Report of the Portfolio Committee on Women, Children
and People with Disabilities on its activities undertaken during the 4th
Parliament (May 2009 – March 2014)
1.
Introduction
1.1
Purpose of the report
The purpose of this report is to provide an account of the Portfolio
Committee on Women, Children and People with Disabilities’ work during the 4th
Parliament and to inform the members of the new Parliament of key outstanding
issues pertaining to the oversight and legislative programme of the Department
of Women, Children and People with Disabilities and its entities.
This report provides an overview of the activities the committee
undertook during the 4th Parliament, the outcome of key activities,
as well as any challenges that emerged during the period under review and
issues that should be considered for follow up during the 5th
Parliament. It summarises the key issues for follow-up and concludes with
recommendations to strengthen operational and procedural processes to enhance
the committee’s oversight and legislative roles in future.
1.2
Functions of
committee:
Parliamentary committees are mandated to:
·
Monitor the financial and non-financial
performance of government departments and their entities to ensure that
national objectives are met.
·
Process and pass legislation.
·
Facilitate public participation in Parliament
relating to issues of oversight and legislation.
·
Must perform any other functions, tasks or
duties concerning Parliament oversight or supervision of such organs of state,
constitutional institutions or other bodies or institutions.
1.3
Method of work of the
committee
During the
Committee’s Strategic Planning Session that was conducted in 2009, it was
decided to adopt a programmatic approach in giving effect to the Committee’s
mandate. To this end, the Committee aimed to focus 60% of its time on a theme
for the year as follows:
·
2009 – Violence & socially vulnerable groups
·
2010 – Poverty/Child
Survival and Maternal Health
·
2011 – Education and
Skills Development
·
2012 – Employment
·
2013/4 – Review of
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities and the Commission
for Gender Equality
The Committee
allocated the rest of the time to matters within the Parliamentary cycle such
as overseeing the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities
and the Commission for Gender Equality with respect to the State of the Nation
Address, the Budget, Strategic Plans, Annual Reports and Budget Review and Recommendations Reports. In
addition, the Committee also undertook oversight visits in 6 Provinces and 1
international study tour, hosted 3 public hearings and a stakeholder engagement
with provincial legislatures, engaged with children in various constituencies
and received training in gender responsive budgeting.
Herewith a reflection of the Committee’s
overall activities for every year since 2009.
2009:
During the first year the Committee focussed
on violence and its impact on women, children and persons with disabilities.
The key focus in 2009 was the public hearings on the implementation of the
Domestic Violence Act. Given then challenges South Africa faces with gender based
violence, the Committee continued throughout the 4th Parliament to
conduct oversight in this regard. Moreover, the Committee issued regular media
statements in response to numerous incidents of violence perpetrated against
women, children and persons with disabilities. This in turn resulted in Members
of the Committee particularly the chairperson being invited by various radio
stations across the country to conduct interviews on matters pertaining to
violence in order to raise awareness but also reflect on role of Parliament and
Government in dealing with violence.
2010:
In 2010, the Committee focussed on child
survival and development including maternal health linking it to Millennium
Development Goals 3, 4 and 5. The Committee engaged with the Department of
Health and the South African Medical Research Council on child survival and
maternal health. This was followed up with oversight visits in three provinces
to clinics, Thuthuzela care centres and non-governmental organisations.
2011:
In 2011, the Committee decided to deal with
education and skills development and link this to economic empowerment.
Oversight visits were also conducted in Gauteng Province to projects supported
by the Department of Trade and Industry and Labour.
2013:
2013 was focussed on international treaties
namely the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
(UNCRPD) and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).
Public hearings were held on the disability convention followed by engagement
with all key relevant Government Departments. Due time stringent deadlines for
reporting on the UNCRC the Committee could not conduct public hearings on the
combined 2nd, 3rd and 4th country report
however it was able to engage with child rights experts in the field and the
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities. The Committee’s
report was well received by the Speaker of the National Assembly who
subsequently wrote to the Deputy President bringing to attention matters that
emerged and requesting the relevant Government Departments to respond accordingly.
Moreover, the Committee has also conducted public hearings on the Commission
for Gender Equality Act and the Women, Empowerment Gender Equality Bill.
Throughout the 4th Parliament, the Committee engaged consistently
with the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities and the
Commission for Gender Equality including conducting oversight visits to their
offices and projects where relevant.
2014:
The public hearings on the Women
Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill [B50-2013] were held on 29 and 30 January
2014. This was followed by deliberations on the Bill with the input by the
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities. A report was
subsequently compiled and debated in the National Assembly in March 2014 and referred to the
National Council of Provinces.
The Committee engaged with the following Departments and entities across
the 5 years:
·
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities
·
Department of Basic Education
·
Department of Communication
·
Department of Higher Education
·
Department of Health
·
Department of Human Settlement
·
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
·
Department of Labour
·
Department of Police
·
Department of Public Works
·
Department of Social Development
·
Department of Trade and Industry
·
Department of Transport
·
Commission for Gender Equality
·
South African Human Rights Commission
·
National Youth Development Agency
·
Pan South African Language Board
·
South African Broad Casting Corporation
The Committee also engaged with several stakeholders and NGO’s across
the 5 years these included:
Advice
Desk for the Abused Cape Law Society, Child Welfare South Africa, Childline,
Centre for the study of violence and reconciliation (CSVR), Catholic Commission
of Justice and Peace Disability and Women of Action, Disabled People of South
Africa, Gender Advocacy Programme (GAP), Khulisa Crime Prevention Initiatives,
Legal Resource Centre & POWA, Mosaic, Molo Songololo, , Restorative Justice
Centre, Project Abroad Human Rights Office, Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre, Nicro,
RAPCAN, REACH, SANCO, Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme, Western Cape
Network on Violence Against Women, Women of Farms Project, Women Legal Centre, Gym4U, Mvelelo Graphic Design, SARMASH TRADING, Lesedi
Manufacturing Primary Cooperative, Ikeleng
Basadi Cooperative, Ringane Laundry, Seahawk Investments Laboratory, Curviro
Trading, Furn Tech Incubator, Tawana
Business Projects, Afripotego, Value Cement, SADECO Quantum Consulting,
Dr Therenzo Lorenzo, Disability Studies and Occupational Therapy, University of
Cape Town, Transport User’s Group, Down Syndrome South Africa, Empowerment
Programme: Children with disabilities and their families, Mr Ncedo Skosana, Ms
June McIntyre, Occupational Therapist, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Dr Helen
Combrick, Centre for Disability Law and Policy, University of Western Cape, Amanda
Gibberd, Director Universal Design in Public Transport Projects, Dementia South
Africa, Association for Physically Challenge, Michele Tonks, Mr P Maibi, Rights
to Education – Children with Disabilities, Early Childhood Development (ECD)
sub-group on the Right to Education for Children with Disabilities, Blind South
Africa, Central Gauteng Mental Health Society, Mfuza Paramount Mapukata, Association for Hearing Loss Accessibility and
Development, Afrika Tikkum, KwaNothemba Workshop for the Disabled,
Disabled People of South Africa, CBR Education and Training Empowerment, Business
Unity of South Africa (BUSA), Sonke Gender Justice, Centre for Law &
Society, SWEAT/SISONKE, Community Law Centre, Centre for Applied Legal Studies,
Retail Association, Justice Alliance of South Africa, Cause for Justice, Joshua
Generation Church, Gun Free Society, Cebelele Foundation, Women’s Legal Centre,
Human Rights Institute of South Africa
and POWA, Wits Institute for Social and Economic Research, Legal Resource
Centre, Businesswomen’s Association of South Africa, Jono Wegerle (individual),
AGS Church, JD Group Legal and Compliance, Southern Africa Liaison Office,
ABSA, Business Engage Association, Vodacom, Triangle Project, Voice Movement
Therapy: Eastern Cape, Bright Groom Organisation, Anglican Church MDSA, Mfuza
Paramount Mapukata, Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre, Centre for
Constitutional Rights, King of Kings Baptist Church, Crystal Park Baptist
Church, Progressive Women’s Movement South Africa
1.4
Department/s and
Entities falling within the committee’s portfolio
a)
Department of Women,
Children and People with Disabilities
The mandate of the
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities is as follows:
·
Ensure equity and
access to development opportunities for the vulnerable group in our society.
