Questions and Replies

Reply:

DAFF

(a)(i) 2015/16: R 829 000

2016/17: R2 806 000

2017/18: R5 479 000

(b)(i) 2015/16: Total budget: R6 408 750 - percentage: 0.01%

2016/17: Total budget: R6 514 965 - percentage: 0.04%

2017/18: Total budget: R6 847 034 - percentage: 0.08%

NAMC

No Irregular expenditure, unlawful and wasteful expenditure were incurred by NAMC for the past three years.

MLRF

Financial year	Fruitless and Wasteful	Irregular	Budget	% Fruitless & Wasteful	% Irregular
	R'000	R'000	R'000	R'000	R'000
2015/16	225	12 772	537 276	0.04%	2.38%
2015/17	1 274	103 400	511 280	0.25%	20.22%
2015/18	2 336	172 281	558 841	0.42%	30.83%

PPECB

Wasteful expenditure	FY 2018	FY 2017	FY 2016
Changes in travel arrangements (cancellations, rescheduling)	9,112	4,278	16,000
Charges for late payments to suppliers	55	3,341	77
Inaccurate supplier and employee payments	64,134	-	-
Unapproved expenditure		-	2,864
	73,301	7,619	18,941
% of expenditure budget	0.021%	0.002%	0.006%
Irregular expenditure	FY 2018	FY 2017	FY 2016
Deviation from 3-quote process, prior CEO approval not obtained	32,250	10,226	37,206
Procurement of items on expired contract, prior CEO approval not obtained	-	73,457	-
Deviation on minimum threshold for local content	512,402	-	-
	544,652	83,683	37,206
% of expenditure budget	0.156%	0.026%	0.013%

  OBP

Irregular expenditure as per the audited annual financial statement	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18
	R190,636	None	None
Percentage of the total budget constituted	2015/16	2016/17	2017/18
	0.16%	0%	0%

ARC

		2015/16 R’000	2016/17 R’000	2017/18 R’000	Total R’000
	Fruitless & Wasteful Expenditure	265	129	199	593
	Irregular Expenditure	205,177	199,263	106,294	510,734
a		205,443	199,392	106,493	511,327
	Total Operational Budget	1,091,069	1,103,000	1,368,991	3,563,060
	Total Capital Budget	82,610	86,988	91,338	260,936
	Total Budget	1,173,679	1,189,988	1,460,329	3,823,996
b		17.5%	16.8%	7.3%	13.4%

Reply:

1. Yes

a) Section 7.2 (e) of the Policy for the Allocation and Management of Fishing Rights in the Large Pelagic Longline Sector: 2015. This provision stipulates that because of a lack of suitable South African vessels and South Africa’s limited experience in tuna longlining, joint ventures with non – South Africans may be a necessity; In additi.on, South Africa is a Contracting Member of the International Commission for Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT) and the Indian Ocean Tuna Commission (IOCT) and is bound to adhere to respective Recommendations and Resolutions of the respective tuna Regional Fisheries Management Organisations (tRFMOs). One of those is ‘’Vessel Chartering “which allows for fishing vessels to be chartered between Contracting Parties.

b) Combined Fishing Enterprises CC, Ferro Fishing ( Pty) Ltd and Impala Fishing ( Pty) Ltd

c) Three (3)

d) 2005

2. Yes

In accordance with section 39 of the Marine Living Resources Act, 1998 (Act No.18 of 1998) (“the MLRA’’), a foreign vessel license is issued to the vessels before any fishing activity can take place. In addition and in accordance with section 13 of the MLRA, a Permit to Undertake Commercial Fishing of Large Pelagic Longline is issued to the Right Holder, permitting the vessel to harvest the Large Pelagic species allocated to the Right Holder. Lastly, a Fish Processing Establishment permit is issued to the vessels as they process fish on board. The vessels are subjected to the applicable domestic legislation and permit conditions, including a Vessel Monitoring System and additionally, foreign fishing vessels are required to have 100% Observer coverage.

Noting South Africa’s obligations to the ICCAT and IOCT, all the catch and observer data accrues to South Africa.

Reply:

DAFF’S RESPONSE:

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries entered into the following contracts with the service provider: VOX Telecommunications PTY (LTD)

What was the service provided	What was the value of the tender or contract	What was the length of the tender or contract	Who approved the tender or contract	Was the tender or contract in line with all National Treasury and departmental procurement guidelines
4.4.12.2/5/14: Appointment of a service provider for the supply, delivery and implementation of audio visual solutions for Forestry board room at 110 Hamilton building and Imbizo board room at Harvest House building for DAFF for a period of 3 years	R1 269 881.30	1 October 2014 to 30 September 2017( 3 years)	The Departmental Bid Adjudication Committee	Yes. The prescribed Departmental Bid process was followed, in line with the National Treasury guidelines.
4.4.12.4/1/15: Appointment of a service provider to perform an Internet Service Solution to DAFF for a period of 3 years	R 10 664 205.85	1 October 2015 to 30 September 2018 (3 YEARS )	The Departmental Bid Adjudication Committee	Yes. The prescribed Departmental Bid process was followed, in line with the National Treasury guidelines.
RFB 1653-2017: Appointment of a service provider to provide an internet service solution to DAFF for a period of 5 years	R10 553 922.39	1 October 2018 to 30 September 2023	The acting Director General confirmed the recommendation of the bidder via the SITA bid process.	Yes. The SITA bid process was followed and confirmed by the Acting Director- General.

NAMC

OBP has never awarded contracts or tenders to any of the companies listed as per attachment.

OBP

OBP has never awarded contracts or tenders to any of the companies listed as per attachment.

ARC

ARC has never awarded contracts or tenders to any of the companies listed as per attachment.

MLRF

No response

PPECB

Period: 2009 - 2018				Compliance
No.	Supplier	Service Provided (i)	Value of Tender (ii)(a)	Length of Contract (ii)(b)	Approval (iii)	National Treasury (Yes/No) (iv)	Procurement Guidelines (Yes/No) (iv)
1	Vox Telecommunications	WAN Infrastructure	R       17,880,527	5 years	PPECB Board	YES	YES
2	Vox Telecommunications	Supply of APN Services	R             340,715	24 months	CEO	YES	YES

Reply:

1. (a) The Directorate Food Safety and Quality Assurance does not have positions or designations of inspector posts in their establishment since in the main it is the policy development unit. The Directorate utilizes a matrix of inspectors residing within the Directorate Inspection Services and the designated assignees to enforce the two legislations (Agricultural Product Standards Act 119 of 1990 and the Liquor Products Act 60 of 1989). There are currently 39 inspectors who are responsible for inspection of certain regulated products and the exercise of an oversight role over the activities of the designated assignees. (b) there is a total of (i) 30 (thirty) filled posts and (ii)  9 (nine) vacant posts.\
2. (a) There is no work of the Directorate Food Safety and Quality Assurance that has been outsourced. However, the Agricultural Product Standards Act 119 of 1990 does allow the designation of assignees to complement the inspection services. There are currently seven assignees in terms of the Agricultural Product Standards Act (b) the designation does not cost the department anything.

Reply:

1. The remainder of the Farm Groot Zalze 998 in Stellenbosch was defined as an agricultural land prior to the publication of 2 March 2018, gazette 41473.

2. Following engagement with the Western Cape Provincial Department of Agriculture, Stellenbosch Municipality and public consultation through gazette, the Farm Groot Zalze 998 was excluded in terms of section 1 of SALA

Reply:

1. Minister has never been –

(a)(i) Influenced by any person; nor has

(a)(ii) Minister ever influenced any member of staff in his department to take any official administrative action on behalf of any –

(aa) member;

(bb) employee; and/or

(cc) a close associate of the Gupta family.

 

(b) Minister has never attended any meeting where any of the specified persons were present.

Reply:

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF), donated tractors to the Provincial Departments of Agriculture (PDAs) eight years ago as a once off support. On delivery these tractors became the ownership and responsibility of each PDA to distribute within their respective provinces.

DAFF has conducted an investigation to verify the status of all tractor assets for each PDA focusing on the condition and usability of each tractor. During this investigation some tractors were found to be unavailable or missing. To date DAFF has compiled a status report that indicates the state of tractors in each province and the missing tractors have been captured as such. Currently communication to get responses on the missing tractors is in progress amongst the Engineers that were part of the investigation. The next steps are that in November DAFF will share the report and liaise with the Executive officials from PDAs to embark on further investigations to track these missing tractors with the intention of locating these back into the pool.

Reply:

For the past ten (10) financial years artwork was not identified as a high risk area to be audited and therefore no internal audits were conducted of artwork owned by Government which is under the Minister’s department’s curatorship. Although no internal audits were done there are regular stock takes of assets performed by the Directorate: Asset Management. The latest stock take conducted on the artwork in the Ministry office in Cape Town was on 20 September 2017 and no discrepancies were found.

Currently there are five artwork paintings and all five of them are currently in room 106 in Cape Town. Please refer to the attached document for the details as per the stock take conducted on 20 September 2017.

Reply:

Yes, the Mpumalanga Provincial Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, Land and Environmental Affairs did compensate the livestock farmers of Kwasimu farmers association those affected by the disaster by replacing their livestock.

i. What are the relevant details of all assistance provided to the farmers

The Provincial Cabinet took a resolution that the Department should compensate the farmers who were affected by replacing their livestock. Agricultural Advisors, Animal Health Technicians and Veterinarians were deployed to visit the affected farms. During the visits the Departmental officials verified the number of animals that had died and a list was developed based on the verification. All the farmers who reported to the Department that they lost livestock were visited for verification. The Department had set a period whereby affected farmers were given an opportunity to register the dead livestock. The farmers who did not report any loss of livestock during that period to the Department were unfortunately not recorded in the Departmental list of affected farmers

As part of the compensation, the Department procured 1 000 Nguni Heifers for the farmers based on the approved list of 399 affected farmers who lost 1 583 animals. The replacement livestock was kept within Thembisile Hani Local Municipality at Leeuwkop farm, in Verena for diseases monitoring before handing over to the verified beneficiaries. A task team was formed which was led by department officials based at the Province and District. Ward councilors and farmers’ representative (chairperson of Kwasimu farmers association) formed part of the task team for coordination.

An official handover of the livestock was done by the Hon MEC Gamede on the 18th April 2015 at Kwaggafontein.The distribution of the livestock then commenced on the 19th April 2015 to Saturday 30th April 2015 at Leeuwkop farm.

