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11 December 2023 - NW3624

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Masipa, Mr NP to ask the Minister of Finance

What is the detailed breakdown of the Land Bank of South Africa’s approvals from the blended finance and agro-energy fund regarding (a) farm size, (b) region and (c) commodity group since 1 January 2022 to the latest specified date for which information is available?

Reply:

1. Blended Finance Scheme.

The approval information of the Blended Finance Scheme (BFS), which was launched in October 2022, is provided in the attached Annexure A.

The Bank prepares a report on a quarterly basis to provide the kind of details that is being requested. Therefore, the information herewith provided is for a period from the launch of the BFS to the end of September 2023.

2. Agro Energy Fund.

The Agro Energy Fund was launched on the 29th of August 2023. There are no transactions approved yet. As at 31st October 2023 the Bank had received 19 applications to the value of R53m that are still going through the due diligence assessment.

11 December 2023 - NW4032

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Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether her department has records of the number of (a) public and (b) private (i) primary and (ii) high schools in each province that have been closed or shut down in the (aa) 2018, (bb) 2019, (cc) 2020, (dd) 2021, (ee) 2022 and (ff) 2023 school years; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(a) and (b) The number of schools closed as per the School Rationalisation and Realignment Process (SRRP) since 2012 is 2 547. See attached Annexure for detailed breakdown per province. 

11 December 2023 - NW3699

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Mashego, Mr GP to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation

Whether, noting that the Census 2022 has drawn attention to migration to the Republic’s economic hubs, particularly Gauteng and the Western Cape, which will result in the current water and sanitation systems in the two provinces being severely strained by an increase in population and lead to water shortages and the deterioration of sanitation facilities, his department has developed plans to make sure that the infrastructure for water and sanitation in both provinces is adequate to meet the demands of a growing population; if not, what is the position in each case; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?

Reply:

The Department has developed a comprehensive integrated national water and sanitation master plan, which is intended to guide the water sector with investment planning for the development of water resources and the delivery of water and sanitation services over the horizon until 2030, and beyond. The plan identifies key actions in the water sector and allocates roles and responsibilities to all in the water sector, from the various tiers of government, the private sector, and other stakeholders for the implementation of the plan. It also includes a list of key programmes, projects, and actions to be implemented for the protection and development of the national water resources, and for the provision of adequate and reliable water and sanitation services for all citizens. It addresses the enabling requirements, such as the institutional and legal arrangements for implementation, operation and maintenance, funding requirements and models, and monitoring and evaluation models.

Demand for water in Gauteng has grown rapidly, largely due to population growth, and partly due to increasing leaks in municipal distribution systems. The planners in DWS anticipated this growth in demand and put in place plans to address it as far back as the 1980’s, through the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (LHWP), which transfers water from Lesotho into the IVRS. The R40 billion Phase 2 of the LHWP has been delayed by nine years. It is now under construction but is only due to be completed by 2028.

Rand Water’s total current supply capacity is 5 200 million litres of treated drinking water per day, and it is already exceeding its abstraction limit from the IVRS. It will only be possible for Rand Water to increase its abstraction of water from the IVRS after LHWP Phase 2 comes online.

Rand Water has a R35 billion capital programme which is timed to result in substantial additional treatment and storage capacity becoming available when LHWP Phase 2 comes online. This includes the recently completed R3.5 billion augmentation of the capacity of its Zuikerbosch Water Treatment Plant by 150 million litres per day. This additional capacity is now contributing to reducing the risk of shortages of water for Rand Water’s municipal customers but is also contributing to the over-extraction of water from the IVRS by Rand Water.

In this context, the demand-supply relationship for treated water in Gauteng is very tight and the system is vulnerable to disruptions caused by heavy load shedding, electro-mechanical breakdowns or theft of cables. Usually, such breakdowns would not have a noticeable effect on water supply due to the ability to draw on reserve supply capacity, but now there is no reserve supply capacity. Because the water is usually gravity-fed from municipal reservoirs to households, high-lying areas are worst affected by disruptions in supply.

To reduce the risk of water supply disruptions in future, the municipalities need to improve their billing and revenue collection and allocate increased funding to maintenance and to reducing leaks. There are also investments that they can make in pumps and reservoirs which can improve their ability to withstand the kind of disruptions described above (the City of Joburg is currently implementing several such investments).

The Minister of Water and Sanitation is coordinating regular meetings with Rand Water and the Mayors of the Gauteng municipalities. In addition, officials from Rand Water and the Gauteng municipalities are having daily meetings to ensure improved coordination of responses to disruptions in supply.

Even after LHWP Phase 2 comes on stream, Gauteng’s long-term water consumption will need to be carefully managed, because there are limits to which further phases of LHWP or other water transfer projects can continue to provide additional water to Gauteng at an affordable cost. The reality is that South Africa is a water-scarce country with limited sustainable water resources and amongst the top 30 driest countries globally.

DWS will be working with Rand Water and the municipalities in Gauteng to implement a more effective communications strategy regarding the need for people to use water more sparingly. Average per capita water consumption in Gauteng is 253 litres per day compared to the world average of 173 litres per capita per day. If water supply disruptions are to be avoided in Gauteng in future, a culture of careful water use needs to be promoted and awareness raised of the fact that, if some people do not use water sparingly, other people will get none.

Over half a million people have migrated into the Western Cape in the last fiscal year to date with vandalism of infrastructure exacerbating the issue. This has put a strain on water and sanitation infrastructure in the province. A total of R3,146 billion has been allocated by the Department for the next three fiscal years to fund infrastructure projects in the province through the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) and Water Services Infrastructure Grants (WSIG).

DWS is implementing several water resource infrastructure projects in the Western Cape, to ensure security of supply of water. For example, the R4 billion project to raise the wall of Clanwilliam Dam is currently underway. The project will enable improved assurance of water supply for agriculture and provide for water allocations to resource-poor farmers on the West Coast.

The TCTA is in the process of raising finance for the Berg River Voelvlei Augmentation Scheme. The project will increase the yield of the Voelvlei Dam and improve regional water security and create a more reliable supply to domestic, agricultural and industrial water users.

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11 December 2023 - NW3696

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Tseki, Mr MA to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

Whether the memorandum of understanding between the National Housing Finance Corporation and the Department of Public Services and Administration has been signed regarding the Government Housing Scheme, which will make non-mortgage financing available to lower income government employees and give them access to First Home Finance to purchase houses in both urban and rural locations; if not, why not; if so, what total number of government employees are anticipated to gain from the revised First Home Finance policy?

Reply:

a) Whether the memorandum of understanding between the National Housing Finance Corporation and the Department of Public Services and Administration has been signed regarding the Government Housing Scheme, which will make non-mortgage financing available to lower income government employees and give them access to First Home Finance to purchase houses in both urban and rural locations.

Yes, the National Housing Finance Corporation and the Department of Public Services and Administration signed the Memorandum of Understanding in November 2021. The Primary objectives of the MoU are to:

  • Establish a relationship that will enable qualifying government employees’ access to First Home Finance subsidies.
  • Strengthen the contribution of First Home Finance towards leveraging increased home loans to government employees.
  • Increase home ownership among government employees.
  • Ensure a co-ordinated approach in marketing First Home Finance to government employees.
  • Establish the basis of interaction between the parties.

The MOU does allow Government Employee Housing Scheme (GEHS) members to access First Home Finance subsidy with non-mortgage products to purchase or build homes in both urban and rural areas.

b) If so, what total number of government employees are anticipated to gain from the revised First Home Finance policy?

According to the June GEHS report, as at the end of June there were 204 650 potentially qualifying employees. This number reduced from 319 440 as at the end of March 2023, because of salary adjustment that became effective on 1 April 2023 that resulted in a number of employees in Salary Level 7 and upwards earning a gross income above R22 000 per month; and therefore, ineligible for First Home Finance subsidy. This number reflects total employees in Salary Levels 1 up to 6 because their monthly gross income falls within the R22 000 upper limit for First Home Finance.

The MOU signed between the DPSA and the NHFC was on the implementation of FLISP, which was later rebranded to First Home Finance. The MOU was signed based on the then draft revised FLISP Policy and is being implemented.

The aspect that includes the NHFC, DPSA, NDHS and NT pertains to the NHFC assuming a bigger role of providing certain GEHS services for the benefit of government employees is still in the process.

11 December 2023 - NW3934

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Bagraim, Mr M to ask the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies

Whether (a) he, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) any other official in his department attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023; if not; what is the position in this regard; if so, what (i) are the relevant details of each person in his department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by his department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

a) No

b) No

c) No

Thank You.

