Category: Science & Technology

Higher Education, Science and Technology Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande, has visited Ulundi and Nongoma in the Zululand District Municipality, as part of government’s outreach programme, following the recent unrest in the province.

Nzimande’s outreach programme is aimed at engaging stakeholders on the impact of the recent looting and destruction of private and public property in the Nongoma Local Municipality.

Joined by KwaZulu-Natal Human Settlements and Public Works MEC, Jomo Sibiya; Zululand District Mayor, Thulasizwe Buthelezi; Nongoma Local Municipality Executive Mayor, Albert Mncwango; local councillors and other stakeholders, Nzimande visited Nongoma shopping mall to assess the damage caused by the recent riots, and also interacted with community members at Nongoma taxi rank.

The mall employs over 700 people from the community of Nongoma and surrounding areas. According to the municipality, 98% of shops in town were looted and burnt, with only one shop and one petrol garage currently operating.

Nzimande echoed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s sentiments that the violence was an attempted insurrection.

“Even the [officials] here have told us that it looks like this was planned weeks before it actually happened. Cars came from different areas and targeted particular shops, including targeting ATMs.

“It is very clear that this… [was an attempt to] destabilise government, and to try to make people lose hope in government when they see that they’ve got no food, and many other things are actually affected,” Nzimande said on Wednesday.

Nzimande is concerned about the impact the violence will have on Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges and the education system.

“If there is no food in the locality and there are no other facilities, it’s bound to affect everything. We need to ensure that we clamp down on this criminality, and also most importantly, identify the ring leaders of [this] plot,” the Minister said.

Nzimande visited a vaccination site at Mthashana TVET College to monitor the progress of the vaccination programme in the district. He said all public universities and TVET colleges across the country are being used as vaccination sites, and are open to the public.

Budget cut affects repairing of vandalised schools

Meanwhile, KwaZulu-Natal Education MEC, Kwazi Mshengu, said with R6.3 billion cut from the provincial department, and the vandalism of schools, it is difficult for the department to instantly attend to the schools that have been affected by the riots.

He said the devastation will hamper other programmes that are meant to deliver quality education for all.

“There are schools where some classes have been burnt, and there are schools where classes were not affected, but they targeted particular classes, like the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) laboratory in one of the schools, where they did not destroy [infrastructure] except to steal the computers.

“It does appear that in this instance, the people who broke into the school had an intimate knowledge of the school because they tried to enter through the door and failed. They then tried to enter through the roof, they failed. They had all the time to dig the hole behind the ICT lab and they used that whole to basically take everything, which was there,” Mshengu said.

He said in other schools, food was stolen from the kitchens and infrastructure was destroyed.

Source: South African Government News Agency

More than 238 000 educators, as well as support staff in the basic education sector, have received their COVID-19 vaccine in the first week of the rollout.

According to figures from the Department of Health, 238 315 educators and staff have now been vaccinated in the sector since last Wednesday.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Department of Basic Education expressed confidence that all the eligible people identified for the vaccination programme will receive their Johnson & Johnson vaccine as planned.

The Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga has been visiting provinces to assess progress on the rollout of the vaccine.

She has also used this time to encourage teachers and support staff to get vaccinated as part of the country’s response to the pandemic.

“Last week when we received the first 300 000 doses, we requested provinces to plan for the roll-out of the 300 000 vaccines. Now the Department of Health has assured us that all the vaccines we requested have arrived and that there will not be any shortages,” the Minister said.

The basic education sector has identified 582 000 educators and staff to be vaccinated by 8 July 2021.

The number of people vaccinated is set to increase significantly when all provinces intensify the programme following the delivery of additional doses to sites and the early closure of schools for the June holidays.

“We are confident that Thursday and Friday will help us to ramp up because we will not have learners to look after as they close today. So teachers should come in their numbers to get vaccinated. Of course all safety protocols must be followed,” Motshekga said.

The department has urged all educators and staff to follow the schedules in each district in order to ensure the smooth rollout of the programme.

“I really want to encourage our teachers to take this opportunity to vaccinate. We have to try make our schools safer places so that we don’t infect learners and that they don’t infect us but also make sure that as educators and staff we are protected. We have lost a number of educators and we don’t want to lose anyone of us,” the Minister said.

