Reply:

FIND REPLY HERE

Reply:

FIND REPLY HERE

 

Reply:

A task team of Detective Service members, has been established, at the Phoenix Police Station, to investigate the matter. The task team is currently conducting enquiries with the view to obtain eyewitness statements.

The complainant alleges that there is video footage, which could help to identify the suspects. Several attempts have been made by the task team to locate the video footage, with no positive results. Up to date, no suspects have been identified, Once the suspects have been identified by witnesses, as well as video footage, thereafter arrests will be made.

The task team is also in the process of tracing the organisers of the march, to obtain their statements. The case docket with be submitted to the National Prosecuting Authority {NPA), for prosecutor-guided investigation.

Reply to question 2330 recommended

GENERAL NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICANPOLICE SERVICE
KJ SITOLE (SOEG)
Date: 2021-12-15

Reply to question 2330 approved

MINISTER OF POLICE
GENERAL BHCELE, MP
DATE: 2021-12-21

Reply:

1. The National Commissioner of the South African Police Service {SAPS) is appointed by the President of the Republic of South Africa (RSA), in terms of Section 207(1) of the Constitution of the RSA, 1906. It is, therefore, the prerogative of the President, to determine the process in appointing a National Commissioner, for the SAPS.
2. Adequate human capital is, however, key to the provisioning of a comprehensive policing service, which, despite available technology, is required in order in to execute this labour-intensive function. The reduction of the SAPS staff compliment over the medium-term, by implication, negatively Influences the SAPS’ ability to maintain an adequate work-force, in the pursuance of its objectives. Currently, the SAPS Management is forced to take strategic decisions, regarding the strategic resourcing and the operational focus of the SAPS, on the basis of the budget allocation, rather than on the reality on the ground and the associated demand for policing.

The R27,7 billion budget reduction, over the 2021 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), in relation to the 2020 budget estimates, comprises a reduction of R26, 2 billion, in respect of the compensation of employees and a

R1,5 billion reduction, in respect of goods and services. Of the R26,2 billion reduction on the compensation of employees, a reduction of approximately R18,8 billion is as a result of salary increases, which have not been provided for, over the period. As a result of these reductions, apart from the salary adjustments, the SAPS s ability to sustain the new intake of new recruits, as well as the capacitation of specialised units, will be severely affected.

In order to continue to allow for rte addressing of critical vacancies only and the augmenting of capacity at police stations, reprioritisation will remain a prominent feature over the medium-term. This will be achieved, by reducing the actual number of personnel allocated to non-operational, national and provincial competencies, in order to allow for the addressing of critical vacancies and the capacity at police stations and other key frontline capabilities, so as to ensure the sustainability of service delivery to communities. The reducing of non- operational national and provincial competencies, may however, compromise the various governance-related process that these capabilities are responsible for and which the operational environment relies on.

The Visible Policing Programme comprises of three sections, the first of which is Crime Prevention, which incorporates the majority of the basic functions that are performed at police station level; certain key abilities are, such as the Central Firearms Register (CFR) and the majority of the Crime prevention- orientated partnership initiatives, such as the Community Police boards and forums. The Specialised interventions Section represents critical specialised Capabilities, including the Public Order Policing (POP) Units, the Tactical Response Teams (TRT's) and the Special Task FORGO (STF). The final section, Border Security, includes the policing and border control functions that are performed, in respect of ports of entry.

The R14, 4 billion budget reduction in the Visible Policing Programme, over the 2021 MTEF, in relation to the 2020 budget estimates, amounts to R13.6 billion reduction in the Compensation of employees and a R0,8 billion reduction in goods and services. Approximately R9,8 billion of the R13, 6 billion reduction in the compensation of employees, is as a result of salary increases, which are not being provided for, over the period. In view of the decline in the budget allocation to the compensation of employees over the medium-term, alternatives such as technological enhancements and force-multipliers will be addressed, e.g. the recruitment of reservists has been identified as a mechanism that could compliment the SAPS’ personnel numbers, over a medium-term to longer period.

The situation means that SAPS must attempt to optimally use its existing resources but it also means that during the time, where intense police operations are required, for example during the festive season, the SAPS must resort to short-term interventions, e,g. not allowing members to take leave, recalling members from rest days and making use of overtime.

The SAPS is committed to ensure that it makes optimal use of its limited resources, to ensure that policing is not compromised, during festive season,

Reply to question 2482 recommended

GENERAL NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICANPOLICE SERVICE
KJ SITOLE (SOEG)
Date: 2021-12-15

Reply to question 2482 approved

MINISTER OF POLICE
GENERAL BHCELE, MP
DATE: 2021-12-21

Reply:

 

(a). (i) & (ii) Leasing and usage of locomotives does not take place at PRASA Corporate, but happens at regional level.

Gauteng Metrorail is currently leasing shunting locomotives which are primarily supposed to be used for shunting operations in the marshalling yards at Wolmerton and Braamfontein depots.

The Eastern Cape service are operated with diesel locomotives as opposed to electrified motor coaches as PRASA has a 25KV AC overhead voltage as opposed to 3KV DC in other regions/provinces for commuter services.

In the Western Cape diesel locomotives are leased for hauling movements of train sets/wagons/coaches where no Over Head Traction Equipment is available to enable self powering of motor coaches. Metrorail also lease diesel locomotives for shunting purposes of coaches and train sets within the maintenance yards, other related depots as well as for train set rescue in section and emergency during incidents/accidents.

KZN Metrorail is currently leasing shunting locomotives which is primarily used for shunting operations in the Durban marshalling yard and in Springfield maintenance yard.

(b). The number of Transnet locomotives that have been in use under the specified rental, lease and/or loan agreement conditions in the past 36 months are as follows:

Region	Gauteng	Eastern Cape	Western Cape	Kwazulu-Natal
2019/2020	4	8	1	1
2020/2021	4	10	1	1
2021/2022 to date	8	0	1	1

1. Operational costs on Transnet locomotives carried by (i) PRASA and (ii) Metrorail:

• 1. Refer to response in (a)
  2. Operation cost per region

Region	Amount
Gauteng Region	R80,735,340-75
Eastern Cape Region	R75,288,586-93
Western Cape Region	R11,079,828-00
Kwazulu Natal Region	R2,168,752-32

Reply:

(a) . A total of 33 owners of ammunition have been identified and charged and the investigation is continuing.

(b). The 963 live rounds of ammunition were confiscated from the 33 arrested persons and the ammunition has been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for ballistic examination, in order to determine the manufacturer of the ammunition (the source).

Reply to question 2359 recommended

GENERAL NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICANPOLICE SERVICE
KJ SITOLE (SOEG)
Date: 2021-12-15

Reply to question 2359 approved

MINISTER OF POLICE
GENERAL BHCELE, MP
DATE: 2021-12-21

 

Reply:

(a) The South African Police Service (SAPS) provided inputs, with regard to the envisaged Section 97 Presidential Proclamation, to the Border Management Authority (BMA). The SAPS obtained a legal opinion, from counsel, which concludes that the envisaged Section g7 Presidential Proclamation will be ultra vires (beyond the powers).

Therefore, the SAPS is of the view that the sections of the legislation, mentioned in the envisaged Presidential Proclamation, do not deal with functions of the Minister of Police and may, therefore, not be transferred, in terms of Section 97, The only exception, is Section 92 of the Firearms Control Act, 2000 (Act No. 60 of 2000), which is the only section dealing with a clear power or function, assigned to the i4inister of Police. In terms of Section 92, the Minister of Police may prohibit or restrict the acquisition, disposal, possession or use of ammunition of a specified Clgss of ammunition.

(6) The SAPS and the Commissioner of the BMA are presently in a process of engagement, to find ways and means to empower border guards, to perform border law enforcement functions.

2

Reply to question 2616 recommended

GENERAL NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICANPOLICE SERVICE
KJ SITOLE (SOEG)
Date: 2021-12-15

Reply to question 2616 approved

MINISTER OF POLICE
GENERAL BHCELE, MP
DATE: 2021-12-21

Reply:

There is no Alberton North Police Station, in Gauteng.

(a)(i) Not applicable.

(a)(ii) Not applicable.

(b) Not applicable.

A Planned Maintenance Project was registered, by the National Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (NDPWI), for maintenance to the existing Alberton Police Station. The project is currently dormant, due to the fact that the Contractor is in default, because of the non-fulfillment of an obligation, with respect to time (in mara).

Reply to question 2335 recommended

GENERAL NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICANPOLICE SERVICE
KJ SITOLE (SOEG)
Date: 2021-12-15

Reply to question 2335 approved

MINISTER OF POLICE
GENERAL BHCELE, MP
DATE: 2021-12-21

Reply:

(1) (a) 57 406, 6707 hectares.

(b) The current usage of the land is for livestock, crop production, and settlement.

1. The commonage land belongs to different municipalities and they will assist the beneficiaries should the need for water rights arises.

