Equity, access and quality in basic education: a review

Abstract

The democratic government which came into being in South Africa in 1994 has shown its commitment to Education for All, by ensuring equitable and universal access to meaningful learning opportunities. There has been significant progress towards equity, equality and redress in post-apartheid South Africa, and yet a sobering reality, noted by the National Planning Commission, is that an estimated 48% of the population live on less than 2 dollars a day, and, at 0.67, the Gini coefficient is the highest in the world (National Planning Commission, 2011). In 2014, the unemployment rate was 24.3% or 34.6% discouraged "job seekers". Among the unemployed, long term joblessness is at 66%, indicating how exclusion from the labour market undermines skills development. Unemployment for those in the 15 to 25 age group, remains a staggering 48.8 % (Budget Review, 2015).