Hon Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces, hon Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP, hon Chief Whip of the NCOP, hon members, Cabinet Ministers present, honoured guests, ladies and gentlemen, as we begin the month of July, which is a very important month in the history of our country, we must remember the important and famous statement by the first democratically elected President of the Republic and the president of the ANC, former President Nelson Mandela, when he said:
Education is the great engine of personal development. It is through education that the daughter of a peasant can become a doctor, that the son of a mineworker can become the head of the mine, that a child of farmworkers can become the president of a great nation. It is what we make of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another. These important words are still relevant in recognising education as the most fundamental tool for personal development. It is against this background, as we debate the Budget Vote on Education, that we should commend our government for having prioritised education for the next five years. We commend President Zuma for undertaking in his state of the nation address to increase government's efforts at encouraging all pupils to complete their secondary education by targeting an increased enrolment rate of 95% in secondary schools by 2014.
The use of computer laboratories as a tool to improve learning and teaching is still a challenge in many schools. This problem can only be corrected if the department creates a wonderful, first-class academic environment.
As members of the Select Committee on Education and Recreation, we will play a greater oversight role over both the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education and Training. This will assist us in responding to the call by the President that the Fourth Parliament be a house of activists.
In fulfilling our oversight role we will expect the department to fast- track the process of ensuring that schools throughout the country, particularly in rural areas, are equipped with modern library facilities which can increase literacy levels and transform communities and the entire social structure. In responding to the challenges facing our schools, the new and the old schools should be designed to have the following features: computers, a science laboratory, a biology laboratory, home economics facilities, fully equipped administrations facilities, school gardens, book libraries, and state-of-the-art modern classrooms.
We have full confidence that the leadership of the department will ensure that they deliver on their mandate of spearheading the progressive transformation of education in which all people have lifelong learning opportunities which, in turn, contribute towards improving quality of life and building a peaceful, prosperous and democratic South Africa.
We support the reconfigured Education department, which came about as a result of intense public engagement, as this will help to improve the performance of our education system in its response to government's objective of turning our schools and institutions of higher learning into thriving centres of excellence.
We have no doubt that this will contribute immensely to the struggle of combating the scourge of poverty by creating job opportunities for both school-leavers and graduates by ensuring that training and skills- development initiatives in the country respond to the requirements of the economy.
We have noted in past years from different sections of society that the issue of safety and security is one of the overriding concerns. In intensifying the campaign of advocating safer schools, we will expect the Department of Basic Education to work with provinces on an ongoing basis through the Council of Education Ministers in order to fast-track the implementation of appropriate policies that seek to work collaboratively with school governing bodies, parents and communities with the purpose of focusing on the promotion of safe learning environments for our children, in which human life has equal worth and in which every child has an opportunity to learn and succeed.
Statistics inform us that since 1994, 140 000 students have benefited from the National Student Financial Aid Scheme, or NSFAS, which is aimed at improving the participation rate amongst disadvantaged South Africans. But this scheme needs to be reviewed.
In an effort to develop rural education we would welcome efforts from the department to enhance the quality of education in rural areas by focusing on quality teaching, the restructuring of rural schools, curriculum delivery, education provision, school governance and management, community participation and poverty alleviation.
As the committee, we are happy to learn that President Zuma will meet with school principals in KwaZulu-Natal on 7 August 2009 in line with the commitment he made during the state of the nation address to meet with school principals in an effort to deepen transformation and development in education.
Access to higher education remains the greatest challenge for financially needy students who are academically deserving, but who are precluded from postschool educational opportunities on the basis of being poor. We are not going to accept any excuses from people who want to use a lack of funding as a scapegoat in respect of access to higher education. We know that our government is capable of providing quality education. In the long run, we will propose reviewing the NSFAS in order to facilitate the progressive introduction of free education for the poor at undergraduate level.
In conclusion, in our quest to defend the gains of the national democratic revolution, the committee supports the Budget Vote of the department. I thank you. [Applause.]