1. Yes. Please refer to Annexure A.

1. No. There are no reports of any invasion of commonage land that has been reported to the Department by the Municipalities.

• 1. ,(b) Falls away.

ANNEXURE A OF NA-QUES 2701 OF 2021

Property Description	Hectares Acquired	Production Type	Water Rights	Invasions
Ptn 0 of the farm No: 7/R Macleantown, East London	245,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Farm No.313, Remaining Extent of Farm No.314, Remaining Extent of Farm No.315, Remaining Extent of farm No.316, Remaining Extent of Farm No.317, Remaining Extent of Farm No.318 and Remaining Extent of Farm No.319, Stockenstrom.	148,7439	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the farm Hogsback no178, Ptn 0 of the farm Hogsback no182, Stockenstrom	1019,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent and Portion 1 of Farm Buxton Commonage No.1316	615,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 1 of the farm no: 950 Gonzana, Stockenstrom RD	650,0000	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Farm No.162 and Remaining Extent of Farm No.188, Victoria East	1109,6571	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Ext of Farm Keibolo No 37; Remaining Ext of Farm Elfin No 38 Elfin, Stutterheim RD	1568,8953	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the farm No: 129. EAST LONDON RD	212,8977	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 3 of the Farm 149, Remainder of farm 148	698,6132	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Farm KARKOTS KRAAL No.116; Remaining Extent of Farm No.391	1600,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 1 of the Farm 129; Erven 466; 467; 468	2448,9494	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
358/80,81,102,103,104,110,302,303,304,325,327,328,329,330,334,335,336,337; 366/1,2	476,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Farm No.334, Graaf Reinet	973,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
280/R8,343/R,344/R,345,346/R1,347/R,372/2,373/R2	700,1537	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 1 of the farm Klipplaat Commonage no214; Ptn 0 of the farm Klipplaat Commonage no214; Ptn 3 of the farm Klipplaat Commonage no257, Jansenville	4263,9206	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the Farm Kareedouw no797, Humansdorp	1123,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Portion 1 of Farm Groote Vlei No.146, Baviaans	1326,7477	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 1 of Farm No.55, Hankey	522,8771	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the farm Grahamstown no240, Ptn 0 of the farm Grahamstown no241, Ptn 0 of the farm Grahamstown no335, Albany RD	2070,1935	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Rem Ext of Portion 5 of the Farm BRAKFONTEIN No.241, Portion 8, 18 and 19 of the Farm KRUISFONTEIN No.249	597,7495	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the farm bushmans river no338, Ptn 5 of the farm Bushmans river 228, Bathutrust	621,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent and Portion 1 of the Farm No 145; Portion 1 and 4 of the Farm Cypress Valley No.144, Aberdeen RD	3920,0000	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 1 of Farm No.128, Takastad	3084,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Lukhanji Commonage, Queenstown	909,2616	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 2 of the farm commonage no164, Ptn 6 of the farm commonage no 164, Queenstown	237,0256	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 4, 8 & 17 of the farm PAARDE KRAAL 64, Molteno RD	741,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining extent of Portion 2, Portion 3, Portion 4 & 5 of the Farm Weltevreden No. 45 Division of Queenstown: and Remainder of Portions 1,2, &4 of farm Weltevrede Annex No. 196 Wodehouse Registration Division.	1376,5635	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 3, Portion 11, Portion 13, Portion 14 of Farm No.50; Portion 2, Portion 4, Portion 15 of Farm No.59; Remaining Extent of Portion 1 of Farm No.61, Venterstad	5297,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Farm No.26; Remaining Extent and Portion 12 of Farm No.32; Remaining Extent of Portion 1 of Farm No.46, Lady Grey	2591,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Portion 2 and Portion 4 of Farm No.56; Remaining Extent of Farm No.189; Portion 1 of Farm No.190, Albert	1700,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0 of the farm No: 236, WODEHOUSE RD	171,4971	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 4 and Portion 5 of Farm No.181; Portion 7 of the Farm No.180; Portion 2 and Portion 3 of the Farm No.181, Burgersdorp	2079,0400	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 1 of Farm No.72, Portion 17 of Farm No.73, Remaining Extent of Farm No.75, Remaining Extent of Farm No.76, Steynsburg	1228,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 0,1, of the farm DRIEFONTEIN 168; Ptn 0 & 1 of the farm COFFEE FONTEIN 138 and Ptn 0 of the farm ANDERSON VREDE 263 Wodehouse RD	3570,0000	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent and Portion 1 of Farm No.168; Remaining Extent and Portion 2 of Farm No.138; Remaining Extent of Farm No.263, Wodehouse	3579,3911	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
62 Ruigterfontein, 12 Melkspruit, Fonteinskloof (61/4,5,6)	2161,0000	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
177/2 (Dunkeld) Craigievar, 203/13 Portion of Portion12) Gelege Fontein, Albert RD	1239,1463	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent, Portion 4 and Portion 9 of Farm Vaalkop No. 48, Venterstad	531,3468	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown

Reply:

 

1. (a) The Honourable Member is requested to source the document title ‘Guide to Parliamentary Questions’ from Parliament.
   1. Not applicable
   2. Not applicable
   3. Not applicable

1. The Honourable Member is requested to furnish the full information including the names of contractors.

No	Name of companies contracted by the events management company of the Department – Travel with Flair (TWF)	Amount paid (Rands)
1.	The Galleria	425 113.98
2.	GL Events	97 339.52
3.	Unlimited Events	51 885.70
4.	Events Options	336 039.85
5.	Bentry Projects Limited	114 000.00
	TOTAL	1,024 379.05

Reply:

 

(1) (a) 17 945,6863 hectares.

(b) The current usage of the land is for crop, livestock production and settlement.

The commonage land belongs to different municipalities and they will assist the beneficiaries should the need for water rights arises.

Yes. Please refer to Annexure A.

No. There are no reports of any invasion of commonage land that has been reported to the Department by the Municipalities.

,(b) Falls away.

ANNEXURE A OF NA-QUES 2803 OF 2021

Property Description	Total Hectares Acquired	Production Type	Water Rights	Land Invasions
R/E of Ptn 1 & 34 (a portion of portion 7) Elandsdrift 467, JQ	70,4326	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
PTN 235 ( a portion of Portion 233) and one and a half share of PTN 182 of the farm Rooikoppies 297	60,0000	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
PTN 23 (a portion of Portion 3), PTN 9 ( a portion of Portion 2), remaining extend of PTN 11, PTN 5 ( a portion of Portion 1, PTN 22 (a portion of Portion 3), PTN 25 ( aportionof Portion 1) and remaning extent of PTN 1 of the farm Leeuwfontein 456	862,0000	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Ptn 11, 25, 26 and 1/24 of Syferfontein 381	784,9574	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
1/48 share in R/E of the farm Klipgat 249 JQ	807,3071	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Remainder of Ptn 7; Remainder of Ptn 8; Ptn of Ptn 18; Ptn 23; Remainder of Ptn 13; Ptn 11 (Ptn of Ptn 3) of the farm Doornpan No 195, IP	1538,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 7 of the Farm Eleazer 377, IP	818,7054	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 24 of the farm Klipkop no 24 HP,Portion 21( a Portion of portion 5), Remaining portion of portion 4,a Portion of portion 35 of portion 29, certain portion 29 of portion 4,portion 38 (a Portion of portion 7), remaining extent of portion 7 and remaining extent of the farm LEEUBOSCH 44 HP.portion 52(a Portion of portion 50), remaining Portion of portion 50, remaining extent of portion 1and remaining Portion of portion 12 all of the farm Rietkuil 43 HP	1464,7601	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining extent of the Farm Rosendal 673 IN	1044,2062	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining Extent of Portion 3 (A por of Por 1) of the farm Zoutpan, Por 14 of the farm Zoutpan 349.	425,6793	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining extent of Farm FOREST HALL 182	2534,4682	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Portion 3 of the farm Zoutpan 301 and portion 2 of the farm Holwater West 303 HO	869,9300	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
farm Kareeplaas No 255 HO; ptn 2 of Smitskraal No 254 HO and Remaining extent of the farm Uitkyk No 256 HO	3085,0000	Settlement	Unknown	Unknown
Remaining portion of the farm Witpoortje 88 and Portion 22 (portion of Portion 19 of the farm Palmietfontein 92	1422,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown
Remainder Portion 33 (Harmonie) (a portion of portion 18) and Portion 51( a portion of Portion 44) of the farm Rietdraai 51	72,2400	Crops	Unknown	Unknown
portion 2 of the farm zandpootje 95 JP and portion 10 of the farm petrusdam 55 JP	2086,0000	Livestock	Unknown	Unknown

Reply:

 

The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD) provides technical support and advice to the organic farming sector. This include cultivation practices, pests and disease control and post-harvest handling practices. Provincial departments of agriculture provide financial support to farmers through the Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme (CASP) and Ilima/ Letsema conditional grants.

