PRETORIA — The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is navigating intense scrutiny over learner safety in South African schools, addressing critical shortfalls in teacher background checks and systemic loopholes in abuse prosecutions. Following a recent commission report detailing the prevalence of sexual violence in educational institutions, DBE spokesperson Terence Khala outlined the government’s multi-agency strategy to secure campuses, improve educator vetting, and ensure offending teachers are held accountable.
A stark disparity in mandatory compliance has emerged as a primary concern. Currently, only 88,000 of the approximately 400,000 teachers in the national schooling system have submitted the required criminal background check notices. When pressed on why this critical security measure is not automatically enforced across all provincial authorities, Khala acknowledged the jurisdictional boundaries and fragmentation within the education sector. He emphasized that resolving this deficit requires a comprehensive, whole-of-government approach rather than isolated efforts by the national department alone.
To mitigate these risks, the DBE has implemented specific frameworks, most notably the protocol on the prevention and management of sexual abuse and harassment. Khala stated that the department welcomes the findings of the commission’s report, utilizing it as a strategic tool to align various government clusters. This collaborative effort heavily relies on sister departments, including the Department of Social Development, the Department of Justice, the South African Police Service (SAPS), and the South African Council for Educators (SACE), which assists in the ongoing vetting of educators.
A cornerstone of this inter-departmental strategy is the school safety protocol, which serves as the operational anchor between the DBE and SAPS. Under this protocol, schools are directly linked to their nearest police stations. Khala explained that this integration is designed to foster stronger relationships between school administrators and law enforcement, allowing for rapid emergency response. Beyond reactive measures, the partnership also facilitates proactive interventions, such as joint police raids on school premises to identify and neutralize safety threats before they harm learners.
The discussion also highlighted a troubling legal loophole identified by Commissioner Matlingo, who noted that sexual abuse cases against teachers are frequently withdrawn by the victims’ families outside of formal legal channels. This practice often results in the accused educator being absolved of wrongdoing and allowed to remain in the classroom without facing prosecution.
Addressing this vulnerability, Khala clarified that the DBE’s mandate is to escalate allegations to law enforcement, with SAPS and the Justice Department taking over the actual prosecution. He stressed that the department is highly mindful of the child’s well-being and seeks to avoid “double jeopardy”—a scenario where cases are repeatedly opened, withdrawn, and reinstated, causing further trauma to the victim.
To close the loophole of withdrawn cases, Khala revealed that the DBE has shifted to a dual-track mechanism. The department now runs concurrent processes: an internal labor relations procedure managed within the basic education sector, running simultaneously with the formal legal process led by Justice and SAPS. This ensures that even if a criminal case faces external pressures or is withdrawn by a family, the department’s internal disciplinary and safety mechanisms continue to operate, keeping the protection of the learner at the absolute forefront of the intervention.