1 March marks the official start of the 2024 School Governing Body (SGB) Elections in the
Province. A total of 554 public ordinary schools in the Northern Cape are set to participate in 2024
SGB Elections. The regulations for the SGB Elections and the minimum requirements to which the
The Constitution of the School Governing Body must be published in the Government Gazette on
19 February 2024.
The most critical and first function of a School Governing Body, as outlined in Section 20 subsection
(1) paragraph (a) of the South African Schools Act 84 of 1996 is to “Promote the best interest of the
school and strive to ensure its development through the provision of quality education for all learners at
the school”. There is, therefore, a solid connection between the core mandate of the Department
of Education and that of the School Governing Bodies.
The National Department of Basic Education declared that this year’s SGB Elections must be held from 1-31 March 2024. The members’ elections on the SGBs occur every three years. The last elections were held in 2021, so SGBs in the Northern Cape are now approaching the expiry of their term of office.
The Department of Education in the Province has implemented systems to ensure that the 2024 SGB
elections are run smoothly and by the principles of democracy, transparency, non-racism, non-sexism, accountability and, most importantly, the responsibility they deserve. The training of provincial, district and school electoral officers has already been completed.
The Department would like to thank all the outgoing school governing body members for their selfless
commitment, excellent work, and contribution to the governance of our province schools.
You have demonstrated, in no uncertain terms, a sense of patriotism by accepting to work as volunteers
in support of quality education. In most instances, you have discharged your civic duty with credibility, and for that, we are grateful.
It has been proven that School Governing Bodies play a crucial role in the success of our schools. Schools
with effective and efficient SGB members will most likely secure more tremendous success than those with limited parental and community involvement. Creative and resourceful SGBs also play a fundamental role in mobilizing scarce educational resources.
We need School Governing Bodies that will support curriculum delivery. We need to focus on the
improvement of learner achievement by supporting schools in developing strategies for improving
teaching and learning.
As part of our election strategy, the Department of Education will arrange induction workshops for all newly elected governing bodies. This will help the members to familiarize themselves with their roles and responsibilities.
We must make specific mention of the fact that School Governing Bodies operate within a Code of
Conduct. The induction will, therefore, cover this area quite extensively because we need governing
bodies that will be part of a solution.
The Department expects school governing bodies to grasp their roles in schools fully. It should be noted
that SGBs are not elected to deal with the day-to-day running of the school; that is the responsibility of
the School Management Team. SGBs are responsible for policy issues and management of school
finances, ensuring the safety of schools and other broader functions that result in the overall
functionality of the school as an institution where quality teaching and learning takes priority. Any
disruptions of teaching and learning in ANY class and school must be avoided at all costs.
We urge everyone that upon your return to your schools and communities, even if you are not re-
elected into the SGB, it will be imperative that you continue to play an oversight role as a parent and
ensure that good governance standards are maintained and upheld at all times.
The 2024 School Governing Body Elections will take place under the theme: “Advancing teaching and
learning through collaboration and good governance”. We appeal to all members of society to make
yourself available for nomination, attend meetings and participate in the SGB elections.
Parents are again reminded to ensure their details are on the school’s admission register, which
will be used as the school’s voter’s roll. Please note that no parent will be allowed to participate in the SGB elections should their names not be in the school’s admission register. The IEC has the exact
requirements for the national and provincial elections. Have your ID document and driver’s licence ready, as you will be required to produce them on the day of the parent component election.
Let us make Education our business.
ISSUED BY THE NORTHERN CAPE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
