Gauteng province MEC of Education Panyaza Lesufi announced the National Senior Certificate results following a briefing by the Minister of Education on the overall performance of the class of 2021 on Thursday, as reported by Daily Maverick here.

“We may not be proud to be number two but we are proud to be among the best in the country. Congratulations to the Free State province, Tate Makgoe you outdid yourself but eyamadoda ayipheli,” said Lesufi, in reference to the Free State province retaining the top spot in terms of the overall pass rate.

Gauteng achieved an 82.8% pass rate with 43.8% (55,848) getting bachelor’s passes. According to Lesufi, the bachelor’s pass results are the highest ever to be produced by the province since the introduction of the National Senior Certificate (NSC) in 2008.

“Gauteng alone can fill above 50,000 spaces in Universities. In Gauteng, out of every 10 learners, eight learners have passed with bachelor’s passes. 130 schools have given us a 100% pass rate, almost 462 schools have performed above 90%. Out of the top 10 performing districts in the country, four of them are from Gauteng and the best district comes from this province, Tshwane South. 79 learners have been shortlisted for best awards in the country,” said Lesufi.

The MEC congratulated schools and districts that had excelled.

The top-performing districts were:

• Ekurhuleni South
• Johannesburg West
• Tshwane South

The top-performing schools were:

• Hoërskool Waterkloof: Tshwane South
• Hoërskool Menlopark: Tshwane South
• Hoërskool Garsfontein: Tshwane South

Overall, the Gauteng province pass rate dropped by one percentage point from 83.8% in 2020 to 82.8% in 2021. Out of the 127,353 learners who sat down for the NSC examination, a total of  105,389 achieved a pass mark. 

Matriculants receive their results at Letsibogo Girls High School on January 21, 2022 in Soweto, South Africa. The school achieved a 98.7% pass rate. (Photo by Gallo Images/Papi Morake)

Commenting on the issues related to the drop in the pass rate, head of Gauteng Department of Education Edward Mosuwe highlighted the disruptions caused by the July riots and the impact of rotational learning and other Covid-19 lockdown measures.

“Gauteng is an elephant system competing with springboks. Our learners have demonstrated resilience in the midst of challenges, one of which has been brought by the pandemic. For the last year or two, we could not congregate in this setting because we didn’t know how to live with Covid-19. These young people are a testimony of what you could do when you face challenges — the July riots, rotational learning, load shedding, school closures during disruptions and others,” he said.

Mosuwe vowed that results will improve with the class of 2022, saying they are well geared up for the academic year.

Of Gauteng’s top achievers, 55 will have the honour of enrolling at the universities of their choice with bursaries to cover their costs for the duration of their courses.

“My children we are proud of you, go and make us proud,” concluded Lesufi. DM

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