The Zenex Foundation is an independent grant-maker investing in mathematics and language education in South Africa since 1995. This strategic focus is driven by evidence of a proven relationship between language proficiency and success in mathematics.

The Foundation works with government in four provinces, namely, Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal Western Cape and Eastern Cape, to balance urban-rural, socio-economic and language contexts. The Foundation invests in:

• designing and testing small-scale interventions, and partnering with government for large-scale interventions;
• commissioning research and evaluation for evidence of what works in education;
• developing resources to optimise teaching and learning, and
• advancing thought leadership to influence policy and practice.

Who we are

The Zenex Foundation is an independent grant-maker investing in mathematics and language education in South Africa since 1995. This strategic focus is driven by evidence of a proven relationship between language proficiency and success in mathematics.

The Foundation values innovation and prizes highly its partnership with government, donors and service providers. Over the past 25 years, the Foundation has disbursed almost R1 billion in the South African education sector. The impact of this expenditure has been evaluated through extensive research and enquiry, and important lessons have been learnt about how donors can support the improvement of learner performance at school.

How we fund

The Foundation works in four provinces, namely, Gauteng, Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Eastern Cape. The four provinces allow for the testing of new ideas in contexts that respond to the urban-rural, socio-economic and language specificities. The Foundation will undertake work at national level or in other provinces where strategic opportunities arise.

The Foundation invests in four areas that offer strategic leverage for success. When combined, these strategic levers will guide systemic and institutional change necessary to improve learner outcomes. The strategic levers are:

• Designing and testing small-scale interventions and large-scale interventions in partnership with Department of Basic Education.
• Commissioning research and evaluation for evidence of what works in education support.
• Developing resources to optimise teaching and learning.
• Advancing thought leadership by creating and sharing knowledge to influence policy and practice.

What we focus on

The Zenex Foundation has identified three focus areas as the main thrust of its work. These focus areas will enable the Foundation to realise its vision of a high quality and just education system that empowers young people to participate and contribute to the growth, development and transformation of South Africa.

The three focus areas around which the Foundation carries out work are:

• Early Grade Literacy and Numeracy - we intervene at this critical entry point in the schooling system to build reading and numeracy teaching experts.
• Senior Phase English and Mathematics - to remediate learner backlogs in English and Mathematics at the point of entry to high school.
• Thought Leadership – to promote evidence by creating and sharing knowledge that can influence policy and practice.

Underpinning all its work is research, monitoring and evaluation which ensures that evidence continues to inform its own work and also contributes to knowledge development in the education sector.