The Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education on the performance of the Department of Basic Education for the 2011/12 financial year, dated 23 October 2012

The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education, having considered the performance of the Department of Basic Education, reports as follows:

1. Introduction

1.1. The role and mandate of the Committee

The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education is mandated by sections 55 and 92 of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) to oversee the activities and performance of the Department of Basic Education and its statutory bodies. In fulfilling its statutory responsibilities, the Committee performs the following functions:

  • Monitoring and overseeing the Department of Basic Education in its day-to-day and overall performance.
  • Conferring with relevant governmental and civil society organs on educational matters in order to participate in the development of strategies and policies aimed at ensuring the quality and integrity of the education system.
  • Processing and approving legislation as well asinternational protocols and conventions relating to education in accordance with the Rules of Parliament and the Constitution.
  • Participating in national and international educational dialogues relating to education.
  • Conferring with the National Council of Provinces on legislation pertaining to education which affects the Provinces.
  • Engaging in various activities and programmes aimed at the development and delivery of quality public education to all South Africans.
  • Dealing with any other matter referred to the Committee by the Speaker of the National Assembly.

The Committee is further mandated by the Money Bills Amendment Procedures and Related Matters Act, No. 9 of 2009 to perform an oversight role. Section 5 of the aforementioned Act requires the National Assembly, through its Committees, to annually assess the performance of each national Department then submit Budgetary Review and Recommendation reports (BRRR) for tabling in the National Assembly. These reports are referred to the Committee on Appropriations for consideration when considering and reporting on the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS) to the National Assembly.

This report provides the Committee’s assessment of the performance of the Department of Basic Education for the 2011/12 financial year to the first quarter 2012/13.

1.2. Processes followed by the Committee in arriving at this report

In compiling this BRRR, the Committee assessed the performance of the Department of Basic Education with reference to the following:

  • The strategic priorities and measurable objectives as set out in the strategic plan.
  • Expenditure trends drawn from the reports and notes of the National Treasury; the 2010 State of the Nation Address priorities; the reports of the Auditor-General of South Africa and the reports on the 2010 Budget Vote.
  • The financial statements and annual report briefings, in terms of Section 65 of the Public Finance Management Act No. 1 of 1999, which requires the Ministers to table the annual reports and financial statements for the Department and public entities before Parliament.
  • Departmental briefings, including quarterly briefings and the progress update on the attainment of the Millennium Development Goals.

1.3. The mandate of the Department

The Department of Basic Education derives its mandate from the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) and several pieces of legislation, including the National Education Policy Act (Act 27 of 1996) (NEPA); the South African Schools Act (Act 80 of 1996) (SASA); other Acts and White Papers that guide the employment of educators, qualifications, inclusive education and quality assurance of curricula and assessment. The Constitution provides the overarching framework for transformation in education. According to the Bill of Rights contained in the Constitution, everyone has the right to a basic education, including adult basic education and further education, which the State, through reasonable measures, must progressively make available and accessible.

The Department is also guided by international protocols on education, particularly the commitments made in terms of the Education for All Declaration in Dakar and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), which the country has ratified.

In line with its mandate, the Department has a vision of a South Africa in which all people will have access to lifelong learning, education and training opportunities, which will, in turn, contribute towards improving the quality of life and building a peaceful, prosperous and democratic South Africa.

2. The Department of Basic Education’s Strategic Priorities and Measurable Objectives

2.1 Strategic Priorities of the Department

Within its vision of creating access to lifelong learning, education and training opportunities; improving the quality of life; and building a peaceful, prosperous and democratic South Africa[1], the Department of Basic Education is mandated to improve the quality of teaching and learning. Based on the mandate, the Department has prioritised the following:

  • learning outcomes;
  • the quality of learning across all grades;
  • access to basic education;
  • productivity in the classroom;
  • competence, professionalism and status of teachers;
  • textbooks and related learning support materials; and
  • leadership in schools.

