget, excluding levies, increases from R28,2 billion in 2011- 12 to R31,5 billion for 2012-13. This is an increase of R3,3 billion, which is about 11,7% on the 2011-12 allocation.
Universities will this year receive R20,9 billion while R4,8 billion is allocated to the further education and training colleges conditional grant. The National Student Financial Aid Scheme will receive R5 billion during the 2012-13 financial year for loans and bursaries in the university and FET sectors. The rest of the budget allocation is shared between our statutory bodies and normal operating expenses of our department.
The government remains committed to the progressive introduction of free education for the poor up to undergraduate level. This has already been introduced in FET colleges. I have now established a working group to conduct a study to determine the actual cost of introducing fee-free university education for the poor. This working group will report by the end of June 2012 on the costs and options to implement this commitment.
In January 2012, I released the Green Paper on Post-School Education and Training, which sets out a vision for a single, coherent, differentiated and articulated postschool education and training system. This system aims to expand access to postschool opportunities, overcome inequalities in education and achieve high levels of excellence and innovation. It will also result in closer co-operation between universities, colleges and levy- grant institutions and between these institutions and the labour market. This paper has been released for consultation and submissions from stakeholders and the public and these will be accepted until the end of April 2012, which falls on Monday next week.
Let me call upon all stakeholders to engage with the Green Paper in earnest. It embodies a bold and ambitious plan, but if we all pull together we will indeed build a postschool system to address the needs of our youth and adults. After considering the comments, we will develop a White Paper.
The basis of any good education system is the quality of its teachers and we continue to strengthen teacher education. We have ring-fenced R450 million for the 2012-13 to 2013-14 funding cycle to expand university infrastructure capacity for teacher education and this will continue in the next funding cycle. There has been significant growth in full-time equivalent enrolments in initial teacher education programmes, from 35 937 in 2009 to 41 292 in 2010 - a 15% increase. Likewise, the number of new teachers who graduated increased from 6 976 in 2009 to 7 973 in 2010 - an increase of just under 1 000 or 14%. Particular attention is being paid to the development of foundation-phase teachers, especially African language mother-tongue speakers.
In order to expand our capacity to produce new teachers, we are pleased to announce - honourable Radebe, among others - that we will open the former Ndebele College Campus in Mpumalanga for foundation-phase teacher education in 2013. [Applause.] We also plan to open one former teacher training college each in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. [Applause.]
In line with our growth vision for the FET college sector, we will strongly focus on lecturer development this year. I will gazette a qualifications policy for FET college lecturers and work to ensure that a range of suitable qualification offerings is made available for FET college lecturers.
An amount of R499 million has been allocated to all universities for teaching development grants to assist in improving graduate outputs and R194 million for foundation programmes to improve the success rates of students from disadvantaged educational backgrounds.
Iningi le mali, mina ngingowakaDambuza angazi ukuthi yimalini kodwa iningi le mali. [Uhleko.] [This is a lot of money. As a person from Dambuza, I do not know how much this is, but it is a lot of money. [Laughter.]]
In the coming financial year, programmes will also be initiated to support the academic and professional development of lecturers in universities. In addition, R177 million for research development has been allocated to 15 of the 23 universities to develop the research capability of university staff, especially those institutions with low numbers of staff members who have master's degrees and doctorates.
With regard to universities, the Ministerial Committee for the Review of the Funding of Universities has received submissions from a broad range of stakeholders, including 22 of our 23 universities. I have also requested the committee to canvass the views of labour organisations, ordinary university staff and students. Given the diverse views expressed in the submissions and the extensive research and modeling required to enable credible proposals, I have agreed to give the committee until 31 August 2012 to submit its report so that we can change the funding framework by April 2013.
The review of student accommodation by Prof Rensburg has highlighted an enormous shortage of student residences and the run-down condition of much of what exists. This must be tackled as a matter of priority. For the period 2012-13 to 2013-14, R850 million has been specifically earmarked for universities to build and refurbish student residences, with the bulk - 86% - allocated to historically black institutions. As this funding is insufficient, my department has been engaging with the Public Investment Corporation and the Development Bank of Southern Africa to provide more substantial funding for student accommodation.
Over the next two years, R3,8 billion has been earmarked for universities' overall infrastructure development, prioritising historically disadvantaged institutions. Of the R3,8 billion infrastructure allocation, an amount of R1,6 billion has been set aside specifically for historically disadvantaged institutions. [Applause.]
On the academic front, my department is committed to increasing the production of graduates in engineering, natural sciences, human and animal health sciences and teacher education, in line with my performance agreement with the President. We are engaging with Higher Education South Africa and the deans of the relevant faculties to accelerate especially black and women graduate output in these areas. As a consequence of the study on the humanities and social sciences that I had commissioned Prof Ari Sitas and Dr Sarah Mosoetsa to undertake, and to ensure that these important disciplines are not neglected, I will soon establish a National Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences. Last year, I mentioned my intention to establish an advisory panel on African languages.
Ngiyajabula ukusho namhlanje ukuthi leli komidi lezilimi zakithi zomdabu selikhona liyasebenza, uSihlalo walo uSolwazi Pitika Ntuli, linabanye osolwazi bakithi bazo lezi zilimi ukuze zikwazi ukuthuthukiswa emanyuvesi. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[I am happy to announce today that this committee on indigenous languages has been established and that it is functioning. It is chaired by Prof Pitika Ntuli and other professors of indigenous languages also serve on it in order for these languages to be developed at the universities.]
In order to assist in tackling the problems faced by students wanting to enrol at a university, I intend to establish a National Information and Application System. This will centralise applications, so that students will not have to apply to multiple universities, each with its own application fees. [Applause.] The new system will also centralise NSFAS applications. I have appointed a project steering committee to advise me on this issue.
I have received reports from the two task teams I appointed to investigate appropriate models for new universities in Mpumalanga and the Northern Cape. [Applause.] The project team has recommended sites to be the seats of these universities. I am pleased to say that. I plan to announce the seat of learning of each new institution in approximately three months' time, once the full assessments have been done and in consultation with the President and other relevant stakeholders. I see the provincial secretary of the SACP in the Northern Cape is here this must be good news for him. [Applause.] I remain committed that the first intake of these two new universities will be at the start of the academic year 2014.
Work is also under way to establish Medunsa as a separate, self-standing university of health sciences. Beyond this, we are looking at other opportunities for expanding the training of medical doctors and other health professionals. I have therefore asked some of the universities to urgently provide me with concrete plans to expand in this regard.
My department has been holding discussions with various professional councils with a view to producing sufficient graduates and providing them with work experience and support to ensure that they become registered professionals. We want to eliminate all forms of gate-keeping in the production of professionals.
While many of our universities are stable and effective, some of our former black universities are weak and need considerable effort and resources to strengthen them. I have had to place some of them under administration with a view to strengthening their governance and management and, consequently, their academic capabilities. Within the next few weeks I will be announcing members of the Ministerial Oversight Committee on Transformation and its terms of reference in taking forward the recommendations of the Soudien Report.
I am pleased that the board of NSFAS now has a full complement of members and is beginning to turn around the entity to ensure that it is more responsive to the students it supports. The board has adopted a student- centric model and it plans to build relationships with students even before they enrol at higher education institutions. We have allocated some R98 million to NSFAS to develop state-of-the-art ICT infrastructure and systems.
NSFAS bursaries and loans to poor students have been expanded substantially over the last three years and funds made available to students grew from R2,375 billion in 2008 to R6 billion in 2012. We are indeed proud of this achievement. [Applause.] The National Skills Fund has also been made available for special purposes, such as R50 million for postgraduate scholarships, R63 million for students with disabilities, R350 million for poor continuing students who were unable to register due to outstanding debt and insufficient funding in 2012. This year we used R350 million to save about 12 000 students who otherwise would have been excluded from university. [Applause.]
Over the past two years, enrolments in FET colleges have been rising dramatically. In 2011, we had projected a headcount enrolment of 359 000 in all programmes, but the actual head-count enrolment reached 437 060, exceeding our projections by 24%. This year we are expecting a further increase to 550 000 enrolments. Over the next three-year MTEF period starting in 2012-13, R15,6 billion has been set aside to ensure increasing enrolments in FET colleges as we build them to become institutions of choice. As stated in our Green Paper, we aim to have 4 million enrolments in FET colleges and other nonuniversity postschool institutions by 2030, so it is gratifying to see this expansion and interest in our colleges and the willingness of the colleges to grasp the challenge.
A number of things have contributed to the growing demand for a college education among the youth. One of the principal reasons is the bursary amounting to 100% of fees for all those with a family income of under R122 000 per annum. In essence, as from last year, FET college education for occupational programmes for students who come from a poor background is free. [Applause.] Another reason for this growth is the career advice campaign we launched together with SAQA. Through the SABC it has reached over 2 million listeners.
