National Spatial Development Framework; Integrated Planning Development Framework Bill; Budget Prioritisation Framework; with DPME Deputy Minister

Public Service and Administration

28 October 2020
Chairperson: Mr T James (ANC)
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Meeting Summary

In a virtual meeting, the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) updated the Committee on the Budget Prioritisation Framework and the need for updating the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) 2019-2024 so that its 2024 goals are still met. Key inputs to the revision of the MTSF include: NDP Review Report; 4IR Implementation Plan; District Development Model; Lessons from COVID-19; Economic Recovery Plan; Revised Fiscal Framework.

The delays with the Draft Integrated Planning Development Framework Bill were explained and the 18-month plan run by a dedicated project team to expedite its tabling in Parliament was explained.

On National Spatial Development Framework implementation, DPME continues to collaborate with Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) as custodian of the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act, on developing the NSDF Implementation Charters.

Members' questions  included how DPME will support the Draft Integrated Planning Development Framework Bill to move forward and will the expedited process undermine stakeholder participation. They asked what has been done to assist departments to achieve their performance targets in the remaining quarters of 2020/21, and what has been done to assist the Department to achieve these targets? How does DPME check the performance reports by departments. Members also noted concerns about lack of support to commercial farmers; SAPS having less capacity to deter crime and border control.
 

Meeting report

The Chairperson noted apologies from the Minister of Public Service and Administration, who was attending another meeting. Deputy Minister Sindi Chikunga will be attending but has to leave early. DPME Director-General had given apologies as well.

Deputy Minister in The Presidency, Ms Thembi Siweya, said that Mr Lindsey Martin from the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) team will present on the National Spatial Development Framework implementation in guiding the developmental agenda in the country and give an update on the progress made in developing the Integrated Planning Development Framework Bill.

Budget Prioritisation Framework
Mr Lindsey Martin , DPME Head: Resource Planning, presented.

The Mandate of DPME

  • The overall  mandate of DPME is to support national planning, monitoring and evaluation of government programmes in support of the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP) and Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF);
  • The NDP is the long term plan and vision of the country which is supported by the National Planning Commission (NPC) supported by the NPC Secretariat which resides in DPME;
  • The MTSF is the five-year plan through which the NDP and the electoral mandate are implemented;
  • DPME monitors the implementation of the NDP through the MTSF;
  • Programmatic evaluations are conducted on the performance of government programmes;

The integrated planning system

NDP is informed by national and regional commitments. The MTSF developed in 2019, was based on the NDP goals as well as the ruling party’s manifesto. Just below that, the Budget Prioritisation Framework looks at the priorities emanating from the MTSF and what that means for the next funding cycle. There is an alignment between strategic plans and Annual Performance Plans to ensure that those priorities are covered in departmental operations.

The 7 Apex Priorities continue to drive the MTSF 2019-20
The Seven Priorities are derived from the NDP, Electoral Mandate and SONA:

  • Priority 1: A Capable, Ethical and Developmental State
  • Priority 2: Economic Transformation and Job Creation
  • Priority 3: Education, Skills and Health
  • Priority 4: Consolidating the Social Wage through Reliable and Quality Basic Services
  • Priority 5: Spatial Integration, Human Settlements and Local Government
  • Priority 6: Social Cohesion and Safe Communities
  • Priority 7: A better Africa and World

Cross Cutting Focus: Women, Youth and People with Disabilities

Budget Prioritisation Framework

General Public Services

  • Modernisation of the public service including state-owned entities
  • Strengthening the governance systems of SOEs
  • Implementation of the Integrated Financial Management System in the public sector
  • Implementation of the District Development Model (DDM)
  • Implementation of the integrated Monitoring and Evaluation System

Economic Development

  • Support reindustrialisation through the development of sector masterplans
  • Support for Small Medium-Sized and Micro Enterprises
  • Infrastructure investment, especially renewable energy and embedded generation
  • Reduce the cost of doing business and improve competitiveness

Community Development

  • Accelerate land reform, spatial transformation and well-located housing
  • Rehabilitation of ecological infrastructure and a just transition
  • Ensure agrarian transformation and food security
  • Improved basic service delivery through the implementation of DDM

Learning

  • Stabilise and improve quality of and undertake conceptual planning for Pre-Grade 1 (ECD)
  • Develop education curriculum that responds to a digitised world
  • Invest in education infrastructure and reduce basic services backlogs
  • Expand access and quality at Technical & Vocational Education & Training Colleges (TVETs)

Health and Social Development

  • Expedite the process of finalising the NHI Bill leading to its promulgation.
  • The progressive implementation of the National Quality Health Improvement Plan
  • Development of a comprehensive health human resource strategy
  • The mitigation of risks associated with medical litigation
  • Developing a standardised social welfare package.

