SA’s hopes of fulfilling the National Development Plan (NDP) hinge on greater access to higher education and faster economic growth, says a report from the World Bank. Poverty rates remain alarmingly high, with more than half of South Africans, or 30-million people, living below the national poverty line of R992 per month, it reads. Poverty has remained highest among female-headed households, black South Africans and children below the age of 15. "Improving the lives of the poor could be achieved through creating quality jobs and providing better earning opportunities through developing skills and raising labour productivity," said World Bank country director for SA Paul Noumba Um. But education opportunities are limited as low-income families lack easy access to credit and incur relatively high costs of sending a child to college, the report reads. "This serves as a major barrier to getting sufficient levels of education to participate actively in the semiskilled and skilled labour...
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