The MK Party has criticised the KwaZulu-Natal education department for failing to pay service providers working under the National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP).
Nhlamulo Ndhlela, the MK Party spokesperson, revealed that this failure has left over 2.4-million learners without access to daily meals across the province.
He demanded that the department disclose the current funding status of the NSNP to ensure that the money has not been diverted.
Ndhlela said the department had previously given assurances that payments had been processed on January 24 and that they would reflect four days later.
“Numerous service providers report that funds have yet to materialise, leaving them financially incapacitated and unable to deliver food to schools,” Ndhlela said.
“This has led to dire consequences for pupils, many of whom rely on the programme for daily meals.
“The MK Party finds it unacceptable that the department cites the closure of Ithala Bank as a blanket excuse for these failures, especially when many service providers have no agreement with the bank.
“This deflection underscores a broader pattern of mismanagement and lack of accountability within the department.”
Breakdown in trust with stakeholders
He claimed that the department’s failure to honour its commitments in Circular 83 of 2024 and Circular 01 of 2025, along with its alleged poor communication, has caused a breakdown in trust with stakeholders.
Ndhlela highlighted that immediate action should be taken to settle all outstanding payments without delay and to put in place a reliable payment system to prevent similar issues in the future.
“The MK Party stands in solidarity with the learners affected by this negligence. We will not tolerate the continued endangerment of our children’s welfare due to bureaucratic incompetence.”
Mlungisi Mahlambi, the spokesperson for the department, said that some payments were processed on Monday and will reflect on Thursday.
He said 78% of service providers received their money from the payments processed on April 24.
Mahlambi noted that other payments were processed on April 25 and May 2, but the system was down and could not hold the pressure. This meant 22% was not processed at the time.
