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The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education wishes all candidates well with the upcoming National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations, which commence on Wednesday – with all learners writing English.

Some learners wrote Computer Applications Tech last week and some will write foreign languages like Hindi, Gujarati, Arabic, Italian, Spanish and Modern Greek over the next two days. The examinations will end on 20 November 2016 with Information Technology.

Committee Chairperson Ms Nomalungelo Gina said: “We would like to wish all candidates the best of luck with the upcoming NSC examinations. We urge them to work hard and not to lose focus as the goal posts are in sight for them now.”

Ms Gina has a special word of encouragement for learners in areas that saw some instability during the school year like in Limpopo. “Candidates need to be extra focused during this period. We appeal to parents, family, friends, educators, officials and the community at large to help create the conditions for these learners to successfully complete this year.”

A total of 677 141 registered full-time and 150 183 part-time candidates, the 2016 examinations will see a total of 9 216 additional candidates from the number that sat in 2015. KwaZulu-Natal with 170 631, Gauteng with 112 111 and Limpopo with 110 557 candidates have the largest registered candidates of the 2016 NSC examinations. The Minister of Basic Education will announce the outcome of the 2016 Grade 12 exams on 4 January 2017.

The Committee further urges parents, family members and caregivers to support candidates in every possible manner and to ensure that they have sufficient study time and a conducive environment to successfully prepare for the examinations. The Committee wishes teachers and invigilators luck with the task ahead. “We want everyone to be at their best to ensure a credible NSC examinations for 2016.”

Issued by Parliamentary Communication Services on behalf of the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education, Ms Nomalungelo Gina