Question NW2972 to the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans

Reply:

(i) Registration of Co-operatives

The Department of Military Veterans has been tasked with ensuring that the registration of effective co-operatives continues to be deliverable for the Department in the 2015/16 financial year. In this regard, the Department has set a target for the establishment of at least 40 new co-operatives by the end of the financial year. The task involves the conducting of workshops to advise military veterans on the requirements for establishment of co-operatives. Thereafter, those interested are provided with a training workshop after which they are provided with the requisite documentation to allow for them to independently call their proposed co-operatives members together, complete the Constitution and applications forms and then to submit all the required documents to the DMV for registration of the co-operatives. In the interim, the DMV is engaging in discussion with various stakeholders for potential opportunities for economic participation and job opportunities for military veterans. All workshops and training of Co-operatives is done in conjunction with the Department of Small Business Development’s Small Enterprise Development Agency. A further critical opportunity identified is for the funding of small and medium enterprises and co-operatives of military veterans through the Small Enterprise Financing Agency, with whom the DMV has a signed MOU.

(ii) Alienation of Disposable Products from the Department of Defence

The Minister has identified a critical opportunity for Military Veterans to take part in the process for the disposal of old and non-usable stock from the Department of Defence. Through this opportunity, it is envisaged that many work opportunities and possibility for economic participation can be identified for military veterans. The DMV has been tasked with developing an entity to house the programme so that it is carefully managed to derive maximum benefit to all military veterans, SANMVA shall play a role as a stakeholder to this entity. At present, in planning towards achieving on this goal, the DMV has identified at least 31 military veterans to be trained as auctioneers, in conjunction with the Department of Defence, so that military veterans would have a clear knowledge of the different steps in the alienation of disposable materials from the Department of Defence. The training of the auctioneers is expected to commence before the end of August 2015. It is envisaged that a large proportion of the co-operatives currently listed on the business development and support register would be able to derive benefit from the Department of Defence Programme.

(iii) Training through MERSETA and SASSETA

(b) The Critical Opportunities Identified

(i) Department of Defence alienation of obsolete materials

The Department of Defence programme on the alienation of obsolete is a key initiative being negotiated by the Minister on behalf of Military Veterans as indicated above.