EU and South Africa hold a privileged relationship that has grown over decades
Ambassador Dr Riina Kionka says the EU will be investing more in South African education in the future
The European Union (EU) has received much acclaim and appreciation from stakeholders, the universities and colleges in South Africa that have benefitted from the budget support grant to Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) in the past few years.
According to EU Ambassador Dr Riina Kionka, South Africa is the only key strategic trade and co-operation partner of the organisation in Africa.
“We have a strategic partnership with 10 countries around the world, and South Africa is the only country on the African continent,” said Kionka.
“Our partnership focuses on various global challenges such as climate change, Covid-19 recovery programmes and education. For us education is critical. We see education as a enabler that contributes to achieve EU priorities. Our development co-operation agenda with South Africa is based on the priorities of the National Development Plan’s 2030 vision.”
The EU has invested over R200-million in education in South Africa, which saw the launch of the Teaching and Learning Development Capacity Improvement Programme (TLDCIP), implemented through a strategic partnership between the EU and the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET).
The funding was invested up to 2020 in an effort to strengthen teacher education at universities in the areas of early childhood development; primary teacher education, with a focus on literacy, languages and mathematics teaching; inclusive and special needs education and lecturer education for those teaching in TVET and CET colleges.
The TLDCIP has a strong focus on strengthening the quality of teacher education at universities to complement the huge gains that have already been made in respect of new teacher graduate outputs at universities, which reached the figure of 20698 in 2015, and addressing the supply-demand gap that has been prevalent in the country for many years.
Kionka congratulated the DHET for successfully implementing the project, adding that the university branch has literally put its nose to the grindstone.
“The TLDCIP programme went well beyond what we wanted to achieve. Our education engagement doesn’t only include funding; it also included dialogue, research, policy reform and implementation.”
She said the discussions with colleagues from the DHET have attested to the ingenuity that some universities have displayed during the Covid19 pandemic through the use of the EU grant, particularly with regards to Work Integrated Learning (WIL).
“Work Integrated Learning is an integral part of quality teacher education, and it is in this area that we are pleased to see innovation in the use of technology through the EU support. Due to the lockdown, universities were not able to send students to schools to complete their WIL component,” said the EU ambassador.
“The development and use of avatars by North West University is an initiative that has strengthened the training of students’ teaching skills in an exciting way. The avatars are programmed with different responses to mimic a classroom environment and students’ experiences certainly helped to develop their teaching skills, not to mention the fact that they had to think on their feet,” said the EU ambassador.
“We are also pleased that the development of an online course entitled Teacher Choices, which was used to supplement and support WIL during the pandemic. The data shows that 27970 students engaged in this module, and the project is up for awards at Sydney University and at Wits.”
She added that special needs education has been a compelling focus in the Teacher Education for Inclusive Teaching project, which is part of the TLDCIP. The project has successfully established three centres of excellence for neuro-developmental learning needs, deaf studies and visual impairment studies.
“The EU believes that no one should be left behind, in line with the Constitution of South Africa. We know there are many education challenges, including poverty and languages, but the centres have achieved tremendous and resounding success,” said Kionka.
The ambassador said the EU will continue to work with the South African government and other stakeholders in the area of education in the future.
“We are definitely looking at continuing our relationship with the DHET and government in the area of education,” said Kionka.
“We are looking into identifying some of the education commitments in the coming years. We would like to broaden our scope and do more than this particular programme, such as scholarships, research, innovation and capacity development with regards to academic staff and students. All Member States of the EU, including their development agencies, are pulling together and are looking at future collaborations with South Africa, particularly in research and innovation programmes.”
Education is a shared priority for South Africa and the EU based on the recognition that quality education right from early childhood development through to higher education is crucial for employability and much needed broad based employment. The Covid-19 pandemic has added millions of unemployed and underemployed to the job market.
The collaboration with DHET has been exemplary. A true partnership from programme identification to formulation and throughout the entire implementation. We see the Teaching and Learning Development - of which the Teaching and Learning Capacity Improvement Programme is an integral part - as a true model for budget support actions in South Africa.
Seeing that South Africa’s budgetary allocation for education compares quite favourably to that of many other countries, going forward a focus will need to continue to be on cost-effectiveness and outcomes per Rand spent.
Kionka arrived in Pretoria in October 2019 to head the Delegation of the European Union to South Africa.
Previously, she was chief foreign policy advisor to the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, appointed in 2014.
Prior to this, Kionka led the Central Asia Division at the European External Action Service (EEAS).
Before this she led on Human Rights for the EEAS and earlier at the EU’S Council Secretariat (from 2007), representing Secretary General/high Representative Javier Solana on human rights within the framework of the Union’s Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
Before her move to the EU Institutions, Kionka worked at the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Kionka started her working career as a research analyst on Estonian affairs for Radio Free Europe at the Radio Liberty Research Institute in Munich, Germany (1989–1993).
She holds a PH.D in International Relations from Columbia University in New York City (2000) and she commenced her academic pursuits with a BA in International Relations and German Literature at Michigan State University (1983).