Kaya 959 Point of View with Phemelo Motene

R150 Million Unused While Learners Go Hungry

Loading player...
South Africa’s schooling crisis just got worse. Seven provincial education departments left R150 million unspent money meant to feed children, build classrooms and improve maths and science education. The Department of Basic Education’s latest annual report paints a bleak picture, with Limpopo topping the list, failing to use nearly R70 million in grants. That includes over R33 million for the school nutrition programme - in a country where learners are going hungry. With more than 31,000 teaching posts still vacant and overcrowded classrooms the norm, the failure to use these funds has sparked outrage. This story puts the spotlight on a broken system, where money meant to change lives is left sitting in government coffers. Phemelo speaks to Equal Education Researcher, Sam Beynon.
15 Oct 2025 4PM English South Africa Education · Careers

Other recent episodes

ECD practitioners call for better municipal support for early learning centres

Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners are calling on municipalities to address the challenges affecting their centres, including unreliable water supply, unsafe infrastructure, delayed inspections and inadequate support. Following a series of ECD Imbizos across the country, practitioners have put forward five key demands and challenged political leaders to make public…
3 Nov 2PM 40 min

Local government elections: Voter do’s and don’ts

Phemelo is joined in studio by Rivonia Circle Director Tessa Dooms to continue unpacking what voters need to know about the 2026 local government elections. They look at important voting do’s and don’ts, including why voters should not photograph or share images of their marked ballots on social media, as…
3 Nov 2PM 34 min

-DELETED- Local government elections: Voter do’s and don’ts

Phemelo is joined in studio by Rivonia Circle Director Tessa Dooms to continue unpacking what voters need to know about the 2026 local government elections. They look at important voting do’s and don’ts, including why voters should not photograph or share images of their marked ballots on social media, as…
3 Nov 2PM 34 min

Bronkhorstspruit water remains unsafe despite rehabilitation progress

The City of Tshwane says work to rehabilitate the Bronkhorstspruit Water Treatment Works is progressing, with support from Rand Water, but the water remains unsafe for consumption. Mayor Nasiphi Moya says outstanding work, public health monitoring and water quality testing must be completed before a safe supply can be restored…
3 Nov 1PM 10 min

What voters need to know about South Africa’s 2026 local government elections

With South Africans heading to the polls, Phemelo speaks to Rivonia Circle Director Tessa Dooms about what voters need to know before casting their ballots. They unpack the role of local government, how the voting process works, the powers of councillors and how mayors are elected. The discussion also explores…
2 Nov 2PM 46 min
All episodes