Organic farming has great potential in terms of economic growth and job creation. This is due to the fact that organic farming is highly labour intensive. There is a bigger scope for increasing the size of the industry in terms of hectares and farmers because organically produced products fetch premium prices on both local and export markets.

DALRRD had also collaborating with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition regarding linking smallholder organic farmers to retail outlets, including the big supermarket chains. The biggest efforts were directed at helping farmers to comply with market requirements of these retail outlets. This was in line with recommendations from the Fund for Research into Industrial Development, Growth and Equity (FRIDGE) study on organic farming carried out through National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC).

DALLRD is also responsible for regulating the organically produced products through the Agricultural Products Standards Act (Act 119 of 1990). This is done to ensure that good agricultural products are used when products are produced as well as the post-production handling procedures to ensure the quality and safety of products destined for local as well as export markets. Inspection services of the DALRRD ensures that all farmers and other stakeholders in the food value chain comply with the prescribed requirements.

Reply:

 

Price-fixing is a statutory offence under the Competition Act (part of cartel-behaviour by firms who collude). The Competition Commission therefore does not make recommendations in this respect to the Executive but instead the Commission prosecutes firms where there is evidence of price-fixing. During the review of the Competition Act in 2017, the Ministry identified measures to strengthen the penalties applicable to cartel behavior (including price-fixing) by firms in the SA economy. This has subsequently been incorporated into law by Parliament.

In respect of data prices, the Minister requested the Competition Commission in 2017 to undertake a market inquiry into data prices charged by mobile operators. The results of the market inquiry were publicly released by the Commission and the Ministry. Based on the outcome of the market inquiry, three mobile networks reached settlement agreements with the Commission or changed their prices on data for consumers.

The Commission has provided me with information that shows that prices have reduced substantially over 2 price changes – the first in April 2020 and the second in April 2021. Vodacom and MTN implemented deep price reductions ranging from 13% to 50%. The price reductions are a combination of direct price reductions on certain bundle sizes (see details below), increases in bundle sizes on certain price points (e.g. Vodacom increased the bundle size at R12 from 39MB to 50MB) or a complete replacement of bundles (e.g. Vodacom replaced the 300MB priced at R63 with 325MB priced at R55.

Vodacom prices of the monthly 1G data bundle reduced from R149 per month (original price) to R99/ month (April 2020) and then to R85 per month (April 2021) reflecting a - 43% reduction in prices overall.

MTN prices of the monthly 1G data bundle reduced from R149 per month (original price) to R99/ month (April 2020) and then to R85 per month (April 2021) reflecting a -43% reduction in prices overall.

The zero rating of websites is another major area of impact. Before the consent agreement was reached less than 100 websites were zero rated. This grew to 2 261 websites post the intervention. This growth was further substantially spurred by the DCDT gazzetting directions for the zero-rating of websites for education and health on 5 June 2020.

The number of users of newly zero-rated websites increased 22% over the last year from 3 266 895 In April 2020 to 10 744 224 in April 2021.

I am advised that the interventions saved consumers approximately R2.1 billion (annualized at R1.97 billion) for the first 13 months from April 2020.

To enable the Commission to undertake its work on areas such as data prices, the Ministry supports the budget requests of the Commission.

-END-

Reply:

 

Response: (a)

Please note that the department does not have comparison of learners without IDs between 2020 and 2021. However, the number of learners uploaded on LURITS were verified with the Department of Home Affairs. This analysis is not specific for the last 12 months. About 91.3% of learners with ID’s were verified with the Department of Home Affairs.

Table 1: Number of South African learners with verified ID numbers on LURITS, in 2021

Province	Total number of learners of learners uploaded to LURITS	Number of learners with verified ID's on NPR
Eastern Cape	1,688,327	1,612,153
Free State	738,304	695,056
Gauteng	1,899,470	1,607,654
KwaZulu- Natal	2,251,344	2,122,383
Limpopo	1,780,306	1,712,546
Mpumalanga	1,128,591	1,052,018
Northern Cape	304,675	297,210
North West	862,259	816,303
Western Cape	1,252,233	958,568
Total	11,905,509	10,873,891

Source: 2021 LURITS

(b)(i)(ii)

Table 2 indicates that there were 465 826 South African learners without ID numbers captured in the School Administration System in 2021. The majority of these learners are in Gauteng, followed by KwaZulu-Natal with 144 218 and 92 572, respectively.

Table 2: Number of South African learners without ID numbers submitted on LURITS, in 2021

Province	Total Number
Eastern Cape	55,537
Free State	30,546
Gauteng	144,218
KwaZulu-Natal	92,572
Limpopo	46,455
Mpumalanga	56,689
Northern Cape	4,978
North West	26,922
Western Cape	7, 909
Total	465 826

Source: 2021 LURITS

c) Engagements between the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Home Affairs have been enhanced and formalised under the leadership of Deputy Ministers of both Departments. Officials have also established teams not to only focus on South African learners, but all undocumented learners in all schools. The teams are led by the Deputy Directors-General of the two departments, and these teams include Chief Directors and Directors. Through the collaboration, the Department of Home Affairs has access to schools; and both departments exchange information of undocumented learners with the aim of facilitating their registration.

Reply:

 

1. (a) There are 10 nursing colleges in the Republic. One located in each of the nine provinces and the 10th being the South African Military Health Service (SAMHS). These colleges have 45 campuses and 40 sub-campuses located in district and subdistrict level in each of the provinces to ensure access to nursing education by local communities

(b) (i) None of these colleges were shut down in the past two financial years.

(ii) Not applicable

1. The colleges are running effectively and smoothly, phasing in new programmes whilst phasing out the legacy (old) programmes in compliance with relevant legislation guiding nursing education. While the accreditation process by the Council for Higher Education (CHE) for some programmes has been slower than expected, department is communicating with the CHE to expedite the accreditation of these programmes.

1. (a) Table 1 overleaf reflects the number of graduates who were produced by South African Nursing Colleges in the past five-years in question:

Table 1. Number of graduates produced by South African Nursing Colleges in the past five years

Province	Name of the College of Nursing	Graduates produced per year:
		2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	Total
Eastern Cape	Lilitha College of Nursing	358	331	426	336	322	1773
Free State	Free State School of Nursing	165	155	144	152	145	761
Gauteng	Gauteng College of Nursing	620	614	507	593	847	3181
KwaZulu Natal	KwaZulu Natal College of Nursing	316	533	393	512	164	1918
Limpopo	Limpopo College of Nursing	218	188	200	235	169	1010
Mpumalanga	Mpumalanga College of Nursing	322	76	304	243	146	1091
Northern Cape	Henrietta Stockdale Nursing College	25	44	18	46	13	146
North West	North West College of Nursing	275	130	118	200	269	992
Western Cape	Western Cape College of Nursing	243	250	77	34	6	610
SAMHS	SAMHS Nursing College	61	40	56	14	41	212
Total	11 694

(b) The following table reflects the number of eligible graduates who were absorbed into statutory posts for Professional Nursing Community Service in the past five years (The numbers below are inclusive graduates from Nursing Colleges and Universities)

Table 2.

Province	Graduates absorbed as Community Service Nurses in each year:
	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	Total
Eastern Cape	582	514	621	551	587	2855
Free State	217	195	211	173	164	960
Gauteng	683	781	677	655	970	3766
KwaZulu Natal	648	700	684	687	439	3158
Limpopo	171	212	276	323	279	1261
Mpumalanga	265	208	217	295	251	1236
Northern Cape	74	53	102	74	92	395
North West	390	304	394	471	268	1827
Western Cape	384	381	364	323	364	1816
SAMHS	61	40	56	14	41	212
Total	17 486

NB. After completing Community Service, Professional Nurses are not automatically absorbed into permanent posts. They need to apply and compete for advertised positions either Public Service or Private Sector. Based on the individuals performance during the selection process the favourable candidate is appointed into a post.

END.

2

Reply:

The Trans-Caledon Tunnel Authority (TCTA) raised R15.45 billion from six local banks, including DBSA, in May 2021, as part of its mandate to raise and manage funding for the Lesotho Highlands Water Project (“LHWP”), including the construction of Phase 2. This followed the raising of R6.5 billion in 2018 from three local banks. The loans contribute to:

• Fulfilment of South Africa’s obligations in terms of the Treaty with Lesotho;
• Servicing of the existing debt portfolio; and
• New capital expenditure on LHWP-2 and liquidity management.

The LHWP augments the Vaal River System (VRS) which supplies water to 45% of South Africa’s population in Gauteng municipalities including Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni, Tshwane, Rustenberg in the North West; as well Govan Mbeki Municipality (Secunda, Evander, and Bethal) in Mpumalanga. The Vaal River System also supports 60% of the South African economy, including:

• The bulk of Eskom’s power stations;
• Sasol’s plants in Sasolburg and Secunda;
• The goldfields of the North West and Free State provinces;
• The Iron and Manganese mines in the Northern Cape; and
• ArcelorMittal South Africa’s steel works in Vanderbijlpark and Vereeniging.