Earlier this month, the President announced an amount of R2,5 billion over the next three years from levy funds for infrastructure, machinery and programmes in FET colleges. We are completing an infrastructure audit. Where infrastructure is in a state of disrepair, it will be refurbished as part of the FET College Campus Refurbishment Programme. We have determined that in the short-term there is a need to build 12 new campuses attached to the existing FET colleges. These are campuses in Graaff-Reinet, Lusikisiki, Aliwal North, Sterkspruit, Nkandla, Newtown, Msinga, Sisonke, uMkhanyakude, Balfour, Thabazimbi and Giyani. [Applause.]
Bab'uMpontshane, impela sengifikile eMkhanyakude, sengingene ngezinyawo zombili. [Mr Mpontshane, I have indeed arrived in uMkhanyakude.]
We are indeed in negotiations with the Public Investment Corporation and DBSA for more money. From my commitment, made during the 2011-12 financial year, to improve the conditions of service of FET college staff, we have now successfully concluded a collective agreement for employees represented in the General Public Service Sectoral Bargaining Council. In addition, we have equalised conditions between those employed by the state and those formally employed by the colleges, and we have set aside R160 million during the MTEF period to improve conditions of service of FET college staff.
We have also developed a comprehensive strategy to ensure the smooth transfer of FET colleges from provincial to national competence once the FET Colleges Amendment Bill is signed by the President. We will soon also be setting new funding norms in line with our intention to strengthen the college system as a whole as well as the individual needs of colleges. In this financial year, the department will implement a performance agreement system for FET college principals to ensure greater accountability and the delivery of high-quality college programmes in line with our economic development priorities. We will also ensure that all vacant management staff posts at FET colleges are filled with greater urgency. [Applause.]
One area that has been identified as the weakest in FET colleges is the financial management and human resources capacity. We are pleased to say that we have entered into a partnership with the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants to provide us with retired chartered accountants for a period of two years to be appointed as chief financial officers at our FET colleges.
My department has found that six of the eight Eastern Cape FET colleges are dysfunctional. In response, we have commissioned JET Education Services to undertake a college-by-college turnaround strategy. So, we don't only do door-to-door in the ANC but we also do door-to-door, college-to-college in the Department of Higher Education and Training. [Applause.]
Of central importance to the improvement of colleges is the revision of their programmes. I am pleased to say that we have completed a report to revise the National Certificate Vocational programmes. We will also be revising and strengthening the end programmes.
In the course of this year, I will also introduce legislation to, among other things, establish a SA Institute for Vocational and Continuing Education, which will provide professional support to colleges and possibly also to the Setas.
The Green Paper proposes to absorb the public adult learning centres into a new institutional type, known as "community education and training centres". These centres will offer far more than the current adult learning centres, so that they don't focus just on "a, e, i, o, u" but also include vocational or work-oriented opportunities for a significant proportion of the youth and adults. I have appointed a task team in this regard.
With regard to the National Qualifications Framework, we have now received comments on the proposed qualifications frameworks developed by the three quality councils. I will consider these recommendations in due course, with particular emphasis on creating an articulated system of postschool education and training. Furthermore, I have established a Ministerial task team on the recognition of prior learning aimed at developing a national strategy for its wide-scale implementation.
With regard to the skills development and levy grant institutions, in July 2011 we signed a national accord with Nedlac partners in order to expand the number of apprenticeships, learnerships and internships. A particular role is played by the state-owned enterprises and I am pleased to say that of the state-owned enterprises, Eskom is leading in terms of absorbing graduates from FET colleges and universities of technology. [Applause.] Through this accord, we want to turn every workplace into a training space.
Artisan training has been proceeding apace. According to data from Setas, 24 378 artisan learners entered the system in 2011-12 - an increase of 861 over 2010-11. We believe that the actual figure for the country is somewhat higher than this, as not all companies who take on artisan learners register them with the Setas. We are developing a method of capturing these developments. All we need to say is that since the advent of this department, we are increasing the production of artisans in this country for the first time in years. They are on the up and up now.
We have taken a number of measures to strengthen the governance and management of the Setas. These are beginning to take effect in improving their performance, although there is still some way to go before they fulfil their potential. Last year, I appointed a task team to study the Setas and I am receiving its report at the end of April. We will also require the Setas to open offices in all the FET colleges so that they become accessible. [Applause.]
I'd like to acknowledge the important contributions to skills development by many of the Setas, in line with the National Skills Development Strategy III. Administrators in the Services and Construction Setas are making good progress in rectifying their problems. In one of them - the Services Seta - based on the Auditor-General's report and several forensic investigations, the administrator opened a case of theft and corruption against the former CEO. I must express my disappointment, though. We reported this to the Hawks in May 2011 already - things are moving too slowly. Woe to those who are trying to undermine our efforts to put the Services Seta under administration.
Consistent with its mandate, the National Skills Fund - for the first time since 2004 - is now going to spend more than R1 billion, which means we are dealing with their accumulated funds. Our data systems on skills profiles and needs are not up to standard if we are to plan properly. For this reason, I have commissioned the Human Sciences Research Council to lead a research programme to lay the basis for a credible skills planning mechanism.
In conclusion, let me take this opportunity to thank the President and Cabinet colleagues, as well as our Deputy Minister, for their support. I also thank our Director-General, Mr Gwebinkundla Qonde, my special advisor, John Pampallis, senior staff in the department and all members of Team DHET for their hard work. I also wish to thank my family for their unwavering support and understanding.
Siyabonga kakhulu, kusho ukuthi ngempela sisendleleni yokwakha lawa mathuba okuthi izingane zakwethu zikwazi ukuthola imfundo ephakeme. Siyabonga. [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[Thank you very much. This means that we are indeed on the path of creating these opportunities so that our children can receive better higher education. [Applause.]]
Just a word of caution to our guests: I know sometimes events here are exciting and we like to say to Ministers that this or that is very good and we applaud it. However, it is only for members to applaud. Guests are not allowed to applaud the Minister. Just a word of consolation - I am also not allowed to applaud, so we are not allowed to applaud together.
Chairperson, hon Minister, Dr Nzimande; Deputy Minister, Prof Mkhize; officials in the department, hon members and guests, in this academic year our registration period was defined by a swamping of institutions by prospective students who sought opportunities in universities, especially comprehensive universities and universities of technology. This situation was precipitated by the exponential growth of successful matriculants, who sought entry into the postschool education and training system. We are well aware that the current institutional landscape simply cannot cope with the growing numbers of successful matriculants being produced in our school system. This stark reality is compounded by a weak further education and training sector in terms of infrastructure and competent human capital. To attract students, there is an urgent need for intervening in terms of skills improvement and quality assurance in this sector.
Our bold vision, articulated in the Green Paper on the Post-School Education and Training System, for enrolment expansion in both the higher education and FET sector requires an injection of massive resources for the upgrading and expansion of existing infrastructure. We need a strong collaboration and investment by industry into the vocational sector in order to resolve the acute shortage of critical and scarce skills in the economy. This point cannot be overemphasised.
There is a need for curriculum development that will encapsulate aspects of the green economy.
Our institutions of higher learning must heed our stance on the non- financial exclusion of indigent, well-performing students and of ensuring that we do not have exorbitant fees that will subvert our vision for the progressive allocation of free education in our country.
We acknowledge the growing investment in NSFAS, which will go a long way to expand access to higher education by the poor. I would like to urge universities and NSFAS to reconsider the practice of refunding surplus amounts to NSFAS recipients in the light of the scarcity of resources.
The department must prioritise the project that deals with the development of the next generation of academics to guarantee the necessary supply of human capital for our universities, particularly in light of the envisaged two universities in Mpumalanga and Northern Cape. We must disappoint the outspoken catalysts of discord, who claim that our government will not deliver on this promise, by expediting our earnest efforts in this regard.
We are profoundly concerned about the negligible production of domestic black doctoral graduates. This underrepresentation will perpetuate the historical social inequities that have always characterised the higher- education terrain. We therefore require targeted recruitment of black South African students from disadvantaged social strata. The state must clearly explore doctoral study incentives that will attract and retain students in this category. This should include an urgent review of the salary disparities between lecturers, researchers and the apex managerial band in order to curb the brain drain in our institutions.
The interinstitutional collaboration on high-level research projects and the facilitation of articulation among universities and between universities and colleges must be urgently addressed. The imperative of quality assurance should not serve as a pretext for gate-keeping by some professional bodies in crucial career lines in our country.
We welcome the reopening of colleges, as announced by the Minister. In this context, we would like to call upon universities to strengthen linkages with the FET sector in the quest for a seamless system that is highly articulated. We are encouraged by the increasing effort and visibility of the Setas in terms of funding initiatives in the postschool education and training system and urge that more be done in this area.
The budget speech demonstrates that the state is committed to ensuring that greater resources are available for education. These efforts need to be reinforced by students. The Student Representative Councils and student political formations in particular must join us in promoting learning and excellence in our institutions to guarantee value for the huge investments made in education.
