Questions and Replies

Reply:

1. Any beneficiary noticing any (a) unlawful; (b) fraudulent and/or (c) immoral activity on his/her social grant must immediately report this to the nearest SASSA office. At the SASSA office, the beneficiary will be requested to complete an affidavit confirming that he/she did not purchase any advanced airtime, pre-paid electricity or take out a loan. This affidavit can be commissioned by the SASSA official attending to him/her. The SASSA official will then log the dispute and submit the affidavit to Cash Paymaster Services, to facilitate the refund of the money deducted and to blacklist that social grant account for any future purchases. In terms of the approved Dispute Resolution Mechanism, all cases must be dealt with within a time frame of 10 working days.

Alternatively, any beneficiary can call the SASSA toll free number 0800 60 10 11 and register a dispute. Again, that beneficiary will be requested to submit an affidavit confirming the dispute and that he/she did indeed not purchase any financial services or commodities. On receipt of the affidavit, SASSA will submit the dispute to Cash Paymaster Services, which has 10 working days in which to resolve the dispute.

2. SASSA has conducted a training programme for identified SASA staff within all provinces as well as those manning the call centre at Head Office, to ensure that they are aware of the procedures to be followed. The approved Dispute Resolution Mechanism has been made available to all staff as well as Cash Paymaster Services. In addition, SASSA is continuing with its communication programme through both print and electronic media (radio and television) to try to ensure that all beneficiaries are aware of the processes to follow, should they become aware of any untoward activity on their social grant.

SASSA is also appealing to community leaders and NGO’s to assist in directing any social grant beneficiary who may have experienced challenges with his/her social grant payment to the nearest SASSA office.

Notwithstanding these measures which have been put in place, notice should be taken of the amendments to the Regulations to the Social Assistance Act, Act 13 of 2004 which were published on 6 May 2016. These amendments make it clear that no deductions or EFT debit transactions, apart from these authorized in terms of the Regulation 26A for funeral policies which comply with the regulations, may be effected off the SASSA card account. This is effective immediately and should halt the type of challenges beneficiaries have been experiencing. Should any beneficiary with to have access to the stop order or debit order facility, that beneficiary will be required to open a commercial bank account, and request SASSA to transfer the social grant from the SASSA card account to the commercial bank account. This will be done at no cost to the beneficiary, who is then free to manage his/her bank account as he/she sees fit.

Reply:

(1) No.

(2) No.

Reply:

(a) In 2015-16 financial year:

(i) The department has spent R2 621 268,44

(ii) iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority R 103 920,00

(iii) South African National Botanical Institute R 919 216,00

(iv) South African National Parks R6 552 099,12

(v) South African Weather Service R 604 241,60

(b) In the 2016-17 financial year:

(i) The department has budgeted for R 1 000 000,00

(ii) iSimangaliso Wetland Park Authority R 116 000,00

(iii) South African National Botanical Institute R 1 086 396,00

(iv) South African National Parks R10 397 441,09

(v) South African Weather Service R 630 000,00

---ooOoo---

Reply:

The NYDA is running the following programs:

• Business Support Services – Voucher Programme
• Market Linkages
• Mentorship
• Grant Programme
• Entrepreneurship Development Programme
• Cooperative Governance Training
• Business Registration Service

R50, 3m is allocated for all the Economic Development Programmes.

The Department of Planning Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) does not run dedicated development programmes but it does encourage SMMEs to register on its supplier database and endeavours to utilise these companies where possible when procuring goods and services.

Statistics South Africa does not run any development programme for small business.  However, it gathers data and collates such data into statistical information that would certainly be of use to small business.  A dedicated survey for the self-employed is periodically conducted to inform what takes place in the informal sector.

Reply:

(a) The NDA has funded 2612 Community Based Organisations and Non-governmental organizations since inception. However, in the last five years, a total of 485 NGOs/CBOs were funded for which have hereunder provided the responses. The status of all organisations since inception cannot be confirmed as The NDA Grant making process works with funded projects for a period of 12 to 18 months. During this period our relationship with an organization is regulated by a Funding Agreement between the NDA and the CBO/NGO. At the end of the funding period, the NDA would develop an exit/sustainability plan for the organization and then the formal relations between the NDA and the organization ceases.

(b) (i) Of the 485 organisations funded in the last five years, 452 are still operating and providing services to communities. A total of 33 NGOs/CBOs are no longer operational. (ii) The reasons for their lack of operation include lack of funding since the completion of NDA funding and governance challenges, including conflict within the organisations. (iii) The activities that they were involved in have been transferred to other organisations within the area. To mitigate the challenges faced by organisations the NDA in partnership with the Department of Social Development has implemented a capacity building programme since 2013 which has trained 4244 NGOs/CBOs in all provinces, including organisations that may not have been directly funded by the NDA. The capacity building will result in sustainability for the organizations and their service delivery capacity.

Reply:

(a) An amount of R500 000 000 has been made available for the social relief of distress programme for the 2016/17 financial year. Social relief of distress is a comprehensive programme which aims to meet the immediate material needs of citizens who experience a crisis. Food parcels are only one component of this programme. Social relief of distress may be provided in the form of food parcels, food vouchers, school uniforms, humanitarian support in times of disasters and/or cash, under certain circumstances.

(b) The social relief of distress programme is a needs driven programme, in that citizens who find themselves in such dire circumstances that they are unable to meet their or their family’s basic needs may apply for this assistance at SASSA offices and service points. In addition, where SASSA becomes aware of a disaster which has affected community members. The current drought is one such example of a natural disaster which may prompt the provision of social relief of distress.

It is therefore difficult to know in advance how many people will apply for this form of support. In terms of the Annual Performance Plan, SASSA has targeted to provide social relief of distress to 400 000 people. Of these, 160 000 are targeted for assistance in the first 2 quarters of the new financial year. However, it should be noted that these are projected numbers – the actual numbers will only be known when people come forward in response to a crisis situation. The numbers may be affected by natural disasters, which cannot be predicted, or economic circumstances in the country.

(c) Any social relief of distress is provided to South African citizens, permanent residents and refugees, who meet the criteria as set in the Social Assistance Act, Act 13 of 2004 and its Regulations. This means that every person who receives social relief of distress has gone through a screening and application process. These applications are available for audit.

The criteria which applicants must meet before they are considered for social relief of distress are that, in addition to the citizenship criteria, the applicant must have insufficient funds, and: meet one or more of the following-

Is awaiting payment of an approved grant;

The breadwinner has been assessed as being disabled for a period of less than 6 months;

The breadwinner of that household has died and application is made within 12 months of the death;

The breadwinner of that household has been admitted to a private or public institution for at least one month;

Where the refusal may cause undue hardship; or

The household has been affected by a disaster.

Social relief of distress is an on-going legislated programme which is budgeted for and implemented every year.

 

Reply:

(a) There are currently nine (9) state run treatment centers in the country. The location; capacity and current number of service users in these treatment centers is as follows:

 

Name of treatment centre	(b) Location	(c) Capacity	(d) Current number of service users
Dr Fabian and Florence Ribeiro	Zonderwater Correctional Centre, Cullinan, Gauteng	300	136 (113 adults and 23 children)
Swartfontein	White River, Mpumalanga	75	52 (adults)
Newland Park	Newlands West, KZN	100	36 (26 adults and 10 children)
Madadeni	Madadeni, KZN	80	24 adults)
Khanyani	Newcastle, KZN	24	8 (children)
Witrand	Potchefstroom, North West	18	11(9 adults and 2 children)
De Novo	Kraaifontein, Western Cape	90	86 (70 adult males and 16 children)
Kensington	Maitland, Western Cape	40	40 (adults)
Ernest Malgas	New Brighton, Eastern Cape	38	21 (children)

Reply:

The information was provided by uMshwathi Local Municipality and approved by Minister P Gordhan):

  (1) Yes, it was owned by the former Development Services Board (DSB) in 1994 – 1995.