·
Monitor other
government Departments to ensure the mainstreaming of gender, children’s rights
and disability considerations into all government and other sectors.
·
Monitor the extent to
which the social and economic circumstances of women, children ad people with
disabilities are significantly improved.
b) Entities:
Name of Entity: Commission for Gender Equality
Role of Entity:
·
To monitor and evaluate policies and
practices of organs of State at any level, statutory bodies or functionaries,
public bodies and authorities, and private businesses, enterprises and
institutions;
·
To cultivate an understanding of gender
equality and the role and activities of the Commission through developing,
conducting and managing information and education programmes;
·
To evaluate whether Acts of Parliament
(existing or proposed), systems of personal and family law or custom, systems
of indigenous law, custom or practices or any other law, will affect the status
of women, and to make recommendations to Parliament in this regard;
·
To recommend to the National and Provincial
Legislatures, any new legislation that would promote gender equality;
·
To investigate on its own initiative or due
to a complaint, any gender related issue;
·
To maintain close relations with institutions
that undertake similar work, and to facilitate cooperation in handling
complaints;
·
To interact with civil society to further the
work of the Commission;
·
To monitor compliance to international
conventions, covenants and charters related to gender issues, and to submit
reports to Parliament in this regard;
·
To conduct research on gender related issues;
·
To consider recommendations, suggestions and
requests made with regards to gender equality as received from any source.
2.
Key statistics
The table below provides an overview of the number of meetings held,
legislation and international agreements processed and the number of oversight trips
and study tours undertaken by the committee during the 4th
Parliament:
Activity |
2009/10 |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
Total |
Meetings held |
5 |
19 |
25 |
31 |
25 |
105 |
Legislation processed |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
2 |
Oversight trips undertaken |
0 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
6 |
Study tours undertaken |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
International agreements processed |
0 |
0 |
1 |
2 |
0 |
3 |
Statutory appointments made |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Interventions considered |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Petitions considered |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
3.
Stakeholders:
None
4.
Briefings and/or
public hearings
4.1
Briefings
4.1.1
Joint “Provincial/National Summit” with Portfolio and
Select Committees on Women, Youth, Children and Persons with Disabilities, 28 -
31 MARCH 2011
The summit was hosted
jointly with Select Committees on Women, Youth, Children and Persons with
Disabilities. The aim of the summit was to synergise the work of national and
provincial committees dealing with women, children, youth and persons with
disabilities so as to facilitate effective cooperation and planning in relation
to these target groups. The objectives of the summit were to:
·
Identify the relevant structures within the
Premier’s office dealing with matters pertaining to women, children and persons
with disabilities in order to work more collaboratively hereby strengthening
relations with National Parliament.
·
Ascertain whether the Memorandum of
Understanding is finalised between the Premier’s office and the Department of
Women, Children and People with Disabilities.
·
Understand Provincial Strategic plan with
regard to women, children and people with disabilities.
·
Establish areas of concerns, challenges and
best practice within each province in relation to women, children and persons
with disabilities.
·
Assimilate the information in order for
Committees to review their strategic plans for financial year 2011 - 2014.
The
summit revealed the following challenges:
·
Lack of understanding of the
role of the Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities.
·
Structural
inconsistencies across provinces: some offices are not located within the
Office of the Premiere, while those located within the Office of the Premiere
are special programmes offices or unites.
·
Limited Human and
Financial Resource capacity: the levels at which staff are employed in these
offices is problematic as they often do not have decision-making
authority. While other offices are
severely understaffed. There also exists a lack of specialised skills and
research experience.
·
Matters pertaining to
Children and Persons with Disabilities were often combined within a unit, while
Gender formed part of a unit on their own.
In some instances, children’s issues did not form part of special
programmes within the Office of the Premiere.
·
Lack of understanding
and implementation of mainstreaming: the understanding of mainstreaming
differed across provinces and how this was translated into specific programmes.
·
Provinces expressed a
concern disaggregated data in relation to women, children and persons with
disabilities.
·
The ability of
provincial legislatures to hold HOD’s to account in terms of ‘service delivery‘
to women, children and persons with disabilities.
·
In terms of
Provincial Legislatures, it emerged that some Legislatures did not have specific
committees that spoke to the needs of women, children and persons with
disabilities, while others only spoke to one of these groups.
·
The lack of focal
points: it emerged that certain
provinces experienced a lack of focal points that spoke only to women, and not
to children and persons with disabilities.
The recommendations that emerged at the
summit were as follows:
·
Consider motivations for the assignment of a Chief
Directorate to mainstream issues effectively within provinces. (In order to
take into the fact that issues of women, children and persons with disabilities
are transversal).
·
It was noted that performance contracts of HOD
contained provisions that spoke to ‘service delivery’ to women, children and
persons with disabilities. In this way, it
ensures that the HOD is accountable to these sectors.
·
The establishment of a specific committee that deals
with these specific sectors should be considered. This will assist in the monitoring and
evaluation of government service delivery.
·
There exists a need to ensure compliance with
international instruments and government obligations at a provincial
level. This will ensure that national
policies are translated and implemented at a provincial level.
·
It is important to note that from a human rights perspective,
there are certain implications for grouping women, children and persons with
disabilities and referring to them as vulnerable.
·
The structural alignment between the National
Department and Provincial and Local Governments need to be considered.
·
At a provincial level, all legislation, budgets,
policies, should consider the implications thereof on women, children and
persons with disabilities.
·
The inclusion of women, children and persons with
disabilities sectors needs to be considered in terms of public participation at
a provincial level.
4.1.2 Violence against LGBTI persons
Violence perpetrated against
LGBTI persons was raised with the Committee on various platforms as a matter
requiring serious attention. The UNAIDS High Level Task Force had also briefed
the Committee during 2012 and requested that special attention be given by the
Committee in light of the numerous incidents of violence perpetrated against
lesbians in the country.
4.1.3 Sign Language
The issue of sign language to be recognised as an official language has
consistently been raised by various stakeholders with the Committee during
public hearings, briefings by Departments and by DeafSA. The Committee received correspondence forwarded by the Deaf Federations of South Africa
(DEAFSA) from the Speaker’s Office in 2011. In the letter, DeafSA reported that a meeting of the
Joint Committee on Constitutional Review was held on the 13 September 2007 and
a consensus was reached on the following:
Subsequently the Committee
had written to the Minister Xingwana
requesting progress with regards to the above mentioned issues as the former
Office on the Status for Disabled Persons, now subsumed in the Department, was
expected to follow through on the aforementioned issues.
4.1.4 2nd, 3rd and 4th
Periodic State Party Report to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of
the Child for the period 1998 to September 2012
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the
Child country report was formally referred to the Portfolio Committee on Women,
Children and People with Disabilities on 26 February 2013 as well as the Portfolio Committee on Justice and
Constitutional Development, Portfolio Committee on Social Development,
Portfolio Committee on Health, Portfolio Committee on Home Affairs, Portfolio
Committee on Basic Education and Portfolio Committee on Labour.
To this end, the Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and People with
Disabilities was
briefed by the Children’s Institute of the University of Cape Town; Professor
Anne Skelton from the Centre for Child Law, Faculty of Law at the University of
Pretoria and Child Welfare South Africa on 6 March 2013 as a means of obtaining
some perspective of civil society on the country report. Moreover, the Committee also engaged with the Department Women, Children and
People with Disabilities; Justice and Constitutional Development; Social Development; Health; Home
Affairs; Basic Education and Labour on 13 March 2013 in this regard.
4.2 Public Hearings
4.2.1 Implementation of Domestic Violence Act
On the 9th
September 2009, the Portfolio Committee on Women, Youth, Children and Persons
with Disabilities adopted a resolution to host public hearings on the Domestic
Violence Act. The Domestic Violence Act (No. 116 of 1998) was one of the first
pieces of legislation aimed at promoting gender equality following the advent
of democracy in South Africa and is the primary legislative measure to combat
domestic violence in the country. However, despite the Domestic Violence Act
having been in operation for 11 years, levels of inter-personal violence in the
country remain unacceptably high.
The aim of the public
hearings was to ascertain what the impact of the legislation has been on
persons affected by intra-familial violence and abuse, particularly women,
children, youth, persons with disabilities, men and the elderly during the
eleven years of the Domestic Violence Act’s implementation.
