Annual Performance Plan Jaarlikse ... - National Treasury

PART A: OVERVIEW AND STRATEGIC PLAN UPDATE
Part A of the Annual Performance Plan explains the challenges facing the WCED in terms of social and demographic
pressures, education and other policies, as well as the strategies laid down in the Five-year Strategic and Performance Plan
2005/06 – 2009/10. It also explains successes that have been achieved by the WCED in meeting these challenges.
Strategies for going forward, as they appear in the Five-year Strategic and Performance Plan 2005/06 – 2009/10, and as
subsequently amended and augmented, are also explained.
A.1 Strategic goals and objectives
A.1.1 Strategic plan update
For the 2007/08 financial year the department reviewed the annual performance plan and budget to ensure that these
documents are aligned with the policy priorities outlined in the provincial vision of the Western Cape as a “Home for All”, the
province’s growth and development strategy, referred to as iKapa elihlumayo, the Human Capital Development Strategy
(HCDS) that was launched in March 2006, after being widely consulted with all role-players and stakeholders throughout the
Province, including the Legislature, labour unions, school governing body associations, business sector, higher education
institutions, other provincial government departments in the social cluster, principals as well as the personnel of the
department, the policy priorities of the Provincial Executive Authority, national government’s policy priorities, including the
Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative (ASGI-SA), and the (national) Education Sector Priorities for the 2006 and 2007
Medium-term Expenditure Frameworks (MTEFs).
The format of the Plan used is the generic format prescribed by the National Treasury and the national Department of
Education (DoE) for all provincial departments of education.
A.1.2 Policies, priorities and strategic goals
Education has a key role to play in building a society based on the values of our Constitution – democracy, human rights,
human dignity, freedom, non-racialism and non-sexism and in sustaining long-run growth and reducing equality. Through
the provincial HCDS, the WCED aims to create an enabling environment for ensuring access for all, so that the youth of the
province develop the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes for long-term growth and sustainable development.
The broad policies, priorities and strategic goals of the WCED are encompassed in the HCDS, launched in March 2006.
Formulated after a two-year extensive consultative process, the strategy presents a long-term vision for education in the
Western Cape by providing the point of departure for educational planning for many years to come and reflects the
department’s mandate to build a ‘Learning Home for All’ by overcoming the inequities of a racially-driven education system,
where access and performance continues to be skewed to historically advantaged learners.
The HCDS is a cornerstone of the province’s iKapa elihlumayo (Growing Cape) Provincial Growth and Development Strategy
(PGDS) that seeks to create prosperity for all, giving new hope and restoring human dignity and a ‘Home for All’ citizens.
Through this strategy the Western Cape intends fulfilling its commitment towards achieving equity and redress, alleviating
poverty, creating jobs and empowering the people of the WC to be agents of change.
The HCDS is further influenced by national Education Sector priorities, as approved by the Council of Education Ministers
(CEM), as follows:
• For the 2006 MTEF, i.e. for the period to 2008/09 –
• Quality through re-capitalisation through the Quality Improvement, Development, Support and Upliftment
Programme (QIDS-UP) for public schools.
• Access and equity with the implementation of ‘no-fee schools’ and the expansion of Grade R to ensure universal
access.
• Curriculum delivery with the implementation of the National Curriculum Statement (NCS) in Grades 8 – 12 and
teacher development.
• Monitoring and evaluation by enhancing the Education Management and Information System (EMIS) and improved
human resource systems and capacity.
• For the 2007 MTEF, i.e. for the period to 2009/10, the national sector initiatives target improving the quality of
education. These included systemic evaluation and in-service training and teacher development programmes to
enhance the quality of teaching in critical subjects such as mathematics and life orientation, Grade R and overall school
management improvement.
Annual Performance Plan 2007/08 – 2009/10 1