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Pandor delivers on promise

TOUCHED: Minister Naledi Pandor. Pic. Elijar Mushiana. 28/09/2007. © Sowetan.
TOUCHED: Minister Naledi Pandor. Pic. Elijar Mushiana. 28/09/2007. © Sowetan.

Khangale Makhado

Khangale Makhado

The government's promise of better educational facilities seems to be bearing fruit after 101 new schools were built and 5222 new classrooms were added to existing schools in the past financial year (2005-06).

The announcement was made by Education Minister Naledi Pandor when she officially opened the R22million state-of-the-art Thengwe High School in Mutale, Limpopo on Friday.

Pandor said that the building of new schools and extra classrooms have seen the problem of overcrowding falling from a staggering 51percent to 24percent last year alone.

She heaped praise on Thengwe High School, saying it was very special because it consistently achieved high pass rates that have attracted both government and private sector sponsorship.

"This performance has been achieved with limited resources, old buildings and in recent years, significant overcrowding.

"The achievements are tributes to good management by the school's leaders, the resourcefulness of teachers and the dedication of pupils," said Pandor.

Pandor was visibly touched when a pupil, Kharivhe Mufunwa, who represented the pupils in a powerful speech, said that while it seemed standard to other people that "the sky is the limit" they - the pupils - wanted to scrape beyond the limits into space.

Education MEC Aaron Motsoaledi said his department was determined to improve school infrastructure in a manner that would respond to the dictates of a modern economy.

Thengwe, one of the three flagship projects of Limpopo's education department, boasts an administration block, 34 classrooms, two computer centres, a library, a 1000-capacity hall, a science and biology laboratory and a home economics centre.

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