The objectives of the
public hearings were to:
·
Investigate the
incidence of human rights violations with respect to violence and abuse that is
perpetrated against, but not limited to, women, children, youth and persons
with disabilities;
·
Establish whether the
Domestic Violence Act has been effectively implemented;
·
Identify key
challenges with respect to the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act;
·
Understand
shortcomings in Government’s response to domestic violence;
·
Identify best
practice models that can be up-scaled to mitigate domestic violence;
·
Make findings and
recommendations – identify short, medium and long-term solutions and action
required by Parliament and the Executive.
4.2.2 Implementation of the United Nation’s
Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities (UNCRPD)
The Portfolio and Select Committees on Women,
Youth, Children and People with Disabilities conducted public hearings on the
implementation of the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of People with
Disabilities held on the 25 & 26 July 2012.
The objectives of the public hearings were
to:
·
To identify progress made in implementing the
Convention,
·
To identify challenges in implementing the
Convention from both civil society and the Executive,
·
To ascertain mechanisms that would aid the
implementation of the Convention.
4.2.3
Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill [B50-2013]
The Women Empowerment and Gender Equality
Bill [B50-2013], was referred to the Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and
People with Disabilities and Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) on 6 November 2013.
The Bill was tagged as a Section 76 Bill and referred to the National House of
Traditional Leaders for comments as well.
The objective of the public hearings was:
·
To invite interested organisations and
individuals to submit comments on the Bill to assist the Committee in
deliberating and finalising the Bill.
4.3 Outstanding briefing
Paper referred to PC Social Development and PC Women,
Children and People with Disabilities on 10 December 2013 regarding the
Provision and Funding of Child Welfare Services in South Africa by the
Financial Fiscal Commission.
The paper was referred to
but not yet dealt yet by the Committee. During 2013, the Committee was
concerned with the funding challenges faced by non-governmental organisations
rendering child protection services on behalf of the State. It was proposed that
the Department of Social Development and National Treasury briefs the Committee
in this regard. However, due to time constraints the Committee had postponed
the briefing.
5.
Legislation
The following pieces of legislation were referred to the committee and
processed during the 4th Parliament:
Year |
Name of Legislation |
Tagging |
Objectives |
Completed/Not Completed |
2009/10 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|
|
|
2010/11 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|
|
|
2011/12 |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
N/A |
|
|
|
|
|
2012/13 |
Commission on Gender Equality Amendment Bill [B36-2012] |
s75 |
The Bill seeks to amend the Commission on Gender Equality Act, 1996 so
as to align it with the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa and to
provide for matters connected with. |
Completed. Report adopted 15 May 2013. |
|
|
|
|
|
2013/14 |
Women Empowerment and Gender Equality Bill [B50-2013] |
S76 |
The Bill seeks to give effect to section 9 of the Constitution of the
Republic of South Africa, 1996, in so far as the empowerment of women and
gender equality is concerned, to establish a legislative framework for the
empowerment of women, to align all aspects of laws and implementation of laws
relating to women empowerment and the appointment and representation of women
in decision making positions and structures and to provide for matters connected
therewith. |
Completed. Report adopted on 26 February 2014. |
a) Challenges emerging
The following challenges emerged during the
processing of legislation:
Technical/operational
challenges that may have delayed legislation and/or complicated the processing
thereof
·
Intersectionality of legislation: Even though the Committee’s mandate deals
with transversal issues affecting several sectors, the Committee’s key mandate
is with respect to the Department of Women, Children and People with
Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality. Both the Department and
the CGE are non-implementing agencies of Government and therefore the vast
majority of the laws and policies reside within the ambit of other Government
Departments.
·
Tagging of Bills: Following on from the aforementioned, given then transversal nature of
the Committee’s mandate the conferral regarding legislation is limited as the
Committee is unable to see the process through until the voting on clauses
unless the Bill is tagged and referred to both the main Portfolio Committee
responsible for overseeing the implementation of the law. In the case of the
Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, at the time of the
development of the legislation the Committee was invited to attend the initial
briefings by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development. So even
though the Committee was involved in raising concerns in the initial
deliberations they were not part of the final clause by clause deliberations.
·
Time factor: The processing of legislation fell within the required time
allocations. However, these deadlines were very stringent.
Content-related challenges
·
Domestic Violence Act: Several of the recommendations that emanated from the public is the
responsibility that resides with other Portfolio and Select Committees whose
mandate is responsible for overseeing that particular Department. However the
follow-up of all the recommendations in this regard may not have been
undertaken by the respective Committees. A greater need for conferral is
required in this regard.
·
Commission for Gender Equality Act: The public hearings on the amendment of the
Act highlighted several other issues of concern that required legislative
review which went beyond the scope of the CGE Amendment Bill that was dealt
with at the time. Even though the Committee resolved that Furthermore, as the newly established
Institutions Supporting Democracy within Parliament were dealing with all
Chapter 9 institutions in relation to the Kader Asmal Report, the Committee deferred
many of the structural related matters pending the outcome of the internal
process underway in Parliament.
·
Women Empowerment Gender Equality Bill: Process underway as the Committee conducted
public hearings on the Bill, deliberated, developed and published a report.
Hereafter it was debated in the House and then the Bill was referred to the
National Council of Provinces where the process was still underway at the time
of the publication of this legacy report.
b) Issues for follow-up
The 5th Parliament should consider
following up on the following concerns that arose:
Outstanding legislative
issues
·
The Committee was unable to engage on the Muslim Marriages Bill and matters
pertaining to sex work and prostitution within the existing legislative
framework. These matters could not be addressed during the 4th
Parliament due to time constraints. Both matters have direct gendered
implications and warrants a briefing and engagement given the mandate of the
Committee.
·
CGE Amendment Act: The Committee agreed that the Bill sought to effect technical
amendments to the Commission on Gender Equality Act, 1996 and that substantive
issues raised in the submissions should be dealt with at a later stage once the
larger Parliamentary process lead by the ISD was complete. The outcome of this
process has a direct bearing on the CGE and should be closely monitored.
Monitoring of new entities
being established
·
National Council on Gender Based Violence: The Committee has received a briefing by the
Department on the Council however it had yet to engage with the entire Council
and its members along with Chief Financial Officer. It would be imperative to
scrutinize the activities of the Council since its inception.
New mechanisms or
corrections to challenges
·
A tracking mechanism to follow-up implementation of recommendations made
by the Committee.
·
A means to ensure that legislation relevant to the mandate of the
Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and People with Disabilities is referred
from the onset to enable the Committee to be involved throughout the
legislative process.
6.