    (a) It was transferred to Air Health Committee, then the Health Committee became Cool Air TLC in 1996 – 2000. In December 2000, the Cool Air TLC was amalgamated into uMshwathi Municipality.

   (b) There were four areas that were controlled by Development Services Board-Dalton, Cool Air, Wartburg and New Hanover, that were converted into Health Committees and the assets from DSB were handed over to these Health Committees.

  (2) The arrangements for Cool Air Secondary School is for them to book the hall in advance at no cost to the school.

 

Reply:

(a) According to our records which are contained in the Infrastructure Reporting Model (IRM), Kwazulu Natal Province have sent their allocation for Provincial Roads Maintenance Grants (PRMG) though the department as the Transferring National Officer (TNO), have withheld the fourth tranche payment.

(b) The Department is engaging with the province together with National Treasury to rectify expenditure as reported on IRM while we are awaiting response from National Treasury for the approval of rollover funds withheld. Note that Provincial Treasuries manage rollover funds on behalf of National Treasury.

Reply:

The response below was provided by municipality:

(a) Following the recommendations of the Kabuso forensic report, the employment contracts of the Municipal Manager and Strategic Manager in the Office of the Mayor were terminated. Further, a committee was established consisting of councillors to address issues implicating councillors and an action plan was also submitted to Council in order to address issues implicating officials. This process is being coordinated by the Administrator.

(b) The municipality's legal representatives are engaging with those implicated with a view to recover the financial losses incurred by the municipality.

(c) I was not aware that the Kabuso report is supposed to be tabled in Parliament. The Administrator is dealing with this matter and would adhere to such a request.

Reply:

Attached please find here: Reply
 

Reply:

(1) The DAC has not been approached by any political party for funding in the 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and to date in the 2016/17 financial years;

(2) The DAC has not provided any form of funding to any political party in the 2013-14, 2014-15, 2015-16 and to date in the 2016/17 financial years.

Reply:

a) (i) Yes, the universalization proposals are rooted in the Taylor Committee recommendations of 2002. The Department of Social Development has also conducted studies on the social and financial impact of the universalisation of both the older Persons Grant (OPG) as well as the Child Support Grant (CSG) entitled “An exploration of the causes of poverty in old age in South Africa” and “The Feasibility study on the universal provision of the Child Support Grant (CSG) in South Africa”

(b) The Discussion Paper with policy options was developed. The Paper also highlights financial implications for each option.

(aa) The OPG study was conducted in-house by the Department, whilst the CSG study was conducted by the Economic Policy Research Institute (EPRI) for the Department.

(bb) The CSG study was concluded in 2011 and the OPG study in 2014.

(cc) The OPG research report is available for various stakeholders. The CSG research report however is currently not available for public reading as the Department is currently working on another study related to the CSG Universalisation.

2. (a) (b) Essentially, the key factors contributing to the development of a policy on the universalisation stems from the need to ensure that all excluded eligible poor people are captured and receive social grants through an easier administration process that results from Universalisation. The CSG and OPG are poverty alleviation measures targeting the largest number of poor beneficiaries in comparison to all other grants, these grants have enabled the country to achieve progress in addressing the needs of children and older persons in the household with no or low income.

However, the promise of basic care for the poorest older persons and children still faces challenges; many are excluded due to various reasons including not having the correct documentation. While the Department has taken many steps to improve coverage to reach these poor beneficiaries in the past five years, evidence suggests that under-coverage will be effectively reduced by eliminating the means test and enabling all children and older persons to access the grants with minimum of bureaucratic requirements. Furthermore, universal provisions will enable many poor children that are excluded from the programme to realise the important developmental impacts that the CSG currently delivers to millions of others. The Department believes that universal provisions of these grants will build national solidarity and reflect a common understanding that South Africans are committed to providing income support to older persons and provide children with the opportunity to develop their full capabilities.

Reply:

(1) Yes. On 26 October 2015, Cabinet approved the establishment of the inter-departmental committee on beneficial ownership. The committee was set up at the inaugural meeting of the committee held on 27 February 2016. It is constituted by the following institutions and government departments convened by the Department of Public Service and Administration:

 (a) National Treasury (NT);

 (b) Financial Intelligence Centre (FIC);

(c) Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA);

(d) South African Revenue Service (SARS):

(e) South African Police Service (SAPS):

(f) National Prosecuting Authority (NPA);

(g) Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (Doi & CD);

(h) Department of Trade and Industry (DTI);

(i) Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC);

(j) Department of Social Development (DSD);

(k) Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO);

(l) State Security Agency (SSA);

(m) National Intelligence Coordinating Committee (NICOC);

(n) South African Reserve Bank (SARB);

(o) Financial Services Board (FSB);

(p) Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE);

(q) Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB);

(r) Law Society of South Africa (LSSA);

(s) National Gambling Board (NGB); and

(t) Independent Regulatory Board of Auditors (IRBA)

(2) Yes. Development of the country’s implementation and/or action plan has commenced, the committee is currently finalising the draft action plan. The draft action plan is derived from the G20 High Level Principles endorsed by Cabinet in October 2015, which sets-out the required actions to be undertaken by the Government of the Republic of South Africa.

Reply:

Question 1.

a.(i) According to the Department of Defence's records, the Department has not concluded any audit contract with Deloitte to the value of R800 million. However, Deloitte was contracted to perform a Through Life Capability Management (TLCM) study over four years at a cost of R230 million. This requirement is a resultant of phase 1 of the TLCM Project conducted during 2013/14 in the Chief of Logistics environment. The results of TLCM phase 1 reflected that the DOD is not on par

with international standards in terms of TLCM best practice. The DOD/Armscor Acquisition, Technology Development processes and the objectives of the RESTRICTED 2 National Defence Industry Council (NDIC) were not part of the C Log study, a requirement therefore existed to align the above mentioned aspects with both international TLCM standards as well as the Defence Review 2015.

Question 2.

The TLCM project is a high priority exercise since it will ultimately contribute to a cost effective SANDF and is not at the cost of other current priorities

Reply:

The closing date for learner registration was on 30 March 2016, all learners completed and signed the DOBE Examination Registration Form. The forms have been submitted to the relevant Department of Basic Education examinations offices based in provinces. The Department is working on ensuring that all learners are captured. It will issue the Preliminary Schedules in August/September 2016 to confirm that all learners are registered and their subjects are captured correctly.

Reply:

The response below is based on information received from the Ethekwini Metropolitan Municipality (as approved by Minister P Gordhan on 3rd Sep 2015)

 (a) The municipality allocated a total amount of R156 million for Zone Plans, i.e. block sum allocations to each ward, in the 2014-15 budget.

(b) (i) The funds allocated to each ward are utilized for the implementation of small projects that are identified by Councilors in consultation with ward residents. (ii) Wards benefiting have been reduced to 78 wards that have less developed municipal infrastructure and the budget allocation for each ward varies depending on the project identified. The 25 wards that were excluded are highly developed and have all the necessary municipal services.

(c) The quested information still needs to be discussed first at Council level as it relates to the 2014/15 financial year’s budget, which ended on 31 July 2015.

Reply:

The question by the Honourable member should be directed to the National Treasury. The National Treasury manages the expenditure and the budgets of municipalities in line with the provisions in the Municipal Finance Management Act. Municipalities report budgetary matters in terms of s71 of the MFMA and are best placed to respond to matters relating to budget and expenditures of all municipalities.

