Parliament, Saturday, 9 August 2025 – The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education, Ms Joy Maimela, has noted that some of the much-awaited draft regulations gazetted by Basic Education Minister Ms Siviwe Gwarube relating to the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Act, might undermine the legislation’s intention.
“Firstly, the committee has previously called for the all the regulations to be gazetted in one go and not in a piecemeal fashion. We want the public to engage on a comprehensive document that will give expression to the intentions of the Act.
“While we understand the intent may be to avoid technical delays, this fragmented rollout undermines the coherence, urgency and integrity of the BELA implementation process. South Africa’s children cannot afford to wait for bureaucratic caution or political compromise,” said the Chairperson.
Ms Maimela went on to say: “Furthermore, it is noted that some of the terms used in the regulations seem to deviate from the Act. It gives the impression that the regulations aim to undermine the intention of the Act.”
She said this will contradict Parliament intention, which was to transform South Africa’s education system and will instead perpetuate the exclusion of vulnerable learners, as was done in the past.
“The regulations on admissions, for example, refer to taking into account the demographics and education needs of the ‘surrounding community’. In the Bela Act the responsibility for admission policy lies with the head of department (HOD) and is based on the ‘broader Education Districts’. This potentially reinforce local demographic homogeneity, contrary to the type of inclusivity the Act intended,” said Ms Maimela.
Ms Maimela indicated that the regulation referring to the HOD determining “feeder zones” for public schools, to control learner numbers and co-ordinate parental preferences, have been included in the regulations, whilst “Education Districts” is clearly referred to in the Bela Act.
“This, once again, points to keeping previously disadvantaged learners out via location. Historically it has been linked to exclusion. It seems these regulations are attempting to re-write the Bela Act and re-introduce matters that were unsuccessful contested in the Bela Act legislative drafting process,” Ms Maimela said.
The committee remains committed to ensuring that the country’s education policy dismantles, rather than reinforces, historical inequality and will continue to exercise oversight to ensure the BELA Act is implemented with the urgency, inclusivity and adhered to legislation and to the Constitution that it demands.
“The committee will continue to closely monitor this process and engage robustly with the Minister on the gazetted regulations, which seem to deviate from the national objective,” emphasised Ms Maimela.
ISSUED BY THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON BASIC EDUCATION, MS JOY MAIMELA
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