Oversight trips
undertaken
The following oversight trips were undertaken:
Date |
Area Visited |
Objective |
Recommendations |
Responses to Recommendations |
Follow-up Issues |
Status of Report |
28 July 2010 |
Mitchell’s Plain Police Station and Magistrate Court |
To assess the services of the Department of Justice and Constitutional
Development and Police for victims of domestic violence |
The Committee made
the following recommendations: A method of
communication between legislators and implementers of law should be developed
to ensure that laws that are passed are implemented and to identify gaps and
challenges that exist; Non-governmental
organisations should develop programmes to assist victims of domestic
violence; Courts should
develop prevention measures in terms of handling of domestic violence cases; The court should
provide the Committee with a report outlining the cost and difficulties of
having to procure the services of foreign and sign language interpreters. The Committee will
debate issues of concerns as raised by the Magistrate Court and Police
officials in Parliament. |
The Committee subsequently engaged with the Department of Justice and
Constitutional Development in 2012 on matters that arose during the public
hearings and on oversight visits. Moreover, the Committee had also engaged
with the then Independent Complaints Directorate on reports that were
referred specifically related to domestic violence. |
On-going matters for consideration |
Report adopted on 12 March 2014 |
04-06 August 2010 |
Limpopo province |
To assess the
services of the Department of Justice and Police for victims of domestic
violence in Limpopo Provinces |
Having deliberated on observations, the
Committee made the following recommendations: The Departments of Human Settlement and
Social Development should ensure that accommodation for victims of abuse is
adequate and available for long-term purposes. The Departments of Police should provide
training to police officials on the Domestic Violence Act, 1998 |
The Committee subsequently engaged with the Department of Health and
Justice and Constitutional Development in 2012 on matters that arose during
the public hearings and on oversight visits. |
On-going matters for consideration |
Report adopted on 12 March 2014 |
24 -29 July 2011 |
Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal Provinces |
To assess children’s access to education with particular interest in
children with disabilities. To evaluate government’s initiative for youth to obtain further
education and skills development. To identify opportunities for rural women with regards to further
education and skills development. To assess whether the Department of Women, Children and People with
Disabilities and National Youth Development Agency were delivering on their
stated objectives as per their strategic plans and annual performance plan. |
The Committee
devised specific recommendations for the Department of
Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities; Department of
Social Development; Department of
Basic Education; Department of Health; Department of Police; Department of
Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the National Youth
Development Agency Specifically for
the Department of Women, Children and Persons with Disabilities, the
Committee indicated that the Department should be made aware of the issues noted in each
province and what the relevance was in relation to its stated mandate and
strategic objectives. With respect to the National Youth Development
Agency, the Committee indicated that the Minister in the Presidency: Performance
Monitoring and Evaluation, Minister Chabane should be made aware of the
following concerns: • Attitudes of the Eastern Cape NYDA
official towards the members of the committee were unacceptable. • Absence of the NYDA programmes and
projects within the province. • Lack of monitoring and evaluation of
projects within the province by the NYDA. • The NYDA should submit a report of what
it was doing within the province in terms of programmes and projects. |
The Committee did not receive any written responses from the
respective Departments on the recommendations made. Furthermore, the Committee brought to the attention the issues
pertaining to the Sanitary Dignity Campaign The Committee raised their concerns with senior presiding officers
regarding the conduct of the provincial NDA officials at the time and the
issues that emerged during the oversight. Subsequently, the NYDA was moved to
report to the SC on Appropriations. |
On-going matters for consideration |
Report adopted on 26 October 2011 |
11 August 2011 |
Departments of Safety and Security and Justice and Constitutional
Development and Health, Delft, Western Cape Province |
To look at the implementation of programmes to deal with teenage
pregnancy and substance abuse To look at the implementation of the sexual harassment and teenage
pregnancy policies of the Department of Basic Education. |
The Departments of Basic Education, Health
and Social Development should work together to address
challenges faced by the schools and the community. The Department of Basic Education should
ensure that Sexual Harassment and Teenage Pregnancy Policies are implemented. The Department of Basic Education should
ensure that parents/communities are involved in the
activities of the school. Awareness campaigns on teenage pregnancies
and substance abuse should be regularly held by the
Department of Basic Education. |
The Committee did not receive any written responses from the
respective Departments on the recommendations made. |
On-going matters for consideration |
Report adopted on 26 October 2011 |
17 – 22 June 2012 |
Departments of Trade and Industry in Gauteng Province |
To assess access to programmes/projects with regards to employment
opportunities for women and people with disabilities To identify opportunities for women and people with disabilities with
regards to skills development and empowerment opportunities. |
Having interacted
with stakeholders and made observations, the Committee recommends as follows: Department
of Trade and Industry, NEF and SEDA The Department and its entities should
strengthen its monitoring and evaluation strategies. The Department and its entities should
increase awareness about and accessibility to their programmes and funding. The Department and its entities should
provide training such as management and financial skills to women and people
with disabilities. The Department should expedite the process
of reaching the 2% target for employing people with disabilities. The Department should include in issues
related to people with disabilities in its programmes and budget. Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities The Department of Women, Children and
People with Disabilities should follow up the establishment of SEF in Limpopo
and Mpumalanga Provinces with the Department of Labour. |
The Committee did not receive any written responses from the
respective Departments on the recommendations made. |
Support to and monitoring of SMMEs for women and persons with
disabilities. |
Report adopted on 14 Nov 2012 |
26 – 28 March 2013 |
Department of Women, Children
and People with Disabilities ‘s office, Gauteng Province |
Discuss
the implementation f the turn-around strategy of the Department of Women,
Children and People with Disabilities Engage with the overall mainstreaming framework, advocacy strategy,
institutional support and capacity development and evaluation and strategy of
the Department. the Department’s progress
of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th
quarterly reports |
The Committee had a list of general recommendations and those that
specifically related to Human Resources, Finances and the Department’s
policies namely; the Integrated Mainstreaming Framework, M&E
Strategy, Institutional support and capacity building and Advocacy. |
The Department subsequently briefed the Committee on progress with
regards to its turn-around strategy. |
On-going matters for consideration |
Report adopted on 24 July 2013 |
2-5 December 2013 |
Gauteng, Free State, Mpumalanga and Eastern Cape Provinces |
The objectives for engaging with children
during Constituency were: To provide a platform for children to
interact with Members of the Committee within their community; Embedding existing mechanisms in place in
order to address challenges raised by children. To identify what the key challenges are for
children within their community in order for Members to follow up on issues
for oversight; and To use the opportunity to inform and
educate children about the role of the Committee and Parliament at large. Thus the engagement with children during
constituency period serves as an opportunity for public participation for the
Committee and as a means to exercise oversight as a result. |
Having
undertaken visits to various constituencies, the Committee recommended the
following: Identify mechanisms for giving effect to what the
children describe as “Starting a road to success” and seeing “Children as
agents of change”. Confer with relevant Committees in the National
Assembly, the National Council of Province and the Provincial Legislatures to
follow-up on issues that were identified within the various constituencies. The Portfolio Committee on Women, Children and
People with Disabilities should ensure that engagement with children in
constituencies is part of the 5th Parliament programme. Parents have a crucial role to play within child
rearing. More awareness raising should be done to educate parents on how best
to protect children from harm and abuse. Departments should request
assistance of private donors to assist with issues related to issues such as
rehabilitation centres and schools nutritional programmes. Government should focus more on promoting
extra-mural activities for children particularly in rural areas. Religious institutions are crucial role players that
should become more active to prevent and promote the protection of children
from abuse and neglect. Each Member within their respective constituencies
to follow-up on the issues identified by the children. The Committee had also made specific recommendations
for each of the following Departments: Department of Cooperative Government and Traditional
Affairs Department of Basic Education Department of Health Department of Justice and Constitutional Development Department of Police Department of Social Development Department of
Transport |
At the time of the finalization of this report, it
was not yet ATC and as such the respective Departments would not have been
able to respond. To be followed up in the 5th Parliament. |
To be considered by the Committee in 5th Parliament |
Report adopted on 12 March 2014 |
a) Challenges emerging
The following challenges emerged during the oversight
visit:
Technical/operational
challenges
Conferral: The Committee was not always able
to be accompanied by members of the respective legislative Committee or
officials from the Premier’s office and mayor’s office where relevant. The
Committee indicated that conferral in this regard would have greatly aided the
oversight visits.
Content-related challenges
·
Gender based violence remained a serious challenge with which the
Committee engaged on through the 4th Parliament. As with the
multiple levels of deprivation and poverty, the Committee was made astutely
aware of individuals experiencing multiple forms of discrimination and were
more susceptible to being victim to violence and abuse for e.g. children and adults
with disabilities especially persons with intellectual disabilities or multiple
disabilities, LGBTI persons.
·
The conditions of children with special needs and or disabilities at
special schools or living in alternative care were another area of concern. The
challenges faced by learners attending special schools and the educators
require astute monitoring. Moreover, the Committee was made aware that there
are a growing number of children with special needs/disabilities who are not
accessing formal education as they are unable to cope in a mainstream school
due to the lack of a supportive learning environment or the waiting lists are
very long at the special schools. In addition, the Committee was also made
aware that not all special schools have a grade 12 hence not all children with
disabilities are able to access a tertiary institution. There was a definite
gap between the education acquired for children with disabilities who do not
have a grade 12 and further education establishments. This in turn further
disadvantages youth with disabilities from attaining employment without the
appropriate qualifications. Furthermore, accessible transport for children,
youth and adults with disabilities was also noted as an area of major concern
that required more attention by Government.
·
Teenage pregnancy: Even though the Committee did confer with the PC on
Basic Education and was briefed by the Department of Basic Education on a
commissioned study regarding teenage pregnancy which indicated that it was not
increasing, the matter still requires attention. During the joint oversight to
Delft in the Western Cape Province and subsequently during members engagement
with children in various constituencies, teenage pregnancy was raised as an
issue for concern this despite
Government’s existing initiatives in place.
