MINISTER of Basic Education Angie Motshekga said it's heartening to witness the dedication and commitment of the education sector in ensuring the smooth execution of the coming exams.
She briefed the media in Tshwane on Sunday, 29 October.
She said numbers paint a promising picture of our educational landscape as the country prepares exams, which are starting on Monday, 30 October.
"Umalusi has approved all question papers to be administered in the October/November 2023 Examinations and given the nod to the exams. We have enhanced security measures to prevent paper leaks in all provinces," she said.
Furthermore, the State Security Agency has also audited the processes.
"Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) must follow standard operating procedures training storage point managers in security protocols. Moreover, specific collection times for question papers by chief invigilators have been established to deter early access.
She said to mitigate the challenge of load shedding, all PEDs and schools have devised contingency plans, including backup generators.
"In South African Sign Language, Home Language candidates' laptops will be fully charged before each examination commences, and backup power supply measures have been put in place.
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Motshekga said in 2023, there are over 717 377 candidates registered to participate in the final examinations actions in 6 898 centres in South Africa.
She said on Thursday, 26 October, the National Assembly passed the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill, the BELA BILL.
"Some of the strategic focus of BELA Bill is to make Grade R compulsory, provide for financial and public accountability frameworks for governing bodies and provincial departments and system and administrative improvements in terms of admissions policy, in particular pertaining to undocumented learners," she said.
Motshekga further said the recent StatsSA population census indicated that 2.8 million children are accessing early learning programmes, and an estimated 1.3 million children aged 3 - 5 still require access to programmes. At the moment, almost 760 000 children are benefitting from the ECD subsidy to enable further access to early learning programmes.
She said BELA Bila aspires to harmonise the powers of the SGB with the directives of the relevant provincial Head of Department.
"The DBE has placed a strong focus on increasing the quality of early learning programmes, and 17 252 early learning practitioners have been trained in the implementation of the National Curriculum Framework for children from birth to four, 6 965 early learning practitioners trained through the PLAYSA online training," said Motshekga.
