A total of 179 schools identified two years ago as having pupils who were taught under trees have been given proper classrooms, Minister of Education Naledi Pandor said in Pretoria on Friday.
”The latest reports on infrastructure and delivery indicate that all schools where the phenomenon of ‘learner under trees’ was prevalent have been dealt with. One hundred and seventy-nine schools were identified in April 2004.”
Pandor was speaking after a joint ministerial meeting between the departments of public works and education.
She said not all schools that had outdoor classrooms have necessarily been dealt with — only those identified two years ago.
Pandor said a joint task team set up at the previous meeting a year ago has identified difficulties in skills and budget planning that slow the building and repairing of schools.
These will be addressed by cooperation between the two departments.
She said the next challenge will be to improve the quality of all schools, especially in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal where some schools were built of mud and reed. — Sapa