We will not tolerate corruption, incompetence and alarming mediocrity in institutional governance and management at all levels. We will elevate transparency and greater accountability in all institutions that account to this committee. We welcome and support this budget and we will give the necessary support that the Minister and the department require from the committee. That includes supporting all our institutions towards the realisation of a single, coherent, differentiated and highly articulated postschool education and training system.
The portfolio committee constitutes a diverse but strong political polity and we support this Budget Vote. [Applause.]
Chairperson, the DA's vision for higher education and training is of a system that equips South Africans with the knowledge and skills they need to fulfil their true potential. It is a system that consists of committed and professional lecturers who can deliver quality education. It is a system that will facilitate a shift to a knowledge-based economy and that can deliver the skills necessary to boost productivity and incomes.
This is vital if we are to encourage economic growth and job creation and deliver opportunities for all South Africans. The Higher Education and Training budget must be read against this vision and the proposals contained in the National Development Plan must be kept in mind. They are important beacons to guide us towards the creation of a better and stronger system. However, this budget must also be read taking into account the realities of our present situation. It also has to be read in the context of skills shortages and a basic education system that leaves much to be desired, with learners ill equipped to perform in higher education and training.
In light of this, the announcement of billions of rands over the next three years for the refurbishment and building of new further education and training colleges is welcome news and does indicate that these colleges are an important component of the higher education and training sector. This allocation will indeed contribute to alleviating the problems experienced by the colleges regarding spatial constraints and the greater demand and emphasis on access.
However, access does not necessarily lead to success and access without success will not address the country's demand for well-skilled employees. Infrastructure, although very important, does not guarantee quality teaching and learning. If one looks at the figures provided to the portfolio committee in terms of the performance levels at FET colleges, it is clear that there are serious problems with teaching and learning in the FET sector. Pass rates of between 16% and 22% for mathematics and all the certification rates almost below 40% does not augur well for the future of these students and for reaching the vision set out in the NDP.
Although the department's annual performance plan makes provision for the training of lecturers, serious attention will have to be given to the actual quality of the training of these lecturers. In order to meet the vision of a quality education system, in which schools have globally competitive literacy and numeracy standards and 80% of every cohort of learners successfully completes 12 years of schooling, the quality of teacher training has to be improved. One of the ways of improving this is focusing on the reopening of teacher training colleges. The question one still has to ask is whether or not the department is really serious about this.
The Minister has said today that they will be opened and mentioned a few. We have been hearing promises about the reopening of these colleges for a number of years. In April 2008, headlines read, "Pandor confirms plans to reopen teacher training colleges." The reopening was even part of the ANC election manifesto in 2009. In May 2010, the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training was informed that the matter was being dealt with and in April 2011, the New Age reported that the Minister announced that teacher colleges were to reopen. Again, in April 2012, we heard that this was going to happen and today we heard it again. In the interest of the education of our children and future students, the South African people deserve a clear answer about whether or not it is going to happen, if there is a comprehensive plan and not only a few examples, and what the specific time frame is.
It is encouraging that there is an increase in the financial support for poor students. It is indeed in the interest of the country that students who are academically deserving but do not have the financial means to study be assisted by NSFAS. Not only does this contribute to the wellbeing of the individual student but it also has a ripple effect on the community and economy of the country. Access to higher education and training is, arguably, one of the best mechanisms to eradicate poverty and narrow the gap between rich and poor.
However, it is important to note that the system as it functions at the moment does lead to some unfortunate consequences. On the side of the students, there is a problem that because of the great number of financially needy students, universities, in an effort to assist as many as possible, give only partial financial assistance to students. This means that students are still left with finding ways to fund the remainder of their study fees, leaving them with debt. In many instances these students do not continue with their studies, which is an absolute tragedy not only for the students personally but also for the country. Many universities try to accommodate these students, but in the end they cannot run into a deficit and they too have to balance their books.
An additional problem that will have to be addressed sooner rather than later relates to those students who, in terms of the current means test, do not qualify for financial assistance. These are students whose parents earn above the threshold to qualify for NSFAS, but who do not earn enough to qualify for loans at other financial institutions. The question is: What becomes of these students?
Although the increase in funding for NSFAS is welcomed and appreciated, it is still insufficient to provide access to higher education and training at the levels that the country requires. What is welcoming is the recent report on student accommodation. This is a serious problem and besides the shortages of accommodation at the different higher-education institutions, the exploitation of students in private off-campus accommodation is shocking and unacceptable. This is a sad state of affairs and it was again highlighted this past weekend in the media.
Not only is proper and safe accommodation a problem but the fact that many students also go hungry is extremely disturbing. In this regard, I would like to congratulate the Vice-Chancellor of the University of the Free State, Professor Jonathan Jansen, on his "No Student Hungry" programme. This is the kind of initiative that shows that the community cares for our students. This is indeed the kind of programme and initiative that could and should be replicated across the country.
The funding of universities is another point of concern. It is important that the greater emphasis on access should not place financial burdens on higher-education institutions that they cannot absorb because their funds have been exhausted. This could lead to irreparable harm to our university system, with consequences for sustained economic growth and development.
A worrying feature of higher education at the moment is the number of higher-education institutions where there are governance and management problems. From the reply to a parliamentary question in this regard, it seems as if the reason for these problems relates to the councils at these institutions. It is therefore extremely important that the councils at the different higher-education institutions have the requisite capacity, in terms of knowledge and expertise, to fulfil their fiduciary functions.
The department will also have to ensure that the necessary early-warning systems are in place to rather take corrective or remedial measures before situations take on crisis proportions. The question, Minister, is whether or not many of these problems could have been detected earlier by means of a thorough analysis of the reports that these institutions submit to your department. Was there no indication that processes and procedures were not being followed? The consequences of a poorly governed and managed institution do not only have an effect on management and the staff but they have a negative knock-on effect on students, their performance, their future and the institution's standing in society.
I would, however, want to raise a caveat that the governance problems experienced at some of these institutions should not pave the way for a process to reduce university autonomy. University autonomy and academic freedom are important pillars of a democratic society such as our own. It is going to require tough decisions and an unwavering commitment to quality education if we were to build a higher education and training system that can truly offer South Africans the knowledge and skills they need to build a better, brighter future. [Applause.]
Minister, I dedicate this speech to one of our comrades, Chris Hani, a servant of the people of the world and a true communist to the end. Bra Chris fought for people's education and for people's power. Today, what he fought for for many years still remains a pipe dream.
Minister, your speech might be worded nicely but we have to account for the past years. It is a shame that after 17 years the department has failed Hani's vision of the creation of true universities of the people - institutions that would be at the forefront of changing the lives of the poor and the marginalised. We still have the untouchable institutions. For the past 17 years this government has failed to build new universities that would articulate the views of a new South Africa and the liberation of all our people. [Interjections.]
When the Afrikaner government took power, they built Afrikaner universities to articulate their philosophy and ideology - institutions like the former Randse Afrikaanse Universiteit, RAU, University of the Free State, UOFS, University of Stellenbosch and Tuks. What can we be proud of in higher education under your leadership? The department has once more failed Chris's dream of a people's university for people's power; a Moses Mabhida, Govan Mbeki, Bram Fischer type of university.
It is Cope's wish that the proposed two new universities will not be like all the failed government departments or institutions - to be used to dispatch patronage and corruption - but successful institutions of choice for our students. Let's build two new universities to emulate the values of Moses Kotana, Robert Sobukwe and Beyers Naud, excelling in research and the green economy. [Interjections.]
Hani's children still await a free and compulsory education, as your government promised. Financial constraints are barriers to access to tertiary education. We are told that the decline in state funding is a global phenomenon. What is the government doing to mitigate this global phenomenon? Brazil is planning to take a quantum leap and award 75 000 scholarships to students to study abroad. China alone had 127 000 and India 100 000. What do we, as South Africa, have abroad?
We agree, however, with your department's notion of building the next generation of academics as an urgent need in our country. However, we must make an assessment of the role of the old generation of academics and of the current generation of academics and then define what the next generation of academics should constitute. We must build and lay a foundation that will attract our students to enter academia.
We can't build a winning nation without a properly prepared academia of the people; one that would serve constructively to both develop and answer difficult questions for the nation. We must build an academia of the type of former President Thabo Mbeki's generation of academics. [Interjections.]
We hear and read a lot about the possible role of FET colleges in developing skills. We also heard President Zuma making an announcement of R2,5 billion. Minister, our question is: Of what quality is this FET education? We know the Minister continues to redirect our kids but our question is: How many students from FETs are employed in the departments of your government? Our students will never have confidence in FET education as long as all these government departments do not employ students from FET colleges. The curricula vitae of poor students are put aside by the very same department and your office. [Interjections.]
Minister, Cope believes that things are terrible in the Sector Education and Training Authorities. People are at odds with Setas and their management, accusing them of not giving the government value for money. [Interjections.] On the other hand, Minister, you are being threatened with law suits for failing to address serious training problems, especially in the electricity sector. We want you to account for performance in the Seta arena.