Reply:

(a) The Department of Arts and Culture’s Mzansi Golden Economy (MGE) programme provides opportunities for small business and co-operatives in all creative industries sectors. The MGE strategy was initiated in 2011 to create cross-sectoral strategic investment mechanisms to overcome significant challenges with regard to job creation, market and audience development, skills development and research identified through sector research processes and also consultation processes with creative industry practitioners, businesses and organisations. The core of the programme comprises 10 work streams as follows:

MGE Objectives	Work streams
Audience development	Cultural Events Touring Venture Public Art Artists in Schools
Building Demand	Art Bank Mzansi Golden Market Cultural Observatory Cultural Precincts
Human Capital Development	National Academy for the Creative Industries of South Africa (NACISA)

Under the auspices of this programme, and the National Academy for the Creative Industries South Africa (NACISA) workstream, the Department of Arts and Culture’s 6 performing arts entities run incubator programmes for arts entrepreneurs. The details per institution are outlined in the table below.

DAC Business Development Programmes

	Question 1aa	1bb	1cc
MGE Workstream	Description	Budget 2016/17 (in ZAR)	Jobs Created
Cultural Events	The programme supports festivals, exhibitions, productions and other cultural events across the country through national and regional flagships programmes and open calls. Enterprises supported include companies, co-operatives, non-profit organisations and individuals.	162,032,000	Across all workstreams it is anticipated that 15,000 work opportunities will be created
Touring Ventures	The programme supports participation by South African artists in local and international platforms including festivals, Cultural Seasons, biennales, conferences through identified programmes and open calls. Enterprises supported include companies, co-operatives, non-profit organisations and individuals.	28,500,000
Public Art	The programme supports public art programmes and infrastructure across the country through flagships programmes and open calls. Enterprises supported include companies, co-operatives, non-profit organisations and individuals.	8,000,000
Artists in Schools	Individual artists are provided with opportunities to join teachers in the classroom to enhance the teaching and learning experience through the formal curriculum of learners in identified primary and high schools in all nine provinces.	12,000,000
Art Bank	The Art Bank in 2016/17 will begin commissioning and purchasing contemporary visual art works from artists and galleries across the country for exhibition and rental by government agencies and private sector stakeholders.	6,000,000
Mzansi Golden Market (Sourcing Enterprise)	The MGM portal will be fully launched in 2016/17, providing all arts enterprises with opportunities to profile their organisation and work on an online portal.	1,000,000
Cultural Observatory	The Cultural Observatory will conduct research and impact studies across the creative industries that will inform policy and programming, and also provide the sector with insights into business and other opportunities in the sector.	16,000,000
Cultural Precincts	Support will be provided to the development infrastructure in cultural precincts as designated spaces for the production and consumption of the arts.	12,500,000
National Academy for the Creative Industries of South Africa (NACISA)	Artists and enterprises will be provided with training opportunities through identified programmes including the incubator programmes offered by the performing arts institutions as outlined in the table below.	31,569,400

A portion of these funds will directly benefit small business and co-operatives in the sector as these organisations are eligible for financial support in terms of the funding criteria of the DAC for the MGE programme.

Public Entity Business Development Programmes

1. Performing arts institutions

As outlined in the Estimates of National Expenditure, through their core programming, the 6 DAC performing arts entities will

Programme	Target Number	Budget (in ZAR)
Annual productions	205	124,031,000
Annual festivals	14
Skills and training development programmes	50	23,300,000 (A portion of this will be spent on skills development & training)

A portion of these funds will directly benefit small business and co-operatives in the sector.

The incubator programmes, delivered in partnership with the DAC are as follows:

ENTITY	PROGRAMME	DESCRIPTION	BUDGET 2016/17	OUTPUT PER CYCLE
Market Theatre	Community Theatre Practitioners Incubator Programme	The proposed Community Theatre Practitioners Incubator Programme will concentrate on improving the skills of community based writers, directors and actors and empower them with the necessary skills to enable them to create and produce works of high standard and of local content. The Incubator Programme will train the next generation of the community arts leaders, arts entrepreneurs and administrators and expose them to the creative and practical sides of the industry and what is required to produce a professional theatre piece. The Incubator Programme will provide the group leaders (usually the writers and directors) with specialised training and resources to acquire additional and enhanced skills that will enable them to improve the quality of their work and their leadership which will ultimately be of benefit to the group and the new plays they are creating.	1,600,000	10 Writers 10 Directors +/- 80 Community Arts Practitioners Incubated 10 Plays of local content
	DAC Incubator Photography Programme	The Market Photo Incubator intends developing an on the job based photography programme as a platform from which photographers at a relatively progressed level might enhance and refine their practice, while learning additional skills through the guidance of established practitioners, curators and administrators. Aimed at emerging photographers, the Programme is envisaged as a transfer of skills, experience, knowledge and professional practice that might shift talented photographers into a more advanced stage. The incubation Programme further offers an administrative directed opportunity in photography, affording the incubates skills and credentials that facilitates independent thought, ensuring high levels of competence, commitment and reliability.	1,600,000	10 Photographers Incubated. 10 annual fully developed projects that will take the form of an exhibitions and publications. Projects engaging with the public and communities through photography. Publications, as reflection of overall activities.
Windybrow Theatre	Emerging Theatre Practitioners Incubator Programme	Windybrow Theatre’s Emerging Theatre Practitioners Incubator Programme will engage with emerging and/or mid-level theatre practitioners – directors, designers, stage managers and actors - and offer them areas of opportunity to work one-on-one with a professional mentor over a 4 month period towards the staging of a fully developed script of their choice. This incubation process will result in the creation and staging of 5 new works of local content annually.	1,600,000	4 fully fledged theatre productions of local content per year. 4 professionally trained directors per year with the creative and business skills to develop sustainable careers in the theatre industry and contribute to production of exciting new South African work on the country’s stages. 12 fully trained designers in set, costume and lighting design per year. 4 fully trained production managers per year 4 fully trained stage managers per year. 24 fully trained actors per year (+/-6 actors per production)
The Playhouse Company	Playhouse Dance Residency Incubator Programme	The Residency Incubator programme aims to develop 8 dancers annually and these dancers will create 4 new locally inspired pieces for 4 seasons, tapping into a wide range of dance repertoire which consists of a schools programme, New Stages, South African Women’s Arts Festival and the Festive Season programme. With assistance from The Playhouse Company, the Dance Residency also receives mentorship from established arts administrators.	1,600,000	x4 seasons x4 Productions of Local Content x8 Dancers Incubated
	Playhouse Actors' Studio	A core company of twelve actors is engaged as part of The Playhouse drama residency/ incubation programme. This fully-fledged annual programme provides incubation and advancement in the industry for suitably talented actors. Established performing arts professionals would contribute to the work of the residency by teaching masterclasses. The actors will also feature in existing seasons at the Playhouse i.e New Stages, the South African Women's Arts Festival, Children's Theatre, Schools seasons as well as in the Playhouse Community Arts Mentorship Programme etc.	1,600,000	x12 Actors incubated x4 New local Productions Participation in 4 platforms
ArtsCape	Creative Capacities Incubator	Creative Capacities Incubator (CCI) is aimed at 15 arts organisations across performing arts disciplines towards a well-rounded programme that supports the establishment of healthy arts business practice that is sustainable, efficient and professionalised. The potential for the existing organisations in the landscape to contribute significantly to the turning around of the status quo which is dominated by eternal volunteerism at the expense of the constitutional right of every citizen of South Africa to participate in the economy, as set out in the NDP and other such efforts by our government as aspirations towards social cohesion was identified to be and still continues to be underutilised and unexplored. Parallel to that is the existence of such models that are somewhat successful but are driven by the privileged, accessing government funding and donor funding; etc. on behalf of the marginalised and keeping them at the level of dependent beneficiary eternally. The project seeks to challenge this by means of capacitating to disrupt the norm significantly.	1,600,000	x80 Individuals capacitated Min 30 content created which is either written and or performed. x15 fully incubated Arts Marketers per cycle x15 fully incubated technical and lighting technicians
State Theatre	Indie Spotlight Incubator Programme	Independent theatre practitioners in and around the province would be offered a venue where they could stage their productions at no cost. The State Theatre will provide available resources like décor, costume, human resource and technical skills, mentorship, and marketing – with the caveat that the productions be competent enough to be able to draw and sustain a respectable audience. The independent producers would then go into a deal with the State Theatre, where box office returns would be split 80 or 70 % to the independent producers and 20 or 30% to the State Theatre. Such a box office split would serve as a driver for the independent producers to try and achieve a full audience capacity for their productions as this would satisfy their profit principle, and this in turn would serve to benefit the State Theatre with attracting new audiences and increasing its declining audiences.	1,600,000	x20 New production per cycle x20 Groups with +/- 4 individuals per group incubated. Skills transfer from State Theatre technical skills to incubates. 2 Weeks Season per organisation. Possible recording and editing of a DVD of the production.
	The Precinct Programme	The Precinct Incubator Programmes aims to establish talented Artists and bands within the local community. The programme will screen bands through a panel of judges and the winning band will be incubated for 3 month and with the output being a completed album. Through the 3 months recording period, the band or artist will be mentored by industry professionals that will be strategically selected based on the genre of music that the winning band produces.	1,600,000	x4 Completed market ready Albums. x4 New demos for artist that place in 2nd place. +/- 10 individuals incubated and capacitated. Opportunity created for artist to perform at State Theatre Jazz and African Nights.
PACOFS	Operation Vulindlela Incubator Programme	Over the next year, the aim is to successfully provide Resources and Practical experience to 6 local theatre productions, 12 Music Groups or individuals and employ approx. 12 facilitators to host the Workshops and Masterclasses. The programme will provide on-hand incubation to artists that make it through the selection process in developing their projects or creating new content and PACOFS will provide tools of production and platform to showcase their content. The incubator project will present 6 Exit productions for 12 music groups at the end of each cycle as part of the First Stages Festival. Incubates will also be afforded opportunities to participate in various other projects within the province as part of our Current Artistic Development program.	1,600,000	x6 Local Theatre Production. Incubate 12 music groups or individual productions Participation in various festivals organised by PACOFS
Total Incubators for 2015/16 FY	Total Individuals Incubated or Capacitated in 2015/16 FY
6 Incubators to be launched by July 2015	406
Total Incubators for 2016/17 FY	Total Estimate of Individuals Incubated or Capacitated in 2016/17 FY
6 Incubators functional in 2016/17	406

