26 November 2025
Honourable Speaker,
Honourable Members of the House,
Fellow South Africans,
Our point of departure must be clear: education remains the apex priority of the African National Congress, a constitutional obligation, and the most powerful instrument of social and economic transformation.
Honourable Speaker, when we speak of literacy, we must go beyond the narrow conception of reading as a mechanical process of decoding words on a page. Literacy is not merely a technical skill it is a cultural, social, emotional, and intellectual practice. As scholars such as Dr Xolisa Guzula and Professor Carolyn McKinney remind us, true literacy requires a deep understanding of the world, an ability to use language for meaning, for identity, for communication, and for participation in society. If a child can sound out words but cannot connect them to lived experience, oral tradition, social context, or critical thought, then we have not succeeded.
Literacy, therefore, is a mirror and a window: a mirror reflecting the child’s own world, and a window opening up new possibilities. The ANC stands firm on the principle that literacy is a fundamentally humanised practice that must affirm the dignity, language, and identity of every learner, especially those whose mother tongues were historically marginalised.
Honourable Members, we acknowledge the importance of phonics, direct instruction, and letter-sound relationships these are foundational. However, they are not sufficient. We cannot pretend that drills alone will ignite a love of reading or inspire comprehension, creativity, and critical engagement.
Research from Dr Guzula and Professor McKinney challenges us to think beyond the textbook and beyond the mechanical. Learners must experience literacy as a living, dynamic process. This means incorporating storytelling, drama, art, music, poetry, and games into the literacy curriculum. These approaches are not “nice-to-have”; they are pedagogically sound methods that connect learning to emotion, memory, culture, and motivation. Storytelling, for instance, draws on indigenous knowledge systems. Drama supports expression and confidence. Music strengthens auditory memory. Art deepens understanding through visual interpretation. Games make learning joyful and social.
As the ANC, we advocate for a diversified, inclusive, and culturally responsive literacy curriculum that meets learners where they are and helps them grow from that point.
Honourable Speaker, innovation does not mean abandoning fundamentals. It means strengthening them with new tools, new thinking, and new evidence. For us to drive measurable improvement, we must strengthen assessment systems. The return of the Systemic Evaluation, combined with South Africa’s continued participation in the Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) is critical. These assessments give us credible, comparable, and actionable data. They help us understand whether our interventions are working, where learning gaps persist, and which provinces, districts, and schools require targeted support.
Let it be clear, we do not fear data. We fear stagnation. And we fear a system that struggles to self-correct. PIRLS participation must not be viewed as punitive or shame-inducing; it must be seen as a developmental instrument. We measure so that we can improve. We analyse so that we can intervene. We monitor so that every child in this country whether in Mthatha, Soweto, Musina, or the Cape Flats has access to a high-quality education.
Honourable Members, the world is changing. The Fourth Industrial Revolution has ushered in tools that can radically enhance learning if we use them wisely and equitably. Artificial Intelligence reading applications, audiobooks, e-books, digital literacy platforms, and even the responsible use of social media can create new pathways to reading. Radio and television, which reach millions of households, remain powerful vehicles for promoting literacy, storytelling, and educational programming.
We must ask ourselves: How do we make reading fashionable? How do we make education something that children are excited about, something they talk about on social media, something that competes with entertainment? Through digital innovation, we can create interactive reading experiences, AI-supported personalised learning, and platforms that allow learners to practise reading in all 12 official languages. We can support teachers with AI-enabled lesson planning tools, early detection of learning barriers, and real-time feedback systems.
Honourable Speaker, the ANC believes that innovation must not be a luxury reserved for urban schools or well-resourced communities. It must be the birthright of every child. When used strategically, digital tools can help us close historical gaps, not widen them.
However, innovation alone cannot carry the system. We need strong partnerships. Public-private partnerships offer us a powerful mechanism to scale investment in education, particularly in infrastructure, connectivity, digital content, and early childhood development. We have already seen successful collaborations between government, universities, non-profits, and private sector partners that have improved access to reading material, established school libraries, and rolled out digital labs in under-resourced communities.
Partnerships must be guided by equity, transparency, and national priorities. They must strengthen public education, not replace it. They must build capacity, not dependency. They must serve the poorest child first, not the wealthiest. With the right frameworks, we can harness private sector innovation, financial resources, and technical expertise to accelerate our progress and we can do so without compromising the democratic ethos of education.
Honourable Members, targeted support remains the backbone of measurable improvement. Provinces, districts, and schools require differentiated interventions. Classrooms are not identical; teachers face different realities; learners come from diverse linguistic, cultural, and socio-economic backgrounds. Driving improvement means understanding these differences and supporting them accordingly. It requires strong teacher development programmes, mentoring, coaching, psychosocial support, adequate learning materials, and the empowerment of school leadership teams.
Honourable Speaker, let me conclude by affirming that the ANC’s commitment to improving literacy and learning outcomes is both unwavering and principled. We believe in a holistic approach that recognises literacy as a cultural practice, supports diverse teaching methods, strengthens national assessment systems, leverages technology responsibly, and mobilises strategic partnerships. We believe that the future of South Africa lies not only in the ability of a child to read, but in their ability to read the world critically, confidently, and creatively.
If we embrace innovation, monitor with integrity, and support our schools with intention, South Africa will not only drive measurable improvement we will transform the educational landscape for generations to come.
I thank you.