This is a movie about Equal Education's Campaign for School Libraries. This movie promotes the march to be held in Cape Town on 21 March 2010.

Equal Education, a movement of  learners, parents, teachers and community members working for quality and equality in South African Education, is hosting a 24 hour ‘Read-In’ at The Bookery at 20 Roeland Street, Cape Town (the Old Charly’s Bakery).  The 'Read-In' begins on Saturday 6th March at 10h00 continues on until Sunday the 7^th March at 10h00. 

The Bookery is the home of Equal Education’s book drive, which aims to collect 100 000 books to be redistributed to rural and township school libraries. You can support this initiative by attending the Read-In as well as donating books that are in good-as-new condition which you think may grab or stir the imagination of a child or young adult. The 'Read-In' will cater for all. There will be storytelling, engaging book readings as well as discussion.

Doron Isaacs, EE Coordinator, interviewed about the Campaign for School Libraries on ETV News.

Sometimes in campaigns you need good surprises. Two days ago Equal Education (EE) received a very nice surprise. In our mailbox huge stuffed A4 envelopes began to appear. These were packed with petitions signed and collected in schools in and around Soweto.

It was inspiring for the staff, volunteers and members to realise that people in Gauteng are as passionate about this campaign as the members in Cape Town.

With these new arrivals, and the petitions collected recently in the Eastern Cape, we are about half-way to our target of 100,000.

It seems that the man behind this amazing work in Soweto is Mr. L.B. Jacobs, a District Director in the Gauteng Education Department. He sent a letter to all schools in his district which said:

"It is our dream to ensure that each and every school should have a fully-fledged and functional school library with a full-time teacher librarian. Equal Education supports this vision.

To support the campaign, schools are requested to duplicate the petition as per the attached copy and to let learners, parents and educators sign...

Let us be positive and support this campaign. Things may change for the better."

Mr. Jacobs is a reminder to all of us of the fact that there are people in the national and provincial departments of education who are dedicated to the improvement and change of South Africa's education system. EE is committed to working with them.

Please sign the petition online by clicking here.

Donate books to the EE Bookery to stock school libraries across Cape Town.

Equal Education welcomes the Minister of Finance, Pravin Gordhan’s budget speech. We commend the Minister for allocating R165bn to education, and in particular we commend the R 2.7bn allocated to the workbook programme, in order to improve literacy and numeracy in South African schools.  This is in line with government’s plan to make education one of its key priorities and it remains the biggest item in South Africa’s budget.

However, the allocation of large resources will not yield results unless the deep inequalities in education are dealt with. Spending on teacher salaries, which constitutes the vast majority of the education budget, must be pro-poor, but at present it is not. In fact, because teachers in middle-class public schools are better qualified, government spends more on teaching for middle class kids than it does on the poor. This reinforces historic inequalities. Further, these inequalities are deepened because wealthy schools are able to supplement their government funding with their own funds and this means that they are able to spend more on education than poor schools.

In this article, originally published in The Grocott's Mail, 16 February 2010, Cathy Gush reports on a visit by the EE Roadshow to Nyaluza school in the Eastern Cape. In fact EE has visited schools all across the Eastern Cape. This is just one example.

On Friday, Equal Education came to town. And backing them in their 1 School - 1 Library - 1 Librarian campaign were the Eastern Cape’s Save our Schools and Communities (SOSAC) group and Grahamstown’s own Fingo Revolutionary Movement (FRM). These groups are starting to succeed in building support and involvement at grassroots level amongst young people and communities for the issues affecting education in our country and our province. Not least of which is the lack of access to books and a culture of reading.

• Preparations for the Concert and March on 21 March 2010 are in full swing. Dance acts, bands and celebs are confirming their attendance, so watch this space! Our 220,000 pamphlets and 4,000 posters are being delivered in a one week’s time. We need your help to distribute them. Please contact Zingisani 0789228959 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or Yoni 0722000922 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . The task team has been working hard and needs your help visiting schools, arranging transport and much more. If you want us to visit your school, contact us. If you want your school at the concert and march, contact us!
   
• EE wants to partner with as many organisations as possible. This is not just an EE march or an EE campaign. This campaign represents all people, and all organizations, that want quality and equal education for all. If you’d like to partner with us or find out more please contact  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
   
• An EE delegation will be meeting with representatives of Minister Angie Motshekga this coming Wednesday, 10 February at Parliament. We will present the case for school libraries and hope to be assured that the Minister will be available to receive our memorandum on 21 March outside Parliament.
   
