The Chinese Consulate General in Johannesburg, led by Consul General Pan Qingjiang, has congratulated Gauteng’s top-performing 2025 matric learners and wished them success in their future endeavours.
Pan was speaking to journalists at a ceremony hosted by the Gauteng provincial government to honour the province’s top achievers.
He said young people were the future of any nation and stressed the importance of supporting South African youth throughout their educational journeys.
“I am very happy to be here to attend the announcement of Gauteng’s matric results. As a sponsor, we congratulate the matriculants who have performed well. We believe education is the cornerstone of every nation. Young people are the future,” Pan said.
The Chinese Consulate General in Johannesburg has donated R250,000 towards Gauteng’s 2025 top-performing matric learners, as part of its ongoing support for education and youth development.
Pan added that China and South Africa shared long-standing relations and continued to work closely in empowering young people through education.
“Both China and South Africa enjoy long-term good relations and embrace a bright future. We continue to empower education and young people through our collaboration,” he said.
Pan said several exchange programmes were in place that allow South African learners to study in China, adding that South African tertiary students also visit China as part of these initiatives.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi and MEC for Education Matome Chiloane expressed gratitude to the Chinese Consulate for the “unwavering” support towards education.
Earlier, reported that Gauteng’s matric pass rate of 89.06%, securing third place nationally, has been attributed to dedication, resilience and hard work that proved to be a success to the class of 2025.
Chiloane announced the province’s matric results in Centurion, saying the 89.06% pass rate was “remarkable” and the highest in the history of the province.
He praised the class of 2025 for their dedication and hard work, saying their achievement was not a fluke or due to lowered standards.
“It is not by accident and it is not by lowering standards but it is by the 140,000-plus young people showing up (and) many of them against the odds,” he said.
Chiloane expressed concern that boys are dropping out of the education system early, saying it is a problem the department is tackling.
“In this current year we lost 21% of our learners and that number is disproportionately boys and this is not about capability,” he said.
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