Furthermore, Minister, you are always claiming that our students are not living in a conducive environment. You have failed for 17 years to respond to the call of the student movements to build better accommodation for our students. [Interjections.] Walter Sisulu and Fort Hare universities continue to co-accommodate people in unhygienic conditions. Your government has failed for 17 years to provide the solution. [Interjections.] You are giving us only a report in that regard. [Interjections.]
You are continually announcing in this House that you are moving towards a central registration point. Does your government or your department have capacity to run a central administration point? Minister, is what you are trying to do not going to tamper with the independence of these institutions? [Interjections.]
As Cope, we are calling on you to give us a better budget. Cope might accept your budget but we think ... [Interjections.]
Chairperson, on a point of order: I want to check whether it is parliamentary for the hon Bhanga to address the Minister instead of addressing the Chairperson and to keep pointing at the Minister?
Please continue, hon member. [Interjections.]
Chair and Minister, in closing, our people and South Africans need institutions that will capacitate some members on the other side so that they will be able to be patient and listen to the new generation of academics. [Laughter.] [Applause.]
Chairperson, hon Minister, Deputy Minister and colleagues, I'm not too sure what prompted the hon Minister a while ago to refer to opposition parties as "an ideological third force bent on destroying democracy". [Laughter.] Perhaps this will be the correct platform for the hon Minister to expand on such a statement, because to me it sounds really bizarre.
The Minister would surely agree with me that it is critical that we, the opposition, properly scrutinise every cent that government spends on higher education. It is even more important to ask whether the planned expenditure will meet the planned performance objectives in line with the principles and values set out in the White Paper on Higher Education.
This budget has as its aim to support the development of a quality higher education and vocational education sector. Furthermore, it aims to promote access to higher education and vocational skills development opportunities. Hon Minister, the question is whether we meet these targets with this budget. The answer is yes - partly. The IFP welcomes the following expenditure in the attempt to address the critical problem of access to higher education faced by many disadvantaged young people: one, the increase in transfers to higher education institutions; two, the FET colleges conditional grant; and three, a donor funding allocation of R30 million. However, the IFP is of the view that in order to achieve a successful higher education system in South Africa, we need to embark on massive institutional and infrastructure renewal at universities in order to deliver high-quality teaching and learning environments.
Highlighting the many crises faced by the higher education system, a recent report by Iain L'Ange, who visited about 22 residential universities and 50 campuses, found that some students were starving and that many went for days without a meal while living in accommodation that was squalid. This is of particular concern. In this regard, the IFP therefore welcomes the additional R850 million allocated to improving university infrastructure, including student accommodation facilities.
However, despite the positive increase in spending outlined in this budget in the key priority areas, a number of fundamental problems and weaknesses still afflict the higher education system. I will mention but a few.
The first one is the National Student Financial Aid Scheme. Despite new plans, policies and goals, NSFAS remains a cause for concern. The list of problem areas is well known. For instance, NSFAS has not been able to widen the definition of students who are eligible for student financial aid. They have not been able to streamline the application processes so that money reaches students quickly and easily. NSFAS has not been able to introduce a modern system to manage the billions of rand that it distributes.
The second one is the quality of our system. Our education system, despite receiving a large chunk of our national spending, has still not delivered quality higher education that will address our critical skills shortages. This is due to a number of reasons. The IFP supports the views of Higher Education SA that the following areas still remain of grave concern. The first is the academic quality of school-leavers. Hesa has registered its concern with the overall levels of ...
Hon member, your time has expired.
... higher education study of our school-leavers.
Thank you, hon member.
Is my time up? [Laughter.]
Hlala phantsi [Sit down] please, hon member.
The IFP will support this budget. [Applause.]
Chairperson, Minister, Deputy Minister and members, my topic for today is governance and management of institutions of higher learning. I would like to dedicate it to all those council members, managers, academics, students and other stakeholders who have committed themselves to the betterment and improvement of institutions of higher learning.
Before I was retrenched from retirement, I was privileged to be one of the ministerial appointees to a university council. One could not help but feel the determination of the ANC-led government - through its Minister, Comrade Nzimande - to do everything in its power to help the historically disadvantaged institutions to catch up with the historically advantaged institutions. Even in today's budget, of the R3,8 billion set aside for infrastructure R1,6 billion will go to seven HDIs. What more can the ANC- led government do to show its commitment to level the higher-education playing field?
Unfortunately, the implementation of these programmes depends on individual institutions, led by their governing councils. According to White Paper 3, councils are the highest decision-making bodies of public institutions. They are responsible for the good order and governance of institutions. They are responsible for an institution's financial policies, performance, quality and reputation. Councils ought not to be involved in the day-to-day management of institutions, as that is the responsibility of their executive management, led by the vice-chancellor, rector or principal.
Unfortunately, the experience on the ground is different. The Soudien Report of November 2008 had this to say, and I quote:
It became clear in the course of the institutional visits that, with a few exceptions, the leadership role of council was limited if not nonexistent. Indeed, the overriding impression is of councils that have a prescribed vision, provide little or no leadership and strategic direction and have weak management accountability measures in place. In short, they have abdicated their leadership role to management and seem to have, in the main, become conveyor belts for ratifying policies submitted by management. This was graphically portrayed by constituencies in one institution, where [one] claimed that 'Council was owned by management'.
On 2 December 2010, I was privileged to be one of the Ministerial Council appointees who was invited to meet with the hon Minister. He drew our attention to the Higher Education Summit, which was held at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, CPUT, in April 2010. Its recommendations, among others, were as follows: The establishment of a stakeholder forum; developing a charter on teaching and learning; the recapitalisation of HDIs; the development of African languages as academic languages; and ensuring a commitment to good governance.
The Minister went on to say:
A particularly important recommendation from the Summit with respect to councils was that of ensuring a commitment to good governance - especially important to eliminate all corruption and cronyism in universities. Not only do these things result in the loss of valuable resources, which should be used for educational purposes and strengthening institutions, but many of these disruptions at universities also appear to have corrupt practices at their root. Energies of some managers, other staff and even some council members appear to have been put into securing tenders or getting access to resources for personal enrichment. Such practices are a scourge, not only on our universities but also on our country as a whole.
The following were some of his observations on sloppy governance:
About five task teams were sent to different universities in 2010 - currently, we have three universities under administration, namely the University of Zululand, Tshwane University of Technology and Walter Sisulu University; annual reports are glossy but with less content on what is really going on in the universities; financial mismanagement; and poor management and administration.
On the University of Zululand, the report of the independent assessor had this to say:
Most complaints heard from stakeholders emphasise the ineffectiveness of council to the point where there is no longer a trust relationship between council and most stakeholders. It is obvious that council operates in a world of its own, not recognising the collapse of systems and the maladministration of a serious nature that undermines the effective functioning of the university.
He further reports:
In 2009, the Independent Electoral Commission - which was the body responsible for monitoring elections - fell into disfavour. The impasse led to student protests, which resulted in damage to property to the value of R8 million and the death of a student.
On the wanton destruction of university property, another incident - which took place in August 2011 at the University of Fort Hare, under my watch as a council member - becomes relevant. Hesa had this to say about that incident:
In less than a month, another outbreak of student violence has taken place at one of our universities, this time at the University of Fort Hare. Again it has been accompanied by the destruction of university property, intimidation, the forced removal of students from classrooms as well as the holding hostage of staff. Hesa condemns the violence, intimidation and damage to university property that has accompanied both these protest actions.
In our democratic country, different structures have a constitutional right to protest. They have God-given emotions and the right to feel anger, but I find it difficult to understand why this anger should be accompanied by the destruction of property. [Applause.] Yes, during our student days in the 1960s and 1970s, we went about burning and destroying property, but our excuse was that we had no platform from which to discuss our issues. We were treated like animals in the country of our birth. Surely that is not the case today. Our students have legitimate Student Representative Councils and they sit on a number of university structures, including the Institutional Forum and the council itself. We also have the Chapter 9 institutions to which they can turn if they are not satisfied. There cannot be even a single excuse for the wanton destruction of university property. [Applause.] The irony is that these acts of vandalism drive away potential donors willing to sponsor these poor institutions. Who can blame them?
I will end with the University of Zululand assessor's advice. He said, "The success or failure of the university hinges on strict adherence to principles of good governance and a clear delineation of roles between council and management." I thank you. [Applause.]
House Chair, I would like to acknowledge the presence of the Minister and to thank him for his ongoing support. Director-General, all our officials and hon members, I think a lot has been said about the budget that has been allocated and I will not repeat that. I just want to refer briefly to the premise upon which we present our programme of action and the Budget Vote for the current year.
I think the hon member from the DA did make mention of the New Growth Path. I will also make reference to the Industrial Policy Action Plan and say that whatever we do, we aim to produce learners who will be able to respond to the challenges or the needs of the labour market.
In my contribution to the debate I want to focus on one area of our programme of action and that is the realisation of social inclusion in the posteducation and training system. In terms of our budget allocation, we see an increase of about R2 million this year compared to last year. It was R2,496 million last year, compared to R4,494 million for the current year.
