Pretoria - The 2010 matric results are an indication that South Africa's education system is on the right track, says President Jacob Zuma.
"We are delighted with this significant improvement from the 2009 pass rate. This takes us somewhere closer to the 80 percent target for 2014," said Zuma in a statement after the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, announced a 67.8 percent national pass rate on Thursday.
Zuma said it was an exciting day for government and for the nation. "Education is an apex priority of government and we are determined to continue investing a lot of time, money and other resources into it," he said.
He congratulated the Grade 12 class of 2010 for the improved overall national pass rate as well as education authorities at national, provincial and district level and principals and educators for their hard work during what was, in a number of respects, a challenging year for education.
"To those matriculants who did not make it, we urge you not to give up. This doesn't mean the end of the world. Many people have been in a similar situation that you are in today, and they emerged successful after another attempt. We want to celebrate with you soon when you have emerged victorious after this setback, we are fully behind you all the way," said the President.
He urged principals and educators to ensure schooling begins as soon as schools reopen next week. "The department should also ensure the availability of learning materials timeously. We cannot afford to waste any time so that we can continue to do better each year," said Zuma.