Motshekga is expected to monitor the vaccination programme in the Eastern Cape, together with Education MEC Fundile Gade on Thursday

Source: South African Government News Agency

Public and private school teachers are finally receiving their COVID-19 vaccines across the country amid the third wave.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga launched the start of the vaccination programme in the sector in Tembisa, Gauteng, on Wednesday.

The Minister said she is confident that over half a million teachers will receive their Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine before the end of the second term.

“I am elated and encouraged,” a beaming Motshekga told journalists.

She is optimistic that 582 000 public, private and school governing body-appointed teachers and support staff will be vaccinated in the next two weeks.

“We said we need two weeks because we don’t want to disrupt schooling and when we close on the 8th of July, we want to be done so that when we come back in the next term, we are done with vaccination.”

The Minister is optimistic that the education sector will meet the deadline.

“We don’t want to close on the 8th of July and still have vaccination issues.”

Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi, who also got vaccinated, said he was feeling good.

He shot down criticism that government was vaccinating all teachers, including the young ones who may have no comorbidities.

“Teachers are people that give birth to all our professions. Therefore, you need to protect them because they take care of our precious children. If you check the numbers that are increasing in our schools, you’ll see it’s important to protect our educators,” Lesufi said.

The MEC described the choice to immunise teachers as a brilliant one, given the third wave that is ravaging the province.

“Every child [has a family] and you don’t want them to carry the virus to their families. It’s for the future and the economy of the country to ensure that young people are protected.”

Lesufi said government is determined to protect its citizens and procure the much-needed vaccines. Additionally, he encouraged all teachers to grab this opportunity to get vaccinated.

Health Deputy Minister, Dr Joe Phaahla, said the move to prioritise teachers is important for the future of the country.

“Minister Motshekga fought very hard to get us where we are today. There was no single National Coronavirus Command Council meeting or the inter-ministerial meeting on vaccination where she did not raise the fact that it’s important that educators get vaccinated, so that they save the school year because of the time that has already been lost.”

Phaahla told the media that the country has already received 300 000 J&J vaccines and is expecting another 700 000 in the next seven days.

“We won’t run out of stock and will have no shortage to ensure that the full complement of the education sector is covered.”

According to Phaahla, next in line is the security cluster, which includes police and traffic officers, soldiers and public sector officials in the frontline.

Meanwhile, he urged youngsters to help the elderly to sign up for vaccination.

Source: South African Government News Agency

A Special Investigating Unit (SIU) probe has found that the North West Department of Education incurred more than R6.5 million in over expenditure when procuring thousands of cloth face masks.

In a statement, the SIU said ordinarily all competitive bids above R500 000 awarded by government entities must be awarded by a bid adjudication committee (BAC) in terms of National Treasury regulations.

The BAC considers the recommendations of the Bid Evaluation Committee and, depending on the delegated powers, make a final award or a recommendation to the accounting officer to make a final award.

During its investigation, the SIU found that the department established an informal committee to manage the procurement of personal protective equipment (PPE) outside the committee as provided for in terms of Treasury regulations.

“That committee may have committed financial misconduct as it failed to ensure that the supply chain management governing public procurement process was fair, equitable, transparent, competitive and cost-effective,” said the SIU on Tuesday.

The investigation further shows that two requests for quotations (RFQ) were issued by the committee on behalf of the department for the supply and delivery of 50 000 masks per RFQ. In the first RFQ, three service providers were appointed to the value of R3.7 million.

“With the second RFQ, five service providers were appointed to the value of R5 512 million. However, the department used the two RFQs to procure 400 000 masks, 300 000 more than what was initially requested.

“The irregularity has resulted in the department having to pay more than R9.2 million for masks instead of R2.5 million. The regulated price for the face cloth mask by the National Treasury is R25.”

The SIU investigation has also revealed that one service provider was appointed despite submitting a quotation after the cut off time.

Furthermore, the committee requested that one of the service providers reduce their quotation so that it be below the threshold set by National Treasury.

“This is the second irregularity relating to PPE procurement that the SIU has uncovered in the North West Department of Education.”

