Education
KwaZulu-Natal’s no-fee school policy is expanding and educational infrastructure development is continuing.
Education consumes a large proportion of the province’s R64-billion budget: R26-billion for the 2010/11 financial year. A planned rise of 8.5% per annum over the next three years will see the figure surpass R33.2-billion by 2012, reflecting the priority given to this sector by the provincial government. By that time, some 1.5 million school pupils will be attending school free.
As of 2009, there were 3 382 no-fee schools in KwaZulu-Natal, including farm schools. The policy is being extended to quintile-three schools in 2010 with money also being made available to help poorer children pay fees at fee-paying schools. A total of 1.8 million children benefit from the national school feeding programme in KwaZulu-Natal.
The ongoing infrastructure development programme continues in the province, aiming to wipe out the backlog of inadequate facilities, which were a devastating legacy of apartheid. In 2010, eight new schools are under construction and Early Childhood Development mobile classrooms are being made available to 200 primary schools.
Skills training is a high priority, with adults being encouraged to attend Further Education and Training (FET) colleges, and young people receiving training in entrepreneurship and in creating co-operatives. The Ifihlile programme has placed 3 500 former students in work, while the National Institute of Information Technology of India is working in collaboration with the Moses Kotane Institute.
The Moses Kotane Institute was inaugurated in 2009 and will focus on mathematics, science and technology. Specifically, the BSC4 programme will cater to students who pass matric with exemption but do not qualify to study science and agriculture at university. eThekwini FET College and the universities of KwaZulu-Natal and Pretoria will assist in rolling out some of the programmes.
The FIFA 2010 World Cup South Africa™ has resulted in many thousands of artisans receiving training. For the pupils of Silethukukhanya Secondary School in the north-eastern part of the province, the World Cup came early when they received a new soccer pitch through the efforts of a non-governmental organisation (Mpilonhle) and the Woolworths Trust. Mpilonhle takes health and educational services to rural areas via mobile units.
Tertiary education
There are two universities and two universities of technology in KwaZulu-Natal and the national distance university, University of South Africa (UNISA), has a presence in five locations.
The University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) has close to 40 000 students studying on five campuses in two cities. In greater Durban there is:
• Howard College, Berea (environment, engineering, law, humanities)
• Nelson Mandela School of Medicine, Congella
• Westville (KZN administration, Graduate School of Business, science, engineering, health)
• Edgewood, Pinetown (education)
The Pietermaritzburg campus offers a broad academic programme but its specialities are fine art, theology and agriculture. UKZN also hosts the National Research Foundation.
The Durban University of Technology (DUT) has six faculties operating in seven campuses in Durban and in the Midlands. DUT is well known for its outstanding graphic design school and offers one of only two chiropractic programmes in South Africa. Entirely unique is the course in underwater camerawork offered by the Television School.
FET colleges and Abet
Further Education and Training colleges are designed to train people in specific skills that are relevant to the needs of the economy of the country.
National government has invested R2-billion in a recapitalisation project which came to an end in 2009 and has made R600-million in bursaries available. There are currently about 400 000 students at FET colleges, with the target of one million being set for 2016.
KwaZulu-Natal has nine such colleges with a total enrolment of about 80 000. KwaZulu-Natal Premier Zweli Mkhize said in early 2010 that it was necessary to ensure that ‘the categories of artisans produced are aligned with the quality of skills required in industries’.
Coastal KZN FET College gives students practical experience through facilities such as the Nongalo Industrial Park where school furniture is repaired and burglar bars and computer tables are made.