To achieve the outcomes, the Department has set itself 13 goals through the Action Plan to 2014: Towards the Realization of Schooling 2025. The 13 goals are accompanied by delivery targets to be achieved in 2014 which were informed by the baseline set in 2010.

The 13 goals and their targets relate to learning -, enrolment and focus mainly on increasing the number of learners who master minimum language and mathematics (numeracy) competencies; learners who are eligible for a Bachelors programme at a university and to increase the number of learners who pass mathematics and physical science. In addition, the Action Plan sets out 14 areas in education to be improved to reach the set targets[2].

These targets are sufficiently placed and focused to improve the quality of learning and achievement in basic education. While there is a concern that some targets are set at a low level, they measure the delivery of the goals and the overall output of quality education.

Further, the performance of the Department should be viewed within the context of the priorities highlighted by the President in his 2011 State of the Nation Address (SONA). These included:

  • Focussing on the Triple T: Teachers, Textbooks and Time: ensuring that teachers were at school, in class, on time and teaching, without neglect with regards to their duty or abuse of learners; supporting them and creating the optimum environment for quality teaching to take place; and, ensuring that every learner has a textbook on time.
  • Investing in teacher training, especially in the subjects of mathematics and science.
  • Tracking progress on the implementation of annual national assessments in literacy and numeracy that are internationally benchmarked, for Grades 3, 6 and 9.
  • Paying particular attention to the training of principals, particularly those in underperforming schools.

The above priorities as highlighted in the SONA overlap with or give effect to the goal of improving the quality of teaching and learning. In response to these issues, the Department continued to consolidate its work to improve learner performance in the basic education sector through the following strategic interventions:

  • Focusing on Teachers, Textbooks and Time (3Ts);
  • The issuing and implementation of the CAPS;
  • Planning and preparing for the ANA;
  • Expanding the workbooks programme; and
  • Improving infrastructure to maximize learner performance.

Key systemic improvements were consolidated around these strategic interventions for the period 2011/12 continuing into the current financial year, anchored by the Action Plan to 2014 and the Delivery Agreement.

2.2 Measurable Objectives of the Department

The Annual Performance Plan provided specific performance targets, interventions and indicators that the Department intended to employ in order to entrench and consolidate the direction and approaches to improving learner performance in the basic education sector in the 2011/12 financial year. Key strategic outcome oriented outputs on which specific programme targets and indicators are set include:

  • Improving teacher capacity and practices;
  • Increasing access to higher-quality leaning materials;
  • Improving the quality of early childhood development;
  • Undertaking regular assessment to track progress;
  • Strengthening school management and promoting functional schools; and
  • Strengthening the capacity of district offices and Improving infrastructure to maximize learner performance.

These outputs have been aligned to the budget programmes (including key departmental improvement strategies).

3. The Analysis of the Departments’ Prevailing Strategic and Operational Priorities

This section provides an analysis of the first quarter of the 2012/13 financial year. The Strategic and Annual Performance Plans reflected the commitment of the Department to undertake activities effectively and on time to produce the agreed-upon outputs that will in turn contribute in achieving the goals of the long-term sector plan called the Action Plan to 2014: towards the realisation of Schooling 2025.

3.1 2012/13 Strategic Priorities

Key interventions to improve the basic education system for 2012 included the following:

  • Deepening the focus on the 3Ts (Teachers, Texts and Time)
  • The implementation of a credible Literacy and Numeracy Strategy
  • The implementation of a Maths, Science and Technology Strategy
  • Strengthening the focus on the utilisation of the Annual National Assessments (ANA) and National Senior Certificate (NSC) results to define interventions at school and district levels.