The premise upon which we look at the principle of social inclusion in our education landscape emanates from what was said in the Freedom Charter, namely that the doors of learning and of culture shall be opened. We remain committed to that today. As we deal with the question of transformation, our position is simple: We expect, accept and respect the autonomy of universities. Our interpretation is, however, opposed to the current position of disconnected institutions. We expect our institutions to be located in a context and be responsive to the developmental needs of society. Our understanding is that a university has three elements or dimensions: teaching, research and community engagement. It is therefore important to maintain a balance between institutional autonomy and public accountability. Universities are supported by public funds and governments have a duty to monitor the use of public funds and respond to the needs of society.
In my input I look at three areas, as articulated in the NSDS III, which is our founding policy document. One of them is transformation issues. We look at HIV/Aids, which is one area that is funded by the department and is one of the government's national priorities. As the sector of higher education and training said last year, we are participating in the First Things First campaign, which is a very strategic outreach project for our university students. During the 2011 academic year, 23 000 students were tested for HIV/Aids. In 2012 we hope to increase this campaign and to extend it to our FET colleges as well. The number of people who are responding clearly points to the need to enhance our capacity in respect of campus health and wellbeing.
Another area which I think is important to mention - although the Minister touched on it - is the question of gender. This is a core aspect of transformation. We are seeing an increase in the number of female students, but we certainly believe that a lot more needs to be done in the area of master's and doctoral students, especially when it comes to women. Again, the department will be increasing support and have a special scholarship programme specifically earmarked for women. In the area of research, after master's and doctoral degrees, for people to be researchers and innovators calls for a special investment. We are closely monitoring the number of women, in particular, who are applying at that level and we hope that through support many more women will gradually bring about the required balance.
The other area we will be looking at as a form of promoting an inclusive education system is the area of disability. The department has committed itself to the development of guidelines for facilitating the inclusion of students with disabilities. The department will partner with the National Institute for the Deaf to pilot a model for the training of deaf people. A total investment of R76 million over a three-year period will allow the NID to increase its intake by 40 students to 120 on an annual basis. Regarding the NSFAS grant of R3,4 billion, excluding FET colleges, R63 million is allocated to students with disabilities for bursaries and supporting aids in the financial year. We all know how important it is in this country to enhance our effort in this area, as many of our disabled people have been marginalised.
Another area of transformation that we are continuously looking at is the rural-urban dichotomy within our education system. We all know the serious challenges and multiple problems faced by young people in rural areas, but through our outreach projects - the Minister calls them "road shows", I call them "education iindaba" - we visited quite a number of areas. We have the statistics regarding the number of people who are benefiting from that. Through our career exhibitions, which the Minister referred to earlier, many more young people from rural areas have come forward, hence the rise in intake numbers, even at our FET colleges, which was referred to earlier.
As part of transformation we need to say something about the new college model that will deliver education in the system. Here we look at alignment and curriculum articulation, starting at the lowest level and ensuring that a person is able to migrate from a community college to FET college to university - to grow as the need arises and opportunities avail themselves.
I have heard a lot of concerns regarding FET colleges, but I would just like hon members to understand that we all have to commit ourselves as we did when we were establishing universities, which are world-class institutions today. We have to commit more resources, coordinate our efforts, collaborate and gradually ensure that those institutions are academically acceptable.
Regarding historically disadvantaged universities, the announced budget allocations are really aimed at ensuring that we turn the situation around. We are looking at all fronts, starting with infrastructure. Academic architecture is very important at all levels, including research. Also, the use of information and communications technology, or ICT, is a means through which, we strongly believe, we can overcome the divide, especially between urban and rural young people. We are already seeing results following the work that has been done, particularly through career guidance by the SA Qualifications Authority and quite a number of rural people have been reached through ICT. Also, in the area of research, the South African National Research Network is playing a great role to promote co-operation in terms of research between different institutions.
I want to say that, with the announced budget, we are open, transparent and committed to cooperating with all South Africans, public and private, in ensuring that we are transparent to the masses. We hide no challenges and difficulties and we commit to ensuring not only access but also quality postschool education.
Chairperson, hon Ministers, Deputy Ministers, hon Members of Parliament, distinguished guests and viewers at home, the budget of the Minister clearly spells out our choices as a nation, that all stakeholders must contribute towards the realisation of our goal and that achieving it depends on our action.
The further education and training sector is expected to be a significant locus of the delivery of vocational and continuing education and training, with strong links to industry. We hope that the R4,9 billion allocation will enable the department to ensure that vocational and continuing education take centre stage in terms of skills development.
I think it is relevant that I quote our hero, the people's person, Comrade Chris Hani, and not misrepresent his words, as one person has just done. [Laughter.] Comrade Chris Hani said:
Rich people know that they can pass on their money to their children; they can pass on their land; they can pass on their titles. But there is one great gift that workers can pass on to their children and that is good education.
In his meeting with the principals of the FET colleges, the President, Comrade Jacob Zuma, pointed to the vital space that this sector must occupy with regard to developing skills for building a strong manufacturing base and productive economy. The President further pointed to the successful industrial economies such as Germany, which is rooted in the apprenticeship model. I need to mention that Germany values its vocational education system. This is evident in the support that comes from all the institutions of government, industry and trade unions.
Industry should come on board to partner with colleges in order to develop skills that are really needed by those industries. We fully support the President's call for the changing of mind-sets of our society to enable FET colleges to be the kind of training institutions we wish them to be.
As the ANC, we welcome the contribution of R2,5 billion that the National Skills Fund and the Sector Education and Training Authorities will be injecting into the refurbishment and construction of the new FET college campuses. This will ensure that we go a long way.
Ndvuna lehloniphekile, ngitsandza kusho kutsi lobudlelwane lobentiwa ngemakolishi naletimboni kutawuhamba indlela lendze nangendlela lesifuna kutsi kwenteke ngayo. Kodvwa-ke lesitsandza kukugcizelela kakhulu kutsi sifuna kutsi letimboni tikwati kufaka sandla ngetimoto letinsha, ngobe sitsite nasenta luhlolo lwetfu lena KwaZulu-Natali sakhandza kutsi emakolishi asasebentisa timoto takadzeni. Sikhandze kusasebenta imesedisi yakadzeni-dzeni, yangeminyaka yabo-1980, lengasasilungeli lesikhatsi sanyalo.
Ngako-ke, loku kusho kutsi lesayensi letfutfukako yalemihla ngeke isakwati kuhambelana nalolwati labalutfola esikolweni. Ngaleto tizatfu, sicela kutsi tonkhe timboni tifake tandla ngetimoto tato, njengetinsimbi tetimoto khona titekwati kusita bafundzi kuze babe nebuchwephesha lobufanelekile balesikhatsi. (Translation of Siswati paragraphs follows.)
[Hon Minister, I would like to point out that the relationship forged by colleges and industries will go a long way and be what we would like it to be. However, what we would like to emphasise strongly is that these industries must contribute to the colleges by manufacturing new vehicles. This is because in our research conducted in KZN, we discovered that colleges were still using very old vehicles. We noted that they were still using an old Mercedes Benz of the 1980s, which is not suitable for the present.
This means that the training students are receiving is irrelevant and not keeping up with advancing scientific knowledge. It is for these reasons that we request all vehicle industries to assist for example by providing motor vehicle parts to help learners acquire relevant knowledge of today's technology. ] We are happy that government continues to deliver on its strategic objective of ensuring that students who qualify for financial aid at the FET colleges are exempted from paying fees.
Sihlalo, sibonga Indvuna ngekutsi bafundzi laba-191 bakwatilei kutfola imifundzate, loko kubasite ngekutsi bakwati kwelekeleleka etifundvweni tabo kulamalanga alamhla. Loku, Ndvuna, kutakwenta kutsi bafundzi batimisele ngemandla abo onkhe kuze bakwati kuphumelela nasetikolweni. Lemali itabachuba libanga lelidze kakhulu. (Translation of Siswati paragraph follows.)
[Chairperson, we thank the Minister because 191 learners were awarded bursaries, which are assisting them with their studies. Minister, this will motivate the learners to study very hard and to pass. This money will last them a long time.]
We are, however, concerned about the fact that out of the 50 FET colleges in the country, only 20 have fully constituted councils. This has implications for the governance and management of the finances of the colleges. It is very important that we ensure that the financial capacity that is given to the colleges is managed through the appointment of former chartered accountants, who can assist in the FET colleges and contribute positively to their management and governance. Thank you very much, hon Minister. [Applause.]
We also urge the Minister to speed up the process of developing and implementing the qualifications of FET lecturers, especially because you intend building new FET college campuses across the country. Hon Minister, currently we are battling with the fact that 57% of lecturers all over the country are underqualified, especially in KwaZulu-Natal and Limpopo. It is important to acknowledge that the reopening of the Kwa-Ndebele College will require that we capacitate our lecturers to build a strong educational institution there.