·
Drug abuse: Members were informed during engagement with children in
Constituencies the escalating problem related to drug abuse in schools and
communities. Non-governmental organisations within these communities
highlighted their plight in dealing with children as young as age 5 and 7 years
old abusing tik. Furthermore, there was a lack of adequate number of State
owned in-patient drug rehabilitation facilities for parents or caregivers who
could not afford to send their children to private facilities. The role of
educators in schools further compounds the drug abuse problem as reported by
children in various provinces.
·
Abuse of Child Support Grant: Members were informed by children and
non-governmental organisations the challenges of those accessing a child
support grant who may not always be spending it to benefit the child it is
intended for.
·
Economic empowerment: Sheltered employment workshops, 2% target, SMEE
coops women
b) Issues for follow-up
The 5th Parliament should consider
following up on the following concerns that arose:
·
Conferral: Strengthen relationship with other Committees particularly the
Select Committee on Women, Children and People with Disabilities and the
Multi-party Women’s Caucus. Develop a mechanism in order to foster and
strengthen relationships. Ensure that Committees undertake joint oversight
visits where relevant and Departments/Entities do joint briefings where
relevant to avoid duplication.
·
The Committee to follow-up with the House Chairperson regarding the
questionnaire sent on dealing with gender-based violence with a view to ensure
that a join initiative is undertaken in the 5th Parliament.
·
In-year monitoring: Departments to submit regular reports within
timeframes set. All departments on 2% target and adherence hereto. Requesting
regular quarterly reports from the Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality to the Committee –
consider submitting monthly reports. Clear time frames should be provided to
Departments for when documents should be submitted to the Committee.
·
Follow-up on all CGE papers referred to the Committee in 2013.
·
Strengthen relationship between the Department and the CGE.
·
Child participation in constituencies – Committee to follow up on issues
that were identified. Improved engagement with provincial structures. Ensure
that Committee continues to engage meaningfully with children in communities.
7.
Study tours
undertaken
The following study tours were undertaken:
Date |
Places Visited |
Objective |
Lessons Learnt |
Status of Report |
26 Nov – 3 Dec 2011 |
Norway |
The objective of the study tour was to
observe how a country such as Norway is ensuring a better life for all its
citizen particularly women, youth, children and people with disabilities |
The Committee recommends/finds as follows: There is a need to look at the synergies
between the current disability, anti-discrimination and gender equality
legislation in Norway, and the proposed disability and gender equality
legislation in South Africa; In terms of Universal Design, Norwegian
legislation places a responsibility on both the public and private sector to
promote universal access. In addition, universal access is a transversal
issue and included in all departmental policies and programmes. Therefore the
issue of universal design is utilised more as a strategy; An
early intervention and prevention approach is implemented at a municipal
level. Therefore if a citizen requires any form of assistance or support,
this can be identified at the onset and the appropriate service can be
rendered – in most instances free of charge. Such a holistic approach is
aimed at keeping families together, with any form of institutionalization
being seen as the last resort; There
is a high regard for child participation – this was evident in the engagement
with the Ombudsman for Children, as well as the Ministry for Children,
Equality and Social Inclusion. An Ombudsman for Children should be explored
within the South African context; and In
terms of promoting safety and combating domestic violence against women, all
women living at shelters have a mobile panic button and police in the area
are aware of each individual case. |
Report adopted on 21 June 2012 |
a) Challenges emerging
The following challenges emerged during the study
tours:
Technical/operational
challenges
·
The Committee applied to visit at least three countries at the time
including one in Africa. However, a study tour was only approved for one country.
Given the challenges faced within Africa, it would have been helpful to draw
comparisons between two different countries in this regard. Ghana was
identified as the country to be visited as it had similar executive and
parliamentary structures dealing with women, children and people with
disabilities – e.g. Ministry for Gender, Children and Social Protection,
Multi-party Women’s Caucus. To this end, a joint study tour was intended with
the Multi-party Women’s Caucus.
Content-related challenges
·
Harmful traditional and cultural practices within ethnic minority groups
in Norway appeared to be a new challenge faced by service providers.
·
The Committee was particularly interested in the Ombudsman for Children
in Norway and was keen to look at how this was feasible given the current
Chapter 9 institutions in South Africa like the South African Human Rights
Commission that has a commissioner focussed on children’s issues.
b) Issues for follow-up
·
The 5th Parliament should consider following up on the
recommendations as outlined in the Norway study tour report.
·
The Committee should look at undertaking a joint study tour with the
Multi-party Women’s Caucus do Ghana during the 5th Parliament.
8.
International Agreements:
The following international agreements were processed and reported on:
Date referred |
Name of International Agreement |
Objective |
Status of Report |
Date of enforcement |
22 June 2011 |
Southern African Development
Community (SADC) Protocol on Gender and Development and explanatory
memorandum to the SADC on Gender and Protocol |
The Protocol aims to provide
for the empowerment of women, to eliminate discrimination and achieve gender
equality by encouraging and harmonising the development and implementation of
gender responsive legislation, policies and programmes and projects. |
Report adopted on 24 August 2011 |
2013 |
26 February 2013 |
2nd,3rd and 4th Country Report of the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child |
The UNCRC aims to ‘protect children’s
rights by setting standards in health care; education; and legal, civil and
social services’. |
Report adopted on the 14 March 2013 |
|
14 June 2012 |
Report of the 56th Session of the United Nation Commission
on the Status of Women |
|
Report adopted on the 20 February 2013 |
|
a) Challenges emerging
The following challenges emerged during the
processing of international agreements:
Technical/operational
challenges
·
During the 4th Parliament Members have been invited at attend
the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women and the Conference of
State Parties focussed on the United Nations Convention on the Rights of
Persons with Disabilities. A key challenge has been the role delegates
attending these fora as no formal system has been developed to identify from
all stakeholders in Parliament as to what the issues is that should be raised
at the UN level. Reports are developed based on the delegation that attended
and the report is then in the case of the UNCSW referred to the Committee.
However, the follow-up of recommendations has not been done by all the
stakeholders concern. A clearer mechanism for reporting, referral and follow-up
is required given the transversal nature of issues that emerge at these
platforms.
Content-related challenges
·
The United Nations Commission on the Status of Women 57th
report and 2013 Conference of State Parties on the United Nations Convention on
the Rights of Persons with Disabilities report has yet to be referred and
considered for adoption by the Committee.
·
Even though the Committee hosted public hearings on the implementation of
the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities during
2013, the final report was not referred to the Committee for consideration as
was the case with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child in
the same year.
b) Issues for follow-up
The 5th Parliament should consider
how best to improve co-ordination and impact of attendance at such
international meetings and look into developing a mechanism for following up of
resolutions.
9.
Statutory
appointments
The Committee did not
deal with any statutory appointments for the Commission of Gender Equality
during the period under review.
a) Challenges emerging
The following challenges emerged during the statutory
appointments:
Technical/operational
challenges
·
All statutory appointments for the CGE were dealt with by an Ad Hoc
Committee.
Content-related challenges
·
Even though the Committee did not deal with the statutory appointments
during the period under review, the issues pertaining to these vacancies
consistently emerged in the engagement with the CGE. Filling of vacancies
b) Issues for follow-up
The 5th Parliament should consider
following up on the following concerns that arose in relation to CGE vacancies
and other matters.
10.
Interventions
No interventions were
referred to and processed by the Committee for the period under review.
11.
Petitions
No petitions were
referred to and considered by the committee during the period under review.
However during 2010 the Committee considered a legislative proposal by Hon. C Dudley
as requested by the Committee on Private Members
Legislative Proposals pertaining to the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act.
Following
deliberations on the Hon. Cheryllyn Dudley’s Legislative Proposal to amend the
Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act, members from the Portfolio and Select
Committees on Women, Youth, Children and Persons with Disabilities agreed that
they do not support the proposed legislative amendment. The following were key
concerns informing the members’ decision to not support the proposed
legislative amendment:
·
There
is no vast difference between the proposed amendment and the services already
provided for in the principal Act, thus the proposed amendment does not appear
warranted.
·
There
is a need for the existing Act to be better financed and implemented. In
addition, there is a need for increased awareness and understanding about the
Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act and its provisions, rather than for the
Act to be amended.