Intended interventions in the sector to improve system performance, focussing on improving learner performance included:

  • Interventions to be based on an accurate analysis of specific patterns of poor performance per district and school
  • Sound analysis of performance in Grade 12 and Annual National Assessment (ANA) per province, district and school
  • Basic functionality of schools to be reflected (leadership, resources, right number and utilisation of teachers, culture of teaching and learning etc)
  • Basic functionality of districts ( leadership, resources, right number and utilisation of staff, culture of professionalism, support and service to schools)
  • Intervention implemented per district based on a specific analysis of performance and contextual factors taken into account.
  • Intervention implemented per school or selected number of schools based on levels of performance
  • Intervention to indicate what was to be done - Model (mentoring, itinerant teachers, substitute teachers, short, long courses, just in time courses etc), by whom ( trainers, facilitators, subject advisors, Non-Government Organisations (NGOs), Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) etc), when monitoring and evaluation systems
  • Explicit and compulsory focus on all districts in a country that performed below 30 percent in Grade 12 and/or under a determined performance in ANA
  • For other districts, Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) would implement specific improvement plans based on current performance
  • To work with and through PEDs using existing plans as a basis upon which to build
  • To deploy Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) staff and explore using Whole School Evaluation (WSE) people in PEDs to conduct a detailed evaluation of all schools in the affected districts
  • Detailed School Improvement Plans to be ready by the end of March, with the necessary intersection with Integrated Development Plans (IDPs) at local level
  • To capacitate Districts to implement a turnaround strategy
  • Ensuring efficacy of this value chain to be facilitated by the Planning and Delivery Oversight Unit working through districts to focus on underperforming schools
  • Focus the NEDLAC Accord mobilisation of stakeholders on these districts – with explicit guidance from the Education Sector

4. Analysis of Expenditure trends

4. Analysis of the Annual Report and Financial Statements for the 2011/12 financial year

4.1 The Department of Basic Education

The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education considered the Annual Reports and Financial Statements of the Department of Basic Education and its relevant statutory bodies for 2011/12 on 10, 11 and 16 October 2012 in Parliament. This section includes an overview of the presentations made by the Department and its entities – with a focus on the achievements/successes -, challenges, performance per programme, human resource management and financial performance.

4.1.1 Overview of the service delivery environment

The service delivery environment of the education sector included 12 283 875 learners in ordinary public and independent schools, who attended 25 851 schools and were served by 420 608 educators. The reduction in the number of schools was caused by an assessment that some small schools were not viable and were rationalised, as well as by demographic shifts.

A key challenge that affected service delivery during the reporting period was the National Cabinet interventions in the Eastern Cape Education Departmenton 2 March 2011 and in the Limpopo Education Department on 5 December 2011 in terms of section 100 (1) (b) of the Constitution The interventions in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo focused on a number of issues including:

  • Financial and supply chain management;
  • Failure to deal with excess teachers;
  • Over expenditure; and
  • The non-delivery of learning and teaching materials.

The Department reported that these interventions placed considerable strain on the DBE’s institutional capacity and required a re-engineering of the work of the DBE, within the existing budgets and organogram.

4.1.2 Overview of the Basic Education Vote 2010/11 – 2011/12

Table 11: Overview of Budget 2010/11 – 2011/12

2010/11 / 2011/12
Allocation / Actual Expenditure / Deviation/ Variance / % Spent / Allocation / Actual Expenditure / Deviation/ Variance / % Spent
Administration / R266.9m / R259.2 m / R7 670 / 97.1 / R294.0m / R287.7 m / R6 238 / 97.8
Curriculum Policy, Support and Monitoring / R1. 3 b / R736.6m / R608.9 m / 54.7 / R1.796 b / R1.70 b / R96 394 / 94.6
Teachers, Education Human Resources Development and Institutional Development / R503.7m / R486.6m / R17 086 / 96.6 / R580.7m / R537.5m / R43 145 / 92.6
Planning, Information and Assessment / R165.9m / R147.5m / R18 407 / 88.4 / R6.581 b / R5.563 b / R1.017 b / 84.5
Education Enrichment Services / R3.889 b / R3.885 b / R4 814 / 99.8 / R4.827 b / R4.811 b / R16 210 / 99.6
Total / R6.171 b / R5.515 b / R656m / 89.4 / R14.080 b / R12.900 b / R1.179 b / 91.6

