30,000 Teachers a Year Needed in South Africa

The South African Teachers Union estimated that there is a shortage of 35,000 teachers in the country because of AIDS. A survey by the South Africa Institute of Race Relations found that South Africa needs to produce 30,000 teachers a year over the next 10 to 15 years to meet the demand from increasing pupil figures. Presently, only 5,000 students each year graduate as teachers. Sexual violence against girls, a major concern cited in a study by Community Information Empowerment and Transparency: Africa, found that 30 percent of female pupils will have experienced sexual abuse by age 18. Therefore, the government plans to introduce a program to teach girls self-defense against sexual attacks at 42,000 schools nationwide.

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