Some Eastern Cape learners walk 20km to and from school because there is no scholar transport. And this result in high rates of school dropouts.
Talking to the GroundUp News, learners from Willowvale said the wake up at 3am to prepare for school because they have to walk more than 10km to school.
The Eastern Cape Department of Education was responsible for scholar transport until 2011 when it was moved to the Department of Roads and Transport in Eastern Cape.
Unathi Binqose spokesperson for the Department of Roads and Transport in Eastern Cape said only 125, 000 learners being transported out 140, 000 who are in need of scholar transport. He also said that the department had to cut costs on events, traveling and accommodation for its employees to pay scholar transport. Next year the department will only have budget to transport 100, 000 learners.
Sinethemba Nkululeko a seventeen year old grade-11 learner from LM Malgus Senior Secondary in Willowvale said, “Since 2020 there has been no scholar transport, I wake up at 3am and leave home at 4am because I have to walk 10km from Zenzele Village to get to school. In winter I walk with my classmates because it’s dark and we arrive at school at 6am to attend morning classes.”
Sinethemba added, “It’s hard to concentrate in the classroom sometimes, because I get tired the school ends at 3:10pm and I arrive at home at around 5pm. I still have to go to the river to fetch water to wash my school uniform, do the house chores, collect the livestock and do my homework.”
Learners complained that their school shoes are worn out because of the distance and buys them three times a year. When it’s raining they stay at home do not attend school. The principal of LM Malgus Senior Secondary Manelisi Mtshizana said, he spends sleepless nights worrying about his school.
“Learners are dropping out because there is no scholar transport. When I arrived in 2017 we had 172 learners and the numbers dropped to 103, the matric pass was 13% but last year we had 50% pass in matric. In order to keep the school going I had to allow matric failures to repeat the whole year,” said Principal Mtshizana.
Principal Mtshizana said, since February he has been in and out of department’s offices seeking for scholar transport for his thirty learners who walk 20km to school.
Some parents rent rondavels which are close to school for thier children. However, this turns out to be a disaster in most cases because there are no strict rules in those rondavels. Owners will allow boys and girls to share a rondavel and that may result in teenage pregnancy.
Unathi Binqose concluded, “Scholar transport was a temporary solution. Government made a call in 2015 to build boarding schools to cut transport costs and minimize scholar transport accidents. Till today no department was given the task to build boarding schools.”
