Bloemfontein - Fifty-nine schools in the Free State have been allocated an estimated R500 000 per school for renovations, to restore dilapidated buildings and improve facilities.
"This project is going to be rolled out for the next five years because our schools are assets to our communities and part of our history," said MEC for Education Tate Makgoe earlier this week.
"We realised that most learners go to newer schools as they are attracted by the way they look, so we are going to try and provide the same energy and appeal for older structures," he said.
He said while more attention had been paid to high schools and less on primary schools, the department was rectifying the imbalances of the past and would provide learners with the necessary tools to equip them for high school and later higher education.
"We have realised the importance of an exciting, welcoming and beautiful learning environment for our schools, as it is where learners spend most of their time," he said.
Vegetable gardens, he said, would be started at schools that did not have any and sporting facilities to create active, vibrant and healthy youth. He said the department would also engage schools about introducing feeding schemes.
