Declaration on Basic Education Budget Review and Recommendations Report, delivered by Gavin Davis, DA Shadow Minister of Basic Education, Parliament, 28 October 2015
In the last two weeks, the attention of our nation has been rightly focused on the issue of university fees. In raising their voices, the students have forced government to finally address their plight.
But, in the background stand the silent majority. They are the millions of young – mainly black – South Africans who don’t finish school, let alone university.
Of the learners who entered Grade 1 in 2003, only 36% passed matric last year. And just 14% qualified for admission to university.
And here is another uncomfortable statistic: only 12% of black South Africans enter higher education, compared to 60% of whites.
This explains Stats SA’s report last year, which found that the proportion of black youth in skilled employment actually regressed between 1994 and 2014