The long-term outlook for the VRS is that water requirements are outstripping the available water resources and there is a need to assure water security for the several provinces dependent on the VRS.

The transactions are an investment in an impactful project that contributes to social and economic development. Apart from the direct benefit of additional water supply for the VRS, the LHWP-2 is anticipated to contribute and maintain a total of R244.4 billion (in 2018 constant prices) GDP and Sustain 544 586 new job opportunities, of which just over 214 570 will be for unskilled workers; thereby significantly contributing to South Africa’s job creation, according to a Technical Due-diligence Report prepared by consulting company called WSP for the benefit of Development Finance Institutions lenders.

The loans are all denominated in local currency and therefore do not have foreign currency exposure and have maturities of between 5 and 20 years. They will be repaid through water tariffs charged by the Department of Water and Sanitation on the Vaal River System water users.

The TCTA's repayment obligations under the LHWP are covered by an explicit South African Government Guarantee as required by the Treaty on the Lesotho Highlands Water Project. The details of the loan agreements are provided in table 1 below.

TABLE 1: LOAN AGREEMENTS DETAILS

Lender	Loan Type	Purpose of the loan	Loan Amount	Effective Date	Final Repayment Date
ABSA	Long-Term Loan	Refinancing of existing debt	R1,000,000,000	27 May 2021	31 March 2026
DBSA	Long-Term Loan	Capital Expenditure	R2,500,000,000	27 May 2021	30 April 2045
DBSA	Long-Term Loan	Capital Expenditure	R3,000,000,000	27 May 2021	30 April 2045
Investec	Long-Term Loan & Revolving Credit Facility	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R1,500,000,000	25 July 2018	25 July 2036
Investec	Long-Term Loan	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R1,650,000,000	27 May 2021	30 May 2036
Nedbank	Long-Term Loan	Capital Expenditure	R2,000,000,000	27 May 2021	27 May 2031
Rand Merchant Bank	Long-Term Loan	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R3,800,000,000	27 May 2021	27 May 2026
Standard Bank	Long-Term Loan & Revolving Credit Facility	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R4,000,000,000	27 July 2018	27 July 2033
Standard Bank	Long-Term Loan	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R600,000,000	27 May 2021	30 April 2027
Standard Bank	Long-Term Loan	Refinancing and/or Capital Expenditure	R900,000,000	27 May 2021	28 April 2028

Reply:

 

The Honourable Member is kindly informed that this kind of information is not readily available at the National Department of Health. This information must be sourced from hospitals in provinces, and therefore the department is busy collating the information from the hospitals through the provinces. The information will be shared with the Honourable Member and Parliament as soon as it is received from the provinces.

END.

Reply:

 

Yes, Honourable Komane

Stats SA intends to roll out multi-modal data collection tools, namely (i) Computer Assisted Web Interviewing (CAWI), (ii) Computer Assisted Telephonic Interviewing (CATI) and (iii) Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI). The latter is also referred to as face to face interviewing.

The CAWI and CATI modes allows us to collect and interact with the public remotely, hence we encourage all people/households and institutions to register to be enumerated on our data-free platforms (getcounted.statssa.gov.za) or call our Tollfree service (0800 110-

248) to help them register. This process triggers members of the public to share with us their contact details, which will aid us to engage them even remotely (telephonically- CATI)

Face to face has been undertaken during the last pilot (August 2021). The challenge has been the discomfort from the public to open their doors to the field staff. The level of restrictions imposed at a given time will determine the roll out of face to face (e.g., any restrictions from level. 3 and lower still allows us to conduct face to face- with appropriate PPE equipment.). Any higher levels of restrictions (level 4-5) will lead to the rescheduling/ delayed deployment of face to face).

We are aware of limitations in rural areas either due to literacy levels or connectivity challenges, hence we advocate that CAPI is still the best mode to reach all settlements and population groupings (homeless, transients, households and the institutionalized).

We therefore intend to use all these methods in rural areas. In areas/cases where these other two modes cannot be deployed, we intend to deploy face-to-face primarily with the appropriate levels of restrictions as determined/pronounced from time to time.

The approach will be to provide all our field staff with (appropriate PPE’s, face masks and sanitizers), in addition our training includes a module on adherence to Occupation, Health and Safety (OHS) measures/guidelines in line with COVID-19 regulations. This includes either conducting interviews in open spaces within, outside the dwelling unit or asking for telephone numbers and calling the respondent immediately thereafter via using the tablets (over the fence or otherwise).

Finally, we also have a workplace vaccination program, wherein we encourage our employees to be vaccinated by setting dates for vaccinations within our various national and provincial offices in collaboration with GEMS.

Thank You.

Reply:

 

1. The finalisation of the report on the National Investigation Task Team, was delayed by the outstanding forensic investigation report that was carried out on the cell phones that were voluntarily submitted by candidates. The final Report has since been submitted to the Portfolio Committee.
2. The investigation relating to the Government Printing Works as well as the other components of the investigation are part of the criminal investigation that is conducted and managed by the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (DPCI). All information relating to the criminal investigation will only be made available to the Department of Basic Education, after the investigation is concluded and the courts have ruled on the matter.

Reply:

 

1. There are four officials from the National Department of Health (NDOH) that have been suspended and are currently undergoing a disciplinary hearing. Charges were served on the officials and the Disciplinary Hearing commenced on 22 November 2021, it is currently underway.
2. Kindly refer to (1) above, charges have been served on the four implicated officials.
3. The NDOH has resolved to minimize the use of deviations, and these will only be resorted to under extremely exceptional circumstances. In addition, the NDOH is the process of improving its contract management processes to ensure efficient and effective contract management.

END.

Reply:

 

The following interventions are made to assist the Robert Mangaliso Sobukwe Hospital:

(a) The hospital has an annual turnover of about 30 – 50 community service doctors;

(b) The hospital annually plans by commencing interviews with community service doctors who may be interested to continue working at the hospital around June – July;

(c) The hospital has completed the human resources process on time and the applicants were informed of the outcome of the interviews and the list of recommended applicants has been sent to the Head of Units;

(d) The hospital is currently filling 31 posts, following a resignation of a medical officer

​2. Yes.

(a) The hospital always had backlogs in ophthalmology, general surgery, and orthopaedics. This is due to an ongoing challenge of a shortage of nurses trained in theatre technique. The hospital does, from time to time, arrange blitz sessions to reduce the backlog;

(b) The total backlog for general surgery currently stands at 492;

(c) The long-term plan is active recruitment, coupled with training nurses in theatre technique to cover the rest of the province. This will allow the hospital to plan outreach programmes into the districts to minimise the burden on the tertiary hospital for beds.

(3) The Ministry and National Department of Health will continue to support the province as we do with us provinces in the identified area of staff shortages across all categories.

END.

 

Reply:

 

The outbreak of Covid–19 brought new challenges in the Traditional Health Practice, which led to the Department of Health developing Guidelines for Traditional Health Practitioners in dealing with Covid-19.

The Department supported the role played by Traditional Health Practitioners during the hard lockdown period by providing them with travel permits to allow them to continue looking after their patients and assist in the prevention and control of COVID-19. Traditional Health Practitioners have also been supported by the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC), by providing them with PPE procured through the Global Fund money.

END.

Reply:

 

(a). All gazetted hospitals in the country are declared ready for the Covid-19 variant. These hospitals are able to manage Covid-19 cases in the context of the hierarchy of health services per type of facility. This arrangement ensures that the patients are referred the next level of care as and when the condition of the patient changes, from mild, moderate to severe state.

(b). The department has prepared all the 336 gazetted public hospitals plus the private sector hospitals for Covid-19 variant depending of the packages of services and hierarchy of care for each level of the hospital. At the start of the pandemic in 2020, the department did the following in order to determine the state of readiness for Covid-19 admissions:

• • conducted an audit for oxygen reticulation capability;
  • identification of respiratory support devices needs;
  • determined infrastructure needs as well as Human Resource needs.

This is the information that has been used to ensure that the hospitals are ready for all various Covid-19 variants, including preparations for this current variant. Based on the Intra-Action Review that was conducted for the third wave, the department was confident to confirm during the planning for the fourth wave that all hospitals are ready for this new variant.

END.

Reply:

 

The department regrets to report that there has been no additional budget for demand generation. The additional resources have been provided by the private sector and voluntarily placement of advertisements and radio slots. The investments include making vaccination mean more to people (through demand creation) and making it easier to get vaccinated (through establishing more vaccination sites, using outreach and extending vaccination site times, primarily to weekends). Doses in the arms, especially of older people mean a lot fewer admissions and savings to the health system. Calculations have been done which show that vaccination of people over 65 years saves the health system around R850 per vaccination based on a cost of admission which is about R75 000 per admission. It has also been estimated that vaccinating 83 men over 65 years could prevent 1 admission, saving R903 in admission cost for this group.

The cost of vaccines and associated supplies remains the major investment. The cost of the logistics to provide the vaccinations increases exponentially as it becomes more difficult to reach people. Increasingly more effort and investment are required to drive towards critical thresholds of coverage. People who are willing to vaccinate if their personal costs or constraints are reduced cost the vaccination programme more to reach than those who have no limitation on access at their own costs.