1. Development Agencies

As outlined in the Estimates of National Expenditure, through their core programming, the Development Agencies will support:

Entity	Programme	Target Number	Budget (in ZAR)
National Film & Video Foundation (NFVF)	Local content scripts developed annually	66	53,495,000
	Local content films developed annually	38
	Bursaries provided for film & video studies annually	63
	Film festivals supported annually	16
National Arts Council	Individual artists supported annually	212	26,725,000
	Arts programmes developed & successfully implemented annually	8
	Flagship creative arts projects financially supported annually	3
	Arts organisations receiving 3 year funding on an annual basis	91

A portion of these funds will directly benefit small business and co-operatives in the sector as these organisations are eligible for financial support in terms of the funding criteria of the NFVF and NAC.

Reply:

(1)&(2) No.

Reply:

The details of the action taken to date to address each of the 14 Recommendations are attached herewith below as Annexure A. These details were compiled by the Public Service Commission, after consultation with the Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA), which is the custodian of the Ministerial Handbook and all Human Resource Management (HRM) prescripts in the Public Service. Furthermore, the National School of Government (NSG) was also consulted.

These details illustrate that the Department of Public Service and Administration has made significant progress towards implementation of the Recommendations made by the Public Service Commission. The National School of Government has made noticeable preparatory work to roll-out implementation of the executive development programme, and plans are also under way to develop other targeted training programmes.

ANNEXURE A: Progress n implementation of each of the 14 Recommendations made in the Report - Assessment of the Implementation of Policy Framework on the Appointment of Ministerial Staff in National and Provincial Departments
No.	RECOMMENDATION FROM PSC	PROGRESS REPORT
1	The DPSA should develop a focused policy framework that will regulate the employment practices of persons who provide support and serve in EAs' offices	Amended Public Service Regulations and other prescripts regulate the employment practices of persons appointed in the offices of Executive Authorities. It covers the recruitment process, nature of appointment, allowance payable, termination of services and other employment conditions. According to the
2	All SMS levels in Ministries irrespective of the method of recruitment (headhunting or advertising) must be subjected to proper selection processes (i.e. interviews and competency assessment) and for any identified competency gap, a developmental plan must be put in place to address the gap. This plan must be developed in consultation with the person concerned and be managed by the Director-General or Head of Department.	According to the Public Service Regulations, all members of the SMS appointed in offices of EAs are supposed to be subjected to proper recruitment and selections processes and the performance management and development system for SMS. In addition, the Directive on Compulsory Capacity Development, Mandatory Training Days and Minimum Entry Requirements for SMS, which came into effect on 01 April 2015, also applies to all SMS members in the offices of EAs. SMS members should meet the minimum qualification and experience requirements prior to appointment. The challenge is that there are still many incidences of non-compliance with prescripts, as such, the DPSA has undertaken to conduct targeted support for departments during the 2016/17 financial year.
3.	The Director-General or Head of Department has to provide "primary advisory" support to the EA due to the resources (e.g. research experts, etc.) he/she manages in the department, an administrative reporting line to the Director-General or Head of Department must be enforced for the Chief of Staff.	According to the DPSA, this is the current practice as Chiefs of Staff report to their respective Heads of Department on all administrative matters.
4	Compulsory induction, orientation/training on the functions performed in Ministries, the relationship between the Ministry and the department, the protocols of being a sessional employee and the benefits thereof and how to support the Minister with political responsibilities should be conducted with staff working in the EAs' offices, either at departmental level or coordinated by the National School of Government (NSG) or the DPSA. The current and/or previous competent and experienced Chief of Staff should be part of the training team and assist in this regard.	It is expected that the orientation of staff working in Ministries would be conducted by respective departments. The extent of implementation for such orientation programmes has not been validated. The generic orientation course for staff in Ministries has not been developed yet. Its development has been prioritised by the NSG. Consultations with relevant stakeholders are expected to commence during the 2016/17 financial year.
5	There should be a dedicated course for Chiefs of Staff and a forum to share experiences and to professionalise this strategic role. There should be a way of career-pathing for experienced Chiefs of Staff.	The course for Chiefs of Staff has not been developed yet. Its development has been prioritised by the NSG. Consultations with relevant stakeholders are expected to commence during the 2016/17 financial year.
6	A Legislation based Compliance Framework for Ministries should be developed by the DPSA.	Government has adopted the Management Performance Assessment Tool (MPAT) to track and report on compliance to relevant legislation by departments.
7	The DPSA should review the organisational structures of Ministries according to the size and responsibility of the Ministry.	The DPSA has developed a revised generic organisational structure for Offices of EAs and Deputy Ministers as part of the process of amending the Ministerial Handbook. The concern is that the revised Ministerial Handbook has not been approved by Cabinet, as such, the generic organisational structures are not implemented. It is therefore important for the Minister for Public Service and Administration to fast-track the approval of the revised Ministerial Handbook.
8	Uniform job profiles and descriptions should be enforced for Chiefs of Staff across the Public Service. Key competencies and minimum qualifications for the position of Chief of Staff must be well-defined. This will help to guide the selection and appointment process and Ministers must be informed of and adhere to this guide. Uniform job profiles should be developed for the rest of the staff in EAs' offices.	The DPSA has developed, as part of the generic organisational structures, clearly defined purpose and functions per post in the offices of EAs. However, the extent of implementation of the uniform job description remains questionable due to the non-approval of the revised Ministerial Handbook. With respect to SMS positions in ministerial Office, the DPSA through the Directive on Compulsory Capacity Development, Mandatory Training days and Minimum entry requirements for SMS has set the minimum qualification and experience requirement for appointment in the office of the EA at an SMS level. The challenge is that there are still many incidences of non-compliance with prescripts and compliance with the Directive has not been assessed.
9	80% of the positions in Ministries should be permanent and be part of organograms of departments.	The DPSA proposed uniform organisational structures for Ministerial Offices does recommend that a percentage of posts in the Offices of EAs should be permanent. These are all the administrative positions, which turn to be in the majority Implementation of this will be assessed once the revised Ministerial Handbook has been approved and is being implemented by departments.
10	An orientation and support programme for Cabinet Ministers/Premiers/Members of Executive Council (MECs) and Directors-General/Heads of Department should be developed and it must be compulsory for new EAs and DGs/HoDs to attend at the beginning of every term of government and when a need arises due to reshuffling. There must be a separate session for EAs and DGs first and thereafter a joint session. Also the advisors need to have an orientation programme.	At the start of each term of administration, the Presidency organizes anorientation programme for Executive Authorities (EAs) and the DPSA is invited to make presentations on the Roles and Responsibilities of the EA in relation to the Public Service Act and Regulations, and also presents on the Ministerial Handbook. However, there is no targeted training provided after reshuffling.
11	There should be a probation period for staff appointed in Ministries and that period should take into consideration the nature of Ministries and the limited time available to follow the probation period regulations that are cumbersome to release a person who is not performing or fitting in the culture of the Ministry.	In terms of the Public Service Regulations, all appointments, longer than 12 months, are subject to a probationary period. This requirement includes appointments in Ministries However, there are instances of non¬compliance — the magnitude of which has not been established. Hence implementation of the revised Ministerial Handbook will also serve as an instrument to address such incidences.
12	The DPSA should continue to give guidance and assistance in the development and implementation of turnaround strategies and restructuring processes.	The DPSA continues to play this role, based on requests received from departments. It must however be stated that Executive Authorities have the power to decide on their turnaround strategies and organisational structures. All what the DPSA can do is to provide guidance.
13	The DPSA should develop a database of employees with working experience in Ministries who could not be absorbed by departments for purposes of redeployment.	All permanently employed employees are accommodated in the relevant department upon exit of the EA. There is no provision within the Public Service to absorb employees employed in Ministries linked to the term of office of EAs. Where employees who are linked to the EAs term of office are transferred to or absorbed by the department, this practice will considered to be irregular and should as such be corrected in line with the applicable prescripts.
14	The DPSA should enforce the developed benchmark job descriptions and evaluations for posts in EAs' offices to ensure consistency throughout the Public Service.	In developing the draft generic organisational structures for Ministries, all posts were job evaluated with clearly defined job purpose and functions Once approved, implementation of these job descriptions, alongside the revised generic organizational structures will ensure consistency.

