Streamlining Education Provisioning -Correlations between DBE, DHET and DEL Programmes; Improving the Quality of life for learners living with disabilities; with Deputy Ministers

In a joint sitting, the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education, Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, and Portfolio Committee on Employment and Labour met to engage with the Departments of Basic Education (DBE), Higher Education and Training (DHET), Employment and Labour (DEL), and Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities (DWYPD). The purpose was to interrogate interdepartmental alignment in implementing inclusive, accessible, and employment-oriented education systems, with particular emphasis on learners with disabilities, youth unemployment, and exit pathways from the education system. Each department presented updates on their respective mandates and highlighted coordination efforts, including the Education for Employability (E4E) programme and the implementation of the Three-Stream Model. Presentations also addressed inclusive education initiatives, youth labour market integration, and disability support. However, Members expressed strong dissatisfaction with the disjointed nature of the presentations, citing poor interdepartmental coordination and a lack of shared data, targets, or measurable outcomes. Concerns were raised about systemic exclusion of learners with disabilities, the ineffectiveness of assistive device provisioning, scholar transport, and school infrastructure. Several Members criticised the absence of career guidance, post-school tracking systems, and inclusive policy enforcement. Members of Parliament called for clarity on tracking NSFAS graduate employment, teacher assistant exit pathways, the status of supported employment enterprises, and the implications of the N1–N3 qualification phase-out. Members from across parties demanded disaggregated data, especially related to persons with disabilities, youth, and women. After extensive discussion, it was acknowledged that the session had not achieved its intended outcome due to time constraints. Members agreed that departments must collaborate to develop a consolidated report and proposed reconvening for a second, longer meeting. Departments were given two weeks to submit written responses to unanswered questions, with clear instructions to provide data, timelines, and commitments. A proposal was made for the relevant committee chairpersons to jointly structure a future full-day engagement.