Matric 2024 | How remote Limpopo school obtained a 92.1% pass rate

Hanyani Secondary School, located in a remote village outside Thohoyandou in Limpopo, used to be one of the worst-performing schools in the country, but for the 2024 matric results it obtained a 92.1% pass rate. 

According to school principal Thifhelimbilu Ndou, this is a first in the history of the school, which has an enrolment of just under 500 learners. 

In 2023 teachers, school management and communities around the school were left wondering what could they do better as they believed they had done all they could to improve the situation. In that year, the school obtained a 57% pass rate. This year, however, the school achieved an increase of 35.1%. 

This remarkable turnaround is credited to the collaborative efforts of the school advisory board, the principal, the staff at Hanyani Secondary School and the University of Johannesburg’s (UJ) transformative UJ for Societal Impact project.

The initiative, which dates back to 2014, addresses critical infrastructure needs in the remote villages of Gwakwani, Matatani and Mbodi, situated between Thohoyandou and Musina. The project focuses on delivering sustainable solutions in energy, water, connectivity and education, directly contributing to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.