Reply:

1 (a) (b). Yes, a process of entering into payment agreements between each of the affected municipalities is in its final stages. The Department of Co-operative Governance ((DCoG) in collaboration with Department of Public Enterprise (OPE), SALGA, Provincial COGTA's and Treasury conducted work sessions with the affected municipalities and Eskom. A detailed affordability analysis was conducted for each municipality taking into account its unique circumstances, the root causes for non-payment as well as other municipal commitments. This work resulted in new payment arrangements being drafted for Eskom's consideration. On approval by Eskom, these agreements will be formalised with municipalities by means of council resolutions. Eskom aims to have all the agreements in place with municipalities by end of May 2016.

2. (a). Yes, since the draft payment agreements were based on the affordability analysis; they will be affordable to municipalities.

(b) The debt will be reduced because one of the conditions of the agreements is that municipalities pay their current debt over and above the agreement amount to service outstanding debt. .

3. Eskom is still engaging and finalising discussions with the municipalities on agreed payment terms and to date there is no municipality that has finalised and signed the payment agreement with Eskom. Compliance will only be monitored once agreements are reached between Eskom and the municipalities.

4. During the inter-ministerial negotiations; Eskom made a commitment to consider waving the interest for municipalities who adhere to their payment terms and to consider reviewing the payment period. However; the response received from Eskom in that regard is as follows:
"Considering the Eskom financial situation and in line with the PFMA and MFMA requirements as well as the Supply Agreements held with our customers, Eskom has decided to continue to apply the 15 days payment period as well as charging Prime plus 5% on overdue amounts."

Reply:

The process to appoint the GCEO of PRASA has progressed well and is at an advantage stage

Reply:

1.I am advised that a total number of 73 entities responded with written comments to the proposed amendments to the Price Preference System (PPS) on the Exportation of Ferrous and Non-ferrous Waste and Scrap Metals published in Government Gazette notice R.1211 on 11 December 2015.

(2) (a) Oral submissions have been heard by the Commission (ITAC) and were
made by the following entities:

• Metal Recyclers Association (MRA).
• Recycling Association of South Africa (RASA).
• Non Ferrous Metal Industries Association of SA (NFMIA) and the Aluminium Federation of SA (AFSA) in a combined presentation.
• SA Institute of Foundrymen (SAIF).

(2)(b) In the light of the fact that the process of evaluating the amendments is still underway it would not be appropriate to divulge the specific content of the oral submissions, save to say that in general, NFMIA, AFSA and SAIF were in support whereas the MRA and RASA objected to the amendments.

-END-

Reply:

(a) No meetings have been held during the (i) 2013/2014, (ii) 2014/2015 and (iii) 2015/2016 financial years.

(b) No activities have been held during the (i) 2013/2014, (ii) 2014/2015 and (iii) 2015/2016 financial years.

(c) No National Anti-Corruption Forum (NACF) achievements have been reported on for the financial years (i) 2013-14, (ii) 2014-15 and (iii) 2015-16.

Reply:

Due to the nature of the information required, an extension of time is hereby requested to enable us to provide an accurate and comprehensive response.

Reply:

1. Department was not approached by any political for funding;
2. Falls away

Reply:

(a) Yes

(b) Yes, however, the participation of small business enterprises and cooperatives is advanced through public employment programmes.

(i) & (ii) The Department of Environmental Affairs provides opportunities through different programmes and entities, and is specifically responsible for the EPWP with it’s 14 different programmes through which it has provided opportunities for people through SMMEs and cooperatives.

The Programmes are listed as follow:

• Working for Water
• Working for Wetlands
• Working for Ecosystems
• Working for Forests
• Working for Energy (Biomass)
• Eco-Furniture Programme
• Working on Fire
• Working on Waste
• Working for the Coast
• Working for Land
• Greening & Open Space Management
• People & Parks
• Wildlife Economy
• Youth Environmental Service

All fourteen of the EP programmes are designed to secure outcomes that have high returns on investment, over and above the Full-Time Equivalent jobs and Work Opportunities. The contractors and participants are all trained, skilled and empowered to do this work.

South African National Parks (SANParks) is in part, part of the EPWP implementation, and implements a develpment programme for small contractors or businesses. It also supports additional small businesses as part of the Infrastructure Programme.

Further opportunities are being sought through the Chemical and Waste Branch on the Recycling Enterprise Support Programme (RESP).

(aa) Programmes target to support 2,369 SMMEs for 2016/17.

SANParks implements EPWP projects in all national parks, buffer zone areas and some provincial nature reserves. For the 2016/17, the projects will support 501 small contractors, including training and contractor development. As part of the Infrastructure Programme in Kruger National Park, 14 small construction contractors are mentored for civil, building and electrical works.

