Deputy Minister of Basic Education, Dr Reginah Mhaule, led the Department of Basic Education to the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA) Triennale which was held from 29 to 31 October 2025 in Accra, Ghana. The Deputy Minister was supported by Dr Stephen Taylor, Director for Research Coordination Monitoring and Evaluation; Ms Ncedile Mdhluli, Head of Office in the Office of the Deputy Minister; Mr Johannes Malebye, Deputy Director, EMIS; Ms Koena Matjiu, Financial Services; Ms Matome Sekgota, Assistant Director for International Relations and Multilateral Affairs; and Ms Bongiwe Siwela, Outreach Officer, Office of the Deputy Minister.
The 2025 Triennale was held in partnership with the Ministry of Education of Ghana under the overarching theme: “Strengthening the Resilience of Africa’s Educational Systems: Advancing Towards Ending Learning Poverty by 2035 with a Well-Educated and Skilled Workforce for the Continent and Beyond.”
The overall goal of the 2025 ADEA Triennale was to take stock, learn, share experiences, and develop drivers and conditions for resilient educational systems. The high-level event was attended by Ministers of Education from various countries, as well as key role players in the education sector. The Deputy Minister participated in the main plenary sessions, as well as three consultative side events which focused on foundational learning and education and technology.
During the first side event on 29 October 2025, the Deputy Minister highlighted that quality foundational learning is one of South Africa’s uppermost priorities, thus it is one of the priorities of South Africa’s G20 Education Working Group. Furthermore, the Deputy Minster highlighted how the introduction of various reforms such as revising the curriculum, formalising Grade R to be compulsory so every child could have a year of pre-school to strengthen the Foundational Learning Systems, and providing every learner with textbooks and workbooks made a difference. In the second side event, the Deputy Minister shared on how South Africa continues to use, data and assessments to drive improvements in foundational learning. South Africa’s participation in international assessments such as TIMSS, PIRLS, and SACMEQ, even when the results have been uncomfortable.
The Deputy Minister attended a reception organised by UNICEF and participated in a panel discussion on “Accelerating foundational learning in Africa: Lessons, innovations, and the way forward”, where she highlighted that the journey begins with Early Childhood Development, continues through the foundational literacy and numeracy years in the early grades of primary school, and must be strengthened by quality teaching throughout the later phases of schooling.
On the last day of the Triennale, the Deputy Minister participated in a session on “Education and technology (including AI) in the classroom – an enabler with bright and blind spots”. Dr Mhaule highlighted that South Africa’s journey was formally inaugurated two decades ago with the 2004 White Paper on e-Education, with a clear goal “that every South African learner and teacher should be ICT-capable by 2013.
Dr Mhaule joined Ministers from various countries in a closed ministerial session convened by the Association for the Development of Education in Africa (ADEA). The meeting aimed to provide member countries with an update on the progress of ADEA’s programmes since the last Triennale. Discussions also focused on the importance of formalising ADEA’s legal status through the signing of a legal agreement. To date, only three countries have signed the instrument.
The Deputy Minister held an engagement with Dr Benjamin Piper from the Gates Foundation on 30 October 2025. The meeting focused on South Africa’s strategic efforts to enhance foundational learning and teacher development, with a particular focus on the Foundational Learning Outcomes at Scale (FLOAT) initiative, which aims to improve foundational learning outcomes across three provinces: Gauteng, Free State, and the Eastern Cape. The initiative is a three-year plan supported by the Gates Foundation. Dr Piper expressed interest in strengthening collaboration to address these educational challenges and requested guidance on how best to deepen cooperation with the DBE. In response, Dr Mhaule expressed the need for a more coordinated approach through the DBE’s National Office.