Honourable members
Distinguished guests

I am indeed privileged to be among you, esteemed members of such a noble profession.

As you all know, my father Ron was the former headmaster of York High here in George, and I have never dreamed that one day I'll be standing here in this capacity, as MEC for Education.

Let me start by expressing to you my sincere appreciation for the many good things that you as teachers do, for performing miracles in classrooms day after day.

Teaching is a calling, not just another job. You are having a major influence on the generations of tomorrow.

Where I come from, I have fond memories of the school. I wonder what would I have been if I had not been through the hands of such wonderful teachers, including my parents who are both teachers.

In the last ten years our government made great strides in bringing about equality in our schools. We can indeed be proud of some of the achievements.

Expenditure on education remains the largest budgetary item in the province and country. This year we have R5.466 billion, which represents 30.31% of the total provincial budget. It confirms the value we attach to education in this province.

In the last ten years early childhood development (ECD) has seen a steady increase in enrolment in the reception year, mainly in poor communities. I have committed the department to provide Grade R education to all five year olds by 2010.

Key developments in General Education and Training at the moment include the rollout of the Revised National Curriculum for Grades R to 9.

We are introducing the revised curriculum in stages, starting with the foundation phase this year. Training for Foundation Phase teachers last year was a great success, and already there are indications that the training of about 7,500 Intermediate Phase teachers and 1,000 school principals during the July holidays this year, seems to have been a success as well.

I have visited some of the centres where the training took place, and I must say, I was very impress with the dedication and commitment displayed by the trainees. I commend them for having sacrificed their school holidays in pursuit of a better education system for all our children.

With regards to Further Education and Training, we are working hard with our colleagues across the country on plans to implement the curriculum from 2006. With this we are seeking to balance enrolment in schools can colleges, by way of our Grade 8 assessment programme, guidance on study options and careers in Grade 9, new courses at FET colleges, and by extending the loan scheme for FET colleges. A wide range of subject options will be offered to learners in FET at schools.

ABET forms an essential part of our plans to combat poverty and unemployment. Currently the department supports nearly 26,000 learners at about 300 ABET sites. While the numbers have grown in recent years, we must still do more to increase enrolment.

There is a strong demand for special schools, with 2,000 additional learners seeking places. I have committed the department to provide greater support to this sector. We are also looking at ways of accommodating more ELSEN learners in mainstream schools.

Our Khanya Technology in Education Project aims to ensure that every high school in the Western Cape has a computer laboratory by the end of 2005.

One of the major challenges we currently face, is to improve the reading and writing abilities of our children. As you may well know, in the Western Cape a test result has shown that our Grade 6 children operate at Grade 3 level. This is a challenge, not only for the education department, but for all of us here.

You as teachers are the bedrock of our education system. Without you there can be no education. I want to acknowledge the pressure you are under because of the changes in curriculum, and I know it must be stressful.

But having full confidence in your professionalism, I know it is a challenge that can be confronted and successfully discharged if we tackle this together. I think all of us here must recommit ourselves to deepening the culture of learning and teaching. You have an important role to play in this respect.

To this end, we have many challenges, prime of which is the lack of resources and funds.

As one way of dealing with this challenge, the Western Cape Government is in the process of compiling an audit into the possibility of selling off under or unutilised schools land and state property to raise extra money to address the growing backlog of accommodation in our province.

But there seems to be a misconception that government is planning to sell off all land summarily, belonging only to former Model C schools. This is wrong. We are investigating all possibilities.

But I want to stress, we are not going to be irresponsible. We will be consulting with affected schools and be sensitive to their views. But ultimately government has to make a decision in pursuit of our mandate of a better life for all.

Another important aspect in pursuit of our mandate is to ensure an equitable distribution of resources in rural communities. About 20% of our learners attend rural schools, either in towns or on farms. A large numbers of small primary schools lack the most basic amenities.

We are in the process of finalising our Rural Education Plan that will guide the continued provision of education in rural areas. This includes merging and integrating schools.

Many have resisted the creation of non-racial education but surely we cannot delay this any longer. In my experience the majority of our people are prepared to walk this road with us. We cannot continue to support segregation by carrying learners past existing schools.

The Premier has called on me to build our schools as a learning home for all. Before 5 September, as part of our 100 days deposits, we will have electrified six of the 12 schools, all of which are rural schools.

In fact, tomorrow we will go to Seekoegat Primary School in Prins Albert, and on Saturday we will be switching on the lights of Braken Hill Primary School in Knysna.

In the last year the department held wide-ranging consultations to thrash out a long-term vision and strategy for education the Western Cape.

Participants have focused in particular on how to ensure administrative excellence, human capital development and school and district effectiveness. This effort will culminate in the Education Vision 2020 conference in October. The conference will play a key role in providing direction for the next 10 years of education in the Western Cape.

I want to encourage you to be part of the efforts of building a home for all. Let us all make a concerted effort in trying to find solutions for the many challenges in the province.