A distribution strategy was used to ensure a fair and transparent distribution of the livestock to the affected Thembisile Hani livestock beneficiaries:

• All affected farmers received letters which indicated how many cattle each farmer will receive and the date on when they will come to collect their livestock
• Farmers provided their own transport for collection
• A formula was developed by the Department to determine on how many cattle each farmer would receive as compensation. This formula enabled all the farmers to receive livestock and those that have lost more livestock received more livestock as per the formula
• The farmer signed an acknowledgement letter after receiving the livestock, kept as portfolio of evidence
• A permit was also provided to allow them to take the livestock to their different locations.

By the end of the distribution period 847 cattle were distributed to the 355 farmers. Some farmers on the list were no longer traceable using their contact numbers and officials went to an extent of delivering the invitations into their homes and dipping tank committees, CDWS and councilors were engaged as an endeavor to get all the listed farmers. A grace period until the 4th of May 2015 was given to allow the farmers who didn’t pitch for collection to come and collect their livestock. After the grace period, the remaining livestock was taken out from Leeuwkop farm on the 14th May 2015 to a farm near Marapyane College research farm, this was to avoid high costs for keeping the livestock on the holding farm.

ii. the names of all beneficiaries,

List of beneficiaries who received the livestock is attached.

iii. the number of cattle each beneficiary received,

A formula was developed to enable the Department to compensate all the affected farmers as per the attached list

iv. Where were the cattle purchased

An approval to procure directly from the breeder Mr. HA Rassouw (Duma Investment) was obtained from the Accounting Officer

v. what was the condition of the cattle and

Most of the heifers were in a good condition as they were certified by local Veterinarians on arrival for diseases and were also monitored on daily basis during the distribution period

vi. the average age of the cattle;

Most of the cattle provided were first time calving heifers and were pregnant. Some gave birth during the distribution period on the holding farm

(2)  Whether his Department and/or the Department of agriculture in Mpumalanga gave any livestock to traditional leaders following the specified livestock mortality disaster;

Yes, from the surplus of the specified livestock mortality disaster, 28 (twenty eight) Traditional Leaders including the Ingwenyamas were given 155 (Hundred and fifty five) cattle following the pronouncement by the then Premier of the Mpumalanga Province Honourable DD Mabuza that the Traditional Leaders should also be supported with livestock.

(3) whether any small-scale farmers affected by the specified livestock mortality disaster were excluded as beneficiaries for assistance; if so, (a) why and (b) which small-scale farmers were excluded?

No affected small scale farmers were excluded.

Reply:

a) The top five companies or individuals with the highest allocation of fishing rights in the country are:

Ranking	Company	Number of Commercial Fishing Rights held
1	Premier Fishing SA (Pty) Ltd	9
2	Eyethu Fishing (Pty) Ltd	7
3	Dyer Eiland Visserye (Edms) Bpk Impala Fishing (Pty) Ltd Irvin & Johnson Limited Letap cc Viking Fishing Co (Deep Sea) (Pty) Ltd	6
4	BMC Visserye Bk Combined Fishing Enterprises (Pty) Ltd Ferro Fishing (Pty) Ltd Fisherman Fresh cc Hacky Fishing (Pty) Ltd JC Fishing cc Offshore Fishing Company (Pty) Ltd	5
5	Atlantis Seafood Products (Pty) Ltd Balobi Fishing Enterprises (Pty) Ltd Balobi Processors (Pty) Ltd Bayana Bayana Fishing cc Biz Afrika 131 (Pty) Ltd Cape Fish Processors cc Cyrel Burrel Fishing cc DMA Fishing Enterprises (Pty) Ltd Humansdorp Community Factory Workers (Pty) Ltd Komicx Products (Pty) Ltd Laaggety Visserye Bk LM Fisheries (Pty) Ltd Mayibuye Fishing (Pty) Ltd Noordkaap Visserman Onderneming Bpk Ocean Ukhozi Fishing (Pty) Ltd Ocean View & Masiphumelele Fishing (Pty) Ltd Quayside Fish Suppliers Cape (Pty) Ltd Risar Fishing cc Sceptre Fishing (Pty) Ltd Sevlac Investments No 51 cc Striker Fishing Ent. (Pty) Ltd Ukloba Fishing (Pty) Ltd Ukuloba Kulungile Investments (Pty) Ltd Ulwandle Fishing (Pty) Ltd Unathi-Wena Fishing cc Viking Inshore Fishing (Pty) Ltd Visko Seeprodukte (Pty) Ltd	4

(b) The fishing rights allocation in each case were:    

Company name	Number of rights	Sector	TAC/TAE
Premier Fishing SA (Pty) Ltd	9	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	628.921 tons
		Hake longline	43.949 tons
		Horse mackerel	448.8 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-15721.7 tons Sardine-4396.96 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-307.79 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-1595.6 tons
		South coast rock lobster	134625 kilograms
		Squid	74 crew
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	64307 tons
EYETHU FISHING (PTY) LTD	7	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	3719.462 tons
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-19.248 tons Hake-285.038 tons
		Hake longline	52.253 tons
		Horse mackerel	1433.1 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-3894.25 tons Sardine-1262.19 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-88.35 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-395.11 tons
Dyer Eiland Visserye (Edms) Bpk	6	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	130.284 tons
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-13.11 tons Hake-163.862 tons
		Horse mackerel	469.2 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Sardine-175.91 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-12.31 tons
Impala Fishing (Pty) Ltd	6	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	533.96 tons
		Hake longline	102.745 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-3498.64 tons Sardine-534.07 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-37.38 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-355.06 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
IRVIN & JOHNSON	6	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	34503.575 tons
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-32.502 tons Hake-1509.417 tons
		Horse mackerel	1101.6 tons
		Patagonian toothfish	77.05 tons
		Squid	16 crew
LETAP CC	6	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-163.862 tons
		Horse mackerel	484.5 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Sardine-223.78 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.66 tons
		Squid	44 crew
Viking Fishing Co (Deep Sea) (Pty) Ltd	6	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	2261.225 tons
		Hake longline	48.059 tons
		Horse mackerel	1058.25 tons
		KZN prawn trawl	1 right
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
BMC VISSERYE BK	5	Demersal Shark	1 vessel
		Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.936 tons Hake-173.94 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Squid	15 crew
Combined Fishing Enterprises (Pty) Ltd	5	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	666.888 tons
		Hake longline	70.134 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-1166.99 tons Sardine-411.4 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-28.8 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-117.99 tons
FERRO FISHING (PTY) LTD	5	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	45.829 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	2582 tons
Fisherman Fresh Cc	5	Demersal Shark	1 vessel
		Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-122.897 tons
		Horse mackerel	494.7 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-223.078 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.66 tons
HACKY FISHING (PTY) LTD	5	Demersal Shark	1 vessel
		Hake longline	93.269 tons
		KZN prawn trawl	1 right
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Tuna pole	3 vessels
JC Fishing CC	5	Horse mackerel	252.45 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Sardine-222.02 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.54 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	2582 tons
Offshore Fishing Company (Pty) Ltd	5	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	2032.19 tons
		Horse mackerel	484.5 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-2192.78 tons Sardine-366.53 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-25.66 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-222.99 tons
		Squid	18.5 crew
Atlantis Seafood Products (Pty) Ltd	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-8.64 tons Hake-245.793 tons
		Horse mackerel	765 tons
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	1990 tons
BALOBI FISHING ENTERPRISES (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake handline	37 crew
		Hake longline	77.409 tons
		Squid	97 crew
BALOBI PROCESSORS (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake handline	48 crew
		Hake longline	78.637 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-313.51 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-21.95 tons
Bayana Bayana Fishing CC	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Small pelagics	Sardine-145.68 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-10.2 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
BIZ AFRIKA 131 (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	43.949 tons
		Squid	16 crew
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
Cape Fish Processors Cc	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-163.862 tons
		Hake longline	59.029 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-2965.32 tons Sardine-868.85 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-60.82 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-300.93 tons
Cyrel Burrel Fishing CC	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-163.862 tons
		Hake longline	75.639 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
DMA FISHING ENTERPRISES (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	2026.107 tons
		Hake longline	333.753 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-1013.36 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-70.94 tons
HUMANSDORP COMMUNITY FACTORY WORKERS (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	66.161 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-266.6 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-18.66 tons
		Squid	16 crew
Komicx Products (Pty) Ltd	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Small pelagics	Sardine-743.56 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-52.05 tons
		Squid	16 crew
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
Laaggety Visserye Bk	4	Hake longline	36.167 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-223.78 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.66 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	2582 tons
LM FISHERIES (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake handline	25 crew
		Hake longline	100.83 tons
		Squid	25 crew
Mayibuye Fishing (Pty) Ltd	4	Hake deep sea trawl	1915.759 tons
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-90.698 tons
		Horse mackerel	96.9 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-223.78 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.66 tons
NOORDKAAP VISSERMAN ONDERNEMING BPK	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	1306.45 tons
		Hake longline	127.745 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
OCEAN UKHOZI FISHING (PTY) LTD	4	Hake inshore trawl	Sole-9.642 tons Hake-163.862 tons
		Hake longline	104.259 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	3436 tons
OCEAN VIEW & MASIPHUMELELE FISHING (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	67.837 tons
		Squid	27 crew
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
QUAYSIDE FISH SUPPLIERS CAPE (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	522.637 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-1307.03 tons Sardine-457.44 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-32.02 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-133.15 tons
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	3624 tons
RISAR FISHING CC	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	96.244 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-853.4 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-59.74 tons
		South coast rock lobster	11408 kilograms
Sceptre Fishing (Pty) Ltd	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	75.168 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-336.09 tons Sardine-679.75 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-47.58 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-34.64 tons
		Squid	54 crew
Sevlac Investments No 51 CC	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Horse mackerel	504.9 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
Striker Fishing Ent. (Pty) Ltd	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	43.949 tons
		Squid	41 crew
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
UKLOBA FISHING (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	219.811 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-4434.56 tons Sardine-624.39 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-43.71 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-450.32 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
UKULOBA KULUNGILE INVESTMENTS (PTY) LTD	4	Hake inshore trawl	Sole-8.64 tons Hake-245.793 tons
		Horse mackerel	765 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
		West coast rock lobster (offshore)	1990 tons
ULWANDLE FISHING (PTY) LTD	4	Hake longline	326.471 tons
		Horse mackerel	499.8 tons
		Small pelagics	Anchovy-2333.98 tons Sardine-582.73 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-40.79 tons Sardine by-catch - Anchovy-237.07 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
UNATHI-WENA FISHING CC	4	Demersal Shark	1 vessel
		Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake longline	68.03 tons
		Large pelagics	1 vessel
VIKING INSHORE FISHING (PTY) LTD	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake inshore trawl	Sole-95.946 tons Hake-787.931 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-250.28 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-17.52 tons
		Tuna pole	1 vessel
Visko Seeprodukte (Pty) Ltd	4	Fish processing establishment	1 right
		Hake deep sea trawl	398.941 tons
		Small pelagics	Sardine-222.12 tons Sardine by catch (juv)-with DIRECTED Sardine-15.55 tons
		Squid	86 crew

Reply:

• The Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries does not own land but administers it on behalf of the Department of Public Works. The land is leased to prospective producers as per prescripts defined and agreed to.