The public investment case is that COVID-19 has had a devastating effect on both society and the economy:

• COVID-19 has increased the number of deaths by about 30% since May 2020. There were 238,949 excess deaths in South Africa recorded between 3 May 2020 and 14 August 2021 (age-standardised excess death rate of 401 per 100,000 population).

• Vaccination against COVID-19 will provide a return on investment of 11 to 20 times in terms of infections averted and costs to the economy.

• COVID-19 related mortality is concentrated in older age groups: 82% of COVID-19 deaths recorded in South Africa have been among people over fifty years of age and 61% of recorded deaths among people over 60 years.
• The net saving to the health system of vaccinating all men and women over 65 years of age is approximately R1.3 billion (R500 and R250 per person respectively), based on a mortality hazard ratio of approximately 2:1,4 an average cost per hospitalisation managed in a public general ward of R75,0005 and an unit cost of vaccination of R350.

• The vaccination of younger people (aged 18-39 years) is crucial in securing the social and economic returns on investment in the medium-term. In the short-term, the vaccination of younger people will incur a net cost to the health sector (about R300 p.p.). However, they constitute over half (56%) of the total population and their uptake patterns will largely determine whether or not we reach critical thresholds of coverage.

END.

2

Reply:

 

1. While dropping out is a matter that the Department of Basic Education monitors closely, it would be difficult to provide a response to question (a) for two reasons. Firstly, how the Department has monitored dropping out over the years, has changed as methodologies and data have improved; meaning that there is no comparable number for each of twenty years which can simply be added together. It should be pointed out that dropping out is seldom, if ever monitored in the manner implied by the question. Secondly, even if an attempt were to be made to standardise values over time, this would have to be in response to a question that defines clearly who is a dropout. There is no universally accepted definition of this. Young people, who leave school before obtaining the ‘Matric’ to find work, or to further studies somewhere else, are not easily identified or defined.

It should be clarified that the Department takes the matter of dropping out very seriously, and reports transparently and frequently on this. The annual report on the National Senior Certificate (NSC) examinations, available on the Department’s website, provides comprehensive analysis of who obtains and who does not obtain the National Senior Certificate (NSC). For example, the report for the 2020 examinations indicates that ‘the percentage of youths successfully completing Grade 12, has increased from about 45% in 2005, to around 57% in 2019’. The 57% implies that around 420 000 in one youth age cohort, do not obtain the NSC. Statistics South Africa data indicate that a further 3%, do not obtain the NSC; but do obtain some other national qualification outside the schooling system, for instance at a college. (This is explained in, for instance, the Department’s Action Plan to 2024.)

The 2020 NSC examinations report, moreover makes the important point that successful completion of twelve years of education in South Africa is roughly to similar to that found in other middle income countries. The key point is that the situation is improving in South Africa. A growing percentage of young South Africans, have been obtaining the NSC, and the NSC with a Bachelors-level pass in particular.

1. Most dropping out, occurs between Grade 10 and Grade 11, and between Grade 11 and Grade 12. Figures in this regard appear in the 2020 NSC report.

1. Dropping out is caused mostly by learners not coping academically. By far the most important interventions implicitly aimed at combatting dropping out, focus on improving the quality of learning and teaching. Such interventions include upgrading the skills of teachers at the secondary level, and initiatives aimed at ensuring that learners have all the textbooks they need, as well as the support / remedial programmes they require. Important longer-term interventions, include improving the way reading, writing and numeracy are taught in the earliest grades. Details appear in the Department’s Annual Performance Plan and other documents on the Department’s website.

In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic poses immense threats to educational quality. In this regard, the Department has focussed strongly on returning learners to regular daily attendance, for instance by insisting on the prioritisation of teachers in the national vaccination programme.

Reply:

 

The findings and recommendations of the Report of the Ekurhuleni Water Care Company are indicated in the table below:

Findings	Recommendations
Non-establishment of the two key Governance Structures, the Political Steering Committee and the Project Steering Committee; resulted in delays for approval of the intervention implementation plan	Key Governance Structures should be established to make key decisions on budgetary issues and project implementation issues.
The Project Management Office (PMO) should have been appointed shortly after appointing ERWAT as an Implementing Agent to ensure efficient handling of the project plan and procurement of services.	The PMO should have been appointed shortly after appointing ERWAT as an Implementing Agent
There was a long lead time in Supply Chain Management processes (MFMA Compliance which affected the pace of the project.	Due to the urgent nature of the project, special procurement processes should be put in place to ensure that the needs of the project are met in a timeous manner
There was a lack of a structured communication and engagement protocol	Councilors need to conduct regular public awareness campaigns to educate communities on the objectives of the intervention to: Minimize work disturbances by the communities Reduce the littering and vandalism of the sewer network by the communities.
	Community awareness campaigns should be a constant feature/activity in projects of such a nature to manage community expectations.
The role of the Labour Unions and communities as key stakeholders, was not acknowledged which resulted in a lack of buy-in from the Metsi- a-Lekoa personnel for the project	Labour unions should play a greater part in projects of such a nature for the good of the project.
	The establishment of Labour Desks at an early stage is key so that the project can be implemented with the inclusion of SMMEs and taking into consideration job seekers in the area.
	Buy-in from the local communities, Community Leadership, Business Forum Leadership, MKMVA Leadership was crucial for the project.
There was scope creep between the Sedibeng Regional Sewer Scheme (SRSS) and the Vaal River System Intervention (VRSI) resulting from inadequate integration of the SRSS and VRSI Projects.	Allocation of resources and integration of projects such as the SRSS and the VRSI should be given priority even before the commencement of the project. This will also avoid delays due to interdependencies.
	Better planning and coordination is required for integration of SRSS into VRSI.
Finalisation of scope of works for refurbishments was delayed	The Department should prioritise finalization of scope for refurbishment when they take over project implementation.
	The O&M aspect of the project should be implemented first before the Capex rollout for infrastructure refurbishment to ensure that the Implementing Agent understands the process

Findings	Recommendations
	deficiencies and the sequence of the refurbishment process.
Human resources, equipment and fleet were found to be inadequate within Emfuleni Local Municipality and presented challenges in the operation and maintenance of the sewer infrastructure	The project should have commenced by mobilizing resources such as staff, fleet, tools, equipment, for Metsi-a-Lekoa. Capacitatation of ELM from inception would have made skills transfer from ERWAT an easy process.
Poor power supply to pump stations and Water Care Works (WCWs) affected water quality.	Back-up generators should be procured to ensure continuous adequate power supplies.

Reply:

 

No COVID-19 vaccines are currently approved for use in South Africa in children under the age of 12 years.

Trials in young children have been completed for two inactivated vaccines (Sinovac-CoronaVac and BBIBP-CorV), and these products have been approved by Chinese authorities for use in children 3-17 years. However, although these vaccines have received emergency use approval from the World Health Organization (WHO) for adults, they have to date not been approved by WHO for use in children1. Several additional COVID-19 vaccines are undergoing trials in young children (including children as young as 6 months of age). Results from these trials are expected in late 2021 or early in 2022, and it is likely that the manufacturers will then apply for regulatory approval for the vaccines to be administered to children under five years of age. Decisions to vaccinate young children in South Africa will require approval by SAHPRA, and will be guided by recommendations of the Vaccine Ministerial Advisory Committee.

It should be noted that whilst initial COVID cases caused by the Omicron variant included a large proportion of children under five years of age, this pattern has changed with more cases now being seen in older (adult) age groups. The incidence and severity of disease in young children is being carefully monitored in order to understand the impact of the new variant on young children.

Caregivers should protect young children from COVID infection by ensuring that all household members and other close contacts who are eligible to be vaccinated, are fully vaccinated, and that standard COVID prevention practices are followed at all times.

END.

1 World Health Organization. Interim statement on COVID-19 vaccination for children and adolescents. 24 November 2021

Reply:

 

1. A total of R 11 504 666, 67 bonuses has been paid during the 2020-21 financial year for the 2019/20 Performance management cycle.
2. The following amounts were paid iro benefits to employees:
   1. R 1 109 654,60 paid to employees who were on suspension
   2. R 1 788 516,00 paid to employees who have resigned while under internal investigation.

END

2729. Mr A C Roos: (DA) to ask the Minister of Home Affairs: Written Reply 

Reply:

 

(a). Based on section 5 of the Border Management Authority Act, the Authority is required by law to ensure the effective management of the movement of people, goods and services across the country’s Ports of Entry (PoE). Therefore, the establishment of the Authority is intended to improve efficiencies in the facilitation of trade between South African and the rest of the African continent and the world. Further, the establishment of BMA seeks to ensure the integration of various functions (e.g. immigration, port health, agriculture, access control) which are currently implemented by individual government departments in a fragmented manner. Therefore, BMA’s establishment seeks to improve efficiencies in this regard by integrating all those functions into a single command and control. To this end, in executing its functions, the BMA will remain guided by the overall policy directives adopted by the respective parent departments and therefore will in no way work towards hindering any trade activities or market access between South Africa, African countries and the world.

