The Pan South African Language Board (PanSALB) in conjunction with Msunduzi Municipality will, on Tuesday, 24 February 2026, commemorate International Mother Language Day at the Pietermaritzburg Hall, Chief Albert Luthuli Street in KwaZulu-Natal.
International Mother Language Day, declared by United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is observed globally on 21 February to promote linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism. The commemoration emphasizes the role that languages play in achieving sustainable developmental goals and strengthening quality education. This year’s commemoration will be observed under the theme “Youth voices on multilingual education.” The timing of this theme came at the right time for South Africa where an education system advancing multilingual education through Mother Tongue-based Bilingual Education was rolled-out from Grade 4 in 2025. It is therefore high time that youth voices on such programmes are heard and responded to through sense-making education policies.
This commemoration also aligns with the PanSALB Language Activism Month campaign (February) and the African Languages Week launched by the African Union’s African Academy of Languages (ACALAN) scheduled to take place on 21-28 February 2026 to promote, protect and empower the use of African languages in all sectors of society.
The commemoration forms part of PanSALB’s continued efforts to monitor the status quo on the roll-out of Mother Tongue-based Bilingual Education (MTbBE) in the country, following the successful implementation of the pilot project launched in the Eastern Cape by the Department of Basic Education in 2012. The event will focus on engagements around challenges identified in the roll-out of MTbBE particularly for mathematics and science curriculum at primary school, with expected recommendations on strengthening support for subject advisors for mathematics, science, and isiZulu language.
“Practical measures must be implemented across all spheres of government to promote the use of all official languages, including Khoi & San languages, to ensure that all South Africans are able to participate in public life using their own languages. Our focus currently is on the roll-out of the MTbBE, which is a positive step towards the decolonisation of our education system. However, this must be supported with adequate resources to ensure its effective implementation” said the Acting Chief Executive Officer of PanSALB, Mr Julius Dantile.
“There are various concerns raised by educators around the implementation of the MTbBE programme that still need to be resolved. Considering this, PanSALB has made a call for uMalusi and the Department of Basic Education Minister to reinstate the 5% language compensation policy to assist those writing in a foreign language until the MTbBE policy matures,” Mr Dantile concluded.
PanSALB will, throughout the month, roll out a series of activities across all provinces aimed at promoting the use and advancement of mother tongues as part of its Language Activism Month campaign. These efforts will include build-up programmes scheduled to take place in Gauteng on 16 February, Mpumalanga on 19 February, and the Free State on 20 February.
