Budget: lion's share for education
22 February 2007
Education received the greatest share - R105.5-billion - of Finance Minister Trevor Manuel's Budget for 2007/08.
Tabling the Budget in Cape Town on Wednesday, Manuel said the government would set aside R8.1-billion for better teacher salaries, teaching assistants and support staff in schools across the country.
"Our teachers are always on the frontline of our education system," Manuel told Parliament. "It is in their hands that we place our 11 million children every day. We must pay tribute to them and ask no more than that they continue to serve with dedication and integrity."
Manuel said Education Minister Naledi Pandor would lead the process of determining how the resources would be used, focusing on the need to reward good teachers, provide support to poor schools and improve the general quality of schooling.
The government, he said, had also set aside about R700-million for bursaries to encourage young people to train as teachers and pursue careers in the public schooling system. The scheme is expected to benefit about 13 000 teachers over the next three years.
The Education Department receives a further R850-million to step up its Adult Basic Education and Training programme, while a further R2.2-billion is made available to help the country's universities produce more science, engineering and technology graduates.
The Further Education and Training sector also received about R600-million for bursaries.
Together with resources allocated to the provinces for building classrooms and providing water, electricity and sanitation in schools, the education budget allocation constituted "a concerted effort to improve the quality of schooling" in South Africa, Manuel said.
Source: BuaNews