• The campaign is active throughout the country! A march is planned for Gauteng on 26 March 2010 – contact Mona Niemand on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . A march is planned for Polokwane – contact Caroline Madzhie on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . A roadshow is planned through the Eastern Cape – contact Nomalanga Mkhize This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Right now an EE team is moving through the Western Cape as far afield as Malmesbury, Caledon and Beaufort West – contact Lwandiso Stofile 0799901037 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . So far, over 30,000 people have signed our petition. Contact Yoni (details above) to get a petition form today.
   
• The Bookery: Home of Equal Education’s Book Drive has opened at 18 Roeland Street Cape Town. This is a project to collect between 50,000 and 100,000 quality good-as-new children’s and teen’s books, donated by the people of Cape Town. These will be used to establish working township school libraries. Please visit! You can contact Rich Conyngham on 0765939310 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
   
• We are hearing moving and exciting stories about libraries. Over 150 schools in Limpopo have now written to the MEC for Education in Limpopo asking for school libraries. For example, N.D. Maluleke, School Manager of Shihlobyeni Primary School in Limpopo province, wrote:

• Donations are being received and more are needed! Paul and Tina sent two boxes of books from the United States. Nora has 300 more to send from New Jersey. SOON we will have a tax registered vehicle for US donations. Thanks to all those in South Africa who have made cash donations in recent weeks. We need a lot more help. Busses for 21 March 2010 are going to be a big expense. Help make this the biggest gathering of youth calling for better education in decades. Here are South African bank account details:

HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT THE MARCH TO PARLIAMENT ON 21 MARCH 2010

“Equal education has my full support.... I support you 100%." – Dr. Mamphela Ramphele

“We have failed you. The fact that our children must march for libraries 15 years after democracy means that government, communities and citizens have failed our children. I will join the march.” – Sindiwe Magona

“Every child deserves the equal right and chance to learn. I support the Equal Education and I pledge R1000.00 towards the March for Libraries on 21 March 2010.” – Zackie Achmat

We need your help:

1. Please donate money. We need to raise a minimum of R100 000.00 or US$15 000.00. (For help contact Lumkile: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Every rand counts, from R20 to R1,000 – we need your help.
   
   Account Details:
   Account name: Equal Education
   Bank: Standard Bank
   Account number: 270027882
   Branch: 05091100
   Branch name: Khayelitsha
   Swift code: SBZAZAJJ
   
   If you need to make a deposit in the US e-mail Doron Isaacs: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

1. Spread the word through Facebook, Twitter, MXit and by telling your friends, familiy, co-workers and neighbours. This can be done in any part of the country, continent and world.
    
2. Volunteer time. We hold a weekly task team meeting – join the Facebook Equal Education Task Team or contact Adam ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Zingo ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) if you are not on Facebook.
    
3. Sign the petition by clicking here.
    
4. Support our book collection drive and help us create libraries even as we campaign for government to do this on a large scale – contact Richard Conyngham This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or +27 76 593 9310.

Response to DoE’s comment on school libraries
17 December 2009

Equal Education (EE) strongly rejects and condemns the recent claim by the Department of Education (DoE) that providing decent functional school libraries is “unattainable”. This is a denial of the right to basic education to which every person is entitled, and a violation of the rights to equality and human dignity. EE calls on Minister of Basic Education Angie Motshekga to distance herself, and the DoE, from this statement.

Ms. Hope Mokgatlhe, DoE spokesperson, commented on 30 November 2009 in The Teacher, a supplement of the Mail & Guardian that “A stand-alone library for every school would be unattainable, given the historical neglect of this.” She also stated that “the department has focused on trying to ensure access to resources in a practical and implementable way. This involves creating and improving classroom library collections, mobile libraries, resources for schools in community libraries and stand-alone libraries that serve a cluster of schools.”

The reality is this:

• Only 7% of public schools in South Africa have functional libraries of any kind. (DoE’s 2007 NEIMS Report.)
• These 7% of public schools that have libraries are the former model-C schools who are able to establish libraries and employ librarians through their own funds, collected through fees.
• Since 1997 the DoE has produced 6 drafts of a national school libraries policy. None have been adopted as official policy.
• The DoE offers no specialists school librarian posts. All posts are for teachers, and most schools cannot spare a teacher to run the library because of high learner:teacher ratios.
• The DoE closed its School Libraries Unit in 2002.
• In November 2008 the DoE published for comment ‘National Minimum Uniform Norms and Standards for School Infrastructure’ which, in tables 15 and 18 states that every large primary school and every large secondary school should have a library of 80m2. The regulations still remain unconfirmed by the Minister and therefore are of no assistance to teachers, learners or education planners.