Question NW147 to the Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture”

Reply:

1.(a). In terms of Section 4 of the Government Immovable Asset Management Act (GIAMA), 2007 (Act No. 19 of 2007) as amended, the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture (DSAC), the Executive Authority of Iziko Museums of South Africa (Iziko Museums), is the user of the following buildings that are occupied by Iziko Museums:

• Bertram House and Bertram House Annexe, (early 19th century)
• Bo-Kaap Museum (early 19th century)
• Koopmans-de Wet House (18th century)
• National Mutual Building (20th century) housing the Social History Centre
• Old Town House (18th century) housing the Michaelis Collection
• Rust en Vreugd Museum (late 18th century) and Rust en Vreugd Annexe
• Slave Lodge (foundation was laid in 1679, but sections were added in 17th and 18th centuries)
• SA Museum (late 19th century) and Planetarium (20th century)
• SA National Gallery (20th century) and SA National Gallery Annexe

The Minister of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) has been appointed as the custodian of immovable assets, which vest in the national sphere of government and is thus the caretaker of state-owned buildings in terms of GIAMA section 4(2) and will be able to provide the answer to this question.

In terms of paragraph 7 of the Guidelines for Day to Day Maintenance, DPWI as the custodian in terms of GIAMA section 4, will accept responsibility “for services which falls within the scope of the Day to Day Maintenance Services obliged for an amount exceeding R100 000”, previously this was an amount exceeding R30 000.

The subsidy received from DSAC includes funding for day-to-day maintenance services, so provision is made in the annual budget for the estimated expenditure in the annual budget.

The DSAC subsidy also includes funding to employ a Maintenance Coordinator to perform day-to-day repair and maintenance services.

The total estimated provision in the budget and the actual expenditure for day-to-day maintenance services for the past five years is indicated in the table below.

Repairs and Maintenance from 2016 to 2021
	Budget	Actual
Day to day maintenance services	R 3 067 338	R 1 403 491
Total	R 3 067 338	R 1 403 491

It must be noted that the day to day projected budget for a financial year is an estimate so the fact that funding is not spent does not mean that Iziko has not been doing day to day maintenance, it means that it is simply not possible to accurately estimate what day to day maintenance would be needed at the nine sites occupied by Iziko so it is critical that sufficient funding is allocated.

(b). The table in paragraph (1) (a) includes the estimated expenditure allocated, as well as the actual expenditure in the past five years.

2.(a). The Minister of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI) has been appointed as the custodian of immovable assets, which vest in the national sphere of government and is thus the caretaker in terms of GIAMA section 4(2) of state-owned buildings.

The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture is the user, not the custodian, of buildings occupied by Iziko Museums as a public entity of DSAC in terms of Section 4(2) of GIAMA. DSAC has nevertheless allocated R9.51 million to Iziko Museums to appoint an Architect to develop a five-year Conservation and Maintenance Plan to assist with day to day maintenance services and to provide Iziko with an estimated cost of repair and renovation projects so that funding can be sought for projects as prioritised and costed in the Plan.

The following documents were developed for each of the nine buildings occupied by Iziko Museums:

• As-Built Drawings;
• An Existing Building Condition Report (EBCR);
• A Conservation Management Plan (CMP); and
• A five-year Conservation and Maintenance Plan.

The CMP for the nine buildings occupied by Iziko was submitted to Heritage Western Cape (HWC) for approval, but only eight were approved, as the CMP for Iziko SA National Gallery had been mislaid.

(b). Maintenance and Upgrade of Buildings by Custodian

The last time that the custodian of state-owned buildings allocated funding for major repairs and renovation of a building occupied by Iziko Museums was in 2005 for the Iziko SA Museum.

For many years, DPWI has been able to only fund health and safety related projects. The Halon Gas Fire Suppression System at the Iziko SA National Gallery was therefore replaced by DPWI.

DPWI will be able to provide the amount spent on the nine buildings occupied by Iziko Museums.

Maintenance and Upgrade of Buildings by User

DSAC and Iziko Museums have allocated funding for repair and maintenance projects, but it has been a challenge to spend the funding as Heritage Western Cape (HWC) has taken more than a year to issue permits and in some instances, additional documents such as plans are requested though construction is not planned.

DSAC has allocated funding for projects such as a the construction of an emergency escape, a fire suppression system, the painting of buildings, repair of a ceiling and the upgrade of the electricity supply at the Iziko Old Townhouse, which was the first building with electricity in Cape Town.

Iziko Museums has also managed to allocate some funds for repair and maintenance projects as indicated in the table below.

Repair and Maintenance Expenditure from 2016 to 2021
	Actual
DSAC funded repair and maintenance projects	R 7 996 395
Iziko funded repair and maintenance projects	R 601 161
	R 8 597 556