(b). The BMA, in collaboration with relevant government stakeholders, has prepared an operational plan for the border environment for the 2021/22 festive season wherein mitigation strategies have been developed for identified challenges such as traffic congestion and crowd control. The plan has been endorsed by multiple stakeholders including the National Joint Operational Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS), Provincial Joint Operational Intelligence Structures (PROVJOINTS) especially those of Limpopo, Mpumalanga and the Free State. Further, the Border Management Authority is leading discussions at the Joint Technical Committees with our respective neighbours to ensure the alignment of systems to ensure the smooth movement of cargo between our respective Ports of Entry. We have also finalised discussions to increase the operating hours and the deployment of additional human resources especially in the busiest ports such as Beit Bridge, Lebombo, and Maseru Bridge, amongst others.

​(c). Whilst the leadership of Border Management Authority is busy putting systems in place to operationalise the Authority and the ultimate deployment of the Border Guards, the Ports of Entry are currently secured by the South African Police Service (SAPS) in order to deter and intercept any illegal activities in the port environment. Regarding security at the private and public airports, the members of SAPS are working closely with the private security company to ensure that the port environment is fully secured and protected. These security arrangements also cover the Fire Blade private airport area as described in order to ensure that there is no smuggling taking place in the environment.

 

Reply:

 

• 1. The department is considering various options including the usage of third parties (e.g. courier companies) to facilitate the turnaround times for passport applications abroad in the interim, while the long-term include the deployment of e-Home Affairs and Live Capture abroad.
  2. The department is in the process to establish the viability of extending the online passport application systems abroad which will significantly shorten the time-frame for issuance of passports. The installation of the e-Home Affairs and Live Capture System in offices abroad is receiving attention.

END

Reply:

 

1(a) (i)(ii) and 1(b)(1). The table below shows the information on the staff component of all non-teaching posts including professional staff (Therapists, Social Workers and Nurses)

School Name	Number of posts-1 (a)(i)(ii)	Vacant -1(b) (I)
Helene Franz Special School	78	32
Tshilidzini Special School	109	50

1(b) (ii) The vacancies reported have accumulated since 2015, which was the last time posts were filled at both schools.

1(b)(iii) 36 posts for special schools targeted for learners with Severe to Profound Intellectual Disability have been advertised for filling with effect from 01/04/2022. Some of the posts, once filled, will offer services to the two schools. Furthermore, 228 additional posts (professional and non-professional) to be distributed to all special schools in the province have been submitted to the Provincial Treasury for approval to be filled during the 2022/23 financial year.

1. There is currently one (1) Therapist post filled at Tshilidzini Special School with 11 vacant, and none at Helene Franz Special School with two (2) vacant. Both schools are currently receiving therapeutic support provided by Therapists appointed through the Learners with Severe and Profound Intellectual Disability grant.

1. There are no recorded oversight visits to the specific schools at national level.

Reply:

 

According to the Gauteng Provincial Department of Health,

• The current Covid-19 guidelines were used in the treatment of patients who were admitted with Covid-19;

• This period also coincided with the end of the 3rd wave;

• There is a possibility that the community vaccination has had a positive impact on the number of people getting infected with Covid-10 and a decrease in the number of patients who needed admission.

END.

Reply:

 

1. The Department plans to conduct a needs analysis with regards to the suitability and applicability of current programmes to meet the needs and requirements of persons with disabilities. Currently the Department provides for a top-up to the current subsidy to respond to the needs of persons with disabilities who apply and are approved for a subsidised house. The Department has received requests for the current minimum norm and standard for a house for a person

with disabilities to be increased to 45m2 in size. The intention of the needs analysis is to ensure houses are constructed that comply with Part S of the South African National Standards (SANS 10400XA). Such standards provide that the house must conform to the universal design principles to ensure accessibility for persons with disabilities.

This implies that the houses to be build would be tailor-made to suit different forms of physical disabilities and special needs to cater for persons who use or need walking aids, partially or full-time using a wheelchair, partially/profoundly deaf, partially/ blind, partially/total movement loss/paralysis in the upper body limbs.

1. The Department also plans to approve a policy on Special Housing Needs (SHN), in conjunction with the Department of Social Development, which will cater for those that are unable to live independently in a normal housing or require assistance in terms of a safe, supportive, and protective living environment and thus need some level of care or protection, be it temporary or permanent.

1. The table below provides a summary of what is recorded in the National Needs Register as 24 November 2021, in relation to backlog of provision of housing for persons with disabilities..

Reply:

 

The question has been referred to the North West Department of Education and a response will be submitted as soon as it is received.

Reply:

 

1. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) is committed to creating an enabling registration process to facilitate the registration of more ECD programmes. To this end, the DBE has conducted the ECD Census to determine the number of unregistered ECD programmes and to identify areas that may require additional registration support. The Department has also held a broad stakeholder engagement session on 30 November 2021 to better understand the challenges in the registration process. It is recognised that there is a multitude of challenges facing ECD programmes in the registration process and the Department has been working alongside the Department of Social Development in the Second Children’s Amendment Bill to, among other things, address some of the challenges which arise from the legislation, regulations, norms and standards. Similarly, the Department is in the process of ensuring that an online registration capturing system is in place, come 01 April 2022, to streamline the back-end processes related to registration.
2. The Department has been very clear in all communication to the sector that the function shift will not be resulting in additional resources to the sector. Supported by the National Education Collaboration Trust (NECT), the Department has held a series of stakeholder dialogues aimed at, among others, communicating facts about the function shift. Furthermore, the communication teams from both Departments, are working on a communication plan to ensure that this message is consistently communicated across all the provinces.
3. The Department has had multiple meetings with the National Treasury to seek any additional funding for ECD. National Treasury has been clear that there will be no additional funding for the 2021/22 financial year, but that they have included ECD as a top priority in subsequent years. The Department will be working very closely with the National Treasury in the 2022/23 financial year to build a business case for additional funding. This business case will build on the evidence collected through the ECD Census (advocating for expanding access) and the Thrive by Five Index (proving the impact of the funding currently being spent). Integrating ECD into the Education Management Information System (EMIS) will further help with building credibility regarding the recipients of the subsidy.

Reply:

 

Learner admission, is a provincial competency. The Department of Basic Education (DBE) developed Business Processes that all provinces should implement in the management of the admission process. The DBE has ensured that all provinces have:

1. developed Circulars to guide the admission process in the admissions in line with the Business Process;
2. used various media platforms to conduct advocacy to inform parents and stakeholders about important dates and procedures for admissions;
3. established admission committees at provincial and District level to manage admissions in the province;
4. established a team to manage and respond to appeals;
5. established centres to deal with late registration and the distribution of learners from over-subscribed to where there is still available space.

Reply:

 

1. What is the breakdown in each province of the (a) total number learners who were directly affected by the underspending of the budget? (b) grants which were affected (c) total amount that was not spent in each grant?

Response:

1 (a) No learners were directly affected by the under-expenditure as services continued to be rendered despite the under-expenditure.

1 (b) and (c): There was no under-expenditure on other grants.

What total amount was underspent for learners with severe disabilities in the 2019-20 financial year?

Response:

R10.7 Million (See attach expenditure report for details).

Reply:

 

Three Vooma Weekends have been held, namely 3-5 October 2021, 12-14 November 2021 and 3-5 December 2021. Each Friday, Saturday and Sunday is regarded as a “weekend”.

The impact of Vooma weekends (in increasing vaccinations) was independently evaluated by Genesis-Analytics.

Vooma I: 3-5 October 2021: A total of 372,252 vaccinations were conducted over the three day period, and this upward trend was sustained through the following week. The weekday average in the week following of 106,393 compared to average of 84,121 for weekdays in the previous 2 weeks (excluding the Heritage Day holiday).

Overall, Vooma achieved a 25% increase in first dose vaccinations compared to trends over the previous month. Excluding Friday (which is a normal weekday), the number of vaccinations over the weekend was 141% more than expected from 2-3 Oct. First dose vaccinations were 138% higher than expected.

Vooma II: 12-14 November 2021: A total of 263,564 vaccinations were conducted over the three day period. Excluding Friday (which is a normal weekday), the number of vaccinations over the weekend was 95% more than expected from 12-14 Nov. First dose vaccinations were 79% higher than expected and second dose vaccinations were 116% higher than expected.

Vooma III: 3-5 December 2021: Evaluation of this weekend is underway, but only a total of 227,490 vaccinations were recorded. This number excludes paper records still to be captured. Unfortunately rainy weather in most parts of the country reduced attendance.

Statistical analysis of the first Vooma weekend found that the strongest driver of vaccinations was the availability of open sites, which in turn requires staffing. The availability of funding for overtime payment of staff is a constraint in a number of provinces. In addition to site availability, this analysis showed that average vaccinations at sites were 34% higher, indicating that the support by political and other leaders as well as greater publicity has the effect of increasing vaccinations.

