South Africa’s richest province, Gauteng, plans to deliver tablets to all grade four to nine learners over the next two financial years.

This is according to the province’s member of the executive council (MEC) for education, Panyaza Lefusi, speaking at a media roundtable during the African EduWeek 2014 conference in Sandton, South Africa on Thursday.

The project, which is estimated to cost R2 billion a year, forms part of investments in information and communications technology (ICT) and innovation projects in Gauteng schools.

According to Lesufi, 21 schools have been chosen as priority schools. These schools are also then planned to be models for the project.

Lesufi added that after the initial two years of the project, devices are planned to be rolled out to learners in grades 10 to 12 as well.

“We are investing in connectivity,” Lesufi said.

“We have just had discussions with major companies and institutions that are assisting us. The focus is on three things voice, data and video so that we have a high level of connectivity,” Lesufi added.

Lesufi highlighted how the tablet project is part of a four-phased approach, which includes connectivity, developing an e-learning system, training and development of educators and learners, and distribution of devices.

The e-learning system is also expected to include the digitisation of school material, he said.

“As you are aware, in South Africa every year we have problems of textbooks delivery,” Lesufi said, hinting at a textbook delivery scandal that has previously gripped the Limpopo province.

“We are focusing on e-books and have those in our systems so that we can deal with such issues,” Lesufi added.

The Gauteng provincial government’s department of education also plans to invest R600 million yearly on the training and development of teachers.

Meanwhile, South Africa’s deputy minister of basic education Mohamed Surty, who was also speaking at the media roundtable, said his department is looking at how mobile can aid education in the country .

“The mobile phone is becoming a critical device, and soon we will be looking at the value and use of mobile phones,” he said.

Surty also noted that in terms of connecting schools in the country, the Western Cape and Gauteng provinces are forerunners.

More than 80% of schools in the two provinces have connectivity, he said.

But despite these planned advancements in developing the country’s education system through ICT, Sarietjie Musgrave who is the head of ICT at Free State University, noted that technology and devices can only do so much.

“Technology is not the silver bullet that will solve the education problems in the country,” Musgrave pointed out.

“It starts with early childhood development, teacher involvement and initiative, developing skills to teach learners, utilising ICT to support educators,” she concluded.