Question NW1802 to the MINISTER OF SPORT, ARTS AND CULTURE
01 June 2023 - NW1802
Yako, Ms Y to ask the MINISTER OF SPORT, ARTS AND CULTURE
In light of the fact that public schools in township and rural areas continue being neglected when it pertains to diversifying sporting codes and ensuring participation, which subsequently leaves out a great margin of pupils, who are in the majority black pupils from participating, harnessing their skills and maximizing sporting opportunities, what (a) measures has he put in place to ensure more sporting codes are made available, (b) are the reasons that sporting grounds in rural and township areas are unkempt and (c) intervention has he implemented since he assumed office to turn the situation around?
Reply:
a). The school Sport is programme implemented jointly with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) and this partnership is formalised through the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The lower levels of participation, as contemplated in the MoU, is the responsibility of the Department of Basic Education. They are largely responsible for providing intra/inter School Competition including Cluster level School Sport opportunities. The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture provides funding to the Provinces through the Conditional Grant and 40% of the grant is dedicated for the provision of School Sport. The provinces have been able to provide the schools, mainly quintile 1 and 2 schools with Sport Equipment and Attire and have also helped them with training of teachers as coaches and managers and the employment of sport co-ordinators.
The Department further hosts the National School Sport Championships Provinces must ring-fence R8 million of the Conditional Grant School sport allocation to provide transport, accommodation, attire, and delivery of provincial teams to the National School Sport Championship.
b). The Sport infrastructure development and maintenance in schools is the responsibility of the Department of Basic Education. The norms and standards of schools makes provision for development of facilities.
c). We have been able to construct Multi-purpose Combi courts in schools using equitable share. As a legacy of the Netball World Cup in 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 financial year, in partnership with Netball SA, Netball legacy courts are being rolled out in provinces: 3 have already been completed and 6 more will be completed by end of June 2023.
The current MoU makes provision for the use of Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) to build facilities in Schools, however further discussions with COGTA are necessary to finalise this to enable this provision.
The Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture has already met with the Minister of Basic Education who indicated a commitment to roll out the Wednesday afternoon Sports Programmes.