END.

Reply:

 

(a) The department has a Loss Control Committee to deal with the Irregular Expenditure and do an analysis on some of the cases of disagreements related to the interpretation of irregular expenditure categorised under emergency procurement in line with the circular directive issued by National Treasury.

(i)-(ii) The department including the entities implemented processes to ensure end users are conscientise to comply with Irregular Expenditure Framework and its prescribed timelines. The department its further implementing processes and mechanism where all end users on procurements of goods and services are done through Supply Chain Management Cluster to ensure that internal policies and procedures are fully complied with.

Effective consequence management process when non-compliance on irregular Expenditure is detected, the department has a loss Control Committee to conduct a determination test or analyse particulars of the non-compliance to establish the facts and losses, if any, related to the transaction. The committee will then recommend appropriate action on each reported. The process is already implemented and underway, and Human Resource Labour Relation unit including Legal Service Cluster are currently dealing with the investigation of some of the cases which involves the officials and/ or service providers alleged to be committed irregular expenditure. Tangible measures and/or efforts will be determined at the end of the financial year during the audit process.

END.

Reply:

 

The department is ready to accommodate the new cases of Covid-19 that are on the rise. All hospitals and clinics have been prepared for the fourth wave as follows:

Both hospitals and clinics have been allocated adequate resources such as beds, oxygen supplies, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), and respiratory support devices. The health care workers have also been allowed to take leave before the fourth wave.

END.

Reply:

 

The community of Ward 11 in Moses Kotane Local Municipality is receiving Health Services through Mobile clinic two times a month (bi-weekly). The next visit was scheduled on the 10 December 2021. The clinic that normally serves ward 11 is Ramokokastad clinic, which is currently closed due to the destruction that was caused during the unrests in the village. This clinic will be re-opened at the end of March 2022, and this will improve access of services in the Ward.

END.

Reply:

 

In terms of the Agreement between South Africa and Cuba, the amount payable for tuition fees for students in Cuba is billed in US dollars and payable by the National Department of Health based on the exchange rate at the date of transfer. The amount payable is fixed per level of study per student. Stipend is also billed in US dollars.

All year calculations are made based on the current exchange rate which might fluctuate from time-to-time. The fluctuation is always accommodated to ensure that it does not negatively affect the budgeted amount. On a monthly basis students receive their stipend of USD 200.

There are no charges or fees subtracted on the stipend regardless of the exchange rate. END.

Reply:

 

The department started planning for the fourth wave based on the experience from other countries and the advice from the scientists about the third wave. In this regard, the department worked with the provinces, the National Institute of Communicable Diseases, the World Health Organisation (WHO), the scientists and all other stakeholders to prepare for this fourth wave. The preparations resulted in the development of the fourth wave resurgence plan for both National Department and the provinces. The planning covered various areas which are provided for in the original surge planning framework. This plan includes the following:

• The number of beds that are available for admission of CoVid-19 patients
• The number of respiratory support devices
• The capacity and capacity of oxygen supply and reticulation including sustainable availability in the hospitals

• Availability of the Human Resources by encouraging that those who were at the front line be allowed to take leave to recover from the pressure of the third wave.

END.

Reply:

 

(a)-(b) The responsibility of the Department of Health is to ensure that the public receives accurate and factual information from reliable sources in a manner that is reassuring and builds national trust. Part of that accurate information is to ensure that everyone understands the risks of not getting vaccinated and not adhering to personal protective practices like mask- wearing, handwashing, good ventilation and social distancing. It is also vital that older people and their families understand the substantially higher risk of Covid-19 related hospital admission and death, should they not get vaccinated as 58.4% of hospital admissions and 81.5% of deaths recorded by the end of the end of October 2021 were among people aged 50 and above.

The most effective reassurance which the National Department of Health can offer the general public is substantially reduced risk through vaccination and adherence to the personal practices described above. At the same time, the Department understands that the ‘messenger is as important as the message’ in persuading people to be vaccinated. For that reason, together with GCIS and other social partners, it engages extensively with national and provincial leadership of faith-based organisations, labour unions, traditional and Khoi-San leadership, community organisations and the business sector. It has also launched a Vooma Vax Champs initiative to encourage ordinary South Africans to become advocates among their friends and colleagues in an effort to tap into personal networks of trust.

The Department makes use of both regional radio stations of the SABC and over 65 Community based organisations to convey messaging in all 11 languages. It also distributes print material available in all 11 languages. Over 30 million brochures have been distributed through the Department of Health and partner retail stores. Print material is also available in Braille and large-print for the partially sighted and a video has been developed for people with hearing disability.

Every effort is to made to ensure that non-binary pronouns are used in the public communication to ensure inclusiveness with respect to gender identity. Where required, information is tailored for specific gendered audiences (e.g. dealing with concerns about male virility and clarifying that the vaccine is safe for men and for women who are pregnant).

A Risk, Community and Community Engagement Committee is responsible for synthesising the feedback from provinces to better understand and respond to regional issues.

The messages we disseminate are based on verified facts and we deliberately do not focus on giving airtime to the myths and misperceptions around the vaccine. Our current campaigns such as Zwakala, GenV Who You Doing It For? And the Vaccine Diaries are all based on positive reinforcement, demonstrating social proof that vaccines are safe and the continual encouragement of taking preventive behaviours.

We develop communication campaigns that are targeted to specific segments of our population, be they in a specific geography or age cohort. For example, the Zwakala campaign is targeted at youth and is primarily on social media and digital mediums. GenV is targeted at the 35+ year olds, and is on national radio and TV.

We also of course create communications for the mass market, but even when we do that, we create that content in multiple languages. Our new safer holiday campaign will be on community and national radio in all 11 official languages.

Finally, all of our communication is based on insights and data that we receive from our social listening and community engagement teams to ensure we are addressing real concerns people have around COVID-19 and the vaccine. We know that if we do this, our messages will resonate better.

Through regular coordination between the national level, provincial, sub-district level and the range of RCCE partners, we are confident that we are doing everything in our means to reach all South Africans in mediums and messages that are understandable and relatable.

The National Contact Centre has branches in six provinces to ensure a good spread of call centre operators fluent in all languages.

At the same time, we appreciate the limitations of nationally designed messaging and communication. Working with social partners and private foundations such as the DG Murray Trust and Tshikululu Social Investments, a network of close to 100 community- based organisations is supported, involving every district, to ensure that information can be contextualised and conveyed in a style and language suitable to all audiences. Partner organisations with the Department of Health, such as the AIDS Foundation of South Africa, NACOSA and Beyond Zero, assist in reaching hard to reach groups (including sex workers and other socially marginalised groups).

The Department has worked with NEDLAC, the business sector and trade unions to ensure that information is both targeted and specific to different occupational groups. The Mining Sector has done exceptionally well in attaining coverage levels of over 70%, while there is active mobilisation of the agricultural sector through joint engagement of agri-business and trade unions.

END.

Reply:

 

There are no corruption charges that have been brought to my attention regarding the Nelson Mandela Fidela Castro Collaboration Programme.

However, when the National Department of Health conducted an internal audit and reconciliation with the Provinces on this Programme from October to December 2021, it was not conducted for the Gauteng Department of Health.

The details from the Gauteng Department of Health are that all files relating to the Nelson Mandela Fidel Castro Collaboration Programme have been taken by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) for an investigation.

END.

Reply:

 

The vetting conducted entailed the following:

1. (i) Checked if Digital Vibes is fit to do business with the department by assessing its capability and capacity through functionality evaluation which was part of terms of reference.

• 1. Checked if the Digital Vibes operates in the required business sector in so far as their registration with CSD.

• 1. Checked the legitimacy by verifying its existence through the Central Supplier Database, how long they have existed, that they are actively trading, and their financial status.

• 1. The department also checked if Digital Vibes and its directors/shareholders were not restricted to do business with the State through the National Treasury tender defaulters register.

• 1. The department relied on the information certified by the bidder on the Declaration of bidder’s past supply chain management practices, standard bidding document 8 (SBD 8). Question 4.1 SBD 8 ask the bidder or any of its directors if they listed on the National Treasury Database of restricted suppliers as companies or person prohibited from doing business with the public sector. Question 4.2 of the same SBD 8 ask the bidder or its directors if they listed on the register of tender defaulters in terms of section 29 of the prevention and combating of corrupt activities Act (Act No. 12 of 2004).

• 1. The department also checked if the bank account number belong to Digital Vibes and not individual through bank verification on the Central Supplier Database.
  2. The department made use of the declaration of interest, standard bidding document 4 (SBD 4) to be completed by the bidder and the bidder had to sign the declaration form certifying that the information furnished is true and correct. Paragraph 2.9 of the SBD 4 ask the bidder if “Do you, or any person connected with the bidder, have any relationship (family, friend, other) with person employed by the State and who may be involved with the evaluation and or adjudication of this bid”.

