Q: Why did schools run out of money to buy food?
A: They didn’t run out of money because there was no money. It’s just that provincial and National Treasury were introducing a new system. That’s the only thing that happened. There was a glitch technologically or system-wise, which led to schools not getting money on the day they expected it.
Q: Am I right in saying schools didn’t get money for food from your department since the start of the second term on April 8?
A: No, they only did not get the money because of National Treasury introducing a new system at the beginning of the financial year on April 1.
Q: Some schools say they haven’t been getting money for food since then.
A: There’s no school in May that can say, ‘We have not got our money.’
Q: So the money for food is in the schools’ bank accounts now, is it?
A: That matter was resolved as of last week. The money is in their accounts.
Q: Didn’t you experience the same technical glitch in 2023?
A: I don’t understand the essence of your question. In the current instance, the issue was out of our control. When there’s a system change from the centre, the Treasury, it affects us in the department.
Q: So the technical glitch you refer to was not just a lack of planning by your department?
A: No, it’s got nothing to do with planning. It’s got everything to do with a system change.
Q: To what extent is this a systemic problem?
A: A systemic problem is something that you encounter for the greater part of the year and are unable to resolve. This issue had everything to do with another sector, which is National Treasury, which is outside our ambit. As I said, we resolved it with Treasury last week. If you say it’s systemic it must be something that is consistent, which is not the case.
Q: Didn't you experience the same problem in 2023?
A: When in 2023?
Q: About the same time, wasn’t it?
A: You should at least be specific. You can’t just say 2023.
Q: Is there going to be a similar problem next year or have you sorted it out?
A: I can’t predict what is going to happen in 2026 because it is something that is out of our ambit as the department of education. I don’t know the frequency of Treasury changing [their] systems.
Q: What did your department mean when it told schools they could use their surplus money to buy food?
A: We didn’t say they could use, we said they should use. When we say could use it means we’re shifting responsibility.
Q: How would schools have surplus money?
A: Schools have different tranches of money that come to them for different purposes, which they can use for nutrition purposes and write a deviation. Some did, some didn’t. It’s not all schools in the province that were in that situation; it was a handful that were affected.
Q: According to teachers’ union Naptosa, 70% of your poorest schools were not able to provide meals.
A: That’s not true.
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