• With regards to ownership of land by entities reporting to the Minister, only the Agricultural Research Council owns land but there are no external investors on the current land under its administration.

Reply:

DAFF RESPONSE

(1)   (a) WHAT NUMBER OF LABOUR DISPUTES ARE CURRENTLY BEING FACED BY (i) HIS DEPARTMENT AND (ii) THE ENTITIES REPORTING TO HIM, (b) WHAT IS THE CAUSE OF EACH DISPUTE, (c) WHAT IS THE NATURE OF EACH DISPUTE AND (d) ON WHAT DATE WAS EACH DISPUTE (i) REPORTED AND (ii) RESOLVED;

Q(1)(a)(i): Number of current disputes face by the department	Q(1)(a)(ii): Number of current disputes face by entities of the department	Q(1)(b): cause of each dispute	Q(1)(c): nature of dispute	Q(1)(d)(i): Date of dispute referral	Q(1)(d)(ii): Date of dispute resolved
Twenty (20)	NA	Employee not shortlisted for a post she applied for.	Unfair Labour Practice (promotion)	03 November 2017	Awaiting arbitration award from General Public Service Coordinating Bargaining Council (GPSSBC).
		Precautionary suspension	Unfair Labour Practice (unfair suspension)	8 September 2016	Arbitration adjourned to 4 & 5 September 2018.
		Job Evaluation results	Unfair Labour Practice (promotion)	29 January 2018	Awaiting notice of setdown from GPSSBC.
		Resignation due to allegedly intolerable work environment	Unfair dismissal (constructive dismissal)	17 October 2016	Awaiting arbitration award from GPSSBC.
		Job grading	Unfair Labour Practice (promotion)	17 February 2018	Awaiting notice of setdown from GPSSBC.
		Pay progression	Unfair Labour Practice (Benefits)	7 July 2017	Awaiting notice of setdown from GPSSBC.
		Dismissal	Unfair dismissal (s186(1)	10 August 2017	Awaiting notice of setdown from GPSSBC after matter was postponed.
		Dismissal	Unfair dismissal (s186(1)	22 November 2017	Awaiting notice of setdown from GPSSBC.
		Job Evaluation (JE) results	Unfair Labour Practice (promotion)	15 December 2017	Awaiting arbitration award from GPSSBC.
		Implementation of Occupation Specific Dispensation (OSD)	Interpretation and application of collective agreement	21 July 2017	Awaiting arbitration award.
		Disciplinary sanction: suspension without pay	Unfair Labour Practice (unfair suspension)	13 November 2017	Arbitration adjourned to 11 & 12 September 2018.
		Precautionary suspension	Unfair Labour Practice (unfair suspension)	18 January 2017	Arbitration adjourned to 5, 6 & 7 September 2018.
		Leave payout	Unfair Labour Practice (Benefits)	12 February 2018	Matter withdrawn on 21 August 2018.
		Discrimination during salary upgrades	Unfair Labour Practice (promotion)	12 May 2017	Awaiting ruling on jurisdiction.
		Suspension	Unfair Labour Practice (unfair suspension)	5 November 2017	Part-heard matter. Commissioner has given the date of 17 September 2018 as the date for finalisation of the matter.
		Dismissal	Unfair Dismissal	6 February 2018	Settlement agreement entered into with the applicants. Awaiting Ministerial approval. Minister has approved the submission. Human Resources unit to facilitate the JE process.
		Conditions of employment	Unfair Labour Practice (conditions of employment)	09May 2018	Settlement agreement entered into with NEHAWU. The post is to be job evaluated.
		Victimization	Unfair Labour Practice (occupational detriment).	09 July 2018	Awaiting arbitration date
		Non-payment of pay progression	Unfair Labour Practice (Benefits)	17 June 2018	Awaiting award to be issued by the Arbitrator.
		Payment of subsidized vehicle.	Unfair Labour Practice (Benefits)	03 November 2017	Arbitration scheduled for 3 October 2018.

(2) (a)(i) WHAT NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES HAVE BEEN DISMISSED BY HIS DEPARTMENT IN THE PAST FIVE YEARS AND (ii) FOR WHAT REASON WAS EACH EMPLOYEE DISMISSED AND (b)(i) WHAT NUMBER OF THE SPECIFIED EMPLOYEES WERE PAID SEVERANCE PACKAGES AND (ii) WHAT WAS THE MONETARY VALUE OF EACH SEVERANCE PACKAGE? 

Q2(a)(i): Number of dismissed employees in the past five years	Q2(a)(ii): reason for dismissal for each employee	Q2(b)(i): employees paid severance packages	Q2(b)(ii): monetary value of each severance package
Twenty two (22)	Employee 1: Fraud	None (0)	R0.00
	Employee 2: Fraud
	Employee 3: Absenteeism and misuse of state vehicle
	Employee 4: Gross insubordination
	Employee 5: Fraud
	Employee 6: Fraud
	Employee 7: Assault
	Employee 8: Abscondments
	Employee 9: Assault
	Employee 10: Absenteeism
	Employee 11: Absenteeism
	Employee 12: Abscondment
	Employee 13: Fraud
	Employee 14: Rhino poaching
	Employee 15: Fraud
	Employee 16: Timber theft
	Employee 17: Fraud
	Employee 18: Abscondment
	Employee 19: Rhino poaching
	Employee 20: threatening to kill supervisor and gross insubordination
	Employee 21: Absenteeism
	Employee 22: Fraud

ARC RESPONSE

1.There are only two disputes in this category that are in superior courts of law in the ARC.

a) One is in the Labour Court regarding the calculation of interest in the past dispute. The other is in the High Court as a claim for consequential damages for dismissal.

b) The cause of the labour court dispute was the result of a finding by the CCMA that the failure to renew a fixed term contract amounted to a dismissal.

2. a. (i) 36 employees were dismissed and reasons are attached to the annexure to this document.

    (ii)Reasons are attached as annexure to this document.

b. (i) The ARC has not offered any employee severance package during this period.

    (ii)The question is not applicable.

NAMC RESPONSE

1. None

2. (a)(1) 4 Employees

(ii) Misconduct

(b) (i) None

(ii) None

SAVC RESPONSE

1 (a) The SAVC does not have any current labour disputes.

2 (a) (i) The SAVC had one (1) dismissal in the past (5) years; and

(ii) The employee was dismissed for Gross Misconduct due to gross continued abuse of organisation resources / property.

(b) (i) One (1) employee was paid a separation package subsequent to a settlement agreement during a disciplinary hearing; and

(ii) The monetary value of the voluntary separation package was R107 484.00 equivalent to three month’s salary.

OBP RESPONSE

No	Cause of the dispute	Nature of dispute	Date reported	Date resolved	Outcome
1	The employee was dismissed after an internal disciplinary hearing for being AWOL.	Employee alleged unfair dismissal and lodged a dispute at the CCMA.	April 2017	On going	CCMA ruled in favour of OBP. The employee has referred the matter to the Labour Court
2	The employee was suspended for gross violation of OBP manufacturing practices.	Employee lodged 2 cases of unfair suspension with CCMA	February 2017	December 2017	The CCMA ruled in favour of OBP on both occasions
3	The employee was dismissed for gross violation of OBP manufacturing practices.	Employee lodges a case with the CCMA for access to information	August 2017	28 February 2018	The CCMA ruled in favour of OBP
4	The employee was dismissed for gross violation of OBP manufacturing practices.	Unfair dismissal lodged at CCMA	August 2017	On going	The matter is set down for 30 August 2018
5	Employee was dismissed for gross insubordination	Unfair dismissal	June 2017	December 2017	Matter settled
6	Employee was dismissed for not following quality procedures.	Unfair dismissal	February 2018	June 2018	Matter settled
7	Employee alleges unfair labour practice for equal pay for equal pay	Unfair labour dispute	February 2018	On-going	Matter set down for 26 July 2018 and will continue on 10 and 11 September 2018
8	Wage Bargaining	The Unions rejected the last offer from OBP and lodged an MMI with CCMA	July 2018	Ongoing	The matter is set down for 24 August 2018
9	Unfair dismissal	The employee refer the matter to the labour court	2015	On-going	The matter is set down for March 2019

PPECB RESPONSE

(1)  (a) The PPECB currently has one dispute that has been reffered to the CCMA.Details are depicted below:

No.	(b) Cause of Dispute	(c) Nature of Dispute	(d)(i) Date Reported	Date CCMA	Outcome	Remarks
1	Contract Employee has an expectation of permanent employment.	Section 198 of Labour Relations Act	25-May-18	12-Jun-18	Referred to arbitration.	Pending until 12 Sep-18

(2)  (a)(i) The table below depicts dismissals that occurred at the PPECB over a period of 5 years. 

(i) Employee Nr	Dismissal Date	(ii) Reason for Dismissal	(b) Severance Package
1	05/08/2013	Misrepresentation	R-nil
2	09/05/2014	Misrepresentation	R-nil
3	04/05/2015	Misrepresentation	R-nil
4	21/05/2015	Misrepresentation	R-nil
5	23/08/2016	Misrepresentation	R-nil
6	25/05/2017	Absconded and Dishonest	R-nil
7	09/06/2017	Misrepresentation	R-nil
8	31/08/2017	Inappropriate use of company property	R-nil
9	12/03/2018	Material breach of contract	R-nil

It is worth noting that majority of the cases relates to misrepresentation meaning that people were dismissed for fraudulent claims relating to timesheets.