The iSimagaliso enterprise programme is in its 7th year. It supports 182 small businesses. Businesses receive formal training and ongoing mentoring via a virtual business hub. The small business also qualify to apply for grant funding from the programme. R6.8million has been paid on in grant funds to 88 small businesses.

(bb) The department has budgeted an estimated amount of R 1.2 billion for the 2016/17 financial year which will be procured using SMMEs.

The amount budgeted for the small contractors in the EPWP programme under SANParks is R166 million. An estimated amount of R58.8 million was budgeted for the small construction contactors in Kruger National Park.

Through the Waste Management Bureau, an approximate amount of 11 million is set aside for the Recycling Enterprise Support Programme (RESP) initiative.

For iSimangaliso, the amount that has been budgeted for this year is R1.2m.

(cc) Throught the 14 different programmes, a minimum of 1519 SMMEs, 46524 Work Opportunities and 23 467 Full Time Equivalents will be created in 2016/17, a further 140 temporary jobs will be created and supported in the Kruger construction programme.

It is also envisaged that a 150 jobs will be created through the Recycling Enterprise Support Programme.

For iSimangaliso, it is anticipated that the development programmes run by iSimangaliso will create approximately 2000 jobs in this financial year

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Reply:

(1) (a) (i)(ii)(iii) No.

(b) No.

(2) (a) (i)(ii)(iii) No.

(b) No.

Reply:

(a) The amount spend on advertising in the 2015-2016 financial year

(i) Department’s adverts

Advert on Bursaries (Non-Employees)	119,738.70
Advert: Promotional Items	854,365.00
Advert: Marketing	5,689,523.85
Advert: Recruitment	754,885.76
Advert: Tenders	390,327.24
Total spent	R7 808,840.55

 

(ii) Public Entities

I have 27 entities reporting to me, to compile this information it will take time, but as soon as it is collated I will forward the necessary information to the Honourable Member.

(b) Amount budgeted for Advertising 2016/17 financial year

(i) Department 9.2 million

Reply:

(a) Research conducted:

(i) 2011/12

There were no research studies conducted during the year

(ii) 2012-13

1. Civil Society Organization’s participation in Food security Activities in South Africa (March 2013)
2. Civil Society Organization’s participation in Income generating Activities in South Africa (March 2013)
3. Challenges faced by Early Childhood Development Sector in the Country (April 2012)
4. A situational Analysis of Civil Society Organizations in the Western Cape (June 2012)

(iii) 2013-14

1. Funding Constraints and Challenges faced by Civil Society Organizations in South Africa (June 2013)

1. Framework for the Development of an annual state of development report (January 2014)

1. Civil Society Organization’s participation in the MDG processes in South Africa (January 2014)
2. State of poverty and its manifestation in the nine provinces of South Africa (March 2014)

(iv) 2014-15

1. Community development foundation framework &capacity Development framework (March 2015)
2. Enhancing active citizenry engagement in South Africa (March 2015)

(v) 2015-16

1. Enhancing civil society participation in the South African Development Agenda : The role of CSOs (December 2015)
2. South African government funding to non-profit organisations: what is the investment value? (February 2016)

(b) Research contribution

The research studies conducted by the NDA has contributed in new knowledge on how to improve programmes aimed at supporting the civil society sector, government planning and implementation of programmes for the civil society and making information available to the broader public through publications of the research in the NDA website. Some of the research has been used to inform debates and discussions with relevant organs of state for purposes of informing policy and programme planning. In addition, research reports are printed in hard copies and made available for the public in the NDA Provincial offices and NDA Advisory Centres. In addition, all NDA research reports are presented to a range of stakeholders, including civil society, government, private and international donors.

Reply:

The question is:-

1. Whether the department was aware that the container office was actually located in such a dangerous location.

A formal investigation is underway in terms of the legal provisions and will assist in identifying the underlying causes of the accident. On completion of investigation, recommendations will be made to prevent similar accidents.

   2. Is it your expectation the mine would have known that the container is in a dangerous location.

The above-mentioned formal investigation will assist in identifying the underlying causes of the accident.

   3. Has your department conducted assessment on other mines in the country to determine that no such dangers await other mineworkers?

The mine inspections and audits are continuously being conducted with the aim of preventing harm on the mineworkers.

In a case where sub-standard condition, act or non compliance to the provisions of the Mine Health and Safety Act is observed during a mine inspection or audit, appropriate actions are immediately taken to remedy such conditions.

  4. If yes which mines? If not why not?

The mine inspections and audits are conducted at all the operating mines.

  5.  Do we have assurance that such or similar accident will not revisit the country

We endeavor to prevent mine accidents from occurring and lessons learnt from the above-mentioned investigation will be used to improve safety in the mining sector.

   6.  Does the country have requisite skills to deal with disasters of this nature?

South Africa has the requisite skills to deal with disasters at mines and our country’s Mine Rescues Services (MRS) assisted in the Chile Mine disaster in which 33 trapped mine workers were rescued successful after 69 days.

  7. If yes where is it located, and why do we find ourselves in this situation like it is at Lily Mine where it will take close to a year to reach the container where miners are trapped?

At the Mine Rescue Services of South Africa. The rescue operations have not been abandoned but options which will ensure safe rescue operations are being pursued. This is as a result of the deterioration of ground conditions at the mine.

  8. If not why don’t we have such capacity?

South Africa has the requisite skills and capacity.

  9. Who is thus responsible for the situation that we find ourselves in?

The accident investigation will assist in identifying the underlying causes of the accident.

 

 

Approved/not approved

Mr MJ Zwane, MP

Minister of Mineral Resources

Date Submitted:-………………/………………/2016

Reply:

Question a.

a. DOD personnel did engage with COMAIR with respect to the requirements listed in paragraph.

(b.) No senior officials were involved in this regard.

b (i.) The DOD (SA Air Force) awarded two (2) contracts to "COMAIR LTD" (V32C9) during the specific period in question for the following requirements.

• 2012: for the training of four (4) members on Flight Dispatchers Course to the value of R134 976,00.

• 2014: for CSIR skills training for SA Air Force members to the value of R28 500,00.

Reply:

Department

(1) (a) No employees within the Department underwent advanced driving courses. The Department does not have a plan for employees to attend such courses.

(1) (b)

(2) (a) (i) (aa) 2013 – 14 – None

(2) (a) (i) (bb) 2014 – 15 – None

(2) (a) (i) (cc) 2015 – 16 – None

(2) (b) Not applicable

(2) (c ) Not applicable

Airports Company South Africa SOC Limited (ACSA)

1. (b) None of the ACSA Corporate office drivers or employees has attended advanced driving courses. ACSA intends sending all drivers for an advance driving course in the current financial year.

(2) Please refer to response provided in 1 (b) above.

Air Traffic and Navigation Services SOC Limited (ATNS)

1. (b) As per ATNS Technical Services instructions, all ATNS Technical Support staff attend an advanced 4 X 4 drivers training course on an annual basis. This is typically a 2 day training course where participants receive both theoretical and practical training.

(2) (a) (ii) None

(aa) 2013-14: 134 Technical Staff members approximately R 108, 540-00

(bb) 2014-15: 132 Technical Staff members approximately R112, 860-00

(cc) 2015-16: 130 Technical Staff members approximately R117, 000-00

(b) For the 2015-2016 financial year the typical cost of a 2 day advanced 4 X 4 drivers training course was R900 per person.

(c) All ATNS staff members, who are required to drive to remote communications, navigation or surveillance sites as part of their routine work activities, are required to attend an advanced 4 X 4 drivers training course.

