part a: strategic overview - Department of Education

meal for our poorer children. These programmes are designed to contribute to job-creation
and thus poverty alleviation in our communities. This is directly in line with the Provincial
Growth and Development Programme.
13.2.5 Institutional Management
Our capacity building efforts at all levels of the system have seen greater stability in the
management of our institutions.
The delivery of Learner Support Material has improved each year. The educators are
currently receiving meaningful Professional Development Programmes that will enhance the
introduction of the Revised National Curriculum. The stability at school level is strengthened
by the tenacity with which our learners stay longer in the system.
13.2.6 Challenges:
13.2.6.1 Impediments to Service Delivery
Despite the successes listed above, the ECDoE faces a number of vital challenges that
impact on its ability to ensure quality service delivery within the context of the external
environment.
A fundamental challenge that faces the ECDoE is the shortage of educators and educator
skills as a result of the attrition rates especially amongst the younger educators.
Added to this has been insufficient budget allocation, which, inevitably, results in unending
financial constraints.
The age- old concern from both our employees and suppliers regarding our capacity to pay
within expected turnaround time standards remains with the Department. This stem from
insufficient capacity, which is currently being addressed from a number of fronts, like for
example the backlogs’ project.
Record keeping is a serious challenge that has been confronted headlong, with the
introduction of a Registry Project.
One of the weaknesses lays in the management of procurement processes. This realization
has pushed us to adopt a system of monthly and quarterly cycles of procurement monitoring,
informed by a composite procurement plan of the Department.
The quality that we produce in the gateway subjects of mathematics, science and technology
still leaves much to be desired.
A bigger challenge that the Department is facing has to do with the Presidential injunction
around infrastructure. In his State of the Nation address, the President made a call for all to
ensure that by the end of the 2004 financial year no learner will receive tuition under a tree,
mud school, or any dangerous conditions that exposes learners and teachers to the elements.
The Department is committed to the call. However, the Department’s current budgetary
constraints will force us to seek additional funding to be able to meet the call.
13.2.6.2 Challenges posed by the social and welfare needs of our communities
One other critical area that we need to look into is the matter of sound relations with our social
partners. We need to operate in an environment that is conducive to stability within the
Department and mutual trust between our social partners and ourselves
In order to meet the challenges of the welfare of our communities the ECDE embarked on the
school nutrition programme that will be expanded to secondary schools and the provision of
scholar transport to learners from rural areas and informal settlement. The monitoring of
access to social grants and the provision of clothing needs to orphans and children from
informal settlements will become a priority. The issue of burial cost for orphans and the
5 Year ECDoE Strategic Plan for 2005/06 2005-06 to to 2009/10. 2009-10. March 21 F (3).doc 2006 Page 56
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part C: background information