Gauteng in desperate need of a Schools Infrastructure Audit

22 March 2019

Ditau Primary School is one of the many Gauteng schools that have been left in the dark when it comes to infrastructure maintenance.

The ANC-led Gauteng government has allocated a small grant of just over R1Bn towards school infrastructure. The allocated amount is unfortunately not enough to cover the huge backlog that has been piling up for the past 20 years.

The amount needed to address the infrastructure backlog in our schools is R5bn. This enormous amount can be squarely placed on the feet of the ANC-led Gauteng government, because they have time and time again ignored the issue of deteriorating school infrastructure.

The timeline projected by the department of education is that the backlog will only be addressed by 2025.

It is disappointing that for the next 6 years our children will have to attend schools that are not up to standard when it comes to infrastructure. Based on the ANC-led governments’ record of poor service delivery, the 6-year timeline is highly unlikely.

There are currently over 80 schools that are in desperate need of infrastructure maintenance and upgrades. I urge the provincial department of education to undertake a school’s infrastructure audit, as I am certain that there are more schools needing infrastructure maintenance than the 80 identified thus far.

The upcoming 2019 elections is an opportunity for Gauteng residents to bring about meaningful change when it comes to accessing services that they so desperately need. The DA is the only party that prioritizes service delivery for all the residents of this province.

Issued by Khume Ramulifho, DA Team One Gauteng Spokesperson on Education, 22 March 2019