Reply:

(1) (a)

DAFF

(1) (a) Total number
(i) DDGs	(ii) CDs	(i) DDGs	(ii) CDs
(aa) Acting capacity	(aa) Acting capacity	(bb) Permanent capacity	(bb) Permanent capacity
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
1 (12/9-20/9)	0	3	1	6	1	21	15

* Men and women

(2) (a)

ARC

(2) (a) Total number
(i) Chief Executive Officers	(ii) Directors
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
1	0	21	8

* Men and women

NAMC

(2) (a) Total number
(i) Chief Executive Officers	(ii) Directors
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
1	0	8	4

* Men and women

PPECB

(2) (a) Total number
(i) Chief Executive Officers	(ii) Directors
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
1	0	4	2

* Men and women

OBP

(2) (a) Total number
(i) Chief Executive Officers	(ii) Directors
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
1 (Acting)	0	6	3

* Men and women

MLRF – N/A as it does not have employees of its own

(2) (a) Total number
(i) Chief Executive Officers	(ii) Directors
*Total	(b) Women	*Total	(b) Women
0	0	0	0

* Men and women

Reply:

(1) The department has not recently drafted any new inspection regulations on food safety. The only food safety legislation administered by the department is the Meat Safety Act (Act No. 40 of 2000). The other food safety legislations are administered by the National Department of Health (NDoH) and the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) which is an entity under the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti).

Reply:

a) Majola tea estate received funding to the tune of R 28 953 209, 00 since 2011 to date from equitable share.

b) Magwa tea estate received funding to the tune of R 115 625 289.56 since 2011 to date from equitable share.

• It should be noted that funding for the two enterprises was not sourced from the Department of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) conditional grants;
• The response was provided by the Eastern Cape Department of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform (DRDAR);
• The DRDAR appointed their State Owned Entity the Eastern Cape Rural Development Agency (ECRDA) to manage the turnaround strategy of these tea plantations and;
• A report as submitted by ECRDA on activities and financial break down is attached.

Reply:

No. 1	Number of SMS members at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries	Number of SMS members at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Disclosed their financial interests for 2017/18	Number of SMS members at the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries who did not disclose their financial interests for 2017/18
1.	112	112	0

Reply (Q2)

None, according to the records.

Reply (Q3 & 4)

No.	Salary level	Q(3)(a): Number of employees suspended at each salary	Q(3)(b): Number of days suspended	Reason for continued suspension beyond 60 days (if applicable)	Q(4): Total amount of cost of suspension
	Salary level 1 to 6	None (0)	N/A	N/A	N/A
	Salary level 7	Nine (9)	38 days (x 9 employees)	N/A	R249590.56
		One (1)	340 days	Necessitated by nature of misconduct (assault)	R245085.4
	Salary level 8 to 12	None (0)	N/A	N/A	N/A
	Salary level 13	One (1)	20 days	N/A	R55898.79
		One (1)	45 days	N/A	R123911.87
	Salary level 14	None (0)	N/A	N/A	N/A
	Salary level 15	One (1)	74 days	Chairperson of disciplinary hearing granted extension of the suspension.	R265081.26
	Salary level 16 to 17	None (0)	N/A	N/A	N/A
	Total	Thirteen (13)	776 combined total number of days suspended for all employees.		R 939567.88

               

Reply:

The department has started engaging in the drafting of a new Animal Welfare Act since the current legislation in South Africa (the Animal Protection Act, 1962 and the Performing Animals Protection Act, 1935) which are the principal Acts governing the protection of animals are outdated and do not comprehensively address some animal welfare issues and are also not compatible with international standards.

The draft Animal Welfare Bill is still to undergo consultation and other legislation development processes and once promulgated its regulations and schemes will be implemented as per the objectives of the Act. The transporting of live animals will form part of the identified areas that need to be well encompassed in the legislation review process.

Until the time the new Act is promulgated, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) has committed to draft guidelines on key identified areas, and these include the transportation of animals by sea. These guidelines will be based on the OIE minimum standards which include key aspects that seek to address the exporter competency as well as the vessel requirements that transport the animals.

Reply:

 In terms of the current legislation, the mandate for regulating hemp lies with the Department of Health in terms of the Medicines and Related Substances Act of 1965 as well as the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development in terms of the Drugs and Drugs Trafficking Act of 1992. Thus, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries’ has mainly engaged these two departments.

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) is leading the inter-departmental team that is developing a new regulatory framework for hemp. The team is made up of the following departments: DAFF, Health, Trade and Industry, Environmental Affairs, Justice and Constitutional Development as well as the South African Police Services. The team also include state owned entities (SOEs) like Agricultural Research Council (ARC) and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). The engagements between DAFF and other departments as well as SOEs take place through this platform. Much progress had been made in terms of dealing with technical matters regarding production of hemp, research and technology development, commercial feasibility and other related matters.

DAFF and the Department of Health are developing guidelines for regulating the cultivation and manufacturing of hemp and hemp products. As a result of the ongoing engagements amongst the different departments, DAFF has already formally requested the departments of Health and Justice and Constitutional Development to consider the necessary legislative amendments to allow for the commercialisation of hemp in South Africa. DAFF awaits a response from these departments.

Reply:

1.	Willjaro	SA Fence and Gate	Notes
(i) Tenders firms appointed for	R 1 million (approx) (per year for 3 years)	R 50.6 million (approx)	Neither firms were appointed/concluded through bid processes
(ii) Total value of contracts	R 1 million (approx) (per year for 3 years)	R 50.6 million (approx)
(iii) Total amount paid out to	No funds have been paid out to either of the firms to date pending finalisation of investigation
​(iv) Outcomes of work carried out	Some processing of abalone had commenced though had not been concluded	Some work had commenced though had not been concluded	Both firms stopped work when dispute started
​b) Person’s responsible for appointment	DAFF CFO	DAFF CFO	Mr Jacob Hlatshwayo was acting MLRF CFO at those times. The Director of Supply Chain Management (acting), Ms Abigail Booth was responsible for the process of sourcing and finalising firms that complied with our requirements.
​c) Supply Chain processes followed	Deviation through 3 quote system	Deviation through Treasury
2. Recommendation for Auditor General	No recommendations	The matter was raised as a finding in the management report as issued by the Auditor General to the Department. The matter had been escalated and is still under investigation.

1. Wiljaro was a deviation through 3 quote system
2. Wiljaro Purchase order was for the value of approximately R4.5m
3. No funds have been paid out to either of the firms to date pending finalisation of investigation
4. The work had commenced however has not been concluded given the litigation which followed
5. Per documents, it would appear to be the DAFF CFO
6. Reply is in the above column
7. Wiljaro was a deviation through 3 quote system
8. We had informed the auditors of the potential irregularity, hence, we had already commenced and reported on both cases of irregularity
9. The matters are still under investigation and has been escalated to Ministry

(b) Gate and Fence:

1. SA Gate and Fence was a deviation concluded with Treasury approval
2. SA Gate and Fence Purchase order was for the value of approx. R58m
3. No funds have been paid out to either of the firms to date pending finalisation of investigation
4. The work had commenced however has not been concluded given the litigation which followed
5. Per documents, it would appear to be the DAFF CFO
6. Deviation concluded with Treasury approval
7. The auditors were informed by the Department of the potential irregularity, hence, we had already commenced and reported on both cases of irregularity
8. The matters are still under investigation and has been escalated to Ministry

It was the Department who brought this matter to the attention of Auditor General.

viii) The matters are still under investigation and has been escalated

2. 2) The matter was raised as a finding in the management report as issued by the Auditor General to the Department. The matter had been escalated and is still under investigation.

Reply:

What are the details of the tenders awarded to certain companies?

a) Emang Basadi and Forensic (Pty) Ltd, and Forensic (Pty) Ltd.

Appointment was done through contract awardment for litigation services approved by the Accounting Officer

b) B Xulu and Partners Incorporated, what was the value of each contract that was awarded?

Appointment was made via Emang Basadi who subcontracted to B Xulu. B Xulu was also appointed on other matters by the Accounting Officer

c) Was the total amount paid to each specified company?

Emang Basadi – R2.6m

B Xulu – R22m (R17m was repatriated back to SA)

d) Are the details of the outcomes of work carried out for each tender?

The work included attending to Viking Inshore litigation and consequential matters arising from the Viking litigation, Wiljaro litigation and the Bengis matter of which cases were won with costs and monies in process of being returned to MLRF.

e) Are the details of the person who awarded the specified companies the contract and

The delegated Authority, the Accounting Officer

f) Supply chain management processes were followed in awarding each contract?

The contract was awarded via DAFF obo the Department    

Reply:

a) The Department is guided by Supply Chain Guidelines when undertaking bid processes.

b) The Department is doing its best to finalise the matter.

(c)(i) We are currently having consultations regarding interim arrangement to ensure that the required assessments are conducted.

(c)(ii) In May 2018 we had an annual surveillance audit done by the MSC, which went well.

The process of recertification only starts in 2019 and we expect the matter to be resolved by then.

Reply:

(1)(a)(i) There are more than nine hundred and six (906) case dockets that have been opened for Abalone-related cases since January 2012.

(1)(a)(ii) The amount of abalone confiiscated since the 2012/13 Financial Year amouts to approximately one hundred and seventy three thousand two hundred and ninety one kilograms  (173 291 Kg)

(1)(b) Confiscated abalone is kept in the DAFF stores and samples are retained to be used as evidence in criminal cases. Some of the abalone is also used in under-cover operations.

(2) More than two thousand three hundred and two (2302) suspects have been arrested since 2012. Abalone poaching is a criminal offence. Criminal offences are investigated by the South African Police Services (SAPS) and prosecutions are performed by the National Prosecuting Authority, working together with the SAPS Investigating Officers. Information for prosecution of cases and the sentences imposed can therefore be requested from the Natinational Prosecuting Authority (NPA) since criminal prosecutions are their exclusive mandate.

(3) Yes, confiscated abalone was sold.

(3)(a) Confiscated abalone is always sold through an open auction process.

(3)(b) Abalone Right holders with valid permits to operate Fish Processing Establishments qualify to participate in the auction processes.

(3)(c) The proceeds from the sales of confiscated abalone amounts to R22.266m.

(3)(d) Proceeds from the sale of confiscated abalone were channelled into the Marine Living Resources Fund and were used to support the operations of the various Fisheries Programmes which include Fisheries Operations Support, Aquaculture and Economic Development, Marine Resources Management, Fisheries Research Support, Monitoring Control and Surveillance.

(4) Illegal Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing of Marine resources is a global problem. DAFF is working together with the organised international community in endeavours to address this challenge. South Africa has recently acceded to the Food and Agricultural Orgnaisation’s (FAO) Port State Measures Agreement. The fundamental objective of the Port State Measures Agreement is to mobilise international communities to work together in addressing IUU fishing. The efforts to curb IUU on the domestic front requires inter-departmental and multi-discipinary innitiates. The implementation of Operation Phakisa (Ocean’s Economy) has provided an improved platform for all relevant law enforcement agencies to work together in curbing Abalone poaching. DAFF therefore works together with the  other relevant law enforcement agencies, including but not limitted to, the South African Police Services, Department of Environmental Affairs, and South African National Parks.

(5) The Minister’s Budget Vote of 16 May 2018 contained several statements on the ablaone issue, including proposed future approaches to dealing with abalone poaching and the handling of confiscated abalone.

Reply:

• The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) does not own land but administers the land on behalf of the Department of Public Works to preserve the land’s agricultural potential. (Attached is table with detailed information – annexure 1).
• ARC is an Entity that owns land reporting to the Ministers (attached as annexure 2).
• All the farms are leased for private use. (Attached is table with detailed information as annexure 2).

Reply:

1. (a) (i) 2015/2016 = 48

            2016/2017 = 44

           2017/2018 = 44

(ii) 1 April 2018 = 5

(b) 2015/2016 = R432 205.24

     2016/2017 = R361 207.34

     2017/2018 = R658 300.07

     1 April 2018 = R 34 143.43

(c) (i) 2015/2016 = 50

         2016/2017 = 67

         2017/2018 = 38

          1 April 2018 = 0

(ii) 2015/2016 = The repair cost exceeds 50% of the purchase price which is not economical to repair and others written off

     2016/2017 = the repair cost exceeds 50% of the purchase price Which is not economical to repair and others written off

     2017/2018 = The repair cost exceeds 50% of the purchase price which is not economical to repair and others written off

     1 April 2018 = 0

2. There are no tracking devices installed on all the departmental vehicles

Reply:

(a)(i) The Number of cases reported SA Police Service (SAPS) in terms of the Prevention and Combating of Corrupt Activities Act, Act 12 of 2004, are Five (5) Cases and;

(a)(ii) Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI) Three (3) Cases.

(b)(i) Five (5) Cases have been investigated by SAPS and DPCI;

(b)(ii) Five (5) cases have been followed up by the respective accounting officers; and

(b)(iii) Two (2) case resulted in a conviction since 2004 with Two (2) of the remaining cases are before court and Two (2) are still under investigation.

Reply:

No post settlement support was provided by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to the N’wandlamahiri Communal Property Association (CPA); because the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has not received any application for post-settlement support from the CPA. The supports provided by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries and the Provincial Departments of Agriculture are demand driven based on applications for support or referrals from other departments and entities.

Reply:

(1) a) There were no cases of sexual harassment reported in the past three years. However, there is one case of assault which has been reported and is still pending.

(ii) There were no cases of sexual harassment opened since 2017

(b) (i) There were no cases opened and concluded

(ii) There were no cases that were withdrawn

(iii) There are no cases which remains open

(c) There were no sanctions issued

(b) The Department does have a Sexual Harassment Policy. Cases of assault are dealt with in terms of the PSCBC Resolution 1 of 2003 (Disciplinary Code and Procedures). Allegations of sexual harassment are reported through the Sexual Harassment Adviser who with consent of the victim assists in bringing allegations to finality. The perpetrators of sexual harassment are subjected to formal disciplinary proceedings should grounds for misconduct be established after an investigation. An appropriate sanction for such an offence is dismissal as contained in paragraph 4 of PSCBC Resolution 1 of 2003.

2) Not applicable.

Reply:

Has there been any findings by the Auditor-General (AG) in the past three financial years questioning the qualifications of any officials employed by his department:

Yes

(a) Which Official was implicated?

It was Ms N.B. Parker, Director Financial Management, in the Branch: Fisheries Management, during the 2016/17 financial year.

(b) (i) What recommendations were made?

Management should ensure the following

• Section responsible for appointment must ensure that job descriptions are established for each post to be advertised.
• Job descriptions must be reviewed and approved by a senior official before a post is advertised.
• Filling of posts must be properly planned to ensure that advertising requirements are complied with.
• Section responsible for appointments must ensure advertisement for the posts are drafted in a manner that complies with the applicable requirements.
• Before making recommendation to executive authority, the selection committee must satisfy itself that employees meet inherent job requirements.

Management must implement controls over record keeping and safe guarding of the entity information to ensure that that complete, relevant and accurate information is accessible and available in a timely manner to support financial and performance reporting. Furthermore when inspecting qualification of the recommended employee, the Auditor-General noted that they related to the Bachelor of Arts (education) and the Masters in BA was not finance related.

(b)(ii) What internal processes were followed in the appointment of each official?

The recruitment process was conducted in terms of the Public Service Act, 1994, (Chapter IV), the Public Service Regulations, 2001, (Chapter 1, Part VII) as well as all other applicable legislation.

The vacant post of Director: Financial Management (Salary Level 13) was advertised on 10 January 2016, Ref. no. 10/2016/ST in the media (Sunday Times and City Press) with a closing date of 25 January 2016.

The advertisement was in line with the Job Description that had been designed for the post of Director: Financial Management and was approved by the CFO as the senior official under which the post reported. The advert was also in line with the applicable requirements as set out by the DPSA for Senior Management positions.

A total number of 62 applications were received, of which 21 were recommended candidates, 13 possible and 28 non-recommended candidates, respectively.

A pre-selection was done on 11 February 2016 by the Selection Committee Members, through scrutinising each of the applications received, with due consideration to the core functions and requirements of the post as indicated in the advertisement.

The interviews of short-listed candidates were conducted on 16, 17 and 18 February 2016.

The Selection Committee Members consisted of:-

Role	Name	Position
Chairperson	Mr. J. Hlatshwayo	Chief Financial Officer
Member	Ms. S. Ndudane	Deputy Director-General Fisheries Management
Member	Ms. S. Middleton	CD. Fisheries Operations Support

 

Ms S. Melane, Director: Integrated Human Resources Management rendered a secretariat and advisory services to the Selection Committee.

Competency assessment and personnel suitability checks were duly conducted prior to approval of the appointment by the delegated authority (Acting Director General, Mr KCM Mannya) on 26/04/2016.

(b) (iii) What steps were taken by his department after recommendations were made by the AG? 

DAFF does not agree with the audit finding and internal control deficiencies as all the recruitment processes for the post of Dir. Financial Management were conducted in terms of the Public Service Act, 1994, (Chapter IV), the Public Service Regulations, 2001, (Chapter 1, Part VII) as well as all other applicable legislation and all the supporting documents were furnished to the Auditors during the auditing period.

The Job Description and advert, articulating all the inherent job requirements, were duly approved by the CFO and the Acting Director-General at the time.

DAFF does not agree with the recommendation as there is no basis for findings and recommendations as Ms. Parker’s application was scrutinised against the applicable requirements and she met all the said requirements as per the advertisement by the Selection Committee.

In ensuring that the matter is finally laid to rest, the Department has instituted a thorough investigation into the appointment of Ms N.B. Parker.

Reply:

REPLY ATTACHED:

Reply:

(1) What (a) is the total number of incidents of racism that were reported to the human resources offices in (i) his department and (ii) entities reporting to him in (aa) 2016 and (bb) 2017 and (b) are the details of each incident that took place;

There were no incidents of racism which were reported to the human resources officers in department and entities reporting to the Minister in 2016 and 2017

(2) Was each incident investigated; if not, why not in each case; if so, what were the outcomes of the investigation in each case?

Not applicable.

Reply:

• The farms are situated in different districts in all the nine province with the total 73232.1959ha. The properties are leased to Land Reform Beneficiaries for mainly agricultural activities such as livestock grazing and some for planting of crops. (Attached is a table with detailed information – Annexure 2 )

Question:

Whether his department derives any income from any of the pieces of land, if so (a) from which pieces of land and (b) what amount of income did his department derive in each case (i) in the past three financial years and (ii) since 1st April 2018?

Reply:

• The Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries is collecting rentals from the leased farms which are paid through the departmental Standard Bank. (Attached is a spread sheet from Finance regarding the rental collected for the past three financial years and since 1st April 2018 – Annexure 3).

Reply:

I refer to my response to parliamentary question no 3884 tabled on 13 December 2017 where I advised that the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries has not purchased any Range Rovers.

Reply:

Currently no lifestyle audits were done for the Minister, senior management in the department or any heads of entities reporting to the Minister in the past three financial years that the Minister is aware off.

Normally lifestyle audits are done during investigations. The current approved internal audit plan for 2018/19 does not include lifestyle audits as internal audit does not have the necessary capacity, tools and/or skills to do these audits. An auditing firm will have to be appointed for this purpose. The Minister and Director General still needs to decide for whom/what levels, how and when these lifestyle audits need to be done. This can be a costly exercise and the necessary budget needs to be allocated to appoint an auditing firm to conduct lifestyle audits.

Reply:

PART A:

The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) does not own land but administers the land on behalf of the Department of Public Works to preserve the land’s agricultural potential.

(i) what is each plot currently being used for?

Reply: The properties are mainly used for livestock grazing and some for planting of crops.

PART B:

Questions and responses

(i) where is each plot of land located,

Reply: The land in question are in all the 9 provinces: GP (6 488.8419ha), KZN (6 794.6304ha), MP (4 058.6147ha), LP (3 967.2156ha), NC (11 715.7721ha), EC (4 415.2687ha), NW (9 788.393 ha), FS (6 521.4947ha) and WC (19 481.9748ha)

Question:

(ii) what is the size of each specified plot and

Reply: Each land has its size and all combined is 73 232.1959ha for all the 9 provinces.

Question:

(iii) erf number of each specified farm? (See Attachment B)

Reply:

Question	Response	Notes
Whether any abalone has been stolen from departmental stores in the past three financial years	Yes
(a) On what date did the incident take place	29 October 2015 and 18 December 2017
(b) What is the total value of abalone that was stolen	Estimated R1.5m
(c) What are the details of government officials who were involved	No government officials were involved in any of the mentioned incidents
(d) Whether investigations and/or criminal charges have been launched against officials and others who are implicated and	No government officials were involved in any of the mentioned incidents The incidents were both reported to authorities
(e) What steps have been taken against officials and others who are involved	No government officials were involved in any of the mentioned incidents

Reply:

Sub-question (1)

Amathole Forestry Company (Pty) Ltd (“AFC”) was created by government to house state forestry assets in the East Cape South package (Stutterheim and Hogsback region). Amathole Forestry Company owns the plantations and leases the plantations land from the state. In 2005, the Rance Group of Companies through Amathole Timber Holdings (The Holding Company) and its Black Economic Empowerment partners successfully won a public tender and acquired 84% stake in AFC from the state owned parastatal, SAFCOL.

To advance transformation in the sector and achieve Socio economic development as one of the elements of empowerment in terms of the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment legislation by the Rance Group of Companies, Rance Rural Development Agency (RRDA) was created to provide support to rural communities along the Wolf River. AFC through Rance Rural Development Agency is currently supporting 83 rural communities along the Wolf River and Lower Zingcuka Agricultural Cooperative was among the beneficiaries. Predominantly, these rural communities are involved in chillies production as well as vegetables and maize with support from RRDA.

AFC through RRDA entered into a partnership with Lower Zingcuka Agricultural Cooperative Limited in 2012 in which the cooperative was to produce chillies on its land while AFC provide technical support, inputs, operational costs and markets. The product was delivered to a processing plant in Grahamstown that processes the chillies into spice. The facility (Plant) is owned by the Rance Group.

However, the partnership between AFC and the cooperative lasted for two years (2012 & 2013), after which it was terminated. The reasons for termination were cited as poor and declining yields as a result of viral infection in the soil. The cooperative indicated that they received no money from this partnership as AFC claimed to have made no profits owing to poor yields. Currently the cooperative produces vegetables and maize with support from the Office of the Premier which provided a tractor, fencing and production inputs.

Sub-question (2)

At this stage, there is no relationship between AFC and the cooperative as the partnership ended in 2013 and AFC plays no role in the operations of the cooperative. Consequently, DAFF will not be launching any investigation into the role of AFC into the operations of the cooperative.

Reply:

(a) Total amount of hectares considered plant ready

During 2017/18 financial year, a total of 2 693. 77ha were ploughed and planted in both the Local Municipalities broken down as follows: - Dr. J.S. Moroka (1 032. 7ha) and Thembisile Hani (1 661.07) Local Municipalities. In the current financial year, 2018/19, only 3 ha were cultivated in Thembisile Hani Local Municipality and ready to be planted.

(b) Total amount of hectares that have been;

(i) Planted over the past three (3) financial years: 2015/16; 2016/17 and 2017/18

The total hectares planted in the past three years in Dr. J.S. Moroka Local Municipality amounted to 3 231.92ha and for Thembisile Hani Local Municipality 3 561.96ha. These amount to a total of 6 793.88. Maize is the main crop grown in these two Local Municipalities.

 

(ii) Ploughed over the past three (3) financial years: 2015/16; 2016/17 and 2017/18

The total hectares ploughed in the past three years is the same for both in Dr. J.S. Moroka Local Municipality and Thembisile Hani Local Municipality which are:- 3 231.92ha and 3 561,96 respectively, amounting to 6 793.88 in total.

 

(iii) Harvested over the past three (3) financial years: 2015/16; 2016/17 and 2017/18

The average yield in these two Local Municipalities is estimated at 2.6 ton/ha. However, during 2015/16 financial year, the Province experienced severe drought conditions and this has resulted in significant yield reduction.

During 2015/16 and 2016/17 financial years a total of 1 576.964 tons were harvested. The total tonnage harvested from the Local Municipalities is as follow:-

• Dr. J.S. Moroka 845.853 ton
• Thembisile Hani is 731.111 ton

Harvesting for maize planted during 2017/18 financial year, will only commence in May / June 2018.

Reply:

According to the Persal system of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) does not have an official by the name of Ms Peteni, so we are not in a position to confirm her role in enabling Amathole Forestry Company’s operation in Keiskammahoek and Stutterheim.

Reply:

a) Lease compliance inspections on the Amathole Forestry Company were conducted by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) officials on the 23 and 24 of February 2017. The main purpose of the inspections was to monitor whether the land use on the leased land is all authorised. On the 9 and 10 May 2017 the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) conducted an audit that covered a number of aspects including social issues. The original audit report is herewith attached to this response for your consideration.

a) (i) The DAFF conducted one (1) compliance and inspection visit in 2017.

(ii) The names of the officials who conducted the (aa) inspections, (bb) compliance and (cc) visits are Mr Simon Nkosi (Deputy Director: Forest Land Management) and Mr Dakalo Tshivhase (GIS Technician). During the inspection original Geographical Information System (GIS) and land use maps were overlaid on the current Geographical Information System (GIS) and land use maps to determine changes on the leased land that have taken place over time. Land use changes concerns picked up from the GIS maps were physically visited to verify the land use and boundaries.

(cc) The findings of the visit were that all the land use changes that took place on the leased land were done according to the lease agreement. Most of the land use changes that took place were as a result of planted areas being converted to conservation areas on the basis of the wetland delineation programme.

b) The DAFF is in a position to provide a report should it be required to do so.

Reply:

Response to Sub-question (1)

The matter of a state house being occupied by Amathole Forestry Company representative was only brought to my attention when the Honourable Member asked the question. Part of the state assets transferred to Lower Zingcuka community is a residential house that was used by agricultural extension officers during the Ciskei government. It should be pointed out that DAFF was never involved in this process. However, it was established that that house in question was abandoned and vandalised. The community took a decision to preserve the house and used it as a crèche. Unfortunately vandalism on the property continued unabated. Subsequently, Lower Zingcuka Agricultural Cooperative Limited in agreement with the community took over the use of the house for business purposes. The cooperative stores its implements and a tractor at the property. Through the partnership described under response to question 1028, Mr Jerry of Amathole Forestry Company was deployed to the Wolf River area by Rance Rural Development Agency to provide technical support to the cooperative and other villages in the area. Through the agreement of both the community and the cooperative, Mr Jerry was given permission to reside in the house.

Response to Sub-Question (2)

Even after the partnership between AFC and the cooperatives lapsed, Mr Jerry continues to reside in the house providing production related technical support to other communities in the area. Mr Jerry also services the tractor belonging to the cooperative and other equipment, even though there is no formal contract in place. It has been established that the continued stay of Mr Jerry at the house is per agreement by the community and the youth cooperative due to the value of the services that he provides to them. Mr Jerry has become part of the community and provides various forms of assistance to members of the community.

In conclusion, there are no formal agreements or documents signed between the state and Amathole Forestry Company allowing Mr Jerry to use the house in question. This is a matter between the community, Lower Zingcuka Agricultural Cooperative and Amathole Forestry Company. The continued stay of Mr Jerry at the house is purely based on the value that he (Mr Jerry) brings to the community. Should the community wish to reclaim the use of the house, it is envisaged that they will engage Mr Jerry personally who has expressed his willingness and readiness to vacate the property should the community so wish.

Reply:

DAFF

(a)(i) One

(ii) None

(b)(i) Enterprises University of Pretoria

(ii) Technical support in the preparing of SA Biennial Reporting on the 2014 commitment of Malabo Declaration on Agriculture, Growth and Transformation in Africa

(iii)(aa) 4 August 2017

(bb) No contract period applicable (once off payment)

(cc) R481 470,86

(dd) Director: Africa Relations

OBP

OBP does not have consultants on its books.

ARC

No consultants contracted to the ARC

NAMC

1. PRAXIS Computing:

1 November 2016 – 31 October 2019

Ongoing and pro-active maintenance of existing systems and network infrastructure, which includes full time onsite network support, as well as limited senior technical specialist support.

R 59 400 per month (excl VAT). (All Praxis rates and prices, may increase on the anniversary in accordance with the percentage annual increase in the Consumer Price Index, as published during the preceding month by Statistics SA.)

Signed by T. R Ramabulana: CEO

2. Finware Enterprise Services:

1 May 2017 – 30 April 2018.

Provide Pastel Support and the disbursement will be made upon the submission of invoice for services rendered at the rate of R 550.00 per hour.

           Signed by Z. Xalisa: CEO

3. Nexia SAB&T:

31 March 2016 – 1 April 2018.

Internal Audit Services.  Budget of R 360 000.

Signed by: T.R Ramabulana: CEO

PPECB

Consultant Name b(i)	Service Provided b(ii)	Start Date b(iii)(a)	End Date	Time Period b(iii)(b)	Cost b(iii)(c)	Name & Position Signed off b(iii)(d)
GABRIELE GESS	Legal	01 Sep 2017	31 Aug 2018	12 months	R240,000	Lucien Jansen (CEO)
GARTNER	Enterprise Resource Planning System	01 Oct 2017	30 Sep 2018	12 months	R726 900	Yanesh Ramiah (CIO)
MSI SOLUTIONS (PTY) LTD	Recruitment	23 Jun 2016	n/a	Month notice	12% Fee on all placements	Pinki Luwaca (HR Executive)
SIMEKA CONSULTANTS & ACTUARIES (PTY) LTD	Umbrella and Pension Fund	01 Apr 2013	31 Dec 2018	12 months, annually renewable	0.20% of pensionable remuneration per annum	Pinki Luwaca (HR Executive)
INFRACON CONSULTING (PTY) LTD	Construction Building renovations and additional parking	22 May 2017		Until completion of the project Estimate period 6 months	R281 520	Lucien Jansen (CEO)
LEROY WASSERFALL ARCHITECTS CC	Architect Building renovations and additional parking	18 Jan 2017	Until completion of the project	Until completion of the project.  Estimate period 6 months	R110 944	Lucien Jansen (CEO)
CLIFFE DEKKER & HOFMYER	Legal	26 Aug 2016	25 Aug 2018	24 months	Hourly Rates	Lucien Jansen (CEO)
SAB&T	BBBEE Advisory services	01 Dec 2017	30 Nov 2018	12 months	Hourly Rates	Pinki Luwaca (HR Executive)