South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA)

1. (b) The nature of the South African Civil Aviation Authority’s (SACAA) mandate and duties undertaken by its employees does not warrant them to undergo advanced driving courses.

       2. (a) (i) N/A (ii) None (aa) None, (bb) None and (cc) None, (b) N/A (c) N/A.

South African National Roads Agency Limited (SANRAL)

(1) (b) At SANRAL all project managers that had to travel officially to construction sites underwent advance driving courses up to November 2013. This has since been stopped due to the National Treasury cost containment measures published in November 2013.

(2) (a)(ii)(aa) For SANRAL our 2 survey vehicle drivers was send on advance truck driving course (bb) None, and (cc) None,

(b) R4 050-00 per driver

(c) Required by the truck manufacturer that supplied the truck for the survey vehicle as part of the warranty agreement.

Cross-Border Road Transport Agency (CBRTA)

1. (b) The C-BRTA does not have any policies in place to ensure that employees undergo through advanced driving courses. While the C-BRTA is aware that advanced driving courses will contribute to road safety, due to financial contraints no advanced driving training has been rolled out to employees. We however continue to work with other stakeholders in the road transport industry for collaborative partnerships with a view to promote road safety.

2. (a) (ii) (aa) 2013-14 None

(bb) 2014-15 None and (cc) None in 2015-16 financial years

(b) No costs were incurred as no advanced driving courses were offered.

(c) Not applicable as no employees were offered the advanced driving training in the 2013-14, (bb) 2014-15 and (cc) 2015-16 financial years, those that would have undergone would have done so in their personal capacity.

Road Accident Fund (RAF)

1. (b) The RAF has not put policies in place to ensure that employees undergo advanced driving courses; the RAF has however arranged for defensive driver training which included four employees);

2. (a)(ii) (aa) None

(bb) None, and (cc) Four (4)

(b) the cost related to the four employees attendance of the defensive driving course was R 4 200 (VAT inclusive), and

(c) no criteria applied specifically to the employees’ selection for enrolment for the defensive driving course

.

Road Traffic Management Corporations (RTMC)

1. (b) The RTMC does not have a policy that compels employees to undergo advanced driving courses. However the RTMC realized the importance of such training for members of the National Traffic Police and has included such practical training as a module in the training of National Traffic Officers.

2. (aa) In 2013-14 six (6) employees

(bb) in 2014-15, 184 employees and (cc) 2015-16 None employee undertook advanced driver training.

(b) R90 222

(c) Training was provided as part of the up-skilling of National Traffic Officers.

Road Traffic Infringement Agency (RTIA)

1. (b) The RTIA does not have a policy that compels employees to undergo advanced driving courses. However, The entity’s approved HR strategy seeks to place Road Safety at the core of organisational culture and as such driver behaviour programmes including advanced driving training will be implemented

2. (a) (aa) 2013-14 – None

(bb) 2014-15 – None , and (cc) 2015-16 – None

(b) N/A

1. N/A

Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA)

1. (b) The current fleet policy is silent on driver training and advanced driving. However, the company is in the process of reviewing its fleet policy and driver training is included in as follows:-

“All drivers/officials will be evaluated at regular intervals and training will be undertaken to ensure that they comply with the legislated laws”.

2. No employee of PRASA has undergone advanced drive training.

Railway Safety Regulator (RSR)

(1). The Railway Safety Regulator (RSR) does not have a policy in place that ensures employees undergo advanced driving course. The nature of the work done does not require driving skills. The majority of our work is done within the railway environment.

(2) Not applicable. Refer to 1 above.

South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA)

(a) There is currently no policy for advance training.

(b) None of the employees have gone through advance training courses. Advanced Driving Courses were not budgeted for in the previous financial years.

None of the employees have done advance driving courses.

Ports Regulator of South Africa

1. (b) The Ports Regulator has not spent any funds to train and develop employees for advanced driving lessons. This is because the job requirements for all Ports Regulator employees do not require employees to utilise advanced driving skills.
2. (a) (ii) No employee of the Ports Regulator has undergone advanced driving courses in (aa) 2013/14, (bb) 2014/15 and (cc) 2015/16. (b) not applicable, (c) not applicable

Reply:

Attached please find here: Reply
 

Reply:

(1) Yes, Kempton Park Detective Service received two (2) vehicles during the 2015/2016 financial year.

(2) (a) Kempton Park Detective Service currently have 25 vehicles.

(b) 25 vehicles are in working order.

(c) Not applicable.

(3) (a) There are 67 detectives currently at Kempton Park Detective Service.

(b) (i) 42 detectives attended a detective course.

(ii) 42 passed the detective course.

(c) Each Investigating Officer has an average of 200 dockets.

(4) The allocation of vehicles for the 2016/2017 financial year has not been finalised yet.

Reply:

1. (a and b)

The Department of Environmental Affairs was never approached by any political party for funding in the following financial years since 1 April 2016:

1. 2013-2014,
2. 2014-2015, and
3. 2015-2016.

(2) (a and b)

No funding was provided by the Department of Environmental Affairs to any political party for the following financial years since 1 April 2016:

1. 2013-2014,
2. 2014-2015, and
3. 2015-2016.

Appropriated funds are meant for the execution of activities related to the mandate of the Department.

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Reply:

Progress made to date with each of the specific recommendations made by the SA Human Rights Commission report (details furnished) of October 2013, into the Child Protection Register, is as follows:

1. Recommendation 11.1: “The DSD is required to put in place urgent measures accurately and fully populated with available information. This recommendation is made on the basis that the DSD has demonstrated a capacity to increase the capturing of data on Part B of the CPR by more than 1000% since the date of the Commission’s initial request in September 2012.to this end, the Commission therefore requests that:

11.1.1: The updated CPR is submitted to it within the next 4 months for the period commencing 2012 to date.” Pg. 45

1.1. Progress

• Two progress reports on updated CPR were submitted in 2014 and 2015 respectively. The third report is still being prepared for submission. The Register has now been updated to a record of 904 names on persons found unsuitable to work with children.
• DSD has continued to hold bi-lateral meetings with Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DoJ&CD) where implementation issues are discussed. Meetings have been held with court officials and Chief magistrates to inform them about their obligations regarding the Register.
• The efforts of obtaining information on persons found unsuitable to work with children from forums such as the South African Social Services Professional Council (SACE) has not been successful. DSD has written to SACE requesting compliance with Section 120 (1) (c) of the Children’s Act, Act (No. 38 of 2005).

2. Recommendation 11.2:

“The DSD is required to conduct an urgent and comprehensive audit of challenges and needs across relevant business units to inform its needs, within the next 3(three) months. A report of the audit is to be provided to the Commission on completion thereof.’’ Pg 45

2.1. Progress

The department has conducted an internal audit on the implementation of the register). The report covers the period from 01 June 2013 to 31 July 2014. A key finding is lack of adequate capacity for the effective implementation of the Register. The report made recommendations that must be implemented during the 2015/16 financial year. The department has, thereafter, successfully secured R6, 5million to capacitate the CPR unit. The grant is for a period of three years for the appointment of staff and purchase equipment. Contract staff have been appointed as follows:

• 10 Data capturers
• 8 Registry clerks
• 6 social workers
• 1 Administration officer

Data capturers and registry clerks have assumed their duties on the 16/02/2016. The administration officer was absorbed when her previous contract expired. Social workers were only interviewed on 23/02/2016 and Human Resource is currently awaiting the security clearance from the National Intelligence Agency.

The human and financial capacity acquired will enable the department to focus on consultations with the courts and fora to ensure that the Register is properly updated to prevent unsuitable persons from working with children.

