Western Cape Celebrates the Opening of its Eighth School in 2011

Representatives from the Ackerman Foundation, District Director Eugene Daniels, Mrs Diamond - Principal of Westlake Primary, Members of the SGB, Educators, Learners, Parents,

Thank you for the kind invitation to be with you on this important occasion.

I am pretty overwhelmed at how time flies. It feels like I was here just a few weeks ago when I attended the official sod-turning ceremony of this school. I was reminded this morning that in fact it was back in May last year!

So you can just imagine my delight to now walk through these new corridors with full confidence that we have before us a new safe and secure learning environment for the children of Westlake Primary. It was clear to me back in 2009 that there was a definite need for a primary school in the Westlake area.

This need was confirmed by an audit we completed on school infrastructure in the Province at the end of 2009. I am therefore delighted that in just a short space of time, we managed to plan, approve, construct and complete a new school for the Westlake community.

I would sincerely like to thank all involved in this process, including the Department of Environmental Affairs, Development Planning and Local Government, the Department of Public Works, the Department of Finance, the Department of Education, the City of Cape Town and the Westlake Trust.

All played a key role in making this project a success! Another key roleplayer is the Ackerman Foundation, who has generously donated towards the construction of this building, as well as continues to assist the school in the provision of equipment and learning support materials. We are very grateful for the support that you have provided and you have made this school an important example of how the private sector and the community can assist the Western Cape Government in improving the quality of education in the province.

As with all new schools, all we can hope for them is that their empty new classrooms are transformed into hubs of teaching and learning, where learners and educators are safe and secure, and where quality learning is taking place.

This responsibility falls on all of us.

I like to think and believe that we are all in one big team - reaching for the same goal. So as school governors, educators, parents, education officials, community members and most importantly, learners, let us all make this school a success.

We have all proven that we can achieve something remarkable if we work together. We wouldn't be standing here today if this wasn't the case.