11 December 2023 - NW3661

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Graham, Ms SJ to ask the Minister of Finance

(1)Whether the $1 billion Development Policy Loan from the World Bank to the value of R19 billion was granted on the basis of a business plan presented in support of the loan; if not, what are the relevant details of the basis on which the loan was granted; if so, will he furnish Ms S J Graham with a copy of the business plan; (2) what are the terms of the loan in respect of the (a) loan period, (b) interest rate and final value of the loan, (c) amortisation schedule, (d) repayment frequency, (e) collateral and guarantees, (f) default terms, (g) late payment charges and (h) any other terms; (3) whether the loan falls within the funding made available in terms of the Just Energy Transition Programme; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details, including the date on which the loan will take effect?

Reply:

(1) The instrument used for this loan is a Development Policy Operation (DPO), which means this loan is provided to South Africa on the strength of a completed set of policies and reforms. The institutional reforms that are referenced on the DPO fall under climate change and the electricity sector, mostly covered under NECOM.

(2) The DPL terms includes the following:

Institutions

Disbursement
date

Interest rate

Terms
(years)

Grace
period1
(years)

Amount
billion

World Bank

n/a

6-month SOFR plus 0.95%

15

5

US$1.0

(c) & (d) the loan and interest are to be repaid biannually in March and September, principal repayment to begin in 2029 and end in 2038.

(e) The DPL is a sovereign loan and does not require collateral or guarantee.

(f) & (g) In line with the World Bank’s International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) General Conditions for Loans and Guarantees, if any amount of the withdrawn loan balance remains unpaid when due and such non-payment continues for a period of thirty days, then the Borrower shall pay the Default Interest Rate on such overdue amount in lieu of the interest rate specified in the Loan Agreement.

(h) All other conditions of the DPL are governed by the IBRD General Conditions for Loans and Guarantees https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/577851500256855740/pdf/GCs-Board-paper-June-22-Final-with-Annexes-06232017.pdf

3. No, this type of funding is categorised as budget support loans aimed aims to support South Africa’s economic recovery, inclusive and accelerated growth, and commitment to the just transition to a low-carbon and resilient economy.

The loan will take effect within 90 days from signing the loan agreement.

11 December 2023 - NW3693

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Shikwambana, Mr M to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

(1)Whether he has been informed of the recording of the Chairperson of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) with two other people who suggested the appointment of a certain law firm (name furnished) because they have someone inside who can guide the investigation to stay away from issues of awarding funding to students which can get too many persons into trouble, with the possibility of arrest; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what steps does he intend to take in this regard;

Reply:

  1. No, I have not been informed of any recording of the Chairperson of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) and others. The honourable member can share further information.
  2. NSFAS has appointed a panel of Legal Service Providers. All Legal Service Providers are appointed from this panel as and when legal services are required.

11 December 2023 - NW3965

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Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

(1)Whether, with reference to the Sixth Annual Progress Report on the Implementation of the White Paper on the Rights of People with Disabilities, which calls for the minimum employment equity target for persons with disabilities as from the 2024-25 financial year to move from 2% to 3%, with the aim of reaching a minimum of 7% in 2030, she has found that her department will meet the 3% target for the 2024-25 financial year; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) what are the relevant details of the plans that her department has put in place to ensure that it meets the 7% target in 2030? NW5209E

Reply:

1. With reference to the Sixth Annual Progress Report on the Implementation of the White Paper on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities which calls for the minimum employment equity target for persons with disabilities as from the 2024-25 financial year to move from 2% to 3%, with the aim of reaching a minimum of 7% in 2030, the Department may not be able to meet the 3% target for the 2024-25 financial year. Currenty the total number of persons with disablitiies in the Department is 23, thus representing only 1,2% of the the total workforce.

2. The Department is committed to meet the 7% target in 2030 by collaborating with the various disability organisations with a view to encouraging their members to apply for advertised posts in the Department.

11 December 2023 - NW3883

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Nolutshungu, Ms N to ask the Minister of Finance

What measures have been put in place to ensure that the average working class has more money in their pockets than what they are paying to the Government in taxes, because their contribution made to the fiscus is not matched by the services they receive from the State?

Reply:

The South African income tax system is progressive, meaning that taxpayers who earn more pay a higher rate of tax than those who earn less. Consequently, taxpayers at the lowest tax brackets get to take home a larger portion of their income after tax than those at the higher income tax brackets. For example, taxpayers who earn less than R 95 750 per annum (for those below 65 of age) fall below the tax threshold, meaning they keep 100 per cent their income after tax. In contrast, those who earn in excess of R 1.817 million per annum have to pay 45 per cent tax on their earnings above that amount. The majority of income tax revenue is collected from the higher income brackets. The tax brackets below indicate at which percentage each income group is taxed. South Africa’s graduated income tax scale ensures that there is progressivity and equity in the tax system.

Income tax brackets for 2023/24

Taxable Income

Rates of tax

R0 - R237 100

18% of each rand

R237 101 - R370 500

R42 678 + 26% of the amount above R237 100

R370 501 - R512 800

R77 362 + 31% of the amount above R370 500

R512 801 - R673 000

R121 475 + 36% of the amount above R512 800

R673 001 - R857 900

R179 147 + 39% of the amount above R673 000

R857 901 - R1 817 000

R251 258 + 41% of the amount above R857 900

R 1817 001 and above

R644 489 + 45% of the amount above R1 817 000

Over the 2024 MTEF period, 61 per cent of consolidated non-interest spending goes to the social wage towards healthcare, education, social protection, community development and employment​.

11 December 2023 - NW3833

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Loate, Mr T to ask the Minister of Finance

(1)Whether he has found that the Government is approaching a period of elevated redemptions requiring the repayment of a significant amount of government debt that will have reached its maturity date; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (a) which debt was reaching maturity between the latest specified date for which information is available and 31 March 2024, (b) what will be the amount of the total debt that will have to be redeemed by that date, (c) will the specified debt be inclusive of the debt incurred on behalf of Eskom and (d) in which strategic manner will the Government secure the funds to honour its debt on maturity between the latest specified date for which information is available and 31 March 2024; (2) whether the Government is considering an increase in tax to meet its fiscal obligations; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

1. Table 3.7 (below) of Chapter 3 of the MTBPS provides a breakdown of redemptions for the current year and over the medium term. (a)(b) Government will redeem debt of R155.5 billion in 2023/24, (c) R78 billion has been penciled in for Eskom in 2023/24 (d) the gross borrowing requirement will be raised through the issuance of domestic long term loans, domestic short term loans, foreign loans as well as the drawdown of cash balances (refer To table 3.7 below).
A screenshot of a report

Description automatically generated

2. Chapter 3 of the 2023 MTBPS states: “... the Minister of Finance will propose tax measures to raise additional revenue of R15 bliion in the 2024 Budget”. In this regard, Budget 2023 will provide details fo measures to be implemented.

11 December 2023 - NW3835

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Lekota, Mr M to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans

What progress has been made regarding the implementation of the undertaking made by the President, Mr M C Ramaphosa, during the 2022 State of the Nation Address (SONA), which he reiterated in his 2023 SONA, that the Welisizwe Rural Bridges Programme that is being implemented by the SA National Defence Force's (SANDF) will be upscaled to deliver 95 bridges a year to enable school children who have to brace flooded rivers to get to school without the danger of drowning?

Reply:

Find reply here

11 December 2023 - NW3886

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Makesini, Ms M to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

Whether, according to the recovery plan summary of the Free State presented by the Public Protector the Portfolio Committee on Human Settlements, which outlines the progress of the Township Establishment projects known as Greenfields development, the specified project is making progress, if not, what is the position in this regard: if so what (a) are the reasons that the expenditure is zero, (b) is the name of the contractor responsible for the project , (c) is the current progress percentage of the project and (d) is the name of each area that the project is operating in?

Reply:

There is no Free State RecoveryPlan by Public Protector that am I aware of.

11 December 2023 - NW3973

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Lekota, Mr M to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans

Whether she had succeeded in ensuring that the 85% of the fleet of the SA Air Force which had remained grounded for a lengthy period, leaving only two out of the 26 Gripen fighter aircrafts and a mere three out of the 24 Hawk aircrafts still available for active service, have now been restored to active service; if not, why not; if so, what success has her department achieved in this regard?

Reply:

Find reply here

 

11 December 2023 - NW4082

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Smalle, Mr JF to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

What (a) financial assistance has her department given to each province for (i) fire disaster, (ii) drought relief and (iii) flooding for the (aa) 2020-21, (bb) 2021-22 and (cc) 2022-23 financial years, (b) what total number of applications for assistance was (i) received and (ii) granted, (c) for what monitory value in each financial year and (d) what method and/or criteria does her department use to support the applications?

