The Western Cape Education Department (WCED) will launch a major new Human Capital Development Strategy, with a focus on youth, in Khayelitsha today (Monday, 6 March 2006).

The strategy is a cornerstone of the provincial government’s iKapa Elihlumayo strategy to grow and share the Cape, and will guide education planning in the province for many years to come.

Targets of the strategy include increasing the number of candidates passing matric from 32,573 in 2005 to 50,000 by 2014.

The strategy will also seek to increase the number of learners enrolled in Further Education and Training (FET) college programmes and in learnerships during this period from 20,000 to 60,000.

The Human Capital Development Strategy is among eight lead strategies of the provincial government’s Ikapa Elihlumay Strategey to ensure social and economic development.

The others cover social capital development, spatial development, micro-economic development, strategic infrastructure development, communication, financial governance and greater interdepartmental coordination.

Premier Ebrahim Rasool directed the WCED as the lead department responsible for human capital development. The launch of the strategy today follows two years of consultation and development.

Building human and social capital is about building people and building networks. The HCDS has set targets for every education phase. They include the following:

• Ensuring that all five-year-old children in the Western Cape have full access to high quality learning programmes. In 2005, 50,000 children attended Grade R. The WCED plans to cater for 80,000 Grade R learners by 2014.
• Every learner in General Education and Training (GET), which covers Grades R to 9, must be able to read, write and calculate at levels required by the national curriculum. GET must provide a solid foundation for all future learning.
• The education system must increase the number of learners, especially black learners, participating in FET in schools and colleges. FET will provide opportunities for learners to specialise according to their interests, aptitudes and the needs of the economy.
• The WCED plans to increase the number of learners acquiring endorsement to enter higher education from 10,394 in 2005 to 20,000 by 2014.
• The strategy intends increasing the number of learners in adult basic education and training (ABET), to encourage skills development and opportunities to complete formal schooling to 76,000 ABET learners by 2014.

The WCED will establish two structures to ensure careful coordination, monitoring and reporting on the strategy.

• An Advisory Committee, consisting of representatives of the Provincial Development Council and provincial government departments, and
• A dedicated Human Capital Project Team, to monitor and report on progress in implementing the HCDS.

Said Education MEC Cameron Dugmore: "This strategy acknowledges the intrinsic importance of people as they develop their potential and build successful communities and societies.

"Education has a crucial role to play in social and economic development and we have to work with partners in all sectors to meet this challenge.

"The Western Cape is regarded as one of the wealthiest provinces in South Africa, however the gap between rich and poor is also the largest in the country.

"Building human and social capital cannot be left to chance. Government must intervene directly to ensure human and social development, especially in our poorest communities.

"About 50% of our learners who enter Grade 1 do not complete Grade 12, primarily black learners from poor communities. Only 23.4% of the population have matric, while only 11.2% have a tertiary qualification.

"The HCDS includes strategies for systemic change, as well as strategies for each education phase. The strategy is committed to transforming education, by ensuring access, redress and equity, and to ensuring quality education for all.

"The strategy emphasises quality assurance, through monitoring, measurement and evaluation. Every aspect of education will reflect our drive for quality, from ensuring relevant curriculum packages to teacher training and classroom management.

"We will focus on the conditions in which we work and our general educational environment. These issues include facilities and equipment and whether our schools provide the kind of environments we need to ensure effective teaching and learning.

"The success of the strategy will lie in the extent to which schools are able to take up the challenges of the strategy. The WCED will therefore pay special attention to school effectiveness.

"Other key concerns include teacher supply and development; the WCED as a learning organisation; and organisational redesign, to ensure that the WCED has the capacity to meet the objectives of the strategy.

"But the success of the plan depends on how schools and our learners respond to the opportunities. This plan is about and for the youth. We have to work together to ensure success."