Hon Deputy Chairperson, when we send our children to school the expectation is that they are receiving a good education, an education that will enable them to engage as good citizens. When we send our children to school believing that they are safe and protected, on 26 July 2019 the Minister of Basic Education outlined the department's priorities in the Budget Vote speech adding that the department takes school safety very seriously and that they have prioritised interventions focusing on physical infrastructure, these relating to poor fencing, alarm systems and more.
However, these promises are now ringing hollow for thousands of learners who still lack access to basic infrastructure. Education should be the vehicle out of the poverty trap but the inability of the South African education system to act is once again leaving a bitter taste in our mouth. According to the Media Progress Report, the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative, Asidi, is sorely lacking. Only 11 new schools have been completed against the department's annual target of 59. Forty million rand in unspent funds have been declared on the payment of Capital Assets under the