Reply:

a) (i) There were no allocations and transfers for fire incidents in 2020-21, 2021-2 and 2022-23

(aa) The department supported affected organs of state by transferring an amount of R138 million from the Provincial Disaster Response Grant during the 2020/2021 financial year to seven provinces to mitigate the effects of drought.

Province

Allocation R'000

Date funds transferred

 

Hazard

1. Eastern Cape

R 35 000

06/07/2020

Drought

2. Kwazulu-Natal

R 4 000

06/07/2020

 

3. Limpopo

R 18 640

06/07/2020

 

4. Mpumalanga

R 12 160

06/07/2020

 

5. Northern Cape

R35 689

06/07/2020

 

6. Northwest

R8 000

06/07/2020

 

7. Western Cape

R 25 000

06/07/2020

 

Grant Total: 07

R138 489

 

 

(bb) The department transferred an amount of R48 million to Western Cape Department of Agriculture to mitigate the effects of drought during the 2021/2022 financial year from the Provincial Disaster Response Grant.

Province

Purpose of allocation

Allocations R'000

Date funds transferred

         
         

Western Cape

distribution of livestock feed.

R48 100 

07/02/2022

 

An amount of R173 million was transferred from Municipal Disaster Response Grant to 11 municipalities in two provinces (Western Cape) to address the effects of the drought in 2021/2022 financial year.

Province

District

Municipalities

Total Allocation R'000

Hazard

  1. Eastern Cape

 

Metro

1. Nelson Mandela Bay

R57 829

Drought

 

Sarah Baartman

2. Dr. Beyers Naude

R6 057

 
 

Cacadu

3. Makana

R2 200

 
 

Sarah Baartman

4. Ndlambe

R15 229

 
 

Sarah Baartman

5. Sundays River

R7 580

 
 

Sarah Baartman

6. Kouga

R12 500

 
 

Sarah Baartman

7. Kou Kama

R6 380

 
 

Amathole

8. Amathole

R13 207

 
 

Chris Hani

9. Chris Hani

R5 000

 

2. Western Cape

Garden Route

10. Oudtshoorn

R47 150

 

Grant Total: 02

06

10

R173 132

 

  • (bb) During the 2021/2022, an amount of R157 million was transferred to 16 municipalities in four provinces (Kwazulu-Natal, Limpopo, Northern Cape and North West) from the Municipal Disaster Response Grant to repair damaged public municipal infrastructure due to Tropical Storm Eloise.

Province

District

Municipalities

Allocation R'000

Hazard

1. KwaZulu Natal

uThukela

1. Alfred Duma

R31 937

Tropical Storm Eloise

2. Limpopo

Capricorn

2. Blouberg

R12 900

 
 

Capricorn

3. Lepelle-Nkumpi

R5 626

 
 

Capricorn

4. Molemole

R1 000

 
 

Capricorn

5. Polokwane

R2 600

 
 

Vhembe

6. Makhado

R26 000

 
 

Vhembe

7. Thulamela

R13 000

 
 

Vhembe

8. Collins Chabane

R26 000

 

3. Northern Cape

Frances Baard

9. Magareng

R6 440

 
 

Frances Baard

10.Sol Plaatjie

R1 015

 
 

Frances Baard

11.Phokwane

R6 456

 
 

ZF Mgcawu

12.Kgatelopele

R1 838

 
 

John Taolo

13.Gamagara

R7 000

 

4. North West

Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati

14.Lekwa Teemane

R4 570

 
 

Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati

15.Naledi

R4 393

 
 

Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati

16.Kagisano Molopo

R6 361

 

Grant Total

07

16

R157 139

 

(cc) in 2022/2023 financial year, an amount of R516 million was transferred from Municipal Disaster Response Grant to 17 municipalities affected by the April 2022 floods. The funds were meant to assist the organs of state with the emergency repair of the damaged infrastructure.

Province

District

Municipalities

Allocation R'000

Hazard

1. KZN

uMgungundlovu

1. Msunduzi

R620

April 2022 floods

 

uMgungundlovu

2. Mkhambathini

R8 200

 
 

iLembe

3. iLembe

R19 500

 
 

uThukela

4. Inkosi Langalibalele

R48 950

 
 

uGu

5. uGu

R2 000

 
 

uThukela

6. Alfred Duma

R14 354

 
 

iLembe

7.  Kwa-Dukuza

R109 103

 
 

uGu

8.  Ray Nkonyeni

R19 100

 
 

Metro

9.e-Thekwini

R185 000

 

2. EC

OR Tambo

10.Port St John

R13 300

 
 

OR Tambo

11.Ingquza Hill

R4 130

 
 

OR Tambo

12.Nyandeni

R2 693

 
 

Alfred Nzo

13.Umzimbuvu

R10 500

 
 

OR Tambo

14.Ntabankulu

R5 111

 
 

Amathole

15.Mbashe

R14 415

 
 

Alfred Nzo

16.Winnie Mandela

R12 790

 

 

OR Tambo

17. OR Tambo

R46 872

 

Total

08

17

R516 748

 

R3.3 billion from Municipal Disaster Recovery Grant to support 16 municipalities affected by the 2022 floods in three provinces. The funds were allocated to municipalities to reconstruct and rehabilitate the damaged infrastructure.

Province

District

Municipality

2022/2023 R&R allocation R'000

Hazard

1. EC

Alfred Nzo

1. Winnie Mandela

R33 806

2022 Floods

2. KZN

Metro

2.    eThekwini Metro

R1 534 785

 
 

King Cetshwayo

3.    uMhlathuze City

R34 966

 
 

King Cetshwayo

4.    King Cetshwayo DM

R4 500

 
 

uThukela

5. Inkosi Langalibalele

R76 950

 
 

uThukela

6.    Alfred Duma LM

R22 000

 
 

iLembe

7.    iLembe DM

R14 549

 
 

iLembe

8.    KwaDukuza LM

R1 271 098

 
 

uMgungundlovu

9.    uMgungundlovu DM

R10 100

 
 

iLembe

10. Mandeni LM

R17 023

 

3. WC

Overberg

11. Theewaterskloof

R1 194

 
 

Overberg

12. Swellendam LM

R3 553

 
 

Cape Winelands

13. Breede Valley

R10 310

 
 

Garden Route

14. Oudtshoorn

R26 664

 
 

Garden Route

15. George

R237 498

 

 03

08

15

R3 318 742

 

(ii) Seven provincial department of agriculture and 60 municipalities received disaster grants funding.

(d) Grants applicants are supported through assessment conducted as and when incidents occur, classification and declaration of the state of disasters. Affected organs of state then submit application for disaster grants through the municipal and provincial Disaster Management Centres. At the provincial and municipal levels the project steering committees are established to monitor the implementation of funded projects.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW3943

Profile picture: Faber, Mr WF

Faber, Mr WF to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

Whether (a) she, (b) the Deputy Ministers and (c) any other official in her department attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023; if not; what is the position in this regard; if so, what (i) are the relevant details of each person in her department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by her department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

Neither (a) Minister Dr GNM Pandor, nor (b) Deputy Ministers KC Mashego-Dlamini and A Botes attended the Rugby World Cup final while (c) three (3) Departmental officials namely the Chief of State Protocol and two Protocol Officials provided support to the President during his attendance of the Rugby World Cup final. The costs for the Department were as follows namely (aa) R146, 714.86 (bb) R 327, 271.75 and (cc) R 213, 873.92

11 December 2023 - NW4168

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Luthuli, Mr BN to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour

What (a) is the estimated number of (i) farm workers and (ii) domestic workers in each province and (b) are the new stringent measures to ensure strict adherence to labour laws?

Reply:

(a) IES does not collect statistics regarding the number of workers, including farm and domestic workers.

(b) Apart from the Labour Inspectors conducting regular labour inspections across South Africa, the Department of Employment & Labour has constituted a special Provincial and National Roving Teams to undertake Blitz Inspections in workplaces to ensure that non-compliant employers are identified and dealt with in line with our enforcement mechanisms. The nation-wide Blitz Inspections have yielded positive results to date and will be intensified henceforth.

11 December 2023 - NW3966

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Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

With reference to the démarche that was issued on 9 November 2023 by her department to the Ambassador of the State of Israel to South Africa, His Excellency Mr E Belotserkovsky, what (a) are the relevant details of the five most recent cases of Ambassadors to South Africa who were démarched, (b) were their countries of origin, (c) were the reasons for the specified course of action and (d) were the dates on which the démarches were issued?

Reply:

a) Name of Head of Mission

b) Country of Origin

(c) Reason for démarche

(d) Date for démarche

High Commissioner Adam McArthy

Australia

To demand a retraction of comments made by Australia’s Minister of Home Affairs on the land redistribution process in the country.