It is important that DA members listened and heard you clearly, Minister, when you said that you were delivering within a short space of time. These colleges will be opened in the next financial year. We believe that these contributions by the Minister will impact positively on the success rate and through-put rate.
The President reiterated that textbooks should be delivered to schools on time to ensure the smooth execution of teaching and learning. We call upon all the provincial departments of education to ensure that textbooks for all subjects are delivered on time to FET colleges. We conducted an oversight visit to FET colleges in KwaZulu-Natal in January and it was sad to observe that most of the students hadn't received textbooks at that time. We also noticed that some of the teaching and learning had been continuing without textbooks. In some of the areas the textbooks given were not enough.
Minister, we further note the postponement of the norms and standards for funding of public adult learning centres, as published in the Gazette in February. We just hope it won't jeopardise the provision of education in that sector.
In conclusion, we are hoping that the 2012-13 funds voted for Programme 4 will help in solving some of the identified challenges and accelerate the improvements already experienced through the programme.
Minister, our education policy must enable everyone who receives education to develop morally, intellectually and physically and to become a worker with a social consciousness and culture. We must not be apologetic about that, Minister. It is our role to emphasise that. The ANC supports the Budget Vote.
Last but not least, people should listen carefully to what is being said because if you want to engage them, they must be able to talk about what was said here. Knowledge is very important. Some people cannot listen to other people because they don't have the necessary knowledge. [Applause.]
The DEPUTY MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND FISHERIES: Chairperson, it is not in dispute that our children must be fluent in English, as it is an international language. Last year, I agreed with the hon Minister when he expressed his disappointment at the slow progress in the development of African languages as languages of scholarship at the country's universities.
In his speech he made proposals on how to ensure that indigenous African languages could also become languages of higher-education instruction. The Minister and I have had many discussions on language and education. He knows how strongly I feel about these issues and that the FF Plus supports him in his statements.
Prof Samasskou of Mali, the president of the Africa Academy of Languages, said:
It is unacceptable that Africa is the only continent where children are not educated in their mother tongue. Germans learn in German, Japanese learn in Japanese, but the people of Africa learn in a foreign language.
The question is: Can African languages be developed to full and equal university languages? At the beginning of the previous century, Afrikaans was dismissed as a kitchen language that would never develop into a mature academic language. If the will is there, any language, including isiZulu and Sesotho, can be developed to this level. Hebrew was a dead historical language for 2 000 years but because the will was there, Hebrew was regenerated into a modern language in the 20th century; one in which computers are being built. Afrikaans, together with Hindi, Malaysian and Hebrew, are the only four languages that have developed themselves from kitchen languages into university languages in the 20th century. I believe that if the will is there, some of the African languages of South Africa could do the same in the 21st century.
In this regard, very good work is being done at present at some South African universities. I am thinking of the good work that someone like Prof Khumalo has done for the development of isiZulu at the University of Zululand. If I'm correct, he was the first person who did his PhD in the medium of isiZulu. I'm also aware of the good work that is being done at North West University, where there are already electronic spellcheckers for, among others, isiZulu, Setswana and isiXhosa.
My question is: What is being done to encourage these universities to continue and to promote South African languages other than English? For example, various universities offer classes in more than one language or make use of simultaneous translation. If the Minister is serious about his dream of developing other South African languages to university level, he and his department will have to institute measures to encourage these universities to continue with this. As far as I'm concerned, the best way would be to adjust the funding framework for universities in order to compensate them additionally for the extra expenses they incur in promoting multilingualism. I want to ask the Minister and his department whether they will be prepared to undertake such an investigation into the adjustment of the financing model.
Ek het aan die begin ges ons kinders moet tot op universiteitsvlak vlot in Engels wees omdat dit 'n internasionale taal is. Dit beteken egter nie dat daar nie ook ruimte gemaak moet word vir ander tale, soos Afrikaans, isiZulu en Sesotho, vir onderrig in hor onderwysinstellings nie. Hierdie departement moet dit doen. Ons sal hom daarin ondersteun sover hy bereid is om dit te doen. [Applous.]
Hoor, hoor! (Translation of Afrikaans paragraphs follows.)
[In the beginning I said that our children must be fluent in English up to university level, as it is an international language. However, that does not mean that room should not be left for other languages such as Afrikaans, isiZulu and Sesotho for education in higher learning institutions. This department must do that. We shall support him in as far as he is prepared to do this. [Applause.]
Hear, hear!]
Chairperson, hon Ministers, Deputy Ministers, hon members and guests, Azapo will judge the budget presented by the Minister today considering the extent to which it will strengthen the sector. There is a need to strengthen the management of FET colleges. Some have been running with vacant positions in management. There are colleges that have principals or chief executive officers but no senior management. This is a situation that has to be addressed as a matter of urgency. Hon Minister, you mention job creation, but vacant positions are the exact opposite of job creation. A vacant position means a service is not being rendered, somebody is being denied a job and therefore children are being denied a source of income in their family.
We welcome the agreement that you have reached with the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants but good intentions can also be problematic if not properly implemented. The cry that we now hear from some colleges is that chief financial officers have just rocked up, but that there had been no engagement with principals and councils to talk about what exactly it was that such persons were supposed to do. Are they part of the organogram? To whom do they report? This is something that you need to address.
We have heard of the plan to have enrolment at FET colleges increased to 1 million in 2030. This will require another recapitalisation of FET colleges. The colleges will require new classrooms, workshops and hostels - and I must say "decent hostels" - for learners who stay far away from those colleges.
The FET sector will have to be made more attractive as an alternative or, to use your words, Minister, as institutions of choice. The Minister will have to seriously address the perceived lack of parity of esteem between the National Senior Certificate and the National Certificate Vocational. The truth is that there are still real problems in the NCV. How do we explain the fact that a learner who has successfully completed NCV cannot do a trade test because the minimum requirement is N2?
A lot has been said in this House and elsewhere about the need to address the problems of teacher supply and demand. Your department has been charged with the responsibility of ensuring that the country has enough teachers. In Limpopo, for example, if you advertise for a maths or science teacher, chances are the only applicants you will get will be Zimbabweans. We know their situation and why they are here. What will happen as soon as the political situation in their country stabilises? Are we preparing ourselves?
Hon Minister, you have been rescued from challenges and problems related to concurrent powers. We expect your department to move with speed in dealing with disparities that were brought about by the lack of implementation of policies. [Time expired.] Azapo supports Budget Vote 17. [Applause.]
Madam Chair, hon Minister, Deputy Minister and members, taking the vision of the government's National Development Plan on improving education, training and innovation as a guiding instrument for today's debate, I would like to draw your attention to the following aspects.
The NDP suggests an education system that strives to improve the quality of education for the majority of learners. By 2030 South Africa needs an education system with the following attributes: Further and higher education and training that enable people to fulfil their potential; a graduation rate that has increased to 75%; the production of 30 000 artisans per year; participation rates that increased to 25% and created an additional 1 million learning opportunities per year; and an expanding higher-education sector able to contribute towards rising incomes, higher productivity and a shift to a more knowledge-intensive economy.
Building on what works in international education and also on ongoing policy research in South Africa aimed at helping to improve the national education system, what is revealed is that improving learner success and through-put in secondary schools is one of South Africa's most challenging priorities.
Most South African learners successfully complete grade 9 and look to the National Senior Certificate as a form of access to higher education. Unfortunately, the reality is quite different. Many learners will repeat the senior grades, while others will drop out between grades 10, 11 and 12. A recent study found that nearly 1 million young South Africans aged 18 to 24 who had completed at least grade 10 or its equivalent did not complete their grade 12 schooling, were unemployed and not studying. One can assume that they would cope better in vocational educational systems relevant to South Africa's needs.
In the light of South Africa's critical need for especially technical and artisan skills, what then needs to be done to strengthen vocational educational systems in South Africa - where school-leavers are exposed to engineering, technological, electrical, building-related, agricultural and other occupations but need further postschool training before they can enter the labour market?
Research indicates that the country should give further attention to the development of a policy framework for making vocationally orientated education - through specialist focus schools or further education and training institutions - a much more attractive option within a system of diversified education.
Drawing on international best practice, it is possible to identify some of the key factors for successful vocational education. Successful countries have distinct and connecting aims for general and vocational education. These clarify the different and connecting pathways for learners via these different education programmes.
Successful countries have a high degree of collaboration between government and industry at the planning stages. They also require different but involved government departments to help each other, in both policy development and the design and delivery of educational programmes.
Qualifications awarded through vocational education and other qualifications have a clear exchange rate. These arrangements are normally supported by agreed criteria and well-functioning, effective information systems.
Good vocationally orientated education curricula have been developed through education and industry partnerships. Effective partnerships combine the general mix of knowledge and skills, drawing on general education as well as vocationally orientated education.
The international experience is clear: effective vocationally orientated education relies on high-quality educators, which has been mentioned today. The system also ensures that such teachers have adequate knowledge of the workplace and its demands. More successful results follow where there is a range of appropriate measures to help learners and their parents make informed choices about future educational options at the end of their period of basic education.
