Gauteng province closes illegal schools and funds legal ones

The Gauteng education department in South Africa investigated 61 schools suspected of operating illegally since January and issued closure letters to 32 of them.

Lebogang Maile, MEC for education, explained the investigations began after parents, community members, and other government institutions raised concerns. Department officials visited the schools to check for proper registration and compliance, instructing those found to be unlawful to close.

Seven of the previously identified illegal schools have already stopped operating, and four have begun the registration process. The department also arrested two school directors. However, officials clarified that closing an illegal school does not end their responsibility to the students, and they will work with parents to enroll affected learners in legally operating schools.

Alongside this crackdown, the Gauteng department plans to allocate approximately R1.13 billion (South African Rand) in subsidies to qualifying independent schools in the 2026/27 financial year, with R621 million for primary schools and R508 million for secondary schools. Currently, 279 independent schools in Gauteng receive subsidies, while 804 do not, though all remain independently owned and managed. The department has provided around R4.3 billion in funding to independent schools between 2022-23 and 2025-26.