Approximately 100km outside Cape Town lies the sleepy fishing town of Hawston. Located along the famed ‘’whale coast’’, this town is situated in a low income area with a high unemployment rate, often leading to the poaching of endangered Perlemoen or Abalone. On Thursday, 10 August 2017, the town was abuzz with hundreds of community members as Basic Education Deputy Minister, Mr Enver Surty, officially handed-over Hawston Primary School to the community.

Built at a cost of R64 million, Hawston Primary School forms part of the 25 schools that have been handed-over to the Western Cape community as part of the Accelerated Schools Infrastructure Development Initiative (ASIDI) Programme. As with all ASIDI schools, the school is provided with a Nutrition Centre, a Computer Laboratory, a Resource Centre and a Multipurpose Centre, and the school’s 1,155 learners now have a school that they can be proud of.

“This school is a testimony to the commitment that Government has made to the development of South Africa’s learners and to the continued improvement of the education sector and school infrastructure. This school offers the best facilities to afford the learners of the Western Cape Province an opportunity to pursue careers in Marine Biology, the Hospitality Industry, Tourism, Fisheries and many other professions. Parents, there is no reason why our children cannot attain their dreams,” Deputy Minister Surty said.

With a total of 180 schools completed to date, 445 schools provided with access to sanitation, 306 schools with electricity and a further 619 schools with fresh water, the ASIDI Programme is contributing to positive change in our communities.