The Department of Basic Education (DBE) hosted a two-day Inter-Provincial Rural Education Committee (IPREC) Meeting at Palm Swift Luxury Accommodation, Brits in the North West Province, from 1 to 2 October 2026, bringing together education officials from all nine provinces and social partners. 

Established in 2016 with the approval of the Director-General, IPREC serves as an important national platform for advancing equity and improving the quality of education in rural schools. The Committee facilitates the coordination, monitoring and reporting of rural education programmes whilst enabling provinces to share experiences, challenges, good practices and interventions aimed at strengthening rural and multi-grade education across the country. The meeting was chaired by Mr Seliki Tlhabane, Acting Deputy Director-General for Curriculum Policy, Support and Monitoring at the DBE.

In his opening remarks, Mr Tlhabane emphasised the need for plans to translate into concrete actions, particularly in the context of financial constraints affecting the implementation of programmes in rural communities. Welcoming the delegates, Dr Shadrack Mvula, Deputy Director-General in the North West Department of Education, highlighted the importance of supporting rural learners and teachers, mobilising rural communities and creating opportunities that promote employability and sustainable livelihoods.

During the meeting provincial education officials assessed the impact of the National Framework for Rural Education (NFRE), whilst exploring best practices aimed at addressing rural-urban education gaps. Various provincial education representatives indicated that the Basic Education Sector should invest more resources in less affluent schools to strengthen quality learning and teaching in the STEM subjects. 

In his address, Mr Tlhabane emphasised that School Management Teams (SMTs) in remote communities should come up with strategies aimed at encouraging learners to consider the STEM subjects in their subject choices and career pathing. “Our teacher training initiatives should deliberately empower teachers to improve their teaching skills in the subjects. This meeting should help the DBE and PEDs to identify challenges, implement practical solutions, measure their impact, and ensure that interventions are targeted at schools and learners in rural communities,” he elaborated. 

A key focus of the meeting was the strengthening of provincial reporting on the implementation of the Framework. Mr Tlhabane presented a proposed standardised reporting template structured around the five NFRE pillars: access and inclusivity; mobilisation of rural communities; harnessing the existing curriculum; teacher recruitment, retention and development; and support to schools in unique circumstances. The proposed template is intended to provide a more consistent and comprehensive picture of rural education implementation, including achievements, challenges, mitigation measures and progress against planned activities. “There is a need for stronger, coordinated reporting on rural education; reporting that provides a true reflection of developments and interventions at provincial level. It’s important that we track the number of schools and teachers benefiting from training and other initiatives, as well as report on progress made on priorities for the next quarter between IPREC meetings. This standard reporting approach will support consistent and meaningful reporting at both provincial and national level,” he added.

The meeting wrapped up with Mr Tlhabane commending provinces who have spearheaded initiatives aimed at improving access to opportunities for learners in rural communities. “We remain focused on creating meaningful opportunities for learners in remote areas so that they too, are adequately supported to realise their academic aspirations, whilst supporting teachers and ensuring that the unique realities of schools in rural settings inform the interventions designed to support them. We’ve seen that with the right attention and support, something good can come out of rural communities,” concluded Mr Tlhabane.