The Eastern Cape Department of Education Human Resource Development (HRD) Directorate in collaboration with Higher Education Institutions conducted a 24-day advocacy campaign drive for Funza Lushaka and Matthew Goniwe Bursary across the province.

The campaign sought to recruit unemployed youth who meet the eligibility criteria to pursue a Bachelor of Education Degree (B.Ed.) at one of the 24 public institutions. Upon graduation, successful candidates will be placed in districts facing educator shortages, where their specialized skills in specific subjects are most needed.

Additionally, the campaign gave priority to individuals from remote and socio-economically disadvantaged communities.

Speaking during the occasion on the looming educator shortage in the department, Provincial Bursary Coordinator, Luvuyo Mgijima, he had this to say, “The Department analyzed its unemployment summary where the focus was solely on the core business which is teaching and learning.”

“It was identified that there is a higher number of educators who will be exiting the system, which will create a gap on the subject priorities such as languages, Mathematics, Science and Technical subjects in both foundation and senior phases, so we offer these bursaries according to the identified needs,” he added.

The department was joined in partnership by the University of Witwatersrand, Walter Sisulu University (Mthatha and Queenstown Campuses), and University of Fort Hare (Alice and East London Campuses).

Notably, the advocacy efforts have yielded impressive results with Walter Sisulu University receiving 66,081 applications for its B.Ed. program and the University of Fort Hare receiving 1,374 applications.

These numbers demonstrate significant interest in teaching careers, supporting the department’s mission to address educator shortages.

The advocacy campaigns will be an ongoing initiative over the next few years, continuing until the department achieves its targeted recruitment of educators.