The SIU has commenced with the civil litigation process to declare the contract invalid and unlawful, and to recover any financial losses suffered by the North West provincial government.

In line with SIU Act of 1996, the SIU has made a disciplinary referral against members of the informal procurement committee for flouting supply chain management processes and for exposing the department to over expenditure of more than R6.5 million in the appointment of service providers.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga says the provinces are at various stages of readiness for the return of all primary school learners to school on a daily basis.

This follows a Government Gazette issued on 28 May 2021, where the department announced that primary school learners would return to school on the first day of the third school term on 26 July 2021.

Motshekga said the decision was canvassed adequately within the sector, with key stakeholders making inputs in the process.

“We were guided by various studies, which looked into the teaching and learning losses already suffered in the sector; the scientific evidence regarding the impact of COVID-19 on younger children; as well as the advice from the medical fraternity.

“Cabinet approved and supported the proposal by the sector, to prepare for the return of traditional time-tabling at primary school level with effect from the first day of the third school term on 28 July 2021. We gave ourselves two months to prepare for this mammoth task,” Motshekga said during a media briefing on Saturday.

The Minister said the department is aware that there are many variables that will make this task a success, and it is currently holding one-on-one sessions with each Provincial Education Department to check on their state of readiness.

Learner support programmes during COVID-19

Motshekga also reminded parents, guardians and children that the department, and its partners continue to use alternative means of providing curriculum material.

These include the Woza Matrics 2021 Catch-Up Programme, and the Tswelopele Campaigns, initiatives established by the department, in collaboration with the National Education Collaboration Trust (NECT).

“These are national supplementary remote learning campaigns, developed to support 2021 matric learners and learners in the General Education and Training Band (GET) from Grades R to 9, with supplementary support content, that will enable learners to catch-up on learning losses; and enable them to enhance, acquire and develop crucial knowledge, skills, attitudes and values during the academic year.

“The two campaigns provide digital and non-digital learning resources in partnership with a range of content providers through the DBE-TV on Open-View Channel 122, SABC 1 and DSTV Catch-Up, YouTube channels, as well as digital and mobile chat platforms. These platforms were put in place to minimize the negative impact of COVID-19 on learning, and to provide further learning opportunities in the context of the restrictions that are currently in place,” Motshekga said.

Second chance Matric examinations

The Minister also reported that the Matric Second Chance Matric Examinations are proceeding well.

“The only concern are the protest actions in Harrismith, Free State, where the examinations are disrupted. The department is looking to other options to assist the candidates in this area,” Motshekga said.

Motshekga thanked the MECs, Heads of Departments of Provincial Education Departments, social partners and stakeholders, as well as colleagues in the education sector, for the work done thus far.

“We are living under difficult circumstances that require commitment, dedication, sacrifice, and selflessness. We need to ensure that, in all that we do, we put health and safety as an apex priority.

“What is required now is vigilance, alertness, and most of all strict adherence to the health and safety measures, that have been put in place,” the Minister said.

She conveyed her condolences to all families who have lost their loved ones due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Source: South African Government News Agency

GAUTENG – The Deputy Provincial Commissioner Policing Major General Tommy Mthombeni, The station commander of Temba SAPS Brigadier Martha Mokobori, joined by Department of Community Safety and Community policing forum when they donate school uniform to Phalesane Primary School learners at Suurman in Temba today.

When outlined the background and the purpose of the visit, Major General Tommy Mthombeni said he was approached by some of community members who needed assistance from the SAPS to assist learners who are struggling with school uniform and who are from the poor families, and that is when he took initiative to kick start the project.

More than 36 identified learners received uniform from SAPS management which includes shoes, shirts, trousers, skirts, socks, ties and jersey.

Phase two was the handing over of the house at Eersterus F4 where a 20 year old woman living with her siblings was handed the key of the house by Major General Mthombeni. It was also a task for SAPS to assist the little girl after the tragedy struck the family which left them without a place to stay after their house burned down and killed the breadwinner.

Food parcels also donated to the family. Major General Mthombeni applauded everyone who spend sleepless nights working around the clock to assist the family, from face one for school uniform donation and handing over of the house that was outstanding job by the SAPS and other stakeholders.

Source: South African Police Service