Image Courtesy of GCIS.

The media briefing scheduled for 10am will not take place as planned due to a Cabinet meeting taking place this morning.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga was expected to announce the date for a phased-in reopening of schools on Thursday.

The minister is scheduled to brief alongside her Higher Education counterpart, Blade Nzimande, in Pretoria at 4.30pm this afternoon.

Her department initially intended for matrics and grade 7 learners to return to school next Wednesday.

The aim is to reopen the country’s nearly 25,000 public and independent schools gradually, starting with matrics and grade 7s on 18 May and – with two-week intervals – opening up to lower grades over the course of the next three months.

Meanwhile the teacher organisations and unions are hoping that Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga will present a concrete plan that will inspire confidence and ensure that all schools comply with COVID-19 health and safety standards before any learning and teaching can resume.

However, education groups have rejected the proposal, saying that it lacked direction and was a recipe for disaster as many schools were still ill-equipped to deal with the pandemic.

Teacher unions have reiterated their stance on the reopening of schools during the COVID-19 lockdown, saying that many schools in the country were simply not ready.

The media briefing scheduled for 10am will not take place as planned due to a Cabinet happening this morning. The time will be confirmed during the course of the day. We apologize for the inconvenience. Regards

— Dep. Basic Education (@DBE_SA) April 30, 2020