The Minister of Basic Education, Ms Siviwe Gwarube, visited the KwaZulu-Natal Province on 29 September 2025, for an urgent All-of-Government meeting with the KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Mr Thami Ntuli and the MEC’s for Education and Finance to attend to the financial difficulties facing the Provincial Department of Education. Deliberations at the meeting focused on the development of a Financial Recovery Plan aimed at balancing fiscal realities with the imperative of safeguarding education.

“Government finances are strained. Education, as the largest line item in the national budget, is not immune to these pressures. Already we are dealing with the impact of constrained budgets on infrastructure development, teacher training, and the roll-out of key reforms. The province is undergoing a Section 18A process by the provincial Treasury to try and stabilize its finances. The Provincial Treasury recently announced that they are unable to approve a request by the KZN Provincial Education Department to place an order for Learning and Teaching Support Material (LTSM) for the 2026 academic year. We have to protect teaching and learning for our children,” the Minister said.

Minister Gwarube added that, “this turbulence is not limited to KZN. The financial analysis I initiated last year indicates that Free State and North West are also starting to experience strain. By financial year 2027/2028 another province is expected to fall into the red, by financial year 2028/2029, seven out of the nine provincial education departments will be unable to fund their budgets”.

The global economy is uncertain, and South Africa is navigating fiscal consolidation to stabilize national debt. This means that the education sector is unlikely to receive any additional funding from National Treasury as that would mean additional debt for the country. The Education Sector will need to do more with less, find innovative solutions to persistent challenges, and deepen collaboration between government, unions, the private sector, and communities. “Very difficult conversations will need to be had, and tough decisions will have to be made. The turbulence ahead will test our resilience as a sector. But I am equally confident that through dialogue, through partnership, and through the spirit of shared responsibility, we will emerge stronger,” the Minister highlighted.

Premier Ntuli acknowledged that the province was experiencing deep financial strain, which has impacted service delivery across sectors. The Financial Recovery Plan aimed at balancing fiscal realities with the imperative of safeguarding education will include an employee audit to ensure efficiency in resource allocation and a learner audit to strengthen planning and align resource distribution with actual needs. By convening the high-level meeting, the Premier demonstrated the urgency of addressing the financial crisis through a coordinated provincial and national response: “Whilst the challenges are significant, they also present an opportunity to build a more efficient, accountable, and sustainable education system,” he concluded.