Expanding access to education must go hand in hand with creating the conditions for learners to participate meaningfully, complete their studies and realise their potential, Nelson Mandela University Vice-Chancellor Professor Sibongile Muthwa said at the policy dialogue and national launch of the 2026 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report on Tuesday.
Hosted by the University in partnership with the South African National Commission for UNESCO (NATCOM) and the GEM Report team, the launch brought together education stakeholders to consider the report’s findings on access and equity as countries enter the final stretch towards the 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) target of inclusive, equitable and quality education for all.
Addressing government representatives, education researchers, school principals, educators, postgraduate students and development partners, Professor Muthwa described education as an intergenerational calling that requires a commitment to future generations.
While South Africa has made significant strides in widening access to education since the advent of democracy, she said, persistent inequalities rooted in history and linked to poverty, geography, disability, language, gender and socioeconomic circumstances continue to shape learners’ educational experiences and outcomes.
“The challenge before us therefore, colleagues, is not only to expand access but to ensure that access translates into meaningful participation, successful completion and opportunities for lifelong learning,” she said.
“Equity is not achieved simply by opening the gate of a school. Equity is achieved when every learner, regardless of background or their circumstances, receives the support and opportunities necessary to thrive and to flourish.”
Professor Muthwa said the report provided an important opportunity to reflect honestly on progress, confront persistent challenges and strengthen collaboration between government, universities, educators, researchers, civil society and development partners.
She emphasised that education was not merely an educational priority, but a social, economic and moral imperative, with the potential to reduce inequality, promote social cohesion and advance sustainable development.
The University’s participation in the national launch reflects its commitment to being a great African university embedded in its communities and in the service of society. Professor Muthwa said partnerships were central to addressing pressing societal challenges, including unequal access to education.
“Behind every indicator is a human story,” she said, pointing to the child seeking a place in a classroom, the learner overcoming barriers to participate, the teacher striving to inspire and the family investing its hopes in education.
Global progress, persistent gaps
Presenting the report, GEM Report Director Manos Antoninis highlighted South Africa’s progress in widening access to education. Between 2000 and 2024, the proportion of primary school-age children out of school fell from 14% to 6%, while the share of lower-secondary-age adolescents declined from 16% to 7% and that of upper-secondary-age youth from 34% to 17%.
Completion rates also improved over the period, reaching 97% in primary education, 90% in lower secondary and 54% in upper secondary. However, the report cautions that access gains must be accompanied by efforts to address inequalities linked to income, location and other disadvantages.
South Africa’s public investment in education is among the highest globally, at 6% of GDP and 19.1% of total government expenditure. Yet public spending on pre-primary education remains at 0.1% of GDP, highlighting the need to ensure that investment keeps pace with ambitions to expand early learning.
During his presentation, Antoninis said that “no single reform will work”, calling for a combination of approaches tailored to national circumstances.
“It is important for countries not to think that there are single silver bullets. They need to combine a range of policies because change takes time. And although it is important to learn from other countries, these external examples need to be localised, considering the context and the problem that we want to solve in our country,” he said.
He also highlighted the importance of directing resources towards disadvantaged regions, schools and learners, noting that South Africa already uses mechanisms such as its school quintile funding system, fee exemptions and the National School Nutrition Programme to support those facing barriers to education.
Inclusion must continue beyond admission
Bringing the report’s findings into the higher education context, Mandela University Associate Professor Cina Mosito argued that access should not be measured simply by who enters an institution, but also by who participates meaningfully, progresses, graduates and benefits from the educational experience.
Drawing on her work in inclusive education and teacher development, Professor Mosito cautioned that widening university access does not automatically translate into inclusion or student success.
Students from disadvantaged backgrounds may encounter barriers extending well beyond admission, including financial hardship, inadequate material resources, language differences, unfamiliar academic environments and difficulties navigating institutional expectations.
For first-generation university students and those from rural communities, even seemingly familiar spaces and processes can present obstacles. Institutions therefore need to ensure that students receive appropriate academic support and opportunities to develop the knowledge and skills required to succeed.
Professor Mosito called for universities to monitor retention and progression alongside enrolment, allocate resources according to students’ needs, strengthen inclusive teaching practices and build more meaningful relationships with schools, families and communities.
She also challenged institutions to reconsider how inclusion is understood and implemented, arguing that responsibility should extend beyond specialised support units to every lecturer and academic department.
“Universities were not made for universities. They were made for communities,” she said, calling for student success to be recognised as a shared institutional and societal responsibility.
The discussion reinforced the need for stronger partnerships between basic and higher education to support learners as they move through the system, particularly those whose schooling experiences have not adequately prepared them for university.
Investing early and responding to learners’ needs
UNICEF South Africa Chief of Education Hana Yoshimoto brought an early childhood development perspective to the discussion, stressing the importance of investing in the early years, directing resources towards the most vulnerable learners and strengthening the identification and support of children at risk of exclusion.
She highlighted disparities in access to early learning opportunities and the need for better data to understand differences in participation and quality across provinces and among children from different backgrounds.
Yoshimoto also stressed the importance of language in early learning. She noted that early childhood development teaching and learning materials aligned with the National Curriculum Framework had been translated into all 11 official languages, providing an opportunity to strengthen learning through more accessible resources.
Her presentation highlighted that educational equity must begin before children enter formal schooling and continue through the education system, supported by appropriate funding, inclusive learning environments and reliable information on learners’ needs.
A shared responsibility for educational success
The broader discussion foregrounded practical questions about how universities and schools can work more effectively together, particularly to bridge the gap between learners from rural and disadvantaged communities and the demands of higher education.
Participants emphasised the value of exposing school learners to university environments and study opportunities from an early age. They also called for more reciprocal partnerships in which schools and communities help shape the support and interventions intended for them.
The discussion further raised concerns about boys’ educational outcomes, including their lower levels of engagement and the relationship between weaker foundational learning, grade repetition and dropout. Contributors noted that further research is needed to understand the causes and the influence of social expectations and attitudes towards boys’ learning.
In his closing remarks, NATCOM chairperson Professor Ihron Rensburg cautioned against importing international education models without adapting them to local circumstances. He called for deliberate equity-oriented policies backed by funding, long-term thinking and a consistent mix of interventions.
Competent, engaged and professional teachers, he said, remain critical to achieving education goals.
“Let us build education systems that do not merely reproduce inequalities, but actively create opportunities for every child everywhere,” he said.
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