Johannesburg - The Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, has congratulated the class of 2022 for a job well done after they achieved top marks in spite of the many challenges faced by the country’s young people.
Motshekga was speaking during a ministerial breakfast ceremony that honoured the 2022 national top achievers, held at the MTN offices in Fairlands hours before the National Senior Certificate results were made public on Thursday afternoon.
She said she was proud of this group of matriculants as they had to deal with several challenges in the lead-up to their final year of schooling, including the aftermath of Covid-19, which began when they were still in Grade 10.
“You were in Grade 10 when we were hit by the COVID-19 storm, and when we sent learners back to school that year, you were the last group to go back to school in July. So we were really concerned about you,” Motshekga told the top achievers.
More than 33 top achievers from across the country were part of the ceremony aimed at celebrating the hard work and resilience of the 2022 matriculants. One million learners sat for the final exams.
One of these learners is Sihle Khumalo of Richmond, outside Pietermaritzburg. He was accompanied by his mother, Nelisiwe Khumalo, who was overjoyed by her son’s outstanding performance.
“I am very proud of Sihle because he sacrificed a lot to be where he is today. Even his teachers told me to give him the support he needs because they believed in him and his potential to succeed,” his elated mother said.
“Sihle is the reason that his school, Ngcongo High School, even established a science class as they did not have the class, and they pleaded with me to allow him to continue his studies and even went as far as finding teachers to teach science at his school. He has indeed made not only me proud but the whole community of Richmond.”
Khumalo, who was gunning for straight As across the board, said he took up private lessons online as well as on weekends and holidays to ensure that he did well enough.
“Load shedding was a factor, and I used to think of ways and things to do while experiencing load shedding. In most cases, I would study using my cellphone because I knew that with load shedding I would not be able to take out my book in the diminished lighting,” he said.
Bathobile Nkambule, of Mpumalanga, who matriculated at the young age of 16 and was accompanied by her brother Gift and mother Thokozile Nkambule, said the support from her family made it easier for her to focus on her studies.
“With the support from my family, I was able to put all my energies into my school work. I think it has paid off as I am now here,” she said.
The Star