The education system in Gauteng is teetering on the brink of collapse. With municipal debt approaching a staggering R600 million, the repercussions for schools across the province are severe and escalating.
This follows a press briefing held on Sunday, May 17, where Gauteng Education MEC Lebogang Maile delivered a comprehensive overview of the growing crisis surrounding water and electricity provision at schools, while also assessing the future of the province’s controversial decentralisation model.
The briefing came just days after the High Court in Pretoria ruled that the City of Tshwane must restore electricity to schools disconnected over unpaid municipal accounts and barred municipalities from carrying out further power cuts at schools.
At the centre of the crisis is a staggering R583.9 million debt owed by Gauteng schools to municipalities, with the City of Johannesburg accounting for the largest share at R390.7 million, followed by Ekurhuleni at R75.1 million and Tshwane at R51.7 million. Schools also owe Eskom R6.32 million.
Maile said the crisis had been worsened by historical debt, weak accountability systems and ongoing disputes over municipal billing, with many schools battling inflated charges, estimated readings and escalating tariffs they could no longer afford.
“Municipalities in Gauteng have increasingly been accused of over-charging public schools through incorrect billing, inflated tariffs, estimated readings, historical debt transfers, and unlawful charges on municipal accounts,” said Maile.
The MEC warned that the growing financial strain was having devastating consequences for teaching and learning across the province.
“Schools without electricity cannot operate computer labs, lighting, or administrative systems, while water cuts create sanitation and health risks for learners and staff,” he said.
Maile further admitted that Gauteng’s decentralisation model which transferred responsibility for paying municipal services from the department to schools and School Governing Bodies (SGBs) had exposed serious governance and financial management failures.
“Many schools, especially no-fee and low-income schools, struggle to pay increasing municipal tariffs using limited state allocations,” he said.
The decentralisation system was initially introduced to improve financial autonomy and reduce bureaucratic delays by allowing schools to manage their own budgets and procurement processes. However, the system is now under review after years of mounting debt, disputes over historical accounts and repeated service disconnections.
“For this reason, we are reviewing the de-centralisation model. This has been made necessary by the impediments that it has posed, particularly as it pertains to challenges with financial management and sound governance, which result in the non-payment of municipal services.” Maile said.
He also revealed that Gauteng’s learner population had nearly doubled from 1.4 million in 1995 to more than 2.8 million in 2026, placing enormous pressure on school infrastructure and provincial finances.
While the Gauteng Department of Education’s infrastructure budget increased from R1.63 billion in the 2021/2022 financial year to R2.84 billion in 2025/2026, Maile said the increase remained inadequate when measured against rapid in-migration, overcrowding and infrastructure backlogs.
He warned that vandalism, crime, ageing infrastructure and the challenge of building schools on dolomitic land were compounding the crisis facing the province’s education system.
Addressing the recent High Court ruling against the City of Tshwane, Maile defended the constitutional right to education and insisted schools should never become casualties of municipal debt disputes.
“Education services are not a privilege that is extended on the basis of financial ability. Education is a Constitutionally enshrined right that is extended to all children in our country regardless of their socio-economic background or their geography,” he said.
“Schools are and must remain a public good. Basic education is a fundamental human right that provides equitable access to opportunities, fosters democracy, and serves as a cornerstone for societal development and poverty reduction.”
The growing crisis comes after the Democratic Alliance earlier this month accused the Gauteng Department of Education of misleading the public about the extent of electricity disconnections at schools.
In a statement issued on May 4, DA Gauteng spokesperson for education Michael Waters said official replies from the department contradicted repeated public claims that no schools had experienced power cuts.
“The Gauteng Department of Education has misled the public by claiming that no school has experienced electricity disconnections, a claim directly contradicted by its own official reply to questions posed by the Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature,” said Waters.
According to the DA, schools including Bedfordview High, Laerskool Welgedacht and Laerskool Morewag experienced electricity disconnections for more than 120 days.
Waters said the number of affected schools had escalated sharply from three schools in 2024 to 31 in 2025, while 16 schools had already been affected in the first four months of 2026.
“The truth is simple: schools have been left in the dark, and the department tried to hide it. This is not a communications failure; it is a failure of governance and accountability,” Waters said.
The DA has since called for a Public Protector investigation into the matter.
Despite mounting criticism, Maile insisted the department was working with municipalities to ensure compliance with the High Court ruling while assisting schools trapped in billing disputes and historical debt battles.
“Ultimately, schools must focus on the core mandate of delivering the curriculum successfully,” he added.
The Star