·
It is
not clear to what extent the proposal has been made on the basis of an isolated
incident.
·
Women’s
right to choice must be the primary concern in any legislative amendment and
this is not adequately reflected in this proposed amendment. This relates
specifically to the proposed viewing of electronic images, diagrams and
photographs.
·
The
use of the term ―unborn child is inconsistent with the use of the term
―foetus in the principal Act.
·
Introducing
and/or amending legislation could be costly, and the related implications in
terms of financial and human resources even more so.
·
Legislative
amendments should not be made in isolation of other parts of the Act or other
existing legislation.
(As noted in the report of Levendale, C
(2010) Private Member’s Legislative Proposal To Amend Choice On Termination Of
Pregnancy Act - Legislative proposal introduced by Hon. Cheryllyn
Dudley, Paper prepared by the Research
Unit, Parliament of South Africa.)
To this end, the Committee
deliberated and resolved:
·
Not to support the legislative proposal made by Hon.
Dudley;
·
To engage further with Hon Dudley and the Department
of Health for further clarity on the proposal.
·
To make recommendations to the PC and SC on Health
to consider conducting public hearings to review the Choice of Termination of
Pregnancy Act in terms of its implementation.
12.
Obligations conferred
on committee by legislation:
a) Challenges emerging
Technical/operational challenges
·
The stringent deadlines between dealing with Annual Reports and the BRRR
places the Committee under pressure to deal with these reports which are
significant in very short timeframes.
Content-related challenges
·
For a list of challenges identified by the Committee within the 2013 BRRR
Refer to Appendix 1.
b) Issues for follow-up
The 5th Parliament should consider following up on the
following concerns that arose:
With respect to the Department of Women, Children and People with
Disabilities, the Committee agreed to the following:
Reporting
matter |
Action
required |
Timeframe |
Monthly reports
encouraged as per the AG recommendation |
Written report |
By the 15th
of every month for previous month |
Quarterly reports |
Written report Briefing |
1 December 2013
(due date for 2nd quarter report for 2013/2014) At next quarterly
meeting in January – March 2014 (see Committee programme) |
Audit outcomes - Details of audit
action plan |
Written report Briefing |
1 December 2013 At next quarterly
meeting in January – March 2014 (see Committee programme) |
Skills audit |
Written report Briefing |
December 2013 At next quarterly
meeting in January – March 2014 (see Committee programme) |
Travel and
subsistence |
Written report |
1 December 2013 At next quarterly
meeting in January – March 2014 (see Committee programme) |
Unauthorised and
irregular expenditure from previous financial year |
Written report |
At next quarterly
meeting in January – March 2014 (see Committee programme) |
With respect to the CGE, the follow up with ISD regarding the Kader Asmal
Report is important. Furthermore, the Committee agreed that the Commission
should provide the following to the Committee in the last meeting namely:
·
The detailed report on time frames for
filling vacancies and progress in this regard.
·
All outstanding questions posed by Members of
the Committee to be responded to in writing.
·
The detailed audit action plan to be
submitted to the Committee by December 2013 and that it should also form part
of the 2nd quarterly report for 2013/14.
13.
Summary of outstanding
issues relating to the department/entities that the committee has been
grappling with
The following key issues are outstanding from the committee’s activities
during the 4th Parliament:
Responsibility |
Issue(s) |
Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities |
Fluxmans Report: The Minister Xingwana
briefed the Committee in response to the Public Service Commission and the Fluxmans
Report with respect to the former Director General in the Department. The
Committee was informed by the Minister Xingwana that she had written to the
Minister of Public Services and was informed that as the former DG was now
located in the office of the Premier in Mpumalanga, Minister Xingwana should
engage directly with the Mpumalanga Premier to deal with the matter.
Furthermore, the Committee was also informed by Minister Xingwana that there
were a few cases that emanated from the report that were still ongoing for
which the Department was still dealing with. National Council on Gender-Based Violence: A
lack of adequate funding was noted to the Committee as a challenge
experienced by the Council. Other key issues to consider in the 5th
Parliament would be the structure of the Council insofar as the filling of
vacancies is concerned and the programmes of the Council. |
Commission for Gender Equality |
Kader
Asmal Report: The
Commission for Gender Equality and other stakeholders in civil society
consistently reiterated that the findings of the Kader Asmal Report should be
considered. The office for the Institutions Supporting Democracy within
Parliament is attending to the matter. Funding model of the CGE: Salary scales of
Commissioners as compared to other Chapter 9 institutions were lower based on
the current funding model of the CGE. |
Violence |
Conferral with other Committees –
Parliamentary Inquiry into Violence Co-ordinated approach within Parliament to
deal with violence. Follow-up with House Chairperson in the
National Assembly on the proposal for a joint initiative between Committees
to deal with violence |
Legislation |
Muslim Marriages Bill: Even though the
Committee had identified and was interested in the Bill due to the gendered
implications, the Committee was unable to deal with the matter during the 4th
Parliament due to time constraints. Sex work and prostitution: The
decriminalisation of sex work was raised as an issue of concern with the
Committee on several platforms. The Committee had intended to arrange a
briefing with all the relevant stakeholders (e.g. South African Law Reform
Commission – Discussion paper; Commission for Gender Equality – Position
Paper) concerned to engage on the matter. However, due to time constraints
the Committee was unable to deal with the matter. |
Herewith key issues that were identified by the Committee that impacts on
its core functions and should be taken into consideration during the 5th
Parliament:
·
Time frames impact on Committee’s work and dealing with transversal
matters.
·
Late arrival of documentation from the Department prior to a Committee
meeting as well as different reports handed in the morning of a meeting posed
as a challenge for the Committee.
·
In year monitoring of the Department of Women, Children and People with
Disabilities was constrained as quarterly reports were not submitted on time.
Hence in the previous financial year, all 4 quarterly reports were dealt with
in the last quarter. Even though the Department provided an explanation as to
why reports were submitted late due to a focus on the turn-around strategy, the
implications were that the Committee could have identified challenges earlier
if reports were submitted timeously.
·
The Commission for Gender Equality and other stakeholders in civil
society consistently reiterated that the findings of the Kader Asmal Report
should be considered. The office for the Institutions Supporting Democracy
within Parliament is attending to the matter.
·
The Committee’s relationships needing to be strengthened with the
Multi-Party Women’s Caucus, the Select Committee on Women Children and People
with Disabilities and the office for the Institute Supporting Democracy and
other Committees.
·
Conferral with other committees – need to strengthen relationships with
other Committees in order to compliment work. Work often fragmented.
·
Legislation – The Committee is limited with respect to engaging on key
pieces of legislation that is not referred jointly to the Committee.
·
Child participation in Constituencies – several issues emerged which
having baring on other Departments besides the Department of Women, Children
and People with Disabilities and should be followed-up through joint briefings
and oversight visits.
·
Disability – education for children with disabilities, non-adherence on
2% target, accessible transport, disability policy and legislation were all
pressing issues that impact on the lives of persons with disabilities that
require that attention of the Committee in the 5th Parliament.
·
The Committee queried with it was placed under the correct cluster namely
Governance, as the mandate of the Committee meant that issues were transversal
affecting all Government Clusters.
14.
Recommendations
With respect the 2013 BRRR the Committee recommended the following:
The Minister of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities should ensure that the following recommendations are
implemented.
Financial
performance
·
It is encouraged that the Department submit
monthly reports to the Committee as this will aid with oversight.
·
All outstanding matters related to the
Turn-Around Strategy must be reported on to the Committee on a monthly basis.
·
The Department must implement and adhere to
stringent daily and monthly financial controls.
·
The Department must ensure that all funds
that are appropriated are utilised optimally to avoid under or
over-expenditure.
·
The Department is requested to provide the
Committee with regular reports for activities that incur Travel and subsistence
costs. These initiatives should clearly indicate the purpose of the trip, the
size of the delegation, the cost incurred, the outcomes of the trip and an
action plan as to how resolutions will be implemented.
Human
Resource
·
All key funded vacancies must be filled.
·
The Department’s skills audit must be
completed by December 2013 and an action plan of what is required to address
the skills deficit must be developed before the end of this financial year.
This must be submitted as part of the Department’s Annual Performance Plan and
revised Strategic Plan to National Treasury for the coming financial year.
