Note to Editors: Please find attached a soundbite in English by Sergio Isa Dos Santos here.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s government has finally admitted that nearly half of Gauteng schools are operating beyond capacity. Currently, there are over 2.8 million learners in Gauteng, but not enough schools to accommodate them all. The Gauteng MEC for Education, Lebogang Maile, has conceded that the province is facing a deepening overcrowding crisis, denying learners a safe and dignified schooling environment.
For years, the Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng has consistently exposed that many of our learners miss weeks of school because there are not enough schools within proximity to the communities they live in, and therefore they are forced to attend schools that are overcrowded and long distances away.
This situation is the direct result of years of failure by Premier Lesufi’s government to properly plan for a growing learner population and to deliver the schools Gauteng urgently needs. Despite repeated promises to build 18 new schools over successive State of the Province Addresses (SOPA), progress has been at a snail’s pace.
A Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) report before the Education Portfolio Committee shows that only one school is currently under construction, with a further four still at the design stage. At this slow delivery pace, these 18 schools are fast becoming a recurring line in the Premier’s SOPA rather than bricks and mortar on the ground.
With learner numbers increasing annually, the gap between demand and available school infrastructure continues to widen, leaving the province short of hundreds of schools. This is reflected in classrooms with 70 to 90 learners, and in the growing reliance on mobile classrooms as a permanent substitute for proper infrastructure.
However, this failure is not only about building new schools, but also about the failure to use existing infrastructure. The DA Gauteng has previously revealed that 41 schools have been closed over the past decade, with at least 15 standing unused. At a time of severe overcrowding, it is indefensible that viable school infrastructure remains idle instead of being repurposed to provide immediate relief.
Through ongoing oversight visits across Gauteng, the DA has consistently exposed unsafe infrastructure and conditions that undermine both teaching and learning, as well as learner dignity. Yet the GDE continues to rely on short-term interventions instead of implementing sustainable solutions.
The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has also failed dismally to deliver critical school infrastructure, with the DA having previously exposed many school projects across the province that have stalled for several years due to issues with the contractors or shoddy workmanship.
We would introduce a Rapid School Build Programme, similar to that implemented by the Western Cape Government, where new schools can be delivered within 10 to 12 months, and additional classroom capacity can be rolled out in as little as a few months. This demonstrates that with dedicated leadership, proper planning and accountability, infrastructure can be delivered quickly to meet demand.
A DA-led government would take decisive action. We would fast-track infrastructure delivery through strict contractor accountability, transparent timelines, and consequence management for delays. We would urgently audit and reopen safe, unused schools, prioritise permanent builds in high-pressure areas, and align infrastructure planning with migration trends.
Gauteng’s learners cannot continue to pay the price for government inaction. This is no longer an infrastructure backlog; it is a clear failure of leadership, planning, and urgency.