A Shot at Success

While study at the University of Cape Town we felt passionately about the state of education in South Africa. Not far from the campus that sits like a castle on the mountain side overlooking the rest of the world, is an area known as the Cape Flats. The stark difference in reality for kids going to school in Cape Flats and particular, Havor Park is hard to fathom in considering the 15 minute distance from the privilege place we studied in. Educational inequality was a hallmark of the apartheid system. The ANC government has failed to address this inequality which is spurning South Africa’s bountiful human capital by perpetuating an education system that sets up its youth for failure. After 23 years of democratic rule, the poorest citizens are being condemned to a relentless cycle of poverty and unemployment. Parkfields Primary School in gang-ridden Hanover Park, with committed teachers and effective management is a shining light for the future of the community. By scaling up the successes seen amongst overwhelming odds, South Africa’s education system could be a catalyst for a better and more democratic society. Director Alex Weiss Producer Anele Hlongwane D.O.P Giorgia Young Editor Katie Lewis