17 April 2023
Equal Education media alert: Equal Education in the Eastern Cape to host a stakeholder roundtable to discuss the impact of poor spending on school infrastructure delivery
#FixOurSchools #ImaliYemfundo
Tomorrow, Tuesday 18 April, Equal Education (EE) in the Eastern Cape will host various education stakeholders in a roundtable discussion on how continued trends of poor spending impact school infrastructure delivery in the province. This roundtable will bring together government, civil society, and members of school communities in a collective plan for better accountability in infrastructure planning and spending for a more efficient school project delivery in the Eastern Cape.
The Eastern Cape still accounts for a huge share of the national school infrastructure backlogs. School infrastructure backlogs in the province remain a crisis, alongside poor budget spending trends and capacity challenges. In the past two financial years, for instance, the provincial education department has forfeited portions of its infrastructure budget because of its inability to spend—money that could have gone towards providing much-needed infrastructure upgrades.
Underspending, and other poor spending trends, are an indication of a lack of good planning and financial management by the education department, which greatly affects the pace and quality of school infrastructure delivery. These spending challenges can be seen in several school infrastructure projects where procurement processes are often delayed or where projects take longer than planned and end up costing more than what was initially budgeted.
Delays in school infrastructure delivery are a continuous violation of learners’ rights to quality schooling. We are calling on all education stakeholders to join our call for better accountability, an end to poor education spending trends, and improved infrastructure project delivery in Eastern Cape schools.
When: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
Time: 12pm
Where: Nompendulo High School, Zone 10 Zwelitsha, Qonce
For further information or to arrange an interview, contact:
Jay-Dee Cyster (Equal Education Communications Manager) jay-dee@equaleducation.org.za or 082 924 1352
