Engagement with DBE on school infrastructure, maintenance backlogs and shortcomings; Update on implementation of Infrastructure Norms and Standards; with Minister

Video The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education met to receive a briefing from the Department of Basic Education (DBE) on its efforts to address persistent infrastructure challenges in public schools. The Department presented its progress on various infrastructure initiatives, with a particular focus on backlogs, maintenance deficiencies, funding constraints, and intergovernmental coordination challenges. The meeting included an overview of national infrastructure conditions, updates on delivery performance, and a reflection on systemic barriers to equitable learning environments, particularly in rural and historically marginalised communities. The Department reported that 90% of the country’s 22 381 public schools had been assessed as being in fair, good, or very good condition. However, 2 240 schools remained in poor or very poor condition. It was indicated that significant gains had been made through targeted interventions such as the Accelerated School Infrastructure Delivery Initiative (ASIDI) and the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) programme. Since inception, 331 inappropriate school structures—such as those built from mud or asbestos—had been replaced, and 96% of identified pit toilets had been eradicated. Despite this, 139 pit toilets still remained, and substantial backlogs persisted. The Department indicated that R32 billion was required to provide additional classrooms to 8 222 schools, while a further R14 billion would be needed to construct 13 485 toilets. Further figures from the infrastructure condition assessment revealed that thousands of schools continued to experience inadequate water supply, electricity, and sanitation. The Department cited poor contractor performance, delays in municipal approvals, natural disasters, and funding shortfalls as key contributors to slow progress. A ten-point strategy had been developed to address these structural issues, with emphasis placed on data improvement, project management capacity, and securing R20 billion annually to meet infrastructure targets by 2030. The Committee expressed strong dissatisfaction with the disjuncture between reported progress and lived realities in provinces. Concerns were raised about the slow eradication of pit toilets, especially in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, where thousands of schools were reportedly still reliant on them. Members also referred to reports of learners not receiving school meals due to mismanagement of ring-fenced funds for the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP). Oversight and accountability for this failure were emphasised. Additional issues raised included learner overcrowding, delays in the delivery of mobile classrooms, and unreliable data used to categorise schools’ condition. Examples of stalled and abandoned infrastructure projects were cited to illustrate implementation failures. Members called for improved consequence management and independent audits of contractor performance and maintenance backlogs. Concerns around scholar transport, hostels in disrepair, and school compliance with infrastructure norms were also raised. In response, the Department acknowledged the limitations of national oversight due to provincial control of 80% of education budgets but affirmed ongoing engagement with provincial education departments. Interventions proposed included the use of mobile classrooms, solar energy solutions, and hostel construction to support rural consolidation. While acknowledging ongoing data reliability challenges, the Department undertook to provide a provincial breakdown of the 2 240 schools still classified as being in poor or very poor condition within seven days.