President Jacob Zuma on Friday told hundreds of school principals education was priority number one for his administration.

"We have essentially come together to launch a new drive to truly change the learning, teaching and management of our schools," Zuma told 1500 school principals from through out the country at Durban's Inkosi Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre.

Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga, Higher Education and Training Minister Blade Nzimande, and education MECs from all the provinces were attending the conference.

The conference was aimed at giving school principals an opportunity to tell the President of problems affecting their schools.

Zuma said he had wanted to meet all school principals but he had been told it would be impossible as South Africa had 27 000 school heads.

Zuma said the meeting was an acknowledgement that wonderful policies that had been implemented since 1994 had not led to the delivery of quality education for the poor.

"The question that we must answer today is why our policies have failed to deliver excellence and what we should do about it."

He said the importance of education in his administration was demonstrated by the fact that the department of education had been separated into basic and higher education.

Zuma said the mini imbizo was the launch of an ongoing interaction with principals and key delivery agents in the department.

Follow up talks in provinces would be hosted by premiers and MECs, Zuma said. The president would also attend them when possible.

When Zuma took over the Presidency, he said it was unfair that the president only met principals of tertiary education and not school principals.