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IOL News
3 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
R500 million contract for North West matric papers sparks controversy
Bank notes of R200 denomination The North West department of education says the annual contract for the printing and transportation of examination papers will cost R100 million annually and the contract was awarded to joint venture Lebone Altron DSV Consortium. Image: File Education activist Hendrick Makaneta has amplified concerns about the R500 million contract for the printing and delivering of National Senior Certificate (NSC) examination papers in the North West province. Weekend newspaper reports stated that the five-year contract with joint venture Lebone Altron DSV Consortium will cost the North West province R128 million annually. On the other hand, the North West department of education has disputed the City Press reports, insisting that the five-year contract will cost the provincial authorities around R100 million annually. Speaking to IOL, Makaneta who is the director of the Foundation for Education and Social Justice Africa said the contract was 'too costly'. 'Spending R500 million on a contract for printing and delivering examination papers is very costly. While it is important to keep papers safe, this huge expenditure raises serious concerns about priorities and transparency. We still have shortages of textbooks and poor infrastructure,' said Makaneta. Get your news on the go, click here to join the IOL News WhatsApp channel. 'The North West department of education should disclose details of the contract with specific reference to a breakdown of costs, and public engagement on alternatives. Outsourcing must not come at the cost of accountability.' Outspoken education activist Hendrick Makaneta spoke to IOL Image: Supplied Makaneta said the South African population deserves to know how learners will benefit from this whole process. In an interview with broadcaster Newzroom Afrika, acting North West deputy director general for exams and curriculum, David Moroeng said the contract extends beyond the printing of examination papers. 'The contract that we have entered into is not only a contract for printing but it is a contract of what we call end-to-end, where we prepare question papers, we print and they are picked up and packaged. Once they are prepared (the question papers), they are going to be stored and then to the different storage points in the province under a secured environment,' he said. 'The previous service provider, that was two to three years ago, it was GPW (Government Printing Works) and we left GPW because we had a one-year SLA (service level agreement) that we had with them. We moved away and started looking for a new service provider.' Moroeng said for the past two years, the North West provincial department was being hosted by their colleagues - the Gauteng department of education. 'We moved now, starting with our own tender process and we advertised, after advertising we got Lebone Litho consortium and also Altron DSV taking the bid,' he said. Moroeng said the GPW contract was ranging around R27 million to 29 million but it was limited to printing. 'When we left GPW two years ago, we started paying around R80 million to R90 million in terms of printing. This year, when we started the new contract, we have added some new features that were not there, that is secured printing, secured transportation of the question papers within the province,' he said. As part of the added services, Moroeng said the new service provider is mandated to transport answer books to the different marking venues across the province.
The Citizen
5 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
‘Looting using matric papers': Why did NW printing job price jump by around R100m?
The job has reportedly never cost more than R30m, but is now apparently being done for R128m a year, for five years. There are concerns of possible 'looting' and corruption within the North West education department after it signed a new matric paper printing job that costs four times what it did last year. The department reportedly spent just over R28 million last year to print its question papers, but has now appointed a new provider for the services, Lebone Altron DSV Consortium. That provider, according to a City Press insider, is charging R128 million a year for the service. The department has disputed the amount, but revealed the actual amount is over R100 million. It justified the cost by saying it included not only printing but also other logistics like storage and distribution. Still, insiders insist that these other services were included in the previous deal at a fraction of the price. They smell a rat and claim there is 'a lot of looting using the printing of matric question papers'. 'The material used for printing the question papers is normal, which is found in any printing company. We do not use any special materials, but the money [the department is going to pay] is too much,' said a source. Why don't they use government printers? According to the national education department, eight of the nine provinces, including the North West, have stopped using the Government's Printing Works (GPW) to print their matric papers amid security concerns. 'The GPW in its current structure lacks the capacity to print secure question papers for all nine provincial education departments. This capacity can be extended with time, but the reality is that it is also a major risk for all national question papers to be printed at one venue in the country,' the department said previously. 'Another important factor is that provincial education departments (PED) prefer to have in-house printing facilities, which allows them to manage the process more closely. Hence, printing in Pretoria at GPW is not the most convenient arrangement for most PEDs.' And while leaks have reportedly reduced, the cost of printing, now in private hands, has risen. ALSO READ: Hawks make major breakthrough in matric results 'breach' – One detained Last year, it was reported that the cost more than tripled from less than R1 billion to R3.6 billion. The national education department later clarified that this R3.6 billion included setting the papers, moderation, printing, transport, security, marking and allowances for markers, maintenance of systems, and printing and distribution of statement of results. 'The estimated cost for just the printing and packing of question papers for all candidates writing the October/November examination is R220 million, and this is a fraction of the R3.6 billion quoted,' the department explained. NOW READ: WATCH: Matric results for just R100? Outcry over 'leak' of marks