1. The General Condition of Contract (GCC), which forms part of the standard bidding document issued to bidders’ states on paragraph 1.13 that “Fraudulent practice” means a misrepresentation of facts in order to influence a procurement process or the execution of a contract to the detriment of any bidder. In this case, qualifications of team members and individuals of Digital Vibes were not vetted. Bidders are bound by the GCC that their submission is truthful in all aspects and that any misrepresentation are dealt with in line with Preferential Procurement Regulations 2017. If after award it becomes apparent that the bidder misrepresented facts on the submission of their bidding documents the contract may cancelled which may lead to the entity being restricted from doing business with the state for a specified period.

END.

2

Reply:

 

The Department has always paid special attention on the children and adolescent access by monitoring the age group in the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets on HIV and AIDS treatment.

The prevention of Mother to child HIV transmission is intended to reduce vertical transmission, the target is that all pregnant HIV positive women should give birth to HIV negative children, in that way this will decrease the burden of HIV in children. All these women are initiated on ART and viral suppression is monitored closely to remain at <50 or that they are virally suppressed so that they transmit the virus.

All children exposed to HIV are given HIV prophylaxis for the duration of breast feeding. Those babies who are vertically infected are initiated on ART immediately after diagnosis.

We have acknowledged the gap on access of HIV services within this population gap and have developed various strategies such as the following:

1. Development and implementation across all the provinces of the Paediatric and Adolescent HIV Matrix of Interventions Plan: The key objectives of the intervention plan are to:

• • improve rates of earlier HIV diagnosis in children and adolescents and
  • increase access to quality HIV treatment and care for children and adolescents.
  • retain children and adolescent in sustainable treatment.

1. Monthly provincial virtual calls as part of M&E for the programme and the Matrix Paediatric and Adolescent HIV Matrix of Interventions Plan. Provinces report back on progress of interventions, highlight challenges and share best practices that aim to improve indicators.

1. Department of Health continues to ensure public health facilities provide adolescent- friendly health services.

1. The Department of Health , in response to palatability of the paediatric ART suspensions, has since introduced Lopinavir/Ritonavir pellets for children, which is the new formulation of drugs, approved for use in SA. These pellets make adherence easy and encourages the caregivers to give treatment for viral load suppression.

1. To date all provinces have procured the product and both nurses and doctors can prescribe LPV/r oral pellets.

1. Department of Health with its partners continues to implement the Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) Programme and Determined, Resilient, Empowered ,AIDS-free, Mentored and Safe (DREAMS) program, which offers an age-tailored combination prevention package for adolescent girls and young women aged 15 to 25. The DREAMS partnership is an ambitious public-private partnership aimed at reducing rates of HIV among adolescent girls and young women in the highest HIV burden districts. The aim of the project is to:

• • empower adolescent girls and young women and reduce risk through youth-friendly reproductive health care and social asset building;

• • mobilize communities for change with school- and community-based HIV and violence prevention;

• • reduce risk of sex partners through PEPFAR programming, including HIV testing, treatment, and voluntary medical male circumcision; and

• • strengthen families with social protection (education subsidies, combination socio- economic approaches) and parent/caregiver programs.

The department has established Youth zones in some public health facilities, priority being to improve the accessibility of health services to young people and support for the HIV infected youth. Nationally the department has established 1027 youth zones out of 3434 public health facilities.

Youth Zone are youth friendly spaces within the health facility, meant to attract more young people to access health facilities. Youth zones, by dedicating time and environmental space and prioritise youth in service provision which is not limited to biomedical but include extramural activities and other initiatives. Youth zones encourage adolescents to have support groups and discuss health related and age appropriate topics including taking ART and remaining on ART.

The National Department of Health is in partnership with loveLife and Soul City to support implementation of youth prevention interventions including prevention of HIV , starting on ART and teenage pregnancies.

Soul City’s rise young women’s club comprises young people at community level that group themselves and meet on a monthly basis to discuss the social challenges in their communities and empower each other on health related issues and discuss support of young women on ART.

END.

2

Reply:

 

(a.i) Farm dwellers still face extreme tenure insecurity and lack access to adequate housing and basic services. This is fuelled by matters related to management of labour relations on farms, migration out of farms due to various factors including evictions, as well as the rise of temporary and insecure work. According to the Community Household Survey (2016) the number of households engaged in agriculture was 2,3 million in 2016 compared with 2,9 million in 2011. More recent figures will in all probability confirm the trend

(a.ii) A total of 89 sites and 114 housing units were built in the farming areas, as per allocations and information provided by the Provinces of the Eastern Cape, Gauteng, Mpumulanga and North West.

1. The specific housing related challenges include, amongst others:

• 1. The provision of basic services and adequate housing on farms, based on the fact that the farms are private properties;
  2. The persistent tensions that exist between commercial farmers, farm-workers, and the enforcement of constitutional and and land rights legislation;
  3. There are serious land tenure matters that hamper and complicate service delivery with respect to farm- workers,
  4. A number of rural municipalities confront the lack of technical capacity and expertise challenges, and as a

result may not be able to adequately cope with planning and the delivery of services.

However, to ensure the specific needs and nature to provide housing and human settlements in farming areas is dealt with through the programme namely “Farm Resident Subsidies in Part 3, Volume 5 of the National Housing Code, 2009”. Its purpose is to provide a flexible mechanism that promotes adequate housing, including basic services and secure tenure to farm workers and residents in a variety of farming situations across the country. It is implemented through Provincial Development Plans and Municipal Integrated Development Plans (IDPs).

Additional Information For Consideration Of The Director-General and Minister In The Finalisation Of the Reply

There are other supplementary programmes such as the National Housing Programme: Rural Housing – Informal Land Rights, implemented by the Department to support programmes of the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development (DALRRD), especially where farmers reside on land in communal tenure. The National Housing Programme for Farm Residence is also aligned with Land Reform: Labour Tenant Programme that promotes a holistic solution to address the housing and development needs of labour tenants targeted by the Land Reform Programme.

It is to be further noted that the Department is participating in consultation sessions with DALRRD in the development of a Farm Dweller Programme that seeks to, among others, protect the rights of farm dwellers, provide for tenure security, etc. The draft programme will further seek to consolidate all the various interventions by a number of Departments in this sector, and most importantly, to respond critical legislative instruments that have been passed, including court judgments.

Farmworker Housing Assistance
Financial Year	Province	Sites	Expenditure Sites	Units	Expenditure Units	Profession al Fees	Actual Bulk	Total Expenditure
2018	Gauteng	100	2 104 168	0	0	875 093	0	2 979 261
	Mpumalanga	0	0	85	7 019 974	535 205	0	7 555 179
Total		100	2 104 168	85	7 019 974	1 410 298	0	10 534 440
2019	Mpumalanga	0	0	0	389 389	0	0	389 389
Total		0	0	0	389 389	0	0	389 389
2020	North West	0	0	25	5 212 291	0	0	5 212 291
	Eastern Cape	89	8 925	89	14 617 200	408 000	0	15 034 125
Total		89	8 925	114	19 829 491	408 000	0	20 246 416
Source: HSS

Reply:

 

1. Total number of –

• 1. Number of Hospital beds

The country has a total of 108 805 general beds and 5616 critical care beds all available for admission of Covid-19 patients.

• 1. Oxygen tanks that have been made available in each province

The oxygen tanks are allocated per hospital and not per province. The size of the tank is based on the size of the hospital and its capability to manage patients that require oxygenation. The oxygen tanks per hospital are attached as annexure A. Over and above these tanks, Afrox has further repurposed the oxygen cylinders and increased the capacity from 9000 cylinders that were available before Covid-19 to 19 000that are available for use during the pandemic.

1. The department held the two day workshop with the provinces, in anticipation of the fourth wave as part of the broad consultative process. This planning was irrespective of the variant, but more focused on the getting all resources ready for the pandemic knowing all variants are different but that they require proper planning. From this workshop, the provinces developed resurgence plans which are currently being implemented. Over and above these plans, the department, through the National Institute, as a partner, communicates with the provinces through the submission of the Situational Report on the variants. The departmental Incident Management Team has also allocated senior managers as provincial leads, who work directly with the provinces and they report to the National IMT every week on Thursday.

END.

Reply:

The underspending of R218 million resulted from expenditure budget of R990 million against the actual expenditure of R773 million and National Treasury approved the request.

1. The R218 million was committed at year-end. Seda submitted the motivation to the National Treasury to retain these surplus funds. The explanation provided was based on the calculation that informed the surplus. The formula to calculate the surplus is based on the available cash (on the bank accounts) at year-end together with the amount due to Seda (account receivables), less the amount owed by Seda to suppliers (account payables) and lastly less commitments already made.
2. The National Treasury approved Seda’s request, an amount of R294 million is available to be added on the expenditure budget of 2021/22.

MS STELLA TEMBISA NDABENI-ABRAHAMS, MP MINISTER OF SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

1

DSBD response to NA2782–NW3300E