In order to achieve these proposals, the following would also have to be implemented: Funds should be allocated from Setas to support and enhance identified focus schools and training institutions. The rigid boundaries between school-based vocationally orientated education and national education offered by FET colleges should be more flexible. Partnerships between training institutions and industry should be encouraged. This will allow vocationally orientated education to be supplemented with practical experience in appropriate companies.
Currently, in South Africa the Seta co-ordination and Seta support monitor and report on the implementation of the National Skills Development strategy at sectoral level and are responsible for an effective skills development system. However, the system is currently dysfunctional and failing the learners. I received numerous complains from service providers and students about problems they encounter in the administration of their respective Setas. To illustrate this frustration, I quote from a letter that illustrates the problems:
The electrical construction industry previously fell under the auspices of the Energy Sector Education and Training, ESeta, now called Energy Water Sector Education Training Authority, EWSeta. On 1 April 2011, our industry was moved across to the construction Seta, Ceta, which, like the EWSeta, is under administration and hence little if anything is done by them. One of their duties is to issue trade-test certificates to successful candidates.
Since April last year, we had, as an accredited trade-test centre, 49 candidates who successfully passed their industry trade test. Despite all the requirements being provided to Ceta, not a single trade-test certificate has been issued by the Ceta. This certificate is required by employers when offering employment and without it candidates loose out. The certificate is also one of the requirements for a candidate to obtain the installation electrician licence, so here too candidates are being hamstrung from qualifying.
A further worrying issue has now arisen. Our accreditation as a training centre by the EWSeta expired on 25 February 2012. Despite all efforts by us to have our training facilities re-accredited by Ceta, nothing has happened. We are now faced with having to stop trade-testing and possibly stop all training. This situation is not unique to ourselves as we are aware of several training facilities that have also ceased training due to their expired accreditation. No positive reaction is coming from the Ceta, not even after a visit by the Minister.
In conclusion, the DA is sincerely concerned about what is happening. We cannot continue in this manner. We need an effective skills development system that can produce the required number of trained artisans so desperately needed by our country to promote economic growth and employment opportunities, of which we are in dire need. [Applause.]
Chairperson, hon Minister, hon Deputy Minister, hon members present, the Director-General of Higher Education and Training, and all the guests, I greet you all. As you know, education has been set as a societal issue in this country by President J G Zuma. We therefore cannot stop talking about it, particularly about access to higher education and training.
Education is very important in enabling every member of society to realise his or her potential and participate in social and economic life, thus contributing to the reduction of inequality, which is one of the challenges we face as a country. For us to bridge the skills shortage we need to address the issue of access to education. There are many understated factors that hinder access to education for many learners and students. These include financial exclusion, variation in admission policies, accommodation shortages at our institutions of higher learning, racism and many others. If these issues are not addressed, we will see them continue to haunt the system. Our expectation is that the budgeting process that we are involved in now should steadily address the factors that hinder access to higher education and training.
Ngiyafisa ukudlulisa amazwi enkuthazo nethemba kuNgqongqoshe wethu lapho esithembisa khona futhi eqhubeka nokuzibophezela nokulwa kanye nokuvula amathuba amaningi okuthi abafundi bethu babe nezindawo abangaya kuzo uma befuna ukuqhubeka nemfundo. Ekuzibophezeleni kwakhe uthe ngonyaka wezi-2014 sizobona ukuvulwa kwamanyuvesi amabili kulezi zifundazwe esikhuluma ngazo. Lokho sikwamukela ngezandla zombili. Siyakwamukela futhi siyathemba ukuthi kuzokwenzeka ukuze abantwana bethu bakwazi ukuqhubeka nemfundo eseqopheleni eliphezulu ngendlela ekhululekile. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[I would like to convey some words of encouragement and hope to our Minister since he promised to commit to fighting for the creation of many opportunities for our students at institutions where they can further their studies. In his commitment, he said that in 2014 we will see the opening of two universities in the provinces that we are talking about. We welcome this fully, and we believe that it will happen in order for our children to be able to continue with higher quality education freely.]
Regarding financial exclusion, in the Medium-Term Strategic Framework 2009- 2014 the government committed itself to the notion that financial need must not be a barrier to access to postschool education. We applaud the sterling work that NSFAS has done since its inception in ensuring that academically deserving students are able to access education and in contributing to skills development in this country. Some of us seated here were beneficiaries of this scheme and NSFAS continues to serve the purposes of addressing the issue of the needy in our country.
However, we are saddened by the fact that there are students who continue to face the challenge of financial exclusion. Institutions continue to apply the principle of top-slicing when allocating NSFAS funds because of the higher number of NSFAS applicants. While this principle ensures that every applicant gets funded, the "one size fits all" approach does not always help. For example, students are allocated the same amount despite the programmes they have registered for. The fact that some students are enrolled in programmes that demand higher tuition fees than others is not considered. For example, a Bachelor of Science will not cost the same as a Bachelor of Arts, but you find that institutions allocate the funds in a "one size fits all" manner. Minister, we are happy about the announcement today that the NSFAS board is now in place. Everybody is there. We think these issues need to be addressed to ensure that the objectives of NSFAS are achieved.
We were at the University of Zululand at the beginning of this year as part of our oversight role in KwaZulu-Natal. We were told that the through-put rate of the institution was 14,78% in 2010, which is well below the national average. That is of concern. Among other causes, this poor through- put rate was attributed to the drop-out rate among many students owing to financial difficulty. Some institutions force students who are NSFAS beneficiaries to pay upfront in order to enable the universities to have operational funds while they await the transfer of their block of the subsidy grants from the department. How on earth can we expect needy students to pay these upfront payments? Those are all the issues that need to be addressed despite all the efforts that the government might be putting in place. We really need to go to those institutions of higher learning to make sure that these issues are addressed, because they block or exclude learners or students who come from poor backgrounds and are known to be historically disadvantaged.
HON MEMBERS: Hear, hear!
We cannot shy away from talking about the abuse of the NSFAS finances by the students themselves. As much as we strive for ensuring that poor students access education and successfully get the necessary financial assistance through the system, we also find certain practices that are not comforting. NSFAS is meant to assist academically deserving students who come from poor backgrounds to access education and further training. We are concerned, however, about recent developments in events at institutions of higher learning. From our recent oversight visit to such institutions we learnt that students are refunded their NSFAS money at the end of the year. For example, at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology, a student reported to the committee that he was refunded R11 000 and was excited because he was sorted for the December festive season. What does this mean? One will be tempted to assume that students use this money for entertainment, including buying whatever makes them happy. Ironically, we found that the same student who was refunded R11 000 at the end of 2010 could not afford to register the following year. [Interjections.]
Yes, we applaud NSFAS and say that it must continue but, Minister, the main question that comes up is this: Are the NSFAS issues managed well? That is important.
Ngalokho ngiphonsa inselelo kuzo zonke izinhlaka ezihola abafundi ezikoleni, nakuzo zonke izinhlaka zomphakathi ekutheni lokhu okuncane uhulumeni akwenzayo masiqikelele ukuthi kufeza izinhloso ezifanele ikakhulukazi ezinhlakeni zabafundi. Ngifisa ukuthi ngiwuvuselele lowo nembeza wokuthi izimali ezikhishwa nguhulumeni ukuyosiza umfundi ukuthi enze okungcono ngempilo yakhe, hhayi ukuthi athi ngibuyiselwe imali. Nayo imikhakha ayikwazi ukuphindisela imali kubafundi mayelana nezinto ezinjalo. (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[With that I'm posing a challenge to all the structures that lead the students in schools and to all the community structures: the little that the government is doing, let us make sure that it achieves the relevant objectives, especially in the student structures. I wish to revive that conscience that says: the financial aid that is offered by the government to a learner is to help the learner improve his or her life. He or she must say that he or she got a refund. Even the institutions are not able to refund students for such things.]
So, that is the planning that needs to happen in our institutions so that we can see education being taken forward in future.
Another funny issue is that of variation in the admission policies of institutions of higher learning. The Department of Higher Education and Training has set minimum standards for admission to institutions of higher learning and the point system is the policy that is currently being used. However, meeting their requirements is not a surety that you will be admitted to these universities, given that on top of these minimum requirements, institutions place their own requirements per programme or per faculty. These are sometimes higher than what students can reach, especially those from a previously disadvantaged background.
Again, the National Benchmark Tests are used as a compulsory assessment for prospective first-year students for entry into higher education. These assessment tests are not free. How on earth can you expect a child coming from a poor family to pay for the test that will allow him or her to get entrance into university? Sometimes these things are done very carelessly, Minister. We need the department to take care of them so that we see our people being freed in totality.
We are not saying that institutions must lower their standards, but we argue that in terms of Section 37 of the Higher Education Act, Act 101 of 1997, their admission policy must provide appropriate measures for the redress of the inequalities of the past and may not unfairly discriminate in any way.
