Education Annual Report 2002-2003 - Gauteng Online

DEPARTMENTAL OVERVIEW2. Mandates, Governance, Monitoring And Accountability2.1 Mandate of the DepartmentThe broad mandate of the Department is to provide a compulsory basic education with the additional obligation to ensurethat reasonable measures are adopted to progressively provide access to further education. It has, however, been outlinedthat the South African Schools Act (Act 84 of 1996) fundamentally caters for the needs of those learners that arelocated in schools within the compulsory band. To ensure that the needs are met of those learners throughout thiscountry that wish to continue their pursuit of ongoing teaching and learning activities, the National Ministry has passed theFurther Education & Training Act (Act 98 of 1998). However, the overall commitment of the National Ministry is alsoto cater for the needs of children before their formal entry into the basic schooling phase (Early Childhood Education), theneeds of those learners that have special needs and the desire to promote lifelong learning through the provision ofcontinuous learning activities for adults. In this respect the GDE is bound to enforce the key provisions of EducationWhite Paper 5 on Early Childhood Education (May 2001), Education White Paper 6 on Special NeedsEducation Building an Inclusive Education & Training System (July 2001) and the Adult Basic Education &Training Act (Act 52 of 2000).2.2 Constitutional mandateThe Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996) provides the overall framework for the deliveryof education to the wider citizenry. In this respect the key provisions that impact on the service delivery component of theprovincial education departments rest with the clauses located in Section 29 (Chapter 2) of the Bill of Rights, whichreflects on everyone having the right to:“a basic education, including adult basic education; and to further education, which the state through reasonable measuresmust make progressively available and accessible”.The Constitution does, in addition, empower the provincial education departments to determine their own legislativeinterventions in order to advance the cause of service delivery within the provinces. Thus the provision of basic andfurther education represents a concurrent function between the national and the provincial ministries of education.However, the statutes are clear in that, should any conflict(s) emerge between any provincial policy and/or law then thenational policy and/or law would prevail.2.3 National legislative mandateThe passage of the National Education Policy Act (Act 27 of 1996) (NEPA) provides the basic framework for theNational Minister to, amongst others, determine national educational policies, to monitor the implementation of thesepolicies and to evaluate the general well-being of the educational system. The NEPA provides the National Minister withsignificant functions and responsibilities in terms of the overall oversight function of the education system nationally.The South African Schools Act (Act 84 of 1996) (SASA) provides the broad framework for the provision of a general(basic) education to all the citizens of the country. This piece of legislation broadly encompasses the development of anorganisation, funding and governance framework for all schools in South Africa.The Gauteng Department of Education is also responsible for effecting the provisions of the Employment of EducatorsAct (Act 76 of 1998) and the associated Personnel Administrative Measures (Government Notice 222 of 1998)that fundamentally determine the conditions of service, discipline, retirement and the discharge of educators. In thisrespect the Department is expected to maintain a relevant system for the recording of relevant details pertaining to thehuman resources that the organisation employs. In this regard, the organisation is faced with something of a uniquesituation in that while the broad bulk of the personnel are employed under the Employment of Educators Act, a significantnumber of the administrative staff members are employed under the Public Service Act and are thus subject to the generalPublic Service Employment conditions, which are amended and regulated by the Public Service Regulations.GAUTENG DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION ANNUAL REPORT 2002/037