15 March 2018

H.E. Mrs Librada Ela Asumu

Equatorial Guinea

To register South Africa’s strong objection to the circumstances related to the arrest and detention without charge of two South African citizens in Equatorial Guinea.

21 February 2023

Ambassador RE Brigety II

USA

Ambassador Brigety was démarched following a press conference that he had convened on Thursday, 11 May 2023, wherein he levelled allegations against SA, regarding the sale of ammunition/armaments by South Africa to Russia, via the US sanctioned Russian naval

12 March 2023

Ambassador Mr Eliv Belotsercovsky

Israel

To discuss the violence arising from the continued occupation of Palestine by Israel. This included the recent attack by Hamas and the response by the Government of Israel which has resulted in over 15 000 deaths, mostly civilians. This demarche dealt with South Africa’s concern about the grave breaches of international criminal law, including possible war crimes by Hamas and possible war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide by the Government of Israel in Gaza.

9 November 2023

11 December 2023 - NW4004

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Mthethwa, Mr E to ask the Minister of Finance

Whether, following the pronouncement to write-off Eskom electricity bills of indebted municipalities, he has considered the same approach for the poor people who are deeply indebted to their municipalities to such an extent that some have lived for long periods without electricity because of the confiscated Eskom transformers in their areas?

Reply:

There are two main challenges in terms of arrears owed to Eskom as well as municipalities: first, consumers who do not pay for municipal services delivered; and second, a lack of leadership to ensure that credit control is enforced and Eskom and / or municipal revenue is collected. As a result, a blanket approach to consumer debt write-off is not economically viable, affordable or prudent as it will not address these underlying challenges and will likely further exacerbate the consumer debt owed to Eskom and municipalities.

In this context, it should be noted that the write-off of consumer debt owed to municipalities and Eskom falls within the ambit of Eskom and / or the respective municipalities who are providing the consumer with electricity within the demarcation and cannot be separated from proper indigent management.

Annually the Local Government Equitable Share (LGES), based on the most recent statistical data, provides for a package of free basic services (FBS), including 50 kilowatt hours free electricity to poorer households within the identified municipal demarcations (including Eskom supplied areas). Unfortunately, the National Treasury analysis indicates that many municipalities do not provide all households that qualify with this benefit and many municipalities divert the LGES: FBS component earmarked for poorer households to fund other municipal priorities and salaries. Consequently, they do not pay Eskom the FSB: electricity component.

Both the Eskom and municipal debt relief conditions allows the write-off of consumer debt. However, this is subject to the implementation of pre-paid smart metering for any consumer who is unable to repay Eskom or the municipality coupled with restricting electricity to the national FBS: free electricity policy limit in the case of indigent consumers.

Please refer queries regarding the removal or confiscated transformers to Eskom as they are the appropriate institution to respond to this matter.

11 December 2023 - NW3976

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Engelbrecht, Mr J to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

Whether (a) she, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) any other official in her department attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023, if not what is the position in this regard; if so what (i) are the relevant details of each person in her department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by her department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

a) The Minister, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) the departmental officials did not attend the Rugby World cup final in France in October.

11 December 2023 - NW3899

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Alexander, Ms W to ask the Minister of Finance

(1)In light of the expenditure cuts presented in the 2023 Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement, and with reference to his statement affirming that the cuts were not made without detailed analysis, what are the relevant details of the specific analytical model employed to ensure that well-functioning departments with sound financial management are not adversely affected; (2) what are the reasons to subject departments that demonstrate effective governance to the same fiscal constraints as those that do not perform adequately?

Reply:

1. The expenditure data presented in the 2023 MTBPS is a synopsis of the comprehensive details that will be presented at the time of the 2024 Budget. In the meantime, as indicated in the 2023 MTBPS the rise in debt-service costs, and weaker revenue collection, is having an adverse impact on the total amount available for government spending. This is the first and most fundamental consideration.

The National Treasury conducts regular assessment of the financial performance of departments, including in respect of entities that fall under the ambit of specific Ministries. In addition, since 2021 the National Treasury has conducted detailed spending reviews whose outcomes have been shared with departments. With this in mind, and in the context of proposed spending reductions, the National Treasury’s assessments has highlighted poor or low spending over time, poor programme performance, the accumulation of surpluses within departmental accounts and entities, own revenue generation capacity, and opportunities for savings as key considerations in applying reductions. In addition, broader policy decisions of government to refocus priorities has an impact on the decisions related to spending allocations.

The budget process, especially any downward or upward adjustments, is undertaken as a collaborative and consultative process within government. This is because it involves difficult choices and decisions that cannot and should not be made in a purely mechanistic fashion. Moreover, departments and sectors of government perform vastly different functions.

The choices and decisions that must be made are discussed in engagements at the national level in the Ministers’ Committee on the Budget, as well as Cabinet. For sub-national governments, all relevant budgetary issues are determined through the Budget Council (a legislated structure composed of provincial MECs for Finance and the Minister of Finance), and the Budget Forum (a legislated forum that includes members of the Budget Council, the Department of Cooperative Governance, and the South African Local Government Association (SALGA). Prior to these discussions, direct engagements take place between departments and officials of the National Treasury on the details of their budgets. Through these processes, agreements are reached on the how to manage the adverse situation for the fiscus, including the choices for spending reductions. Some of these issues remain under discussion.

2. The fiscal constraints on government and the budget are determined by economic performance, tax revenues and market conditions for borrowing. High and rising debt-service costs act as an automatic crowding-out of government spending priorities, including the most important priorities. For this reason, the 2023 MTBPS proposes staying the course for growth and sound public finances, in order to arrest this negative trend. The MTBPS proposal includes measures to boost economic growth so as to improve tax revenue collections without increasing the individual burden on tax-payers – otherwise known as base expansion, and some spending reductions to ensure that the debt position of government does not go out of control. This strategy, if implemented, will prevent the need for even more severe spending adjustments to the budgets of critical service delivery functions.

11 December 2023 - NW3941

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Malatsi, Mr MS to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

Whether (a) he, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) any other official in his department attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023; if not; what is the position in this regard; if so, what (i) are the relevant details of each person in his department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by his department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

I, the Deputy Minister, and any department staff did not attend the Rugby World Cup in France in 2023 in an official capacity. The Honourable Member should note that nothing prevented officials from attending the Rugby World Cup final in France at their own expense.

  1. (a) to (c) not applicable;
  2. (i) to (iii) not applicable; and
  3. (aa) to (cc) not applicable.

Once again, we are proud of the Springboks' triumph and especially the exciting matches against France, England, and New Zealand.

11 December 2023 - NW3903

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Van Zyl, Ms A M to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Whether, with reference to her reply to question 2204 on 19 June 2023 that the Joe Gqabi District Municipality has no firefighting vehicles for structural, mountainous, veld and/or hazmat fires, her department has plans in place to assist the municipality with firefighting vehicles, if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the plans and timeframes of the envisioned assistance to the Joe Gqabi District Municipality?

Reply:

The NDMC Fire Services Directorate, in its attempt to reposition fire services in the country is working closely with the Eastern Cape Provincial Disaster Management Centre in improving capacity within the province to provide a sustainable Fire Services within the Eastern Cape Province, which includes the Joe Gqabi District Municipality. In May 2023 a functionality assessment was performed by the Eastern Cape Provincial Disaster Management Centre to assess the municipality’s capacity, funding sources, human and physical resources to support a fire service. The NDMC Fire Services Directorate further supported the Eastern Cape during the 2023/204 FY by performing capacity assessments within five (5) identified municipalities for the implementation of the National Fire Safety & Prevention Strategy, aimed at lowering prevention of loss of life, with a particular focus on preventing multi-fatality causalities in buildings to which the public have access.

There are plans in place to assist the municipality, to improve its capacity to perform the firefighting function. The NDMC Fire Services Directorate is in the process of drafting a consolidated Status Report of Fire Services in the country which forms part of the Review of the Disaster Management System in the country, and a Fire Services Working Group have already been established to perform this task. The aim of the Status Report is to identify service delivery gaps, and to monetarily quantify the areas where support is needed, from which a business case will be forwarded to the Minister, and upon approval be submitted to National Treasury before the end of March 2024.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW4101

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

What preparations has her department put in place across the country in light of the severe weather warnings of tornados and thunderstorms predicted for the upcoming summer months?

Reply:

The NDMC in collaboration with the SA Weather Service prepares a summer seasonal weather outlook that provides a future prediction of possible severe weather conditions, this encompasses a hazard prediction for flooding, areas of above average temperature, windstorms, drought, and fire. These hazard outlooks are in recognition of the predicted weather conditions for the summer period.

The NDMC uses this forecast to prepare summer contingency plans per province so that short term planning can take place for the season ahead. These are prepared in advance of the season and tabled in the quarterly National Disaster Management Advisory Forum (NDMAF) meetings with provinces. Provinces are also able to report in these NDMAF meetings on areas in which they will require intervention from the NDMC. Provinces also work together in the summer rainfall areas to dela with cross border hazard conditions such as fire, flooding, and drought mitigation.

The NDMAF also features a segment in which Early Warning matters are tabled. Within this discussion, the South African Weather Service presents the seasonal outlook for the South West Indian Ocean, prepared by the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) designated Regional Specialised Met Centre (RSMC) based in La Reunion Island (France). RSMC La Reunion have the responsibility for monitoring and tracking tropical cyclones in the SW Indian Ocean basin and are the de facto tropical cyclone monitoring agency in the region. The outlook for the 2023-2024 summer season is for a below-normal risk of tropical cyclones in the SW Indian Ocean. Utilising daily guidance from RSMC La Reunion the NDMC, together with the SA Weather Service can track Tropical Cyclone in the Indian ocean channel 3-5 Days in advance on it making landfall.

The NDMC early Warnings Directorate has a technology application that tracks the path, frequency, and possible impact of Tropical Cyclones. In this way, the NDMC can ensure that it monitors and reports on the possible impact and track of all tropical cyclones approaching South Africa via the Indian Ocean.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW4109

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Thembekwayo, Dr S to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

In light of the student accommodation shortages predicted at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology for the 2024 intake, what assistance will he provide learners of the specified institution?

Reply:

On the 21 November 2023, the occasion of the opening applications for 2024, Universities were discouraged from embarking on lengthy contracts since NSFAS is finalising its concept note on piloting student accommodation in universities at the start of the academic year 2024. Should CPUT be selected or asked to be part of the pilot project, NSFAS will advise on its decision to accredit or not accredit all properties within a radius of 1 (one) to 16km from all CPUT campuses, namely Paarl/Wellington, Bellville, and Cape Town.

11 December 2023 - NW3989

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Buthelezi, Mr EM to ask the Minister of Finance

Whether he intends to introduce a conditional grant, specifically the Local Economic Development Grant, aimed at stimulating the local economy to drive economic development and address the pressing issue of unemployment in rural areas; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

Municipalities have the option to utilise several grants, such as the Integrated Urban Development Grant (IUDG), Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG), and Urban Settlements Development Grant (USDG), for infrastructure-based LED initiatives. This is an acceptable practice. However, in terms of a specific introduction of a conditional grant like the Local Economic Development Grant, created to drive economic development and alleviate unemployment in rural areas, we are unable to offer details until the conclusion of the current review. Currently, government is reviewing the structure and system of conditional grants, limiting significant changes to existing grants until the review is completed.

11 December 2023 - NW4025

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Zondo, Mr S S to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

Whether his department conducted any financial audit on the University of Venda in the 2022-23 financial year; if not, why not; if so, (a) what were the findings of the audit, (b) on what date will the audit report be released into the public domain and (c) what are the further relevant details?

Reply:

The Department did not conduct any financial audit on the University of Venda in the 2022-23 financial year. In terms of the Department’s annual reporting regulations for universities, an annual audit of the financial statements of a university is conducted by external auditors appointed by the University. All universities submit their annual report with the audited financial statements to the Department at the end of June each year.

11 December 2023 - NW3694

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Shikwambana, Mr M to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

What are the reasons for his refusal to release the report of Prof Yunus Ballin into the administration of the National Student Financial Aid Scheme?

Reply:

There is no motive or desire to withhold the report. I have tasked my team to process the report further to the Portfolio Committee on Higher Education, Science and Innovation.

11 December 2023 - NW4100

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Tito, Ms LF to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether she has been informed that in Khehlekile Primary School a young queer boy was allegedly bullied by his school teacher which resulted in the boy committing suicide; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what disciplinary steps have been taken against the specified teacher?

Reply:

1) The  Department is aware about the sad incident involving a Grade 6  boy from Khehlekile Primary School in Thokoza (Ekurhuleni).

2) The Gauteng Department of Education (GDE) instituted an investigation which was conducted by an independent law firm. A report with recommendations was compiled and shared with the family and the school. The GDE has started a disciplinary process against all implicated officials at the school, including a learner. The final outcome of the disciplinary process is awaited.

11 December 2023 - NW4016

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Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

Why is the Government seeking relief from the International Criminal Court (ICC) by referring the situation in the State of Palestine to the ICC on 17 November 2023, considering that the Government attempted to withdraw from the Rome Statute and also contravened rulings of the ICC in the past (details furnished)?

Reply:

South Africa remains a State Party to the Rome Statute of the ICC, and as such enjoys all the rights of a State Party, including to do a referral of a situation to the ICC in terms of Article 14 of the Rome Statute. On 17 October 2023, South Africa, joined by Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros and Djibouti, referred the situation in Palestine to the ICC, in view of prima facie evidence that crimes within the jurisdiction of the ICC had been committed and are continuing to be committed within the context of the conflict in Gaza. By this referral, South Africa, joined by other members of the international community, is illustrating its commitment to fighting impunity.

11 December 2023 - NW4058

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Khumalo, Dr NV to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

Whether she will advise on the progress of the (a) management of the housing beneficiary list and (b) integrated National and/or Provincial lists; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; 2) How does she envisage the management of the housing lists in the interim?

Reply:

In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Provincial Departments had their own waiting lists that were not digitised and were held in various offices.

1) Progress:

a) The National Department has developed the National Housing Needs Register (NHNR) which is utilized at provincial and municipal level to enable citizens to register their need for adequate shelter. The Provincial Departments use the NHNR to identify potential beneficiaries to ensure that the allocation process is fair and transparent.

b) The NHNR contains the integrated National and/or Provincial lists of households/ individuals that must go through the application process to become eligible beneficiaries.

2) Housing lists are captured on the NHNR, which has identified weakness. There are still allegations of beneficiary list manipulation. We are in a process to have a digital platform that reduces the risk of manipulation, that is transparent and increases accountability

11 December 2023 - NW4017

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Hlengwa, Mr M to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

Whether, considering that the Government has referred the Prime Minister of Israel, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, and his senior officials to the International Criminal Court, calling for them to be investigated for war crimes and crimes against humanity, the Government has also called for Hamas leaders to face the same scrutiny; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

On 17 November 2023 South Africa, joined by Bangladesh, Bolivia, Comoros and Djibouti, referred the situation in the State of Palestine to the Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) pursuant to Article 14 of the Rome Statute. Although Israel is not a State Party, the ICC has jurisdiction over crimes committed in the Palestinian territories by nationals of Israel. The ICC also has jurisdiction over crimes committed in Israel by nationals of the State of Palestine. Through this referral, South Africa has not called upon the OTP to investigate specific persons, rather it is a call upon the OTP to prioritise the Palestine situation and to vigorously investigate all crimes committed in the situation that fall within the jurisdiction of the ICC.

11 December 2023 - NW3866

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Loate, Mr T to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

(1)Whether her department, subsequent to the issuing of regulations in 2007 in respect of the minimum competencies of senior managers in local government, has now fully ensured that the specified goal was met, to counter the criticism of the Report of the National Planning Commission (details furnished); if not, why not; if so, what total percentage of senior managers in local government presently meet the qualification criteria; (2) What progress has her department made in providing the framework in local government for the creation of a skilled and/or professional public service to enhance the highest quality service delivery in local government

Reply:

1. The Municipal Regulations on Minimum Competency Levels, 2007 (Government Gazette No. 29967 of 15 June 2007) were promulgated in terms of section 168 of the Local Government: Municipal Finance Management Act, 2003 (Act No. 56 of 2003). The Regulations are administered by the National Treasury, and therefore any details pertaining to progress in achieving the specified goals should be obtained directly from the National Treasury.

2. The following progress has been made since the adoption of the new system of local government in 2000 to build an ethical, professional and capable local public administration responsive to the needs of communities:

a) Regulations on appointment and conditions of employment of senior managers

These regulations contribute to the professionalisation of local public administration by setting out uniform procedures for appointment of municipal managers and managers directly accountable to municipal managers (senior managers), including the appointment criteria (i.e. competency requirements, higher education qualifications and experience) necessary to enable incumbents to perform the duties associated with the relevant posts.

b) Municipal Performance Regulations for Municipal Managers and Managers Directly accountable to Municipal Managers

The objectives of these regulations are to provide a framework that ensures that municipalities are performance orientated and responsive to community needs; foster a culture of commitment to serving the public; and a collective sense of responsibility for performance in terms of standards and targets in order to maximise the ability of municipalities as a whole to achieve their objectives and improve the quality of life of their residents.

c) Disciplinary Regulations for senior managers

These regulations prescribe, amongst others, uniform procedures for reporting incidents of breach of the Code of Conduct for Municipal Staff; investigation of allegations of misconduct; appointment of presiding officers; roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders; and sanctions.

d) Municipal Staff Regulations

These regulations were promulgated on 20 September 2021 with the implementation date of 1 July 2022. The regulations incorporate minimum competency requirements for staff below management echelons which forms the basis for sector-wide skills audit and development programmes while ensuring that all municipal staff members participate in the performance management system in order to maximise the ability of municipalities to achieve their objectives and improve the quality of life of their residents. The skills audit exercise will provide a useful baseline information on skills profiles, workplace skills plans and sector skills plans.

e) Municipal Systems Amendment Act, 2022 (Act No. 3 of 2022)

The Municipal Systems Amendment Act provides legal certainty with regards to the Minister’ regulatory powers, including -

  • Provision for the appointment of municipal managers and managers directly accountable to municipal managers;
  • Provision for procedures and competency criteria for such appointments, including consequences of appointments made otherwise than in accordance with such procedures and criteria;
  • Provision procedures for performance evaluation;
  • Limiting the political rights of all municipal managers and managers directly accountable to municipal managers from holding political office in a political party;
  • Regulating the re-employment of municipal staff members who have been dismissed for misconduct;
  • Prohibits the bloating of municipal administration;
  • Provision for mandating procedures to be adhered to by organised local government before it embarks on wage negotiations in the bargaining council designated for municipalities; and
  • Empowering the Minister to investigate maladministration, fraud, corruption or any other serious malpractice in municipalities, if the MEC fails to conduct such investigations.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW4033

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Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour

Whether the total cost of departmental end-of-year functions has been budgeted for in the current financial year; if not, from what budget line item will the funding be sourced; if so, (a) what amount has been budgeted, (b) from what budget line item will it be incurred and (c) what are the further relevant details?

Reply:

No, the department does not budget for end-of-year functions and there is no expenditure for the current financial year. Where branches/programmes wish to have year-end functions, employees make personal contributions (it’s completely private).

  1. N/A
  2. N/A
  3. None

11 December 2023 - NW3816

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Zondo, Mr S S to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

Whether his department has conducted any audits into (a) further education and training colleges and (b) public universities from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2022; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details of each audit of each institution in the specified period?

Reply:

a) The Auditor-General of South Africa (AGSA) has elected to audit all 50 TVET Colleges as part of its mandate as provided through the Public Audit Act. The AGSA implemented a phased-in approach over a 4-year period, in which all 50 TVET were audited from the 2017 financial year. The audit outcomes of the TVET Colleges for the period 2017 to 2022 is listed in the table below:

TVET College

2017

2018

2019

2020

2021

2022

  1. Boland

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. Buffalo City

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Cape Town

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Capricorn

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Central Johannesburg

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Disclaimer with other matters

Disclaimer

Outstanding

  1. Coastal

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Adverse

Disclaimer

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Outstanding

  1. East Cape Midlands

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Ehlanzeni

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Adverse

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Adverse

  1. Ekurhuleni East

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. Ekurhuleni West

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Elangeni

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Esayidi

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. False Bay

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Flavius Mareka

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Gert Sibande

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Outstanding

  1. GoldFields

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Ikhala

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Ingwe

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with other matters

Qualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. King Hintsa

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. King Sabata

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Lephalale

Disclaimer

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

  1. Letaba

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Lovedale

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified

  1. Majuba

Qualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Maluti

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Mnambithi

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Mopani

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Motheo

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Mthashana

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Nkangala

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Northern Cape Rural

Unqualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Northern Cape Urban

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Northlink

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. Orbit

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Port Elizabeth

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Sedibeng

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Sekhukhune

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. South Cape

Unqualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. South West Gauteng

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Taletso

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Outstanding

  1. Thekwini

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Tshwane North

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Qualified

Qualified

  1. Tshwane South

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Umfolozi

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Umgungundlovu

Qualified

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. Vhembe

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Vuselela

Disclaimer with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Disclaimer

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

  1. Waterberg

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified with emphasis of matter

Qualified

Unqualified with emphasis of matter and other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

  1. West Coast

Unqualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with other matters

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified

  1. Western

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

Unqualified with emphasis of matter

b) The Department does not conduct audits on public universities. In terms of the Higher Education Act, 101 of 1997, the council of a public higher education institution must in the manner prescribed by the Minister ensure the implementation of the recommendations of an external auditor in accordance with accepted audit principles and standards on an annual basis. The Minister has prescribed through the Regulations for Reporting by Public Higher Education Institutions (2014) that the Councils must include in their annual reports the statement of the Audit Committee on how it fulfilled its responsibilities and the report of the independent auditor on the annual report. Independent (external) auditors of universities are appointed by the councils, with the concurrence of the Auditor General South Africa.

The Council on Higher Education through the Higher Education Quality Committee (HEQC) also conducts institutional audits as part of its responsibilities for quality assurance. The audits focus on an institution’s policies, systems, procedures, strategies and use of resources. More specifically, the institutional audits also seek to assess an institution’s capacity for quality management of its academic activities in a manner that meets its specified mission, goals, and objectives, and engages appropriately with the expectations and needs of various internal and external constituencies.

11 December 2023 - NW3867

Profile picture: Mohlala, Ms MR

Mohlala, Ms MR to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation

What urgent steps has his department taken to address the (a) funding challenges and (b) cost overruns faced by the Umzimvubu Water Project, particularly in light of the significant budget discrepancies reported for the (i) Ntabelanga and (ii) Laleni Dams?

Reply:

a) The Department of Water and Sanitation has taken the following steps to address the funding challenges related to the Umzimvubu Water Project:

  • Through its Water Resource Development Planning unit, the Department has undertaken a project reconfiguration which resulted in a saving of 45% on the project.
  • The reconfiguration included:
    • Using existing water services infrastructure rather than building new water services infrastructure
    • Deferring Lalini Dam to a later stage
    • Removing non-essential elements such as the visitor centre.
  • The reconfigured project has been approved by national Treasury for funding from the fiscus.

b) The current activities which have had costs associated to them are mainly the Design Development and construction of the Access Road. There were no cost overruns for the design development as it was within budget. The current contract for the construction of the Access Road, which is ongoing, is also within the budget with no overruns expected. The Department has started work on the construction of Ntabelanga Dam.

--00O00---

11 December 2023 - NW3937

Profile picture: Chetty, Mr M

Chetty, Mr M to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour

Whether (a) he, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) any other official in his department attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023; if not; what is the position in this regard; if so, what (i) are the relevant details of each person in his department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by his department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

Minister did not attend the Rugby World Cup in France in October 2023. 

Deputy Minister did not attend Rugby World Cup in France in October 2023.

11 December 2023 - NW4026

Profile picture: Buthelezi, Ms SA

Buthelezi, Ms SA to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

Whether she is responsible for putting functional measures in place in municipalities to combat intimidation and abuse faced by municipal workers who report and/or attempt to report corruption and maladministration in municipalities; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what functional measures has been put in place?

Reply:

Protection for whistleblowers, including municipal employees and councillors who report allegations of corruption, maladministration and related offences at municipalities is provided by the Protected Disclosures Act, 2000 (Act No. 26 of 2000) (“the PDA”). The PDA was primarily enacted to provide for procedures in terms of which employees in both the private and the public sector may disclose information regarding unlawful or irregular conduct by their employers or other employees in the employ of their employers and most importantly to provide protection to employees who make a disclosure.

The purpose of the PDA is to protect workers from being subjected to an “occupational detriment” because they made a protected disclosure; to provide for remedies where an occupational detriment does occur and to provide procedures in terms of which information can be disclosed in a responsible manner. The PDA is administered by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development.

Practically, this means that if a person discloses information which is classified as a protected disclosure and an occupational detriment occurs because of disclosing, an employee or worker can approach any court with jurisdiction, which includes the Labour Court, for appropriate relief. The courts are empowered to make any appropriate order which is just and equitable in the circumstance where an occupational detriment has occurred.

Municipalities are encouraged through the Local Government Anti-Corruption Strategy to develop whistle blowing policies to encourage the reporting of allegations of corruption, maladministration and related offences at municipalities. Furthermore, municipal officials and councillors can report any act of corruption and maladministration anonymously through the National Anti-Corruption Hotline (NACH) administered by the Public Service Commission (PSC).