Peace and Security

  • Ensure safer communities through visible policing and effective training.
  • Focus on interventions that reduce domestic violence, GBV and crimes against children.
  • Enhance capacity in the investigative directorate, crime intelligence and  prosecution.
  • Strengthen coordination at the country’s borders and ports of entry.
  • Operationalise the integrated cybersecurity centre and enhance public private partnership.

The need for updating the MTSF 2019-2024

  • COVID-19 impacted on the implementation of the MTSF and most of Government’s programmes; 
  • Assessment of APPs suggest that national departments have been able to achieve about 60% of its planned targets and provincial departments 40% of planned targets;
  • COVID-19 coincided with an economy already in recession, which has worsened in-year;
  • Our biggest risk to delivery is the deterioration of our fiscal position which will require further reprioritisation over the MTEF;
  • The key is to learn lessons from the pandemic and to improve the delivery capability of the state to support recovery.

Key Inputs to the Revision of the MTSF

  • NDP Review Report
  • 4IR Implementation Plan
  • District Development Model
  • Lessons from COVID-19
  • Economic Recovery Plan
  • Revised Fiscal Framework

The intention is to integrate all key plans into a results-based framework through the MTSF. This will assist with coordination and ensure that important interventions and milestones are monitored to support delivery and accountability.

Integrated Planning Framework Draft Bill: update

  • Work on updating the draft Bill had initially stalled due to COVID-19 and the budget cuts that resulted from the Budget reprioritisation;
  • DPME gained legal assistance from Department of Trade, Industry and Competition with the legal review and updating;
  • DPME is establishing an interdepartmental technical committee to ensure alignment with key stakeholders which include: Department of Cooperative Governance (COGTA), Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, National Treasury, Human Settlements and South African Local Government Association.
  • The technical committee will seek to align key functions and will run in parallel to the legal review process and will produce an analysis report for incorporation into the Bill;
  • The updated Bill will then undergo the stipulated Socio Economic Impact Assessment and submission to the Office of the State Law Advisor;
  • The updated Bill will be available for public comment in the next financial year.

National Spatial Development Framework (NSDF): implementation

  • The responsibility for the NSDF resides with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) as custodian of the Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act;
  • DPME continues to engage with DALRRD on the functions around the NSDF and invited DALRRD to share its insights at our Departmental Strategic Planning Session (20th October);
  • Based on insights gained, DG:DPME has requested a trilateral meeting with DG: DALRRD and the DG: Cooperative Governance to resolve issues around re-assignment of functions scheduled for the first week of November;
  • DPME continues to collaborate with DALRRD to facilitate the implementation of the NSDF.

NSDF collaboration

  • DPME and DALRRD have been engaging on NSDF Implementation;
  • It was noted that the NSDF is still to be approved by Cabinet;
  • Challenges with procurement and COVID-19 have delayed procurement of the service provider for the implementation charters;
  • It was agreed to conduct two stakeholder engagements (public and external) on the NSDF implementation and a NSDF Implementation Colloquium by 31 March 2021;
  • DPME is supporting DALRRD in developing the NSDF Implementation Charters.

Discussion
Ms M Ntuli (ANC) said that the integrated planning system was straightforward in that it was monitored by DMPE and will hopefully help with service delivery. The budget cuts due to COVID-19 is the new normal and she hopes that moving forward with the MTSF, DPME will fulfil its mandate. It is good news that the Bill is in the pipeline.

Ms R Lesoma (ANC) appreciated that with the Integrated Planning Framework the Committee will be able to monitor other departments and spheres of government. DPME needs to be more adaptable while balancing its responsibilities. Due to COVID-19, DPME must be alerted to any changes. How does DPME intend to ensure that limitations slowing the process do not  negatively affect stakeholders and hinder the service delivery which people need? What are DPME, COGTA and DALRRD going to do to prevent undermining stakeholder and public consultation on the Bill, if they are trying to ensure the Bill is finalised with speed? What are the systems in place to ensure other departments are consulted?

Ms M Kibi (ANC) referred to the Integrated Planning Framework Draft Bill and asked if the lessons learnt will be included in the drafting of the Bill? She referred to the APP performance assessments on slide 9 with national departments at 60% and provinces at 40% – which quarter of 2020/21 is the percentage based on? The departments have to double their efforts to achieve targets in the remaining quarters. What has been done to assist departments to achieve their targets?

Ms R Komane (EFF) asked what system has been put in place by DPME to ensure the performance assessments are checked. Fewer consultations have been made with the people. She noted that especially in North West in the Rustenburg municipality, the housing challenges has not been met with urgency. SAPS has less capacity as to how they should engage in resolving peace and security. Visible policing does not matter if we cannot measure the results. SAPS reaction time does not speak to how people are being assisted. There is visible policing but crime does not lessen. What tools is SAPS using to measure its visible policing?

Mr I Cebekhulu (IFP) referred to the DPME presentation and said when the pandemic arrived, for economic development, the Department should have given financial support to commercial farmers so they could run their farms properly. What is DPME doing to assist with this? He asked if there are measures in place to monitor and strengthen border control?

