Gauteng has built only 202 public schools since 1994, according to Education MEC Lebogang Maile’s response in the Gauteng legislature, while learner enrolment in the province has more than doubled from 1,408,237 in 1995 to 2,835,168 in 2026.
Maile said 201 of those schools are complete and operational, while one has been completed but is awaiting an occupational certificate. Department records show 6,221 classrooms were constructed across the 202 schools, and 78 schools have been prioritised for refurbishment under the approved infrastructure asset management plan.
Speaking during a legislative briefing, as reported by the Sowetan on 28 August 2026, Maile confirmed the figures in response to questions about the province’s school infrastructure backlog. The medium-term budget for new and replacement schools stands at R3.982 billion, according to IOL, which would allow for roughly seven new schools per year or 23 over the medium-term period.
That pace falls far short of demand. A South African government report published via SAnews in April 2026 said Gauteng faces a deficit of at least 200 new schools to stabilise the education system. DA Gauteng education spokesperson Sergio Isa Dos Santos told the Sowetan the delivery rate is completely out of step with the province’s growing learner population.
This painfully slow pace of school infrastructure delivery is completely out of step with Gauteng’s growing learner population.
The figures carry some inconsistency across sources. An earlier Brand South Africa profile stated that since 1994 Gauteng had built 153 primary schools and 128 secondary schools, totalling 281, which conflicts with the legislature figure of 202 and may reflect different counting methods or time ranges.
The overcrowding crisis has direct parallels for the Western Cape, where rapid population growth in areas such as Khayelitsha, Mitchells Plain and Delft has placed similar pressure on school admissions and classroom capacity. Provincial education departments across South Africa have struggled to match infrastructure spending with migration-driven enrolment surges.
It remains unclear whether the 202-school figure and the 6,221-classroom count have been independently verified beyond Maile’s legislature response. Cape Flats journalist Nadia Adams will check with the Gauteng Department of Education for full departmental records and follow up when the next infrastructure progress report is tabled.