Gauteng Education MEC Panyaza Lesufi says three thousand learners dropped out of school last year.
He was speaking at the opening of a new school in Katlehong in Ekurhuleni.
Lesufi says that 2 .4million learners are expected back in class to start the 2021 school year on Monday.
He says they have dispatched teams to track down the learners that did not return to school because they suspect that the drop-out rates are caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Western Cape
Western Cape Education Minister Debbie Schafer says about 10 000 learners still need to be placed at schools for the new academic year.
Shafer visited schools in Mitchells Plain on the Cape Flats on the first day of the school year on Monday.
More than one million leaders are expected to return to school for the academic year across the Western Cape this year.
The school year was delayed by two weeks due to the second wave of COVID-19.
While monitoring school readiness and safety protocols, Schafer says some 8000 pupils still need to placed from last year while the department is also dealing with about 2000 late applications.
She says the problem is exacerbated due to a third of its infrastructure budget having to be rerouted to purchase Personal Protective Equipment and enforcing safety protocols.
Unions
Five unions, the South African Democratic Teachers Union (Sadtu), the National Professional Teachers’ Organisation of South Africa (Naptosa), the South African Teachers’ Union (Satu), the Professional Educators Union (PEU) and the National Teachers’ Union (Natu), recently conducted a survey which showed that only 57 % of schools which participated in the study are fully equipped to reopen for the 2021 academic year.
The unions say that many schools in poor and rural communities cannot afford to buy basic PPE like sanitizers and masks.
According to the survey, many schools are expected to use their own funds to purchase COVID-19 related supplies.
Below, Naptosa President Nkosiphendule Ntantala is being interviewed:
