Budget Cuts Endanger Basic Education for Most Vulnerable

The Budget Justice Coalition (BJC) expresses deep concern regarding reports of impending budget cuts to basic education. Today’s briefing by Minister Siviwe Gwarube highlighted that seven provincial education departments would not be able to afford their budgets by 2027/28. As a collective of civil society organisations committed to promoting equitable and rights-based budgeting, we recognise the critical importance of mobilising resources to ensure the state fulfils its obligation to provide for the Constitutionally-protected right to quality basic education.

In the press briefing, the CFO at the Department of Basic Education announced consolidated budget pressures between 2021/22 – 2027/28 as between R78 – 118 billion across the provinces. These budget constraints provide context for potentially “brutal” budget cuts in the words of the Minister. Budget cuts towards basic education will disproportionately affect vulnerable populations, exacerbating existing inequalities and undermining South Africa’s Constitutional guarantee of the right to basic education. We urge policymakers to prioritise education spending, ensuring sufficient funding for schools, teachers, resources and infrastructure. 

Since 2018, our coalition has been actively advocating for quality education by submitting reports to parliament, highlighting the devastating impact of budget cuts on basic education. The alarming trend of below-inflation allocations to the Provincial Equitable Share has severely weakened provincial education departments, hindering their ability to address critical issues such as teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms, and inadequate scholar transport and infrastructure. Committing to this fiscal approach will not only exacerbate existing barriers to accessing essential educational services – it will intensify the struggles that people face in meaningful economic participation. 

Potential education budget cuts affect hiring and retaining teachers. The 2024/25 Budget’s proposed 3.2% increase in compensation for basic education personnel, from R235.3 billion to R241.9 billion, may have seemed like a step forward, it actually translated to a 2.2% real cut once inflation at the time was factored. This reduction has done little to address the pressing issue of understaffing in our public schools, which has been a concern for years. The National Treasury has long recognised that these budget allocations jeopardise education outcomes, leading to larger class sizes and higher teacher-to-learner ratios.

The Western Cape education department announced the loss of 2,400 teaching posts in 2025 due to a R3.8-billion budget shortfall over the next three years. Other provinces are also facing budget shortfalls, which may further limit their ability to fill teacher vacancies. If this trend continues, overcrowding in our classrooms will only worsen.

Conversely, there are reports that the Gauteng education department will slash funding towards other equally crucial programmes including school transportation, and learning and teaching support materials (LTSM) in a bid to maintain teacher posts. It is heartbreaking to see that the trade offs being proposed are all ultimately borne by the most marginalised learners who sacrifice their Constitutionally guaranteed right to quality basic education.

Education workforces drive inclusive growth and job creation. As women comprise 70% of educators, the government must consider gender implications in budget decisions, particularly when reducing the public sector wage bill, to ensure equity and recognize women’s vital contributions to under-resourced schools and society.

We must explore human rights-centred alternative fiscal approaches

We urge the government to explore innovative fiscal approaches that safeguard the right to basic education for underserved communities. The uptake of utilising the Gold and Foreign Exchange Contingency Reserve Account (GFECRA) demonstrates that alternative solutions exist to reduce the budget deficit without further compromising public spending.

We further propose: 

1. Leveraging the Government Employees Pension Fund to purchase bonds at favourable rates.
2. Implementing progressive tax reforms including eliminating tax rebates for high-income earners.
3. Revising the education component of the Provincial Equitable Share formula to account for resource disparities between learners and schools in their respective provinces.
4. Revising post-provisioning norms, since some provinces currently spend less on educator salaries in no-fee schools than they do in fee-charging schools. 

As the government navigates tough fiscal decisions, a review of the Intergovernmental Fiscal Relations Act could provide an opportunity to rebalance resource allocation and strengthen the state’s capacity to deliver on its human rights obligations.

A forward-thinking government must harness these funding mechanisms to foster sustainable growth, outpace debt interest costs in the long term and promote economic transformation. Effective public investment management and domestic resource mobilisation are critical to achieving fiscal sustainability and promoting economic growth.

The BJC stands ready to engage with policymakers, educators, and communities to safeguard the rights of learners and ensure a just and equitable education system and an inclusive economy.

• By the Budget Justice Coalition, endorsed by SECTION27, Youth Capital, Equal Education and the Centre for Child Law.

For media queries contact:

Gillian Pillay | pillay@section27.org.za | 082 772 0052