·
The Committee reiterated the importance of
compliance with the Public Finance Management Act and National Treasury
Regulations by the Department and that failure of officials in this regard must
be dealt with expeditiously.
·
Given the Auditor General’s findings
pertaining to the lack of internal controls and non-compliance with laws and
regulations as required by Treasury Regulations, training is essential for
staff and communicating policies and procedures to ensure that all staff are
aware of these.
·
The Department must have a personal
development plan that is linked to a performance contract for all staff.
·
Funding for personal development must be
increased and should not be used for any other purpose but what it was intended
for and ring-fenced.
·
The Department must ensure that key vacancies
within the core Programmes (2, 3 & 4) are filled. In terms of the revised
human resource structure that would be submitted to the Minister of Public
Service and Administration, the Department must address the inequity between
support and core staff ratio. The policy development, research, institutional
support and capacity development, stakeholder engagement and advocacy
initiatives currently located in Programme 1 and costed for should be
mainstreamed and relocated into Programmes 2, 3 and 4 respectively in order to
enhance the performance of the core programmes
Infrastructure
·
The Department should continue its discussion
with the Minister of Public Works to expedite all matters related to
accommodation of all staff within one building.
·
All outstanding matters as noted in the
Committee’s oversight report pertaining to the visit to the Department’s
offices should be addressed.
Performance
related recommendations
Performance of Programme 1
·
The Committee reiterated that more needs to
be done to improve the image of the Department through marketing.
Collaboration
·
The Department (WEGE Programme 2) must
strengthen collaboration with the Commission for Gender Equality to avoid the duplication
of activities.
·
The Department must strengthen collaboration
with the Public Service Commission and the Department of Public Service and
Administration.
·
Collaboration between programmes within the
Department must be strengthened and this must be clearly articulated in the
next Annual Performance Plan.
Monitoring and evaluation
·
The Department must disseminate gender audit
reports and make findings available.
·
The Department must disseminate monitoring
reports on Government’s compliance with the 2% employment equity target for
persons with disabilities.
Implementation of policies
·
The Department must devise an action plan
that clearly outlines by when and how the key policies that have been developed
will be disseminated to all Organs of State. All Government Departments must be
provided with an indication of how the policies should be implemented and what
type of information the Department would require for monitoring and evaluation
in this regard.
·
The Department must clearly identify what the
proposed outcomes and key performance indicators are for each campaign it
intends embarking on. This should be established at the beginning of the
financial year with estimated costs for each initiative. All campaigns must be
evaluated and reports developed. An assessment of all campaigns must be done on
annual basis to determine the impact.
Treaty compliance framework and timeframes
·
The Department must ensure that a plan is in
place and communicated with Departments well in advance as to what information
is required in the form of data/indicators in preparation for the upcoming
country reports. This plan must be made available to the Committee and reflect
in the next Annual Performance Plan and revised Strategic Plan.
·
The Department must make every effort to ensure
compliance with treaty deadlines.
·
The Department should submit country reports
to Parliament in advance to enable adequate time for the Committee to engage
with the content.
National Council on Gender-Based Violence
·
The administration and co-ordinating
functions of the Council should remain within Programme 1: Administration and
National Treasury should ensure that adequate funding is allocated in order to
function optimally.
·
The content matters currently residing within
the Council that pertain to the research, development of the national plan to
deal with gender-based violence, monitoring and evaluation of the plan as well
as advocacy initiatives should be mainstreamed into Programme 2, 3 and 4.
The Committee had also proposed the following general recommendations:
·
Legislation: Need for improved conferral of legislation between
Committees to ensure that Committee is involved in a formalised manner e.g.
decriminalisation of sex work.
·
Conferral: Strengthen relationship with other Committees. Develop a
mechanism in order to foster and strengthen relationships.
·
In year monitoring: Departments to submit regular reports within
timeframes set. All departments on 2% target and adherence hereto. Requesting
regular quarterly reports from the Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality to the Committee –
consider submitting monthly reports.
·
Follow up on all CGE papers referred to the Committee in 2013.
·
Strengthen relationship between Department and the CGE.
·
Child participation in constituencies – Committee to follow up on issues
that were identified. Improved engagement with provincial structures. Ensure
that Committee continues to engage meaningfully with children in communities.
·
Questionnaire on violence: The Committee should follow-up with the House
Chairperson regarding the questionnaire and propose a joint initiative within
Parliament to address gender-based violence.
·
The 5th Parliament should consider following-up on the
recommendations as outlined in the Norway study report.
·
The Committee should consider undertaking a joint study with the
Multi-party Women’s Caucus to Ghana during the 5th Parliament.
15.
Committee
strategic plan
The Committee held a strategic planning
workshop on the 11 – 12 August 2009 in Parliament and invited various experts
in the field to brief the Committee on key issues that pertained to women,
children and people with disabilities. Subsequent to that in 2011, the
Committee also hosted a summit and invited provincial legislatures and premiers
offices as a means of strengthening relationships and working more
collaboratively on matters related to the target group of the Committee. The
discussions assisted the Committee in refining its strategic plan at the time
for the remainder of the 4th Parliament.
For
an overview of the Committees activities during the 4th Parliament,
refer to Appendix 2.
Appendix 1
BRRR
2012 Recommendations |
Progress
& Challenges in 2013 |
General a) The Department must focus its strategic objectives, targets and
outcomes on its core mandate of coordination, monitoring and evaluation. b) The Department must work collaboratively with other government
departments and entities but must guard against duplicating activities and
initiatives which fall within the mandates of other departments. c) The Department should take heed of matters of emphasis as highlighted
by the AGSA, as well as promptly implement recommendations and corrective
measures as set out by the AGSA in its audit report on the Department. d) The Department should address concerns raised and recommendations made
by the Committee and expedite the implementation of its turn-around strategy
and clearly outline its short-, medium- and long-term goals and timeframes in
this regard. This should be reported on accordingly. e) The Department should report to the Committee on a monthly basis on
progress made with regards to the implementation of the turn-around strategy
and provide financial statements on a quarterly basis. f) The Department must provide the Committee with all outstanding reports
for the period under review that relate to initiatives within the core
programmes, by November 2012. Moreover, the Committee requires the Department
to provide reports on the implementation of resolutions from conferences,
workshops and campaigns and progress in this regard. g) The Department must regularly submit detailed reports pertaining to
conferences, campaigns and initiatives to the Committee. |
a) The
Department has ensured that its strategic objectives were linked to
Government’s priorities post the State of the Nation Address and Budget
Speech. However, objectives, targets and performance indicators were not
SMART as emphasised by the AGSA. b) 9 MOUs
were signed with either a Government Department, Office of the Premier,
Government Agency and a donor/funder. This list was submitted to the
Committee in November 2012. Collaboration within the Department ·
All Programmes have undertaken several
activities and produced various outputs. However, it is unclear how the
officials across the different Programmes are working collaboratively to
ensure that mainstreaming of gender, children’s and persons with disability
rights is indeed strengthened within the Department. Collaboration
with Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) ·
During the deliberations pertaining to the
quarterly performance of the Department and the CGE, common focus areas were
identified namely the review of 365 day action plan and gender audits which
both Organs of State were engaged in. The work is necessary, however, the
Committee cautioned that in order to avoid duplication and resources not
being used optimally, collaboration should be strengthened particularly
between the NCAGBV, WEGE Programme and the Research Unit of the CGE. c) The
Department developed a Turn-around Strategy (TAS) and subsequently a DG and
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) was appointed. d) The
Department has reported on progress insofar as its TAS is concerned. e) The
Department presented its quarterly reports to the Committee. However, the
monthly report submissions to the Committee as requested were not provided. f) The
Department provided in total 24 reports/publications to the Committee as
evidence of outputs that relate to 2012/2013 and for 2013/2014. g) The
Department has indicated in its current Annual Report that the following were
produced namely; National Women’s Campaigns Report, Launch of access to
education for all children campaign and an Assessment Report on National
Awareness and Accessibility Campaigns. However, the Committee has not
received copies of the aforementioned reports. |
Finance a)
The Department’s Internal Audit
Committee must provide an initial report within a month of the adoption of
this report to indicate progress made in implementing AG recommendations.