It has been highlighted that while the PDA is well intended, it is deficient in many important respects. As such, there is a process currently underway, lead by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, to review the PDA with a view to close the identified gaps.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW4003

Profile picture: Mthethwa, Mr E

Mthethwa, Mr E to ask the Minister of Finance

Since the financial services sector is a highly regulated sector, what (a) exemptions or gaps has his department identified as loopholes that allow the existence of bogus financial services and medical insurance companies that swindle vulnerable people (details furnished) and (b) forms of communication have been used to reach out and educate people about such scams, especially those who have limited or no access to modern communication resources and skills?

Reply:

a) South Africa's financial services sector is sophisticated and well-regulated, and it offers a vast array of financial products and services. This level of variety requires consumers to be equipped with the information, knowledge, and skills necessary to evaluate their options and select the ones that best suit their needs and circumstances. This is especially true for populations that have historically been underserved by our financial system and those with low incomes who confront additional obstacles owing to resource constraints.

Several gaps have been identified as loopholes that allow the existence of bogus financial services that swindle vulnerable people. Firstly, limited financial literacy levels among South African consumers. According to the 2020 Financial Sector Conduct Authority Baseline survey, South Africans have an average financial literacy score of 52 out of 100. This suggests that South African consumers have limited knowledge to understand financial sector products/services. This exposes South Africans to predatory lending, financial scams, and acquiring inappropriate financial products or services with inadequate disclosures. As a result, there is a continued need for comprehensive financial consumer education programmes, complemented with a range of consumer protection measures.

Secondly, the rapid pace of digitalisation has encouraged development of innovative financial sector products and services, creating new opportunities and risks for consumers. While technology and digital financial services offer great opportunities to boost financial inclusion, increase access to the mainstream financial system and increase consumer conveniences, this development, adds complexity to how consumers engage with the financial services industry. Challenges are more pronounced for consumers with low financial and digital literacy.

According to the South African Banking Risk Information Centre annual crime statistics report for 2022[1], South Africa faces challenges related to an array of financial and banking crimes spanning contact crimes, digital offenses, application fraud, and card fraud. Furthermore, South Africans continue to fall prey to get-rich-quick schemes. Scammers are increasingly exploiting conventional and trusted systems, such as stokvels. Scammers may, for instance, present themselves as legitimate stokvels, investment schemes, or property stokvels when, in fact, they are Ponzi or pyramid schemes[2]. The pursuit of unreasonably high returns also makes uninformed consumers easy targets for fraudulent investments. With the emergence of crypto assets, Ponzi schemes that are crypto based have become more common[3]. There is a need for greater vigilance and caution when engaging with this sector of the financial system.

b) National Treasury, through the National Consumer Financial Education Committee (NCFEC), comprising of representatives of government departments, regulators, financial sector industry associations, professional bodies, academia, and non-profit organisations, has annually been running a Money Smart Week South Africa (MSWSA), a financial education awareness campaign since October 2018. A variety of topics[4] including scam awareness are addressed through community radio station interviews, in-person activations and social media channels to relay the messages to consumers.

Furthermore, the Financial Sector Conduct Authority (FSCA) regularly issues warnings to the public on fraudulent companies and individuals purporting to be offering legitimate financial services to the public. Members of the public are always urged to be cautious and verify the authenticity and registration status of service providers, by contacting the FSCA through a number of mechanisms the FSCA has made available on their website.

National Treasury has not been made aware of the existence of bogus medical insurance companies.

  1. South African Banking Risk Information Centre annual crime statistics report for 2022 https://www.sabric.co.za/media/gq4hmbjw/sabric-annual-crime-stats-2022.pdf

  2. FSCA issues public warning against United African Stokvel https://www.fsca.co.za/News%20Documents/FSCA%20Press%20Release%20-%20FSCA%20warns%20the%20public%20against%20United%20African%20Stokvel%20-%2017%20July%202023.pdf

  3. FSCA media statement on investigation on Mirror Trading International Available https://www.fsca.co.za/News%20Documents/FSCA%20Press%20Release%20-%20The%20FSCA%E2%80%99s%20investigation%20on%20Mirror%20Trading%20International%20nears%20completion%2017%20December%202020.pdf

  4. Money Smart Week South Africa 2023 Activity List https://www.mswsa.co.za/MSWSA%20Documents/Money%20Smart%20Week%20South%20Africa%202023%20Activity%20List.pdf

11 December 2023 - NW4077

Profile picture: Khanyile, Ms AT

Khanyile, Ms AT to ask the Minister of Home Affairs

(1)Whether, with reference to the backlog of applications for Temporary Residence Visas since 1 September 2023, any temporary residence visa applications that have been adjudicated on have been finalised by the (a) Chief Directorate and/or (b) Director-General (DG) without going through quality assurance by the supervisor and/or secondlevel director; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (2) whether the DG and/or any member of his department authorised that a temporary residence visa application be finalised without being (a) assigned for adjudication and (b) adjudicated on; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, wat are the relevant details?

Reply:

1.No, all applications are subjected to quality assurance levels within the applicable Standard Operating Processures (SOPs) and legislative prescripts.

2. No. Neither the DG nor any of his officials has given authorization to have an application finalised without going through the established processes.

END

11 December 2023 - NW4117

Profile picture: Ngcobo, Mr SL

Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour

Whether his department has adopted any step-by-step measures to ensure that (a) formal and (b) informal businesses enforce and implement the National Minimum Wage as adopted; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

The Inspections & Enforcement Services Branch of the Department of Employment & Labour conduct proactive and reactive inspections pertaining to compliance with the National Minimum Wage Act 9 of 2018 across all 9 Provinces. All formal businesses and workplaces across all economic sectors are inspected in this regard by Labour Inspectors. For the Financial Year 2023/24, we have set a country wide national target of conducting 168 864 NMW related inspections. As per the end of the second semester; we had managed to conduct 81 722 NMW inspections countrywide. Advocacy Sessions in the form of Seminars, Workshops, Information Sessions and shop floor awareness sessions are held to raise the awareness of the National Minimum Wage.

With regards to labour inspection in the informal economy, the Department of Employment & Labour is currently piloting a project of undertaking research-based inspections in the informal business sector in all Provinces with the aim of conducting labour inspections in the informal economy within the next 2-3 years. This Pilot Project has yielded valuable data thus far with regards to the specific dynamics of the informal economy which will assist the Department in tailor-making a unique approach for the provision of Inspection and Enforcement Services in the informal economy.

11 December 2023 - NW3909

Profile picture: Marais, Mr PJ

Marais, Mr PJ to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans

Considering that the Chief of the SA Reserve Force is appointed on the recommendation by the Chief of the SA National Defence Force (CSANDF), whose term of office correlates with that of the CSANDF, what (a) are the reasons the immediate former Chief of SA Reserve Force was appointed only for a year, (b) were the costs related to his elapsed term of office, (c) was his contribution and guidance to the Reserve Force Indaba policy with regard to the future of the Reserve Force and, (d) are the reasons that this was considered value for money in view of the budget constraints of the SA National Defence Force?

Reply:

Find reply here

11 December 2023 - NW4005

Profile picture: Herron, Mr BN

Herron, Mr BN to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation

Whether, considering that on 9 December 2023 the United Nations (UN) marks the adoption of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (the Genocide Convention), which is also the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime (details furnished), the Republic, as a party to the Genocide Convention, will call upon the competent organs of the UN to take action under the Charter of the UN in relation to the conflict and the genocide taking place in Gaza; if not, why not; if so, (a) by what date will the Government take the specified step and (b) what are the relevant details?

Reply:

(a) and (b) Against the backdrop of Israeli contraventions of international law in Palestine, the South African Government has commenced preliminary discussions among relevant Government Departments to consider taking further steps for accountability by Israel for the crime of genocide. The South African Government is also considering steps for the potential mobilisation of support by UN Member States for holding Israel accountable, in the context of the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide and of the Prevention of this Crime. The commemoration by the UN in this regard presents a propitious moment for giving effect to the Genocide Convention.

.

11 December 2023 - NW3729

Profile picture: Mkhonto, Ms C N

Mkhonto, Ms C N to ask the Minister of Communications and Digital Technologies

Considering that several poor and unemployed women in the rural areas have been contributing towards group funeral schemes with the SA Post Office (SAPO), and noting that in the past three weeks their funeral claims could not be paid, with SAPO claiming that it has run out of funds, (a) what is the exact reason behind the nonpayment of the SAPO funeral claims, (b) what total number of (i) claims has SAPO received from 1 October 2023 to date and (ii) the specified claims were not paid, (c) what is the total monetary value of the claims, (d) which provinces are most affected, (e) by what date is it envisaged that the claims will be honoured and (f) how does SAPO intend to ensure that all the investors do not lose their funeral benefits?