In the 2011/12 financial year, the Department received a budget of R14.040 billion compared to R6.1 billion in 2010/11. The allocation was distributed among the five programmes of the Department as indicated in Table 1. Overall, the Department spent 91.6% of its allocated budget in 2011/12 compared to 89.4% in 2010/11. The unspent balance of R1.179 billion at the end of 2011/12 is greater than in 2010/11, when R656 million went unspent, which is a cause for concern. Table 1 shows that the main contributors to the under-spending were programmes 2, 3 and 4 that have consistently in the past two years been under-spending. However, the Department has showed that other than programme 4 where there is a total delay in the implementation of infrastructure, other programmes have not necessarily been under-spending but have had delays in processing payments for some line-items. Recurring under-expenditure issues include:

  • Delays in the receipt and processing of invoices for the delivery of workbooks. This has been reported as the main reason for under-expenditure.
  • Low expenditure in current payments for goods and services and delays in the submission of invoices in respect of the Curriculum Review project.
  • Delays in filling vacant posts for the Integrated Quality Management System (IQMS) and the National Education Evaluation and Development Unit (NEEDU) affected both the current and capital budgets.
  • Delays with regard to the procurement of the Kha Ri Gude Mass Literacy Campaign learner support materials.
  • Problems and subsequent cancellation of a tender for literacy and numeracy workbooks for Grades R – 6 learners.
  • Recurring delays in the Annual National Assessment (ANA), specifically for grades 3, 6 and 9, in February 2011 and not in October 2010 as initially projected. Similarly in 2011/12 ANA was postponed from February 2012 to October 2012 resulting in yet another delay.
  • The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) baseline study that did not take place as initially planned.

4.1.3 Performance per Programme, 2011/12

Programme 1: Administration (Unspent: R 6.328 million)

The Administration Programme is responsible for the management of the Department and the provision of strategic and administrative support services. Sub-programmes include Human Resource Management and Development;Legal and Legislative Services; Media Liaison, International Relations and Multilateral Affairs and provincial support and delivery. The Programme spent 97.8 per cent of its available funds. The under-expenditure of R6.328 million on this programme was as a result of savings on Office Accommodation due to fluctuations of the CPI.

Within this programme, four of the eight targets were achieved, four were exceeded and four were not achieved. The Department reported key highlights and achievements which included the following:

Policy Area - Human Resource Management

The Department completed its internal reconfiguration process to meet its strategic intent. The new organisational structure was fully implemented on 25 November 2011 and the PERSAL system had been updated accordingly. Appointments were made in the key posts of Chief Financial Officer, Deputy Directors-General for Finance and Administration; as well as for Planning, Information and Assessments. In response to natural attrition at middle and senior management level, the Department put in place a development plan to address the issues related to career pathing and succession planning. To this end, 264 officials attended courses during the financial year for professional and personal development; 47 officials attended induction programmes for new entrants in the Department, while, 63 internships were implemented for unemployed graduates.

Policy Area: Legal and Legislative Services

The Department received 37 court cases in the period under review and managed to successfully resolve 22 of these. The remaining 15 cases were still in progress. In some cases, the judgments delivered by courts of law were in favour of the Minister or the Department, while other cases were settled out of court. Four pieces of legislation were drafted. The pieces that have been passed as law are:

  • The Basic Education Laws Amendment Act, 2011 (Act No. 15 of 2011), which was finalised and signed into law on 15 December 2011
  • Regulations Relating to the Prohibition of the Payment of Unauthorised Remuneration or the Giving of Financial Benefit or Benefit in Kind to Certain State Employees, which was signed into law on 23 December 2011.

The National Education Evaluation and Development Unit (NEEDU) Bill, 2011, had already been published for comments and adapted to accommodate comments that had merit. The "Pregnancy Regulations" had not been finalised as planned and were subject to amendments to SASA.