Disparities in terms of application fees still persist in our institutions of higher learning. The exorbitant application fees really contribute to the walk-ins that we see at the beginning of every year because prospective learners from poor families cannot even afford to pay these application fees. One is tempted to ask this question: What makes the application process at the University of the Western Cape different from the one at the University of Stellenbosch? For 2013, the University of Johannesburg is charging a nonrefundable R400 per application. The University of Stellenbosch is charging R300, while the University of the Western Cape is charging R50. Why do these disparities exist? Minister, we really call for the regulation of this process. [Applause.]
It is not always true that learners do not want to apply in time. It is because they cannot afford these nonrefundable fees. Minister, we are advocating for a standardised application fee for all the institutions - that they be regulated one way or the other - while we are still waiting for the centralised application system, which you have mentioned and promised by 2013.
One other concern that we as the committee have around our institutions of higher learning is the accreditation by professional bodies.
Chairperson, on a point of order: Is it parliamentary for the hon member over there to finish off her speech while the IFP member could not finish his speech? [Laughter.]
Please continue, hon member.
One other concern that we have as a committee is that of institutions of higher learning that offer qualifications that are accredited by the Council of Higher Education but not by the professional bodies. Over and above the accreditation by the Council of Higher Education, other programmes are to be accredited by professional bodies like health and medical programmes, and built environment and engineering programmes, to mention a few. This is done to ensure that institutions put in place the appropriate resources that will ensure that the provision of teaching and learning meet the required standards and levels of quality.
I will single out one professional body, the SA Institute of Chartered Accountants. This body assures the quality of academic programmes so that they will lead to qualification as a chartered accountant. It is important to note that not all institutions that offer qualifications related to a bachelor's degree in accounting are accredited by this body. Students who go through these unaccredited programmes are at a disadvantage because, upon completion of their studies, they must first register for the two-year SAICA accreditation bridging course before they can enrol in trainee accountant programmes. Their counterparts who passed the same qualification at an accredited institution will be accepted into chartered accountant programmes. Minister, this must be looked into.
In conclusion, the challenges outlined above put the spotlight on the 2012 Budget Vote. We note that this budget sets a good pace towards addressing these challenges, with the earmarked MTEF allocation further accelerating the pace at which they are addressed. The gains that the department has made in the past three years give us hope that, as the ANC, we are on the right path towards rooting out all forms of exclusion in the higher- education sector.
The Minister has articulated the vision and made pronouncements on matters that will totally reshape the landscape of higher education. Certain issues, like the use of African languages in the medium and long term as languages of science, should be fast-tracked. Minister, there really is a need to assist those institutions that are ready to implement this so that they can serve as models for other institutions to do the same. We support the effort to grow the higher-education system so that we can increase enrolment by 2030, and we are looking forward to that. The continued allocation to address the challenges of student accommodation is a sign of good progress.
Therefore, as the ANC, we are saying that the 2012 Budget Vote sets a faster pace for progress and addressing the challenges. We really support it and are very glad that even the progressive opposition parties, which share the vision of this country going forward, support this Budget Vote with its additions. It is clear from their comments and contributions that they want to make sure that an African child does benefit from the system. We do serve the African child - except for those opposition parties who, I think, forgot to support this Budget Vote or they do not understand what is happening. [Time expired.]
Chairperson, let me take this opportunity to thank all the members who participated in this Budget Vote debate today. I especially thank the members of the portfolio committee and, in particular, members of the ANC study group for all the support they have given us. I also thank all the parties who have supported this Budget Vote.
Siyabonga kakhulu kulabo abasisekele, angikafiki kulabo abangakayisekeli. [Thank you very much to those who supported us; I am still coming to those who did not support it.] [Laughter.]
I also think that we must express our appreciation for what appears to have been a very constructive engagement from the DA today. It looks like the Lindiwe Mazibuko regime change has done something different. [Applause.] I would like to ask hon members to submit your comments about the many issues that you raised during the Green Paper process.
I want to say a few things to the hon Bosman first. The matter of the electrical association, which you raised, has been dealt with. The administrator has told me that this matter has now been dealt with because we are an administration that is developing capacity to act on matters swiftly. After all, it is not in anybody's interest to have differences around the issue of the production of artisans because that is a priority.
To hon member Lotriet, we agree with you that access without success is a problem. For that reason we have allocated different amounts of money in this budget to actually improve the through-put rate, among other things.
I also agree with hon Gina that we need to mobilise all our forces for educational transformation. It is very important that students should not see these bursaries just as gifts from government but should realise that they themselves need to work hard. That is very important.
Hon Malale, thank you very much - really. We have taken into account the very important issues you were raising. This issue of salary disparities in terms of universities might require a dedicated investigation from the department. The gap between lecturers and executives at universities is indeed an unacceptable one. It is something we need to investigate properly, I think. I am sure the Director-General is listening. We have raised this matter with the chairpersons of councils, saying let them grapple with it. However, they have not moved as fast as we have anticipated.
We have promised dedicated colleges of education and we will definitely do it. What we said today about the three colleges - we are going to do that. Also, we have asked NSFAS to investigate how we can respond to those who do not qualify for NSFAS even though they are poor and do not meet the means test. NSFAS is already working on the matter.
Of course I must also warn - the DA in particular - that at the same time as our interventions at universities, we should not be seen to be pushing for autonomy when things are good and blame government when things are bad. That is why our approach to higher-education institutions and universities is that autonomy must always be balanced with public accountability because these are public institutions.
Hon Bhanga, I am worried because it looks like what happened to you today is that you had already prepared a speech and then I covered all the issues you were raising, but unfortunately you could not change the speech that you had already written. [Laughter.] This is a sign that Cope is not streetwise. [Laughter.] I also wish that you could direct the energy that you showed today towards Cope so that it can hold its congress ... [Applause.] ... otherwise we are not sure of your mandate. Since Cope was established, it has never had a policy discussion because it has not had a congress. I am sorry about that, and also ... [Interjections.]
On a point of order, Chair, is it correct for a communist to address another party like that? [Laughter.]
That is not a point of order. Minister, please continue.
I would like to say to the hon Mpontshane that we appreciate his support of this Budget Vote. However, with regard to the issue of "an ideological third force", why don't we ask for a debate in Parliament on this topic. Let's not use this Budget Vote because I would really like to debate what I mean by elements that are positioning themselves like an ideological third force. Let us not use this occasion.
We also heard what Professor Mayatula said. We agree with him: yes, it is a right to protest and demonstrate, but we say no to the destruction of property. In fact, to use our language, destroying property is counterrevolutionary because it means that we have to take money that could have been used for something else to repair something that we had already built. That is why we want to say that the transformation of education must be accompanied by the ongoing mass mobilisation and political education of South Africans. [Applause.] It should not just be seen as manna of some sort from government.
Hon Radebe, we agree with you: a part of the R2,5 billion from the National Skills Fund and the sector education and training authorities will be for modern machinery and equipment. In the Skills Accord, we agreed that employers should expose college lecturers to modern technology so that what they teach is relevant and they will produce students who are employable or, at least, able to start their own initiatives.
Regarding the councils of colleges, we also agree. It is our target that by the end of September we will have fully functional, re-elected councils at FET colleges. Therefore, I call upon all hon members to give us names of good people whom they know are passionate about education and colleges. We will consider them, even if they actually come from the DA and, maybe, Cope. [Laughter.]
My hon colleague, Deputy Minister Mulder, we agree with you on the issue of language. You know my view. The two of us have debated this many times before, outside of the House. The attitude you articulated today towards African languages and Afrikaans is the correct one. My concern is that those who defend Afrikaans tend to want to defend Afrikaans in isolation from the underdeveloped African languages. If you do that, you drive yourself into the laager and then no one will listen. As a matter of fact, we do want to learn from what Afrikaans has achieved and how it did so. That is why in the African languages panel we have a professor from Stellenbosch who is actually sharing with us how Afrikaans was developed. That is something we really appreciate and can take forward.
Hon Gina, we agree with you. That is why we have said to the administrators at these universities that if we are actually going to deal with this, they must also focus on turning around their academic programme, not just their management and finances.
In conclusion, hon Dikobo from Azapo, the issue of chief financial officers is very clear at the FET colleges. The structure of the FET colleges is that one of the deputy principals is responsible for finance, which is the CFO position. So, when chartered accountants come in, no one can say that it is not clear what is going to happen.
Ngale kwalokho ngiyabonga kakhulu kinina malungu ahloniphekile ngokuthi niseseke. Labo abangasesekanga angisazi ukuthi ngingathini kubona; yizinkinga zabo lezo, abaziphuzele lobo tshwala abazigayele bona. Siyabonga. [Uhleko.] [Ihlombe.] (Translation of isiZulu paragraph follows.)
[A big thank you to the hon members for supporting us. I do not know what to say to those who did not support us. That is their problem; let them dance to their own music. Thank you. [Laughter.] [Applause.]]