Reply:

(a)(b)(c)(d)(e)(f) The SAPO does not have a product on funeral schemes. It only collects monthly premiums for Assupol, Lifewise etc. and no claims for these clients are processed via SAPO. The only claims for funeral cover that are claimed through the Post Office are for the Government Employees Pension Fund (GEPF) which is funded by them, and there is no backlog with these (GEPF) claims.

Thank You.

11 December 2023 - NW4028

Profile picture: Zondo, Mr  S S

Zondo, Mr S S to ask the Minister of Higher Education, Science and Innovation

Whether he intends making the (a) budget and (b) total spending of all institutions of higher education (i) public knowledge and (ii) released in each quarter into the public domain; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

a) (i) The budgets for Higher Education Institutions are published in the Appropriation Bill annually.

(ii) The budgets for Higher Education Institutions are made public quarterly

b) (i) The amount transferred to Higher Education Institutions are published in the Annual Report of the Department.

(ii) The total amount transferred to Higher Education Institutions are made public quarterly.

11 December 2023 - NW3677

Profile picture: Khumalo, Dr NV

Khumalo, Dr NV to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

What are the full relevant details of the measures that her department has taken to address the widespread challenges associated with the high number of abandoned housing projects due to the non-performance of contractors?

Reply:

Following her assignment to the human settlements portfolio in 2021, Minister Kubayi declared the unblocking of human settlements projects as part of her apex priorities as these deny qualifying households their right to adequate housing and dignity. Thereafter the Minister directed her department and its sector partners (Provinces and Municipalities) to unblock all blocked or abandoned projects over a period of three financial years, namely, 2022/23 – 2024/25.

Subsequently, all provinces collectively identified a total of 320 blocked and incomplete projects which were placed in their 2023/24 Business Plans and later approved by the Minister with the requisite budget.

The human settlements sector defines a blocked and incomplete project as; A project where no progress delivery has been made for a period of 12 months following the first payment to the contractor. Blocked and incomplete projects include serviced sites and houses at different levels of construction namely, slab level, wall-plate level, roof level, etc.

The most common factors that lead to the blocking of human settlements projects are illegal land occupations, geotechnical variations, construction mafias, community unrest, the escalation of material costs, the lack of bulk infrastructure and link services including poor performance by contractors (some of whom would have abandoned sites).

The Department continues to monitor and support the progress of provinces on the unblocking of blocked and incomplete human settlements projects through physical site visits and the Provincial, Municipal and Human Settlements Entities Performance Reviews that are held each quarter.

In addition to the above, the Department has encouraged all sector partners to;

  • Create mechanisms through which they will develop, empower and support small, medium and micro enterprises.
  • Strengthen their Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and contracts to enforce penalties and consequences against non-performing contractors and;
  • Terminate the contacts of non-performing contractors as a last resort.

11 December 2023 - NW4166

Profile picture: Ngcobo, Mr SL

Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education

Whether her department has any functional interdepartmental agreements in place with the Department of Health and the Department of Social Development to assist each other in decreasing the number of teenage pregnancies and/or HIV/AIDs infections in (a) public and (b) private schools in each province; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?

Reply:

Yes. The Department of Basic Education has a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Departments of Health (DOH) and Social Development (DSD) to implement the Integrated School Health Programme (ISHP) in order to provide health and social services to learners including Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) information and services. The three departments have also developed Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for the provision of SRH services in Secondary Schools.

11 December 2023 - NW4057

Profile picture: Khumalo, Dr NV

Khumalo, Dr NV to ask the Minister of Human Settlements

What plans are in place to address the performance of her department about the issuing of Title Deeds throughout the Republic.

Reply:

The Human Settlements MinMec resolved on 15 September 2023 to launch Title Deed Fridays, a campaign dedicated to the issuing of title deeds to beneficiaries of state-subsidised housing by politicians and administrators at the national, provincial and local levels.

The Ministry and Department of Human Settlements keeps track of the number of title deeds on hand, title deeds handed over to municipalities and the number of title deeds handed over to beneficiaries. This information is solicited from provincial departments regularly to ensure that we are able to track progress against updated information.

11 December 2023 - NW3875

Profile picture: Mthethwa, Mr E

Mthethwa, Mr E to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs

With reference to the report of the Auditor-General of South Africa on municipal audits, what steps has she taken to mitigate against the deteriorating service delivery of poor performing municipalities with adverse audit reports?

Reply:

Poor service delivery can be attributed to various factors including financial liquidity challenges; inadequate allocation of financial resources for infrastructure development; poor contract management; and poor maintenance of infrastructure. Additionally, corruption, poor governance and political infights and/or disagreements distract priorities and delivery of services within municipalities.

Addressing these issues require a comprehensive approach involving improved governance; effective municipal leadership; collaboration with strategic partners within local government, and strategies to address governance failures.

The state of local government (SoLG) report identified 66 municipalities as dysfunctional, and these municipalities had challenges across the key performance areas of political, governance, administration, financial management and service delivery. In response to getting these municipalities out of this state of dysfunctionality, the Department developed Municipal Support and Intervention Plans (MSIPs) to address the short and medium-term challenges identified in the SoLG report for each of the municipalities and key local government performance areas. The implementation of MSIPs is monitored on a quarterly basis to assess achievement of proposed actions; facilitate adjustments based on changing circumstances, and for accountability.

The Department, including its provincial counterparts, have various intergovernmental forums and engagements on support to improve municipal performance and service delivery. Provinces also have provincial structures that discuss similar matters, and some established the Rapid Response Teams or Multi-disciplinary teams to respond to municipalities that have service delivery challenges.

The Department provides the following support aimed at strengthening the capacity within municipalities as a complementary process to enable a conducive environment for improved service delivery:

  • The Department, through the Municipal Infrastructure Support Agent (MISA), supports municipalities by among others, placement of civil and electrical engineers to assist with infrastructure management and capacity building in municipal project management units.
  • Use of the Municipal Systems Improvement Grant (MSIG) to stabilize institutions and governance systems. The implementation of the projects through MSIG includes capacity building for long term viability in targeted municipalities.
  • Municipalities that experience liquidity challenges and adopted unfunded budgets are persuaded to develop budget funding plans. Some have developed financial recovery plans to improve their cashflow and minimise the use of conditional grants for operational cost.
  • Strengthen oversight committees to exercise their oversight role in ensuring accountability.

End.

11 December 2023 - NW4187

Profile picture: Cardo, Dr MJ

Cardo, Dr MJ to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour

Whether he will furnish Dr M J Cardo with a granular level breakdown of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey data of the third quarter of 2023 released on 14 November 2023, up to a municipal level, including (a) the number of the (i) employed and (ii) unemployed and (b) the labour force participation rate for each municipality, specifically the municipalities of (i) Oudtshoorn (ii) Swellendam and (iii) Nama Khoi; if not, why not in each case; if so, what are the detailed statistics for each specified municipality in each specified category?

Reply:

In the country, Statistics South Africa (Statssa) is the primary official statistical agency in line with the Statistical Act. Every quarter, it releases the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) results that provide statistical information on the changes in labour market activities both quarter to quarter and year on year changes. In QLFS 3 of 2023, the labour market activities were based on a sample size that was approximately 30 000 dwelling units. In this context, the response rates are only estimated at the provincial and metropolitan areas.

Regarding the granular level breakdown for all indicators mentioned by Honourable Dr M J Cardo, it is safe to indicate that such level of data details is not published in the QLFS. One key reason is associated with the sample size that is too small for reliable estimates in particular for all values of 10 000 or lower. This means each specified municipality for each specified group could not have reliable estimates because of the low response rates in each case. Thus, the granular level breakdown up to the municipality results are not estimated and released.

END

11 December 2023 - NW3938

Profile picture: De Villiers, Mr JN

De Villiers, Mr JN to ask the Minister of Finance

Whether (a) he, (b) the Deputy Minister and (c) any other official in the National Treasury attended the Rugby World Cup final in France in October 2023; if not; what is the position in this regard; if so, what (i) are the relevant details of each person in his department who attended the Rugby World Cup, (ii) is the total number of such persons and (iii) were the total costs of (aa) travel, (bb) accommodation and (cc) any other related costs that were incurred by his department as a result of the trip(s)?

Reply:

 

(a)

Minister

(b)

Deputy Minister

(c)

Any other National Treasury official

(i) Details of each person in department who attended the Rugby World Cup in France in October 2023

No

No

No

(ii) Total number

N/a

N/a

N/a

(iii) (aa) Travel

Nil

Nil

Nil

(iii) (bb) Accommodation

Nil

Nil

Nil

(iii) (cc) Any other related costs

Nil

Nil

Nil