3. Recommendation 11.6:

“In light of the pending review of the Act, the Commission recommends that the DSD as the leading department in this regard, consult on possible reforms to the Act with a view to increasing practical efficiencies, accuracy and accessibility. In this regard section 120(4) of the Act could be considered for reform directed at reducing the administrative burden currently being experienced by the Courts by allowing Courts to deem a person unsuitable to work with children upon the relevant conviction in criminal proceedings:

(4) In criminal proceedings a person must be found (DEEMED) unsuitable to work with children-

(a) On conviction of murder, attempted murder, rape, indecent assault or assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm with regard to a child;

The recommended amendment may address the need for a second and separate administrative finding of unsuitability from having to be made, allowing the names of persons so convicted to be added to the CPR without the requirement of an unsuitability finding”. Pg.45

3.1. Progress:

The status of progress with the Amendment Bill tabled in Parliament.

The draft Bill was submitted to the SPCHD Technical Working Group on 17 February 2015 and to the SPCHD Cabinet Committee on 24 February 2015 and both Committees granted approval for its introduction to Parliament. It was then introduced to the National Assembly and is currently before the Portfolio Committee on Social Development as the Children’s Amendment Bill 13 of 2015.

Among other things, the Bill seeks to amend section 120 of the Children’s Act to provide that persons convicted of certain offences against children be automatically deemed unsuitable to work with children.

The Portfolio Committee conducted public hearings, and held several briefing meeting with relevant stakeholders. The process is at an advanced stage and the Bill is awaiting adoption by the Committee. Thereafter, it will be passed in the National Assembly and be referred to the National Council of Provinces for consideration by the Select Committee on Social Services.

4. The Commission further requested additional information to form part of the progress report as outlined below:

4.1. Status and copy of the draft policy document on the possible merger of the CPR and National Register for Sex Offenders

The portfolio committee on Social Development and Justice mandated the departments of Social Development (DSD) and Justice and Constitutional Development (DoJ&CD) to look into the possibility of merging the two registers for the purpose of addressing the perceived duplication and related costs, and thereafter provide the following:

• report on the possible options that are available to address the duplication between the National Child Protection Register and the National Register for Sex Offenders;
• make recommendations; and
• obtain policy guidance from the Minister of Social Development and the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services.

The registers were established under different legislative mandates which require the respective departments to establish and maintain them. The legislative mandates are as follows:

• NCPR: Children’s Act (No. 38 of 2005).
• NRSO: Criminal Law (Sexual Offences and Related Matters) Amendment Act (No. 32 of 2007).

The CPR provides for the protection of all children against all forms of abuse which include the physical, sexual, emotional and deliberate neglect (as stipulated in terms of Part A of the Register) and to ensure that offenders are prevented from working with these children (as stipulated in terms of Part B of the Register). The offenders are not limited to a criminal procedure, but include civil proceedings conducted in family courts including children’s courts. The Act further provide for Forums such as SACE to make findings of unsuitability on such offenders following disciplinary proceedings. The CPR, therefore, provides a wider scope of protection for all children irrespective of the type of offence committed and the nature of disability of that child.

The NRSO on the other hand, is a register on offenders convicted of sexual offences against children and persons with mental disabilities of all ages.

To comply with the portfolio committee mandate, therefore, both DSD and DoJ&CD have completed a report which is currently receiving the attention of respective Ministers. The report has identified three options for purposes of supporting amendment of legislation in order to merge the NCPR and the NRSO into one single Register.

4.2. Progress in respect of improvements to the information technology supporting the CPR programme

The information technology is currently redeveloping the electronic systems to integrate them on a single platform. The system is also being redeveloped to link with other systems within the Integrated Justice System (IJS) which include DoJ&CD, South African Police Service, Home Affairs, Correctional Services and National Prosecuting Authority which are vital for the electronic integration of information to the CPR.

6. CONCLUSION

DSD will continue to update the Commission regarding the implementation of the CPR in terms of the recommendations as stipulated in the Commission’s report.

Reply:

(1) The following response is based on the information provided by eThekwini, Cape Town Metropolitan municipalities and Gauteng Provincial Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs. Mangaung and Nelson Mandela Bay Metropolitan municipalities indicated that they do not have a Metropolitan Police departments. Mandela Bay Metropolitan Municipality has Security and Traffic Services which has about 600 employees. Buffalo City did not meet the deadline for submission of responses. However, the municipality has been requested to respond accordingly. The information will be delivered to the honourable member as soon as it is received.

(2) The number of officers are currently employed by each of the metropolitan police departments are provided below:

Metropolitan Municipality	Number of officers are currently employed each of the metropolitan police department
eThekwini	1866 officers
Cape Town	557 officers
Ekurhuleni	1375 officers
Johannesburg	3017 officers
Tshwane	3815 officers
Mangaung	No applicable
Nelson Mandela Bay	No applicable

by

Reply:

The Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) spent R1 598 million from a budget of R3 670 million. Statistics South Africa spent 6. 870 million from a budget of 5. 281 million.

Reply:

1.Yes, (a) I am aware of a heritage site called Canteen Kopje, a declared Provincial Heritage Site, located on Portion 9 of West Commonage 687, in the Barkley West District of the Northern Cape.

(b) The site was first declared as a National Monument on 29 January 1948 in terms of section 8 of the Natural and Historical Monuments, Relics and Antiquities Act, 1934. Under the current heritage act, the site enjoys protection at a provincial level.

(c) Although it is true that the significance of site was well known during the mid-20th century, local and international interest in the site waned during the second half of the 20th century. The site has been the focus of renewed research interest from the 1990s partly fuelled by significant steps forward in scientific methods, which allows for greater understanding of the formation of the site. Although the scientific work focuses on the behaviour of our earliest human ancestors, the site also contains important information about extant communities and the history and legacy of diamond mining in South Africa. Although the date of this occurrence is not known recent research by SAHRA indicates that Canteen Kopje may be the oldest known archaeological occurrence in South Africa.

(d) The Department of Mineral Resources issued a mining permit to Ms Jacky M. Wesi for Portion 5 of West Commonage, Barkley West in October 2014. Furthermore, a cease works order was issued to prevent the unnecessary destruction of significant heritage resources without the required mitigatory measures in place to prevent the undocumented destruction of such resources.

(e) The information provided to the heritage authorities and SAHRA, in particular, did not indicate that up to forty percent of the site would be mined,

(f) and specifically excluding the areas of current research by the Universities of Witwatersrand and Toronto. Similarly, according to the information provided the mining would have occurred outside the boundaries of the declared Provincial Heritage Site.

(g) This permit was issued without prior consultation with the appropriate heritage authorities. The heritage significance of the site and the provisions of the NHRA were communicated to relevant stakeholders.

(h) Yes I am aware of a Conservation Management plan for the site.

(i) Section 8 of the National Heritage Resources Act (Act 25 of 1999) promotes a three-tier system of Heritage Resources Management, in which national functions are the responsibility of the South African Heritage Resources Agency; provincial functions are the responsibility of the provincial heritage authority, and local level functions are the responsibility of local authorities.

2. A recent final court interdict granted by the Kimberley High Court has prevented any further mining on the declared site of Canteen Kopje. Although it is currently protected as a Provincial Heritage Site, SAHRA has initiated an administrative process to re-examine the grading of the site to possible Grade 1 status

3. To ensure that heritage resources are afforded the protection that it deserves it is important that the provisions of the NHRA are fully implemented. This means ensuring the provincial heritage authorities and local authorities are capacitated and adequately resourced. Currently, there are only three fully functioning provincial authorities ensuring compliance with the provisions of the NHRA. This means that the potential exists for the unwanted destruction of significant heritage resources.

Reply:

The Public Service Commission (PSC) is an independent Constitutional body, and its budget is appropriated via the Minister of Public Service and Administration.

1(a)(i) The Public Service Commission, forwarded a request to the Department of Public Works (DