The hon Chair, hon members and colleagues, distinguished guests, ladies and gentlemen, we thank you most sincerely for this debate on Vote 15: Basic Education. Fellow compatriots, I am humbled by your support. As men and women of South Africa, you have indeed nurtured and jealously guarded children's constitutional rights to education like the robin that lays and shields its eggs over time. It takes honesty, maturity, clarity of purpose and hard work to build the new, equitable and uniform national system of education that is envisaged in the progressive South African Schools Act of 1996.
Today, we stand before this House to account and seek a fresh mandate for the 2013-14 programme on the strength of observable advances we have made, with the nation, over time, to build a better education system for a better life for all. The overall budget for 2013-14 for the Department of Basic Education stands at R17,592 billion. Last year, it was R16,344 billion. This is an increase of about R1,248 billion, which confirms government's commitment to education. The budget allocation for provincial education departments stands at R173,454 billion. It will reach R199 billion in 2015- 16. In this budget, Umalusi is allocated R97,6 million in 2013, which will reach R112,7 million in 2015-16 to cover its expanded mandate.
The Kha Ri Gude programme, which is one of our most successful programmes, receives R549,7 million. This is a mass literacy campaign which has enabled us to reach 2,9 million adults. To this, we add R59,2 million allocated to the Expanded Public Works Programme, EPWP, and Kha Ri Gude, which has made a contribution to job creation by recruiting and training young volunteers. The Kha Ri Gude volunteers comprise of 44 monitors, 203 co-ordinators, 3 703 supervisors and 38 000 educators, including 250 helpers for blind volunteers. In this way, our department has contributed to the government's effort to create jobs.
Chair, on the question of improved quality of basic education, the building blocks for a high-performing system are in place. Improving performance across the system is a key objective of the education sector plan. The key outputs of the Action Plan are consistent with the priorities of the National Development Plan, NDP. Once Cabinet has finalised the Medium-Term Strategic Framework, which is aligned to the NDP, we will revise our plans and priorities accordingly.
Hon members, he who has a plan is a million times better than the one who pokes holes in the plans of others, those without a plan. [Interjections.] We are attending to learner performance while addressing those systemic issues that are making it difficult for us to crack the system. We have been allocated an amount of R25 million for this year, which I will speak to later. We know the challenges. We are therefore better placed to improve quality and efficiency while consolidating the gains in access and equity.
We can proudly say South African's school participation is nearly 100% for the basic compulsory band, which is a band for the 7- to 15-year age range. Reports also show there are fewer out-of-school children, and those who have dropped out. According to household surveys from Statistics SA, we have 80 000 fewer children who were out of school as compared to 2011. We plan to do more to improve retention and post compulsory schooling.
Census 2011 also gave us good news for education. It said the proportion of the population without any formal schooling has decreased twofold from 2001 to 2011. With education comes critical skills, and out of these come great prospects for absorption in the labour market, great entrepreneurship, leadership and economic opportunities. Through government's antipoverty strategy, we are progressively removing obstacles inhibiting access to equal, quality education for all children, across the race, gender and class divide. Over eight million children in more than 80% of our schools received free education in non-fee paying schools.
The conditional grant for the National School Nutrition Programme has increased by R266 million to R5,173 billion. It will reach R5,7 billion in 2015-16. Our HIV and Aids Life Skills Education Conditional Grant has been allocated R213 million. We will continue to improve access to quality early childhood development, ECD. In 2011 monitoring results show South Africa has improved access from 39,3% to 84,8% of Grade 1s. All in all, we have 12 433 million learners in over 25 000 schools. In line with the drive to build an equitable system, in 2013, we are prioritising inclusive education.
Chair, I have invited one of our learners with special needs. I will refer to her later. She's a young girl who uses her feet to do everything, to write and to walk. I will introduce her at the end of my speech.
Chair, our interventions are definitely bearing fruits. There is progress on the four priority areas that we agreed on last year, which is the Curriculum Assessment Policy Statements, Caps, assessments, workbooks and infrastructure. You know that a major setback was the time it took to complete, for instance, delivering books to Limpopo last year. It was very unfortunate. There's evidence of improved learner performance, even in those districts we had said were underperforming, showing that our interventions over time are bearing fruits. We'll therefore sustain our focus on these four priority areas. The "Triple Ts" will remain on the agenda of quality teaching and learning.
Hon members, you did witness sustained improvement in matric exam results. This is a result of systemic interventions for strengthening and raising performance at all levels of the system. Just to remind you, the matric pass rate climbed to 73,9% in 2012 and I'm quite confident that our target of 75%, is well within reach. We are also on target to deliver 175 000 university entrants by 2014. In 2012, the number of Grade 12 learners who qualified for bachelor's degrees rose to 136 000 learners. Members, do you know that under this government, the number of learners who became ready for bachelors level studies almost doubled over the last 12 years, from around 70 000 to 136 000? [Applause.] With the number of passes in matric increasing and the number of passes in physical science increasing, we have, in line with President's call, established a maths and science task team to help us identify challenges in this area. For that purpose, the Dinaledi Schools programme, which is supposed to deal with maths and science, has been allocated R105 million. We are very encouraged by the recent Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study, TIMSS, which bears testimony to our gains. I think you have to listen quite carefully. In the last TIMMS report, South Africa's improvement in mathematics, of 67 TIMSS points, between 2002 and 2011, or seven points per year on average, is among the steepest seen by any TIMSS' participant, even higher than Brazil. [Applause.]
We are leaving nothing to chance. We've completed a detailed diagnostic analysis of NSC results in terms of key subjects. This has identified key subject deficiencies which will become our target for interventions this year. The ministerial committee on the National Senior Certificate, NSC, will, inter alia, investigate standards and promotion requirements of the NSC, including the matter of matric results publication, a matter raised passionately with me by the Congress of South African Students, Cosas.
Moving to the curriculum, as stated last year, our continued focus is on the phased implementation of the revised Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statements, Caps. In 2013, we moved to Grades 4 and 6. Grades 1 to 3 were covered this year. I am worried though about low levels of reading and writing in the Foundation Phase. This has emerged in an audit of the provincial reading programme we commissioned in February 2013. The audit report proposed the kind of support we must give to teachers and learners because reading is at the heart of learning. This fact has also been confirmed by the recent NEEDU report again, which we released last week Friday. The Intermediate and Senior Phases of Caps were distributed in 2012 to prepare for implementation in 2013 and 2014 respectively. The Senior Phase of the Caps orientation programme for provinces started in March, and will run until 24 May 2013. The Grade 12 Caps orientation was conducted in all provinces between February and April 2013. We are a department at work and hard at work. [Applause.]
An amount of R220,9 million is allocated for the recapitalisation of these schools to improve facilities and equipment. This will assist in addressing skills shortages and joblessness. The sign language curriculum has been completed and is being piloted in two schools in the Western Cape and Gauteng. We believe good grounding in a learner's home language is essential. So, in 2014, a new policy will come into effect mandating the learning of an African language in all schools. This builds on work we've done to improve competencies in African languages. [Applause.] We list among successes the progressive development of the National Curriculum Statement for Grades R to 12, a milestone since the days of the racialised, fragmented education department.
Using Annual National Assessments, ANA, to monitor levels and quality of learning outcomes has taken root. We now have empirical evidence to use in planning further interventions. In 2012, we administered language and mathematics tests to more than 7 million learners in Grades 1 to 6 in more than 20 000 schools. We are told no country has done it on the scale that we have done. [Applause.] The results of this ANA tests show that while learner performance in literacy varies from satisfactory to good, the same cannot be said about performance in numeracy, particularly in Grade 9. If you recall, there was a huge outcry when we again bravely published results around our Grade 9 numeracy.
The particularly low learner performance in mathematics in the Intermediate and Senior Phases justifies the steps we have already taken to focus on teacher professional development and provision of learning and teaching support materials for the higher school grades. An allocation of R75 million to strengthen the existing programme has been secured for 2013 and will reach R160 million in 2014-15.
Regarding workbooks, we have increased learner access to workbooks and coverage to improve literacy, numeracy and, importantly, reading. An allocation for the workbooks stands at R859 million. We have provided workbooks to all learners in Grades 1 to 9. Through savings from developing content in-house, we have expanded the scope to cover Braille workbooks. Close to 24 million copies of Workbook 1 were delivered to 23 000 schools in November 2012, for use in 2013. By 2013 around 114 million full-colour national workbooks, which the Australian Council for Educational Research has confirmed as high quality, had been distributed to our schools. The feedback from the surveys we conducted on workbook utilisation is also very positive.
In terms of national policy, it's a key priority for every learner to have access to a minimum set of textbooks and workbooks. In 2007, according to SACMEQ results, coverage stood at 45% for literacy and 36% for maths - that is 2007. Our 2011 survey puts us at 78% for literacy and 83% for maths. I must say, this is still unacceptable because we say we want to have every learner with a book in every subject. We have doubled our efforts but I do believe that we can do more.
Hon members, prudence in the deployment of resources is key to the national endeavour for equality and inclusive development and growth. To address inequalities in education, we are therefore mindful of economic disparities resulting from apartheid education. This is a part of the rationale for centralising procurement. The development of the national catalogue of textbooks for Grades 7 to 9 has commenced. As reported, the national catalogue for Grade 12 has been completed and was made available to provinces.
Hon members, school infrastructure is an area of great concern, which we have also paid serious attention to as a sector. Improved expenditure on infrastructure budgets, and the number of completed projects in the last financial year, are indicators of progress. More schools do receive water, sanitation and electrification and many more continue to do so.
SIP 13 will also drive skills development and job creation. We want to see synergy in infrastructure planning between national and provincial education departments. The benefit would be schools that are in areas where people live. Thus, we are finalising a Comprehensive Infrastructure Investment Plan. We're also working on partnerships with Department of Labour and Department of Correctional Services for the supply of school furniture. We have developed plans to close once and for all the chapter of potholes and hanging ceilings in our classrooms. The infrastructure allocation for 2013 stands at R6,30 billion. For the provincial allocation, it will increase to R10 billion in 2014. An amount of R1,9 billion will go to the Schools Backlog Grant, called Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Delivery Initiative, Asidi, run by the national department.
It's also important to share Asidi-related challenges. We had challenges with the contractors that were used by our service provider. Because I am running out of time, I will not tell you or go into details as to which schools and how many schools are going to be done. I think I will do that through the committee. [Interjections.] We will provide sanitation to a number of schools and we want to thank the many South Africans who supported us in providing and maintaining school infrastructure. Schools in the Eastern Cape will never be the same again. Those who had seen the new schools we built in the Eastern Cape will agree ... [Applause.] ... they are state of the art institutions with fully-furnished libraries, laboratories and administration blocks. [Interjections.] By the end of May, we will hand over the completed schools to the province so that they can pass them on to the people officially. If we say we are going to finish mud schools by 2015, it means that in 2014 we will still see a mud school - if your logic works. If we say the project finishes in 2015, it means in 2013- 14 expect one. What we need you to judge us on is what we are doing towards 2015.
Quality teaching is high on our list of priorities. Allow me therefore to repeat President Zuma's consistent call to teachers to be in school, in class, on time, teaching at least 7 hours per school day. President Zuma had said in the 2013 state of the nation address, that education is an essential service. Its health depends on collective efforts and bargaining in a climate that is conducive.
That's why we've engaged earnestly with organised teachers on contentious issues, rendering it hard for the falcon to hear the falconer. That is why it was very important for me that we should find an amicable way to resolve the two month-long impasse we had with Sadtu. The interest of the child will best be served where and when there is uninterrupted harmony within the system, and between the key stakeholders. When we lose sight of this fact, and mere instability is loosed upon the world, it is the child, the African child in particular, who suffers the most. Accountability is important and is of paramount importance.
We are on track with implementing the Integrated Strategic Planning Framework. Through our Teacher Union Collaboration initiative, teacher unions and their institutes implemented professional development programmes covering areas in which teachers needed support. It was reported that over 58 000 teachers benefitted from this programme and we will continue that programme, because even from the Needu report it is clear that it is quite essential that we move with speed on the question of teacher development. We also want to welcome the Presidential Remuneration Review Commission for the public sector, with teachers as a priority.
We also would want to report on the thorny matter around teacher laptops, that the department is currently working with the State Information Technology Agengy, Sita, and National Treasury to finalise implementation systems and processes, including modalities of using a centralised procurement mechanism. This has been an extremely frustrating matter but we are doing all we can to bring it to finality. Funza Lushaka bursaries is receiving R839 million.
Regarding the Needu report, I want to say that last Thursday, we received from its CEO, Dr Nick Taylor, the unit's first national report for 2012 on the state of literacy teaching and learning. This independent evaluation provides evidence to support our proposals on the need urgently to remedy shortcomings in educational practice.
Concerning the Planning and Delivery Oversight Unit, which was set up last year, we again can report proudly that we've made progress. We have most of the schools coming out of dysfunctional situations. For instance, Libode, headed by a very capable director, Dr Nuku, registered an improvement which is almost 20%, and we are very proud of that.
On strengthening better outcomes, we've also worked with our districts to improve performance. We can also report that we've made progress in terms of our interventions both in Limpopo and the Eastern Cape. We will be announcing through our portfolio committee the programme of education collaboration framework that responds to the call made by the National Development Plan for intersectoral co-operation to improve educational outcomes working with various stakeholders.
Before I close - I see I have 16 seconds - let me just acknowledge my colleague, Deputy Minister Surty, the Chairperson of the portfolio committee, the director-general and all his officials. Just allow me to acknowledge and pay tribute to my special guest today, who is Princess Kgosana Sithole, a 12-year-old from Tehillah Christian School. Princess has overcome her challenges and she's a very bright, positive young girl who uses her feet to do everything, including excellent writing. [Applause.] I am not sure if she's here for us to see her. Where is MaSithole? [Applause.] Thank you very much. She opens taps and everything else with her feet and writes much cleaner and neater than most of us in the classroom. She is a very brilliant and successful scholar.
Let me also acknowledge the presence of the former Deputy President, Mrs Ngcuka, who also works very closely with us in this collaboration that we are working on in education. I thank her very much for coming. [Applause.] I also take this opportunity to thank ... [Interjections.] ... the Chief Whip here for the support that he gives, and also acknowledge the presence of my mother and siblings, who are also very supportive and who have come here. We thank you very much. I knew it would hurt the opposition that we have made progress and we have made peace with Sadtu members - they are back in class. [Time expired.] [Applause.]