MLRF

Name of each consultant	Details of the service provided	Start Date	Time period	Signature	Amount Paid
B Xulu and Partners	Legal Fees for Frap, Wiljaro and Bengis	27 January 2017	31 March 2018	They were appointed by Minister	R 23,264,302.45 (see attached breakdown)
Thulani Joseph Sithole	Legal Fees For Frap Appeals	30 January 2017	31 March 2018	They were appointed by Minister	R 1,769,592.00
George Mukundi Wachira	Legal Fees for Frap Appeals	30 January 2017	31 March 2018	They were appointed by Minister	R 1,922,744.00
ADV PM Matshulana	Legal Fees For Frap Appeals	30 January 2017	31 March 2018	They were appointed by Minister	R 1,888,626.60
Emang Basadi Legal & Forensic Services	TO PROVIDE STRATEGIC, LEGAL AND LITIGATION ADVISORY SERVICES TO DAFF	27 January 2017	31 March 2018	They were appointed by DG	R 9,432,539.23
The Ifirm Trading and Projects	Investigation into Wiljaro and SA Fence and Gate	28 June 2017	31 July 2018	They were appointed by DDG	R 498,076.00
Nondzaba Consulting	SERVICES OF A SUITABLE SERVICE PROVIDER  TO CONDUCT A COMPLETE MONITORING AND EVALUATION ON THE WORKING FOR FISHERIES PROGRAMME OF THE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY AND FISHERIES; BRANCH: FISHERIES MANAGEMENT	31 May 2017	31 March 2018	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 462,674.00
Ameen Amod	Audit Comittee Member	01 August 2017	31 July 2020	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 459,859.00
Suleman Badat	Audit Comittee Member	01 November 2017	01 November 2020	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 48,755.00
Ntombentsha Lillian Mnconywa	Audit Comittee Member	19 July 2015	19 July 2018	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 435,113.80
Lahlang Shirley Somo	Audit Comittee Member	19 July 2015	19 July 2018	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 417,376.42
Mmathebe Annah Faith Moja	Audit Comittee Member	19 July 2015	19 July 2018	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 670,357.29
Maguga Attorneys INC	Legal Fees For Frap Appeals	26 January 2018	31 March 2018	Deputy Director General: Fisheries	R 410,400.00

MONTH	BXI FEES	SERVICE PROVIDER DISBURSEMENTS	PROJECT MANAGEMENT AND SECRETARIAT FEES	TRAVEL AND ACCOMODATION	VAT	AMOUNT BILLED TO DAFF
Jun-17	R 2 037 423.51	R 631 796.96	R 305 613.53	R 89 302.50	R 328 025.18	R 3 392 161.68
Jul-17	R 1 265 308.80	R 1 622 839.95	R 189 796.32	R 224 776.88	R 203 714.72	R 3 506 436.66
Aug-17	R 387 061.40	R 1 665 584.81	R 58 059.21		R 62 316.89	R 2 173 022.31
Sep-17	R 746 119.33	R 884 347.31	R 111 917.90	R 176 247.23	R 120 125.21	R 2 038 756.99
Oct-17	R 513 660.85	R 1 266 714.70	R 77 049.13	R 191 670.53	R 82 699.40	R 2 131 794.61
Nov-17	R 155 866.66	R 858 314.50	R 23 380.00		R 25 094.53	R 1 062 655.68
Dec-17	R 325 350.70	R 175 026.08	R 48 802.61		R 52 381.46	R 601 560.85
Jan-18	R 1 046 214.26	R 213 577.46	R 156 932.14		R 168 440.50	R 1 585 164.36
Feb-18	R 563 025.50	R 857 709.65	R 84 453.83	R 176 247.23	R 90 647.11	R 1 772 083.31
Mar-18	R 805 540.32	R 862 508.26	R 120 831.05	R 97 165.28	R 264 046.35	R 1 886 044.91
Total	R 7 845 571.34	R 9 038 419.68	R 1 176 835.70	R 955 409.65	R 1 397 491.34	R 20 149 681.36

Reply:

RESPONSE FOR QUESTION 1119/NW1212E (1)

The Department supports cooperatives within the agriculture, forestry and fisheries sector through various financial and non-financial means. In the past five years the following number of cooperatives has been supported:

• 518 cooperatives were supported with training using the Farmtogether Agricultural Cooperatives Training programme to improve internal operational efficiencies, productivity and enhance competitiveness
• 334 cooperatives were supported with Agribusiness planning skills to deepen their understanding of business planning within the Agribusiness context and to be able to draft their own business plans.
• 251 cooperatives were assisted to conduct diagnostic assessments on their businesses in order to identify business strengths and weaknesses and recommend alternative solutions to drive efficiencies within the cooperative. The enterprises are exposed to conducting self-assessment, in the process are assisted to develop action plans to address identified weakness areas while maximising on their strengths
• 81 cooperatives were assisted to develop action plans to address identified areas of weaknesses.
• 194 cooperatives were supported financially with grants through the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme-CASP and Ilima/Letsema as well as with production inputs loans through the Micro Agricultural Finance Institutions of South Africa (MAFISA).

In the process, a total of 7145 smallholder farmers have been assisted in the past five years by the department.

A comprehensive list of cooperatives with the variables asked for is attached as Annexure 1.

RESPONSE FOR QUESTION 1119/NW1212E (2)

Annual assessments of cooperatives performed by the department indicate that generally, the level of viability and sustainability of cooperatives in the sector is very low. Some of the contributing factors include heavy reliance on grant funding and inability to access financial support from mainstream financial institutions. Access to sustainable markets has been found to be a challenge as well. On a regular basis DAFF perform diagnostic assessments on cooperatives assist them to upscale, improve productivity, efficiency and competitiveness.

Reply:

(1) Whether his department conducts tests for listeriosis in live animals; if so, (a) what procedures are followed and (b) has there been any additional testing instituted due to the latest listeriosis outbreak;

Listeriosis is not a disease listed as either a notifiable or controlled in terms of the Animal Diseases Act, 1984 (Act No. 35 of 1984). The Department therefore has no official programme for monitoring its occurrence and no tests are conducted on live animals. Listeria monocytogenes is ubiquitous, and it is usually found in soil, water, decaying vegetation, and many farm animals and other domestic and wild animals can harbour the bacterium. The organisms do not normally make animals sick. The listing of the disease is currently limited to human illnesses.

DAFF has introduced additional testing for Listeria on imported mechanically deboned meat (MDM) at the ports of entry.

The Department will however support any industry driven programmes provided it has a clear and scientific plan with the contingency measures outlined should a farm test positive.

(2) (a) what is considered to be a safe level of listeriosis on (i) live animals and (ii) animal products and (b) what standards are used in each case;

2 (a) (i) There is no limit for the amount of Listeria monocytogenes in live animals.

2 (a) (ii) There is no limit for the amount of listeria monocytogenes in raw meat.

(b) The standard used is the “Guidelines on the application of general principles of food hygiene to the control of Listeria Monocytogenes in foods (CAC/GL 61 – 2007)” issued by the Codex Alimentarius Commission.

The enumeration of listeria in food is limited to ready to eat (RTE) products (Processed meats in this case) and not live animals and raw non ready to eat products. It is generally assumed that non ready to eat products (including meat) will not be consumed raw and the cooking process with kill the listeria organism. Listeria is very liable to heat and is destroyed at temperatures around 600C.

The presence of listeria in raw meat at primary processing (abattoirs) and on farms is a process hygiene criteria. This means that its presence indicates inadequate hygiene and therefore the action to be taken is to institute intensive cleaning of the premises. This is different to a food safety criteria as in ready to eat products in which the presence of listeria must be responded to by withdrawal of the food from the food chain.

(3)       what (a) has been the economic impact of the latest listeriosis outbreak in the agricultural sector and (b) steps have been taken by his department to limit the potential job losses in this regard?                                                         

a) The economic impact of this disease has not been documented in South Africa, however the cost of eradicating the listeriosis would be “substantial”. This is particularly true if the source is water, an abattoir or food processing plant. The quarterly economic overview to be released around June is expected to reflect economic impact the disease had and continue to have in the country. This will be on a range of key economic variables, particularly domestic sales on related products and export sales. The bigger impact is that all the SADC countries (Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Botswana) who buy processed meat from South Africa have banned South African exports affecting the economic performance negatively. The impact on Tiger Brands and Rainbow Foods will be highly negative (as their share price has apparently gone down), including employment, level and pattern of consumption, production and so on. This will be reflected in the next Economic Overview analysis in June 2018, as most of these figures are not yet available.

b) The department has not taken direct steps to limit potential job losses as a result of listeriosis outbreak. However, the Department of Agriculture, Forestry & Fisheries (DAFF) has undertaken in collaboration with the Department of Health; the Department of Trade and Industry to address the outbreak of Listeriosis The outbreak and subsequent spreading of listeriosis contamination will likely not lead to short-term job losses, however, if they end up having to close the factory all together, that will have an impact on jobs.

Reply:

1. a) South Africa had 57 980 farming units in 1993 as reported by Statistics South Africa in Census of Agriculture of 1993.

a) The current farming units is reported in Census of Agriculture of 2007 being 39 965 farming units.

Item	Year
	2007 Census	2002 Survey	1993 Census
Farming Units	39 965	45 818	57 980

(2) The number of commercial farming units declined substantially from 1993 to 2007 by 31%.

a) The reasons why number of farms has decreased overtime are the following:

• Agricultural production pre - 1994 was subsidised (prices received by farmers were guaranteed) and post – 1994 when subsidies fell away, a lot of smaller farming units could not survive as they were not ‘profitable’ any longer.
• Smaller farms have been bought over by large commercial farms (consolidation), to improve economies of scale.
• Urbanisation;
• Large farms were been bought over by mining companies.

b) The question on the average size of a farm was asked in the Survey 2002 but there was poor response rate on the question because of the sensitive nature of the question. Poorly answered questions from both Census/Survey are not reported on because the results will be skewed.

Reply:

DAFF

(a) No award was made by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to Kamsherai

(b) Not applicable.

(i)(aa) Not applicable.

(bb) Not applicable.

(ii)(aa) Not applicable.

(bb) Not applicable.

(cc) Not applicable.

GAUTENG AGRICULTURE AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

No payments have been made to Kamsherai in the past five financial years.

WESTERN CAPE

No payments have been made to Kamsherai in the past five financial years.

NORTHERN CAPE DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, LAND REFORM AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT

No payments have been made to Kamsherai in the past five financial years.

EASTERN CAPE – No response

KZN – No response

LIMPOPO – No response

NORTH WEST – No response

MPUMALANGA – No response

FREE STATE – No response

 

Reply:

a) (i) The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) does not own land.

(ii) DAFF administers land on behalf of the Department of Public Works to preserve the land’s agricultural potential. The land administered are in all the 9 provinces.

GAUTENG - (6488.8419ha)

KWAZULU NATAL – (6794.6304ha)

MPUMALANGA – (4058.6147ha)

LIMPOPO – (3967.2156ha)

NORTHERN CAPE - (11715.7721ha)

EASTERN CAPE – (4415.2687ha)

NORTH WEST – (9788.393 ha)

FREE STATE – (6521.4947ha)

WESTERN CAPE - (19481.9748ha)

Each land has its size and all combined is 73232.1959 hectares for all the 9 provinces.

