BOSA
1Min
South Africa
Dec 2, 2025
Mmusi Maimane said the 30% threshold undermines the credibility of the education system and sends the wrong message to learners about effort and achievement. He argued that a 50% minimum for subject passes would reflect actual competence and improve young people’s prospects.
Build One South Africa has intensified its campaign to abolish the 30% matric pass mark, arguing that the benchmark entrenches mediocrity and inflates South Africa’s education outcomes.
The party’s latest push in Parliament calls for a decisive shift toward higher academic expectations, warning that the current system leaves learners underprepared for both tertiary education and the job market.
Mmusi Maimane said the 30% threshold undermines the credibility of the education system and sends the wrong message to learners about effort and achievement. He argued that a 50% minimum for subject passes would reflect actual competence and improve young people’s prospects.
While the Department of Basic Education has repeatedly clarified that the 30% mark does not apply uniformly across all subjects or qualification levels, BOSA maintains that any acceptance of a 30% pass standard damages the system’s integrity.
Support for the proposal has come from some MPs, though others warn that raising the pass mark without addressing inequalities in the system could worsen already high failure rates, especially in poorly resourced schools.
The parliamentary vote on the motion is expected to spark a wider national debate about what South Africa should demand of its education system and how to ensure meaningful improvement rather than numerical pass rate inflation.
