President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for urgent action on scholar transport safety after a crash killed children travelling to school earlier this week.

Crash Triggers Urgent Call

Ramaphosa delivered the message during his keynote address at the 2026 Basic Education Sector Lekgotla at the Birchwood Hotel in Boksburg, Ekurhuleni on Wednesday, 21 January 2026.

He opened by sharing condolences with families after the deaths of learners on Monday, 19 January 2026. One account places the death toll at 12 children, while another reports the president mourning 14 children.

Ramaphosa said the tragedy could not be treated as “normal” and stressed that children should not be buried by their parents.

Ministers Told to Tighten Safety

The president said he has tasked Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube and Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, along with other stakeholders, to identify ways to prevent further loss of life.

He urged swift, coordinated action, saying scholar transport must be “safe and reliable” and that the country cannot accept young lives being put at risk on the way to education.

Education Pressure Points Flagged

Ramaphosa linked transport safety to a bigger list of education challenges he says need fixing. He highlighted five pressure points: skills shortages, barriers to mother tongue-based education, weak early learning foundations, high dropout rates and unsafe scholar transport.

He also raised concern about literacy and numeracy, arguing learners must understand what they read and work confidently with numbers beyond the classroom.

At the same event, Ramaphosa praised the latest National Senior Certificate results, saying the pass rate reached 88.7%.