East London - The Eastern Cape Transport MEC has promised to ensure that the province's scholar transport programme will be properly functioning when schools reopen next year.
Following a series of transport workshops held around the province, Transport MEC Thandiswa Marawu said her department had worked hard to overcome the problems that have plagued the programme.
"When the schools re-open on 11 January next year, we will be ready to transport our rural pupils," said Marawu on Wednesday.
Department spokesperson Ncedo Kumbaca said the workshops were held to address problems experienced by operators, co-coordinators, teachers, service provider One Future Development 46 (OFD) and the transport department, in an effort to improve the monitoring and evaluation of the programme.
"Challenges ranged from proofs of delivery, route misallocations, wrong bank accounts numbers provided by suppliers, the introduction of suppliers to the principals and the changing of routes without notification," said Kumbaca.
He said a number of recommendations were made during the workshops, including the training of co-coordinators, capacitating board members with the necessary skills to run their offices professionally, the prioritisation of provision of information to those affected, and the instilling of the importance of time management to all concerned.
The workshops' project co-ordinator, Nomonde Kondle, said the sessions were a great success and an eye-opener for both operators and school principals.
"A number of concerns were addressed, and stakeholders agreed on a number of issues necessary to ensure this programme's success," said Kondlo.
