A damning new report has revealed that thousands of visually impaired learners across South Africa are being deprived of fundamental orientation and mobility training, leaving them unable to move safely through their daily environments. The findings, released by civil rights organisation Section27 at the close of human rights month, paint a troubling picture of systemic neglect within the country's education framework.
A critical gap in support for visually impaired learners
Orientation and mobility training equips blind and partially sighted learners with the ability to understand their surroundings, plan routes and travel independently. In practical terms, this encompasses navigating school premises, crossing roads, using public transport and performing routine tasks such as preparing meals. These competencies are regarded as essential for building confidence and enabling meaningful participation in school life.
Yet the report makes clear that access to such training remains woefully inadequate. South Africa has approximately 50 qualified orientation and mobility practitioners in total. Data from 2023 further reveals that just five of the nation's 23 schools for the blind have a dedicated mobility trainer on staff, resulting in ratios of one practitioner to every 40 or 45 learners.
"This means that one practitioner is responsible for between 40 and 45 learners, which makes it virtually impossible to offer quality and consistent training."
Section27 stressed that orientation and mobility instruction is not a luxury or supplementary service. The organisation described it as a core element of development and education for learners with visual impairments, arguing that without it, the promise of inclusive education remains aspirational rather than actual.
Constitutional rights at stake
The consequences of this shortfall extend well beyond the classroom. Learners who lack mobility training are frequently compelled to depend on classmates for assistance, eroding their sense of autonomy. They face heightened risks of injury and encounter significant difficulty when adjusting to unfamiliar settings. Over time, Section27 cautioned, this neglect chips away at learners' independence and curtails their constitutionally guaranteed right to basic education.
"The reality is that many of these children have to navigate their school and daily lives in spaces that are not inclusive and without the necessary support to do so safely."
The report identifies several entrenched systemic failures compounding the crisis: insufficient funding, an absence of formally recognised practitioner posts, limited professional training programmes and no national benchmarks governing orientation and mobility services. Section27 argued that until these structural barriers are dismantled, visually impaired learners will inevitably continue to slip through the gaps.
In an urgent appeal for reform, the organisation called on authorities to establish funded positions for orientation and mobility specialists within schools, embed this training into the curriculum and develop enforceable minimum standards for service delivery. It also urged a significant expansion of training programmes to grow the pool of qualified practitioners nationwide.
"Inclusive education cannot exist without learners having the ability to navigate their environment independently. Access to orientation and mobility training is therefore essential to protect their rights to dignity, safety and basic education."
Without swift and decisive intervention, the report concluded, thousands of blind and visually impaired learners will remain stranded — left without direction in both the literal and figurative sense.