(iii) DAFF leases the properties mainly for agricultural activities such as livestock grazing and some for planting of crops.

(b) (i) The Agricultural Research Centre which is an entity reporting to the Minister for Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries owns 16 755.5119 hectares.

(ii) The ARC has no exclusive rights on land.

(iii) The ARC does not lease land from the state.

Reply:

All appointments in the Office of the Minister were effected in terms of Chapter 8 of the Ministerial Handbook and in accordance with Chapter 1, Part VII, Paragraph C.1B of the former Public Service Regulations, 2001 and Chapter 4, Part 4, Regulation 66 of the new Public Service Regulations, 2016 which came into effect on 1 August 2016.

Chapter 8 of the Ministerial Handbook does not provide guidelines in terms of the salary levels of core staff in the Ministry and leaves such discretion to executive authorities. The salary levels of remuneration of the staff in the Ministry were effected in terms of Chapter1, Part V, Paragraph C.3 of the former Public Service Regulations, 2001. This provision was, however amended with Regulation 44 of the newly promulgated Public Service Regulations, 2016, which came into effect on 1 August 2016.

The updated post establishment is attached.

(a)(i),(ii) and (aa)

2014/2015	2015/2016	2016/2017
(i) Budget (R’000)	(ii) Expenditure (R’000)	(i)Budget (R’000)	(ii)Expenditure (R’000)	(i)Budget (R’000)	(ii)Expenditure (R’000)
25 272	24 594	24 342	24 336	24 439	26 378

(bb)

Since 1 April 2017

(i) Budget (R’000)	(ii) Expenditure (R’000)
27 181	20 678

(b)(i),(ii),(iii),(iv) and (v)

2014/2015

Remuneration	Salary level	Job title	Qualification	Job description (Benchmarked job descriptions from DPSA attached)	Appointment date
R 1 219 737.00	15	*Chief of Staff	Masters degree in Public Management and Development	Attached	2013/02/06 - 2014/09/17 Now placed as Director: ICT Special Projects Coordinator
R 1 201 713.00	15	*Chief of Staff	Primary Teachers Diploma	Attached	2014/09/18 -2015/08/31 Now placed as Food Security & Agrarian Reform Coordinator (Branch: FSAR)
R 988 152.00	14	Media Liaison Officer	MA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2015/08/18 Placed as Director: Communication Services (CPT) Contract expired 2017/06/30
R 988 152.00	14	Parliamentary Officer	BA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2017/06/30 Contract expired
R 630 822.00	12	Administrative/ Private Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2014/07/22 to date
R 278 979.00	12	Assistant Appointments & Administrative Secretary	National Diploma	Attached	2012/11/01 - 2016/06/30 Resigned
R 227 802.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (PTA)	Grade 8	Attached	2001/11/01 to date
R 227 802.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (CPT)	Grade 12	Attached	2006/12/13 to date
R 532 278.00	11	Senior Registry Clerk	B. Admin	Attached	2009/10/02 to date
R 183 438.00	7	Driver/Messenger	Grade 6	Attached	1992/08/12 to date
R 1 201 713.00	15	Special Adviser	Masters degree in Governance and Political Transformation		2014/07/02 to date
R 1 201 713.00	15	Special Adviser	Diploma in Fine and Commercial Arts		2014/07/02 to date
R 1 742 751.00	16	** Special Adviser	B. Ed		2011/01/01 - 2014/06/30 Contract expired
R 1 570 254.00	16	** Special Adviser	Grade 12		2012/11/01 - 2014/06/30 Contract expired

* Different periods of appointment in same financial year.

** Special Advisers to the former Minister in the 2014/2015 financial year.

2015/2016

Remuneration	Salary level	Job title	Qualification	Job description (Benchmarked job descriptions from DPSA attached)	Appointment date
R1267 806.00	15	*Chief of Staff	Primary Teachers Diploma	Attached	2014/09/18 -2015/08/31 Now placed as Food Security & Agrarian Reform Coordinator (Branch: FSAR)
R1299501.00	15	*Chief of Staff	B. Sc	Attached	2015/09/03 - 2016/05/31 Resigned
R1068 564.00	14	*Media Liaison Officer	BA Corporate Communications	Attached	2015/08/24 to date
R1042 500.00	14	*Media Liaison Officer	MA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2015/08/18 Placed as Director: Communication Services (CPT) Contract expired 2017/06/30
R1068 564.00	14	Parliamentary Officer	BA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2017/06/30 Contract expiry
R 674 979.00	12	Administrative Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2014/07/22 to date
R1068 564.00	14	Administrative/ Private Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2015/08/24 - 2017/07/31 Now placed as Deputy Director: Executive Implementation & Secretariat Support
R 674 979.00	12	Assistant Appointments & Administrative Secretary	National Diploma	Attached	2012/11/01 - 2016/06/30 Resigned
R 243 747.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (PTA)	Grade 8	Attached	2001/11/01 to date
R 243 747.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (CPT)	Grade 12		2006/12/13 to date
R 612 822.00	11	Senior Registry Clerk	B. Admin	Attached	2009/10/02 to date
R 196 278.00	7	Driver/Messenger	Grade 6	Attached	1992.08.12 to date
R1299 501.00	15	Special Adviser	Masters degree in Governance and Political Transformation		2014/07/02 to date
R1299 501.00	15	Special Adviser	Diploma in Fine and Commercial Arts		2014/07/02 to date

* Different periods of appointment in same financial year.

2016/2017

Remuneration	Salary level	Job title	Qualification	Job description (Benchmarked job descriptions from DPSA attached	Appointment date
R 1 299 501.00	15	Chief of Staff	B. Sc	Attached	2015/09/03 - 2016/05/31 Resigned
R 1 068 564.00	14	Media Liaison Officer	BA Corporate Communications	Attached	2015/08/24 to date
R 1 068 564.00	14	Parliamentary Officer	BA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2017/06/30 Contract expiry
R 898 743.00	13	Administrative Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2014/07/22 to date
R 1 068 564.00	14	Administrative/ Private Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2015/08/24 - 2017/07/31 Now placed as Deputy Director: Executive Implementation & Secretariat Support
R 726 276.00	12	*Assistant Appointments & Administrative Secretary	BA (Hons), HED (undergraduate), Postgraduate Diploma: Management	Attached	2016/07/25 to date
R 726 276.00	12	*Assistant Appointments & Administrative Secretary	National Diploma	Attached	2012/11/01 - 2016/06/30 Resigned
R 262 272.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (PTA)	Grade 8	Attached	2001/11/01 to date
R 262 272.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (CPT)	Grade 12	Attached	2006/12/13 to date
R 612 822.00	11	Senior Registry Clerk	B. Admin	Attached	2009/10/02 to date
R 211 194.00	7	Driver/Messenger	Grade 6	Attached	1992.08.12 to date
R 1 299 501.00	15	Special Adviser	Masters degree in Governance and Political Transformation		2014/07/02 to date
R 1 299 501.00	15	Special Adviser	Diploma in Fine and Commercial Arts		2014/07/02 to date

* Different periods of appointment in same financial year.

Since 1 April 2017

Remuneration	Salary level	Job title	Qualification	Job description (Benchmarked job descriptions from DPSA attached	Appointment date
R 1 127 334.00	14	Chief of Staff	Master of Arts	Attached	2017/04/01 to date
R 1 068 564.00	14	Media Liaison Officer	BA Corporate Communications	Attached	2015/08/24 to date
R 948 174.00	13	*Parliamentary Officer	Bachelor of Arts	Attached	2017/10/01
R 1 127 334.00	14	*Parliamentary Officer	BA	Attached	2014/07/01 - 2017/06/30 Contract expiry
R 948 174.00	13	Administrative Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2014/07/22 to date
R 1 127 334.00	14	Administrative/ Private Secretary	Grade 12	Attached	2015/08/24 - 2017/07/31 Now placed as Deputy Director: Executive Implementation & Secretariat Support
R 779 295.00	12	Assistant Appointments & Administrative Secretary	BA (Hons), HED (undergraduate), Postgraduate Diploma: Management	Attached	2016/07/25 to date
R 281 418.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (PTA)	Grade 8	Attached	2001/11/01
R 281 418.00	8	Secretary/Receptionist (CPT)	Grade 12	Attached	2006/12/13 to date
R 657 558.00	11	Senior Registry Clerk	B. Admin	Attached	2009/10/02
R 226 611.00	7	Driver/Messenger	Grade 6	Attached	199/08/12 to date
R 1 370 973.00	15	Special Adviser	Masters degree in Governance and Political Transformation		2014/07/02 to date
R 1 370 973.00	15	Special Adviser	Diploma in Fine and Commercial Arts		2014/07/02 to date

** Different periods of appointment in same financial year.

Reply:

1. Rance Timber is not leasing land from communities or state land.

2. Neither the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries nor the Eastern Cape Department of Rural Development and Agrarian Reform is supporting the said companies of Rance Timber. The only support that was given was in 2013 to producers and they were supported with production inputs.

Reply:

(1)The Department does not have an approved sexual harassment and assault policy in place.

(a) A draft policy has been developed and submitted to the Departmental Bargaining Chamber (DBC) for consultation.

b) It is anticipated that the sexual harassment and assault policy will be approved in the 2018/19 financial year.

(i) Incidents of sexual harassment are reported through the normal grievance procedure.

(ii).The draft policy does not stipulate consequence management and sanctions. However, consequence and sanctions will be determined by the outcome of each case.

(2)

(a) (i) There were no cases of sexual harassment and assault reported in the past three years

(ii) There were no cases of sexual harassment and assault opened since 2017

(b) (i) N/A

(ii) N/A

(iii) N/A

(c) N/A

Reply:

DAFF’S RESPONSE:

1. The destruction of the Indigenous Forest occurred when a contractor appointed by Amathole Forestry Company (AFC) was felling trees and the trees fell over and destroyed the indigenous forest. The Department took the matter up with AFC and instructed the company to rehabilitate the destroyed area. AFC is currently rehabilitating the area by replanting the indigenous trees that were destroyed back into the area and will inform the Department once the rehabilitation work is complete. The Department will then conduct a site visit to verify and confirm if the rehabilitation complies with norms and standards. The matter will only be reported to the Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) if AFC fails to rehabilitate the area according to acceptable norms and standards.

2. The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries will not revoke the lease agreement with the Amathole Forestry Company as the transgression does not constitute a material breach to the lease agreement. As mentioned above, AFC has already started implementing the corrective measure by rehabilitating the affected area.