Inputs By The Mec Siphosezwe At The Tinganekwane Festival Held On 09th September 2004 At The Nelspruit Civic Centre

09 September 2004

Programme Directors
Head of Department – Dr M T Mashinini
Departmental Officials
Curriculum Implementers
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

We are on course to educate the nation.

On the 05th September 2004, I attended an Adult Learner Week and International Literacy Day celebrations in Secunda. Here am I today, attending the Tinganekwane Festival.

Programme Director, todays’ occasion and the International Literacy Day I attended on Sunday, have one thing in common. They both encourage reading and writing. This is exactly what tonight’s festival is all about.

This, ladies and gentlemen, should not be seen as a mere coincidence – but as a conscious and an ongoing commitment to increasingly open the doors of learning to all and to uncompromisingly accelerate our bitter fight against literacy.

It is encouraging to note that this festival coincides with the Readathon Week which is a week that seeks to encourage everybody to read more.

This is indeed an important occasion. It is an occasion that seeks to re-instil the love for the reading and writing of indigenous material.

This will ensure that our indigenous languages are not lost. Through an increased writing of our indigenous poems, novels, drama and short stories we can produce a reading nation which will eventually be a winning nation.

A nation that does preserve and protect its cultural heritage – which is deeply rooted in its languages is a nation destined to lose its identity.

Programme Director, I want to add my voice by encouraging our learners, educators and officials to make reading and writing their habit.

Let us together join hands in engaging the whole nation in an effort to build a sustainable culture of reading and writing that will affirm South African languages, history, values and development.

It is through initiatives like these that we can successfully promote South African writing in all official languages.

Research has shown that a great number of South Africans do not read. The reasons why South African don’t read include the following:

A high illiteracy rate
The exorbitant cost of books
The lack of books at home
Limited reading resources in classrooms, media centres and libraries

To address these concerns we need to:

Promote reading through encouraging people to start book clubs, libraries, literacy improvement programmes and adult literacy programmes
Promote South African writers
Promote careers relating to reading such as editing, teaching, journalism and librarianship
Encourage volunteers to read to the visually impaired.

As a result of these efforts, we shall be able to successfully create an awareness of the value and benefits of reading and writing.

The inability to read and write deprives a majority of our people of an opportunity to enjoy the benefits of our democracy.

Today’s festival only helps to recommit and rededicate government to eradicating illiteracy in a more vigorous manner. A battle won against illiteracy is a battle won against unemployment and poverty.

I want to congratulate all the upcoming and aspiring writers who have made an effort in producing some written work despite the inavailability of the necessary resources.

In closing, let us all go out and encourage everybody to Read, Read, Read and Write, Write, Write.

Ayihlome Ifunde!