Ms Ntuli asked what mechanism will be put into place to ensure that there is not a shortage of security in rural areas. What is in place to help with the under-resourcing of security?

Ms Lesoma said that it must be noted that the Committee does not only do oversight of the department that directly reports to them but by association and the nature of the portfolio, they also oversee other departments on whether they are complying and following procedure. Issues on gender-based violence and agriculture should be forwarded to the other departments so they can give a detailed response because DPME is not responsible for other departments’ implementation.

Responses
Mr Lindsay Martin replied about  how DPME will support the Integrated Planning Bill process to move forward. There were some hiccups in the process because of budget constraints, but DPME is taking that process forward through the assistance of the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC). The key mechanism that will help with the concerns raised on how to align this with other sectors is the inter-departmental task team. He asked Ms Khan to expand on this.

Ms Zunaid Khan, DPME Acting Deputy Director General: Planning Coordination, spoke about the transfer to the technical committee and the importance behind it. It is important to have the relevant departments and the legislation under their jurisdiction to be part of the process, to provide the technical input in updating and crafting the Bill. It was one of the original flaws in drafting the Bill as certain pieces of legislation were omitted. What they decided to do with the departments was to run these processes concurrently. As much as they would have liked to have them sequenced, they noted that the timing would take too long to have it sequenced. To ensure it is an 18-month project they decided to run it concurrently. Letters have been sent to those departments to have two representatives, a member and alternate, to ensure that the process flows seamlessly and there are no delays. COVID-19 may impact but for this particular process it should have minimal impact on the ability to provide those technical inputs. This is done in conjunction with the legislative reviews from DTIC to ensure the constitutional muster of the Bill and that those concord decisions that impact the various spheres of government are also factored into the Bill so there are not any contradictions between the different spheres and the various Acts.

Ms Khan replied that to mitigate COVID-19 and the delayed process, a project team has been dedicated to the Bill and there is a timeline and set-out expectations. There have been discussions with the NPC and its secretariat to ensure there is a consolidated position in DPME and the area of expertise on the Bill is both on a technical level and a conceptual level so that they can expedite it. There is a process to boost capacity with the procurement of an external service provider to ensure there is an extensive stakeholder engagement process so that the gaps of the previous iteration are met and that key provinces are not left out. When it arrives at Parliament it will be as extensively consulted as it can be.

Mr Martin replied that the information used for the APP achievements was Quarter 1 information. Quarter 2 information has been submitted this month and an update will be provided to the Committee. Both National and Provincial departments are due to submit their updated APPs at the end of the week. DPME from November onwards will conduct an assessment of those plans and what targets have been rescheduled due to budget cuts and due to COVID-19. This is to also advise on the alignment to the revised MTSF so this will ensure that departments take forward key interventions that have been planned as part of the recovery phase in the revised MTSF. This is so that the goals are still met by 2024 which is the term of the MTSF.

On monitoring and tracking performance, DPME's Sector Monitoring branch, which is currently engaged with Cabinet on the first Programme of Action report, is monitoring those performance assessments. The way the MTSF is structured is that it provides a set of indicators with targets linked to interventions. DPME's Sector Monitoring branch monitors the departments on those targets.

On peace and security, within the Peace and Security Cluster, they have developed the Integrated Crime and Justice Strategy, so the interventions identified in the MTSF, such as on policing, emanate from that strategy. The Integrated Crime and Justice Strategy also includes gender-based violence and cross-border issues. The Department of Home Affairs is now part of that cluster. Operationalising the Border Management Authority which was delayed will take into account these issues in dealing with improvements to cross-border security.

On agricultural support, Mr Martin replied that DPME does not directly engage with citizens on service delivery but they do monitor departments. The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development will be the one to provide the type of instruments required to support farmers. From a DPME perspective, DPME does note where there are delivery challenges. DPME then engages with the department in that oversight function and escalates these challenges in the DPME monitoring reports which are then presented to Cabinet. He pointed to the mechanism of the Presidential Hotline which escalates challenges reported by the public.

Deputy Minister in The Presidency, Ms Thembi Siweya, agreed with Ms Lesoma but pointed out that DPME is involved with the planning in those departments and DPME continues to advise Cabinet on the performance reports which are collected from those departments. The reports on gender-based violence are escalated to Cabinet so it can be informed about the concerns of the people. The reports touch on the ordinary lives of people because they are comprehensive and this allows Cabinet to have awareness of what is happening. DPME also assesses the socioeconomic impact of draft Bills to see what they can achieve.

The Committee Secretary announced that the Portfolio Committees have been instructed to amending their programmes since departments could not table their 2019/20 Annual Reports previously. Departments have been given the deadline of 16 November. Committees have been instructed to process their Budget Review and Recommendations Reports by the 17 until 19 November. The interviews for the Public Service Commissioner vacancy are next week on 2 November and the BRRR meeting will occur after the interviews.

The meeting was adjourned.
 

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