Twenty-eight inmates at Westville Correctional Services in Durban are among 268 prisoners across the country sitting for their 2026 National Senior Certificate examinations.
KwaZulu-Natal has a total of 50 inmates writing their matric examinations this year.
On Thursday morning, National Commissioner of Correctional Services, Makgothi Thobakgale, visited uSethubeni Youth School at the Durban Correctional Facility to monitor the start of the examinations.
The facility has maintained a remarkable record of achieving a 100% pass rate for 10 consecutive years.
Thobakgale has encouraged inmate learners to look beyond their current circumstances and use education as a stepping stone towards a better future.
The inmates sitting for their matric examinations express a renewed sense of hope, declaring themselves firmly on the right path to change their lives and fulfil their dreams.
Twenty-three-year-old Bandile Ndlela is serving a 10-year sentence for robbery with aggravating circumstances and is expecting to be released in 2028.
He’s among the top learners and expects to pass with eight distinctions.
Ndlela says he has applied to university to further his studies to become a Mathematics teacher.
National Commissioner Motivates Inmate Learners as 2026 Matric Examinations Begin
The National Commissioner of DCS, Mr Makgothi Thobakgale, visited Usethubeni Youth School at Durban Correctional Facility today (15 October 2026)…
https://t.co/MLhVMNHrtH https://t.co/7fpt536VVV— The Department Correctional Services
(@DCS_ZA) October 15, 2026
“We are very ready, and we have been planning the whole time, and the teachers have done everything to give us the material we need, and it is up to us to focus, not be nervous and keep on pushing. Through the programme they have offered us as the Department of Correctional Services, they have rehabilitated us, and they gave us an opportunity to come back to school and explore our potential. My dream is to become a teacher, and I have applied at the University of South Africa (UNISA) to do Maths and English,” says Ndlela.
Another inmate, Lethukuthula Ngwenya, is serving a life sentence for murder and has already served three years. Ngwenya says he considers this opportunity to improve his education as a second chance at life.
“I am bit nervous but I am prepared and our teachers dedicated their time to make sure that we pass and they have been working during the weekends and holidays. I think I am 100 per cent prepared for this examination. I take this as a second opportunity as I want to be a lawyer and I have applied to do a Bachelor of Law to fulfil my dream,” says Ngwenya.
Thobakgale visited uSethubeni Youth School at the Durban Correctional Facility to monitor the start of the examinations. He has encouraged inmate learners to look beyond their current circumstances and use education as a stepping stone towards a better future.
The National Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services, Mr Makgothi Thobakgale, wishes the 2026 matric offender class well as they begin their final examinations. He encourages them to remain focused, and believe in their abilities… https://t.co/Xa2zVVc0xx
— The Department Correctional Services
“I am here to encourage the matriculants of the management area, and we all know that this is a season to write examinations, and we are 28 inmates who are writing exams. For us, it is a school that gives us pride because every year we get a 100% pass rate and a 100% pass rate for bachelor’s. We continue to increase our numbers in terms of the intake,” says Thobakgale.
Thobakgale added that plans are afoot to support and establish more centres for female inmates as they only have three fully-fledged correctional schools nationwide.
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