Hereafter, the Committee requires the Internal Audit Committee to provide
quarterly reports on outcomes of meetings held. b)
The Committee seeks clarity
regarding the awarding of performance bonuses, given that the Department had
only delivered on 27% of its targets. Moreover, the Department should provide
the Committee with a detailed account of reasons for the exorbitant leave
payouts, including who these were paid out to. c)
Given the aforementioned, the
Committee requires a detailed breakdown of what the additional funding sought
from National Treasury will be used for and to what extent this would aid
programme performance with specific reference to the WEGE, CRR and RPD
Programmes. d) The Department must guard against over-expenditure in the future. |
a) The
Department has established an Internal Audit Committee to address internal
audit and risk management. b) Information
was provided to the Committee. c) The
Department has not over spent in 2012/2013 period. According to the AGSA and
the FFC noted that the Department had incurred R25.1 million unauthorised
expenditure in 2011/2012 which had not yet been condoned as well as R35.5
million irregular expenditure in the same period. d) The
Department has during the course of 2012/2013 period highlighted to the
Committee that it had experienced funding challenges and was in need of
additional funding. However, it is important to note that during the
2012/2013 period the Department under-spent by R12.960 million. The
Department explained that this was attributed to some vacancies which have
yet to be filled and the allocation was given in December and the
appointments could not be made over the December and January period. The
timeframes were limited and the vetting process took time to process. |
Human Resources a)
The Department should finalise
the human resource plan based on the approved budget which should be
implemented accordingly. b)
The Department should include a
career path in their human resource plan. c) The Department should speed up the process of employing the CFO, DG
and other critical vacancies. |
a) The
Department has worked on an amended HR structure. b) The
Department indicated that it was in the process of doing a skills audit and
would submit a report to the Committee in this regard. c) The DG
and CFO positions were subsequently filled. |
Programme Performance a)
The Department should, as a
matter of urgency, finalise their mainstreaming strategies, monitoring and
evaluation framework and tools which would assist other Departments in
implementing issues related to women, children and people with disabilities. |
a) The
Integrated Monitoring and Evaluation Strategy, Mainstreaming Framework, Advocacy
Strategy & Institutional Support and Capacity Building were finalised and
submitted to the Committee. |
Appendix 2: Summary of Key Highlights for the Committee
in the 4th Parliament
Key highlights
1.
Reflection on
committee programme per year and on whether the objectives of such programmes
were achieved
2009:
During the first year the Committee focussed on violence and its impact
on women, children and persons with disabilities. The key focus in 2009 was the
public hearings on the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act. Given then
challenges South Africa faces with gender based violence, the Committee
continued throughout the 4th Parliament to conduct oversight in this
regard. Moreover, the Committee issued regular media statements in response to
numerous incidents of violence perpetrated against women, children and persons
with disabilities. This in turn resulted in Members of the Committee
particularly the chairperson being invited by various radio stations across the
country to conduct interviews on matters pertaining to violence in order to
raise awareness but also reflect on role of Parliament and Government in
dealing with violence.
2010:
In 2010, the Committee focussed on child survival and development
including maternal health linking it to Millennium Development Goals 3, 4 and
5. The Committee engaged with the Department of Health and the South African
Medical Research Council on child survival and maternal health. This was
followed up with oversight visits in three provinces to clinics, Thuthuzela
care centres and non-governmental organisations.
2011:
In 2011, the Committee decided to deal with education and skills
development and link this to economic empowerment. Oversight visits were also
conducted in Gauteng Province to projects supported by the Department of Trade
and Industry and Labour.
2013:
2013 was focussed on international treaties namely the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the United Nations
Convention on the Rights of the Child. Public hearings were held on the
disability convention followed by engagement with all key relevant Government
Departments. Due time stringent deadlines for reporting on the UNCRC the
Committee could not conduct public hearings on the combined 2nd, 3rd
and 4th country report however it was able to engage with child
rights experts in the field and the Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities. The Committee’s report was well received by the Speaker of
the National Assembly who subsequently wrote to the Deputy President bringing
to attention matters that emerged and requesting the relevant Government
Departments to respond accordingly. Moreover, the Committee has also conducted
public hearings on the Commission for Gender Equality Act and the Women,
Empowerment Gender Equality Bill. Throughout the 4th Parliament, the
Committee engaged consistently with the Department of Women, Children and
People with Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality including
conducting oversight visits to their offices and projects where relevant.
2014:
The WEGE Bill was debated in the National Assembly in March 2014 and
referred to the National Council of Provinces.
The Committee
engaged with the following Departments and entities across the 5 years:
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities
Department of Basic Education
Department of Communication
Department of Higher Education
Department of Health
Department of Human Settlement
Department of Justice and Constitutional Development
Department of Labour
Department of Police
Department of Public Works
Department of Social Development
Department of Trade and Industry
Department of Transport
Commission for Gender Equality
South African Human Rights Commission
National Youth Development Agency
Pan South African Language Board
South African Broad Casting Corporation
The Committee
also engaged with several NGO’s across the 5 years.
2.
Committee’s focus
areas during the 4th Parliament
The Committee adopted a thematic approach per
annum these included
·
2009 – Violence
·
2010 – Poverty: Child
Survival and Development
·
2011 – Poverty &
Economic Empowerment
·
2012 – Education and
Skills Development
·
2013 – Review:
Ministry, Machineries, Government Programme of Action
·
2014 – Review of
Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities and the Commission
for Gender Equality
3.
Key areas for future
work
·
Areas for consideration: violence and its impact on women, children,
persons with disabilities and LGBTI persons; funding of non-governmental
organisations rendering services for vulnerable groups on behalf of the State;
post 2015 development agenda for women, children and persons with disabilities;
treaty compliance – monitoring and evaluation of country reports; legislation –
Muslim Marriages Bill
4.
Key challenges
emerging
·
Time frames impact on Committee’s work and dealing with transversal
matters.
·
Late arrival of documentation from the Department prior to a Committee
meeting as well as different reports handed in the morning of a meeting posed
as a challenge for the Committee.
·
In year monitoring of the Department of Women, Children and People with
Disabilities was constrained as quarterly reports were not submitted on time.
Hence in the previous financial year, all 4 quarterly reports were dealt with
in the last quarter. Even though the Department provided an explanation as to
why reports were submitted late due to a focus on the turn-around strategy, the
implications were that the Committee could have identified challenges earlier
if reports were submitted timeously.
·
The Commission for Gender Equality and other stakeholders in civil
society consistently reiterated that the findings of the Kader Asmal Report
should be considered. The office for the Institutions Supporting Democracy
within Parliament is attending to the matter.
·
Relationships needing to be strengthened with MPWC, SC WCPD and ISD and
other Committees.
·
Conferral with other committees – need to strengthen relationships with
other Committees in order to compliment work. Work often fragmented.
·
Legislation – Committee limited with respect to engaging on key pieces of
legislation that is not referred to the Committee.
·
Child participation in Constituencies – several issues emerged.
·
Disability – education for children with disabilities, non-adherence on
2% target, accessible transport, disability policy and legislation.
·
The Committee queried with it was placed under the correct cluster namely
Governance, as the mandate of the Committee meant that issues were transversal
affecting all Government Clusters.
5.
Recommendations
·
Legislation: Need for improved conferral of legislation between
Committees to ensure that Committee is involved in a formalised manner e.g.
decriminalisation of sex work.
·
Conferral: Strengthen relationship with other Committees. Develop a
mechanism in order to foster and strengthen relationships.
·
In year monitoring: Departments to submit regular reports within
timeframes set. All departments on 2% target and adherence hereto. Requesting
regular quarterly reports from the Department of Women, Children and People
with Disabilities and the Commission for Gender Equality to the Committee –
consider submitting monthly reports.
·
Follow up on all CGE papers referred to the Committee in 2013.
·
Strengthen relationship between Department and CGE.
·
Child participation in constituencies – Committee to follow up on issues
that were identified. Improved engagement with provincial structures. Ensure
that Committee continues to engage meaningfully with children in communities.
·
Questionnaire on violence: The Committee should follow-up with the House
Chairperson regarding the questionnaire and propose a joint initiative within
Parliament to address gender-based violence.
·
The 5th Parliament should consider following-up on the
recommendations as outlined in the Norway study report.
·
The Committee should consider undertaking a joint study with the
Multi-party Women’s Caucus to Ghana during the 5th Parliament.