Despite a wet and rainy Tuesday morning (8 April), learners across the Western Cape returned to school following a short break, marking the beginning of the second academic term.
Their return coincided with the tabling of the 2025/26 provincial education budget by Western Cape Education Minister David Maynier, just a day prior.
Maynier announced that the province would allocate R33.259 billion to education this year—an increase of 5.9% from the previous year—making it the largest departmental budget in the Western Cape.
“This year, we will spend R33.259 billion on Education, which is a 5.9% increase compared to last year’s budget, and the largest departmental budget in the Western Cape,” said Maynier.
While highlighting the province’s comparatively strong performance in international assessments for reading, mathematics, and science, Maynier acknowledged that significant work remains.
“We still fall far short of international benchmarks,” he said. “We need to act decisively to improve our children’s scores so that they leave school with the skills and capabilities to pursue further training, enter the workforce, or start their own businesses.”
However, the budget has faced criticism from opposition parties and education stakeholders.
Speaking to VOC News, ANC provincial leader Khalid Sayed said that while his party welcomed education receiving the largest share of the provincial budget, it failed to address several pressing issues.
“The budget does not speak to the key priorities that ought to be there if you want to have quality, free education for all,” said Sayed. “It does not deal with the retention of teachers, overcrowded classrooms, or ensuring equity in learner transport.”
Sayed also expressed concern over school safety and bullying, saying these ongoing challenges continue to affect learners’ well-being and academic performance.
“For this reason, we did not support the budget. However, we will support certain initiatives within the budget to ensure these issues are addressed,” he added.
VOC News
Photo: WCProvParl/X
