Ensuring Access to Quality and Humane Education: One of the Commission's flagship monitoring projects is the School Readiness Monitoring project. In January and February 2026, the Commission conducted monitoring visits to 123 schools.  The top five issues identified nationally were: overcrowding and inadequate infrastructure; teacher shortages; water and sanitation; access for learners with disabilities; and safety and security concerns. The Commission will be releasing a report with recommendations this month.

Securing Safe and Reliable Scholar Transport: The SAHRC Inquiry Report on Scholar Transport in the North West Province, released in January 2026, highlighted, amongst other issues, unroadworthy and unsafe vehicles; unfit vehicles for learners with disabilities; chronic overcrowding and multiple-trip operations which expose learners to exhaustion, late arrivals, and missed lessons. These challenges and failures violate several constitutional rights, including the rights to dignity, equality, physical security and access to education.

Both the Department of Education (DOE) and the Department of Community Safety and Transport Management (COSATMA) complied with the Commission’s directives by submitting reports outlining the steps they are taking to address the matter. The Commission is also encouraged by the budgetary adjustments implemented by the Provincial Treasury to address some of the systemic challenges affecting scholar transport in the province. The Commission reiterates its call for the development and implementation of binding national regulations governing scholar transport, supported by dedicated and sustainable funding, to ensure the provision of consistent, safe, and accountable scholar transport services across all provinces.

Inculcating a Culture of Learner Rights and Responsibilities: The Commission has noted with concern the growing imbalance between the rights we have gained and the lack of accountability regarding our responsibilities as humans vis-à-vis one another. This imbalance is clearly evident in schools in the form of bullying and other forms of violence, misuse of social media, smoking cigarettes, vapes and other drugs, vandalism of school property and disrespect of school staff, service providers and the broader community. Launched in April this year, the SAHRC’s Campaign is a comprehensive intervention in schools, where the Commission helps foster learners’ understanding of their rights and responsibilities, contributing to responsible, mature, active citizenship.

Combating Sexual Violence in Schools and Holding Perpetrators Accountable: As part of the Commission’s ongoing oversight responsibility to ensure the safety and well-being of learners, the Commission convened a roundtable on sexual violence in schools with key state institutions, regulatory bodies, independent school associations, and civil society partners to interrogate systemic failures and collaborative solutions. The roundtable raised serious concerns about sexual violence in schools and emphasised that South Africa does not lack legal frameworks to address it, but rather, that the crisis lies in fragmentation, delayed integration, incomplete register population, and uneven enforcement. The Commission will release the report with comprehensive recommendations during this Youth Month.

Ensuring Climate Justice and the Rights of Future Generations: The Commission continues to advance climate justice as a critical human rights priority, recognising that young people are among those most affected by climate change. Through engagements with communities, civil society, experts and regional human rights institutions, the Commission advocates for inclusive climate governance that places the rights of children, youth and future generations at the centre of decision-making. This work seeks to ensure that environmental sustainability, social justice and human dignity remain integral to South Africa’s response to climate change.

Ensuring Young People’s involvement in Budgeting: Discussions and resolutions emerging from the Indaba on Pro-Poor Budgeting, co-hosted by the SAHRC in February 2026, highlighted that young people are often overlooked in budgeting processes, which adversely affects their ability to access opportunities and advance their development. The Commission will continue to monitor government budgeting processes to promote young people’s meaningful involvement in the budget process and to ensure budget allocations support youth employment, education, access to healthcare, and social security. This approach aims to ensure that young people are afforded the necessary safeguards, that their interests are adequately considered, and that measures are implemented to advance their rights and well-being.

The Commission’s interactions with young people and sentiments on social media and other public platforms indicate a worrying trend of youth despair, dejection, and a trust deficit in democratic institutions, driven by the myriad challenges such as unemployment, bullying, gangsterism, substance abuse, Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, they face. The Commission calls on all spheres of government, civil society organisations, the private sector, and members of the public to join hands with young people - leaders of today - to urgently address the human rights and socio-economic challenges facing them.

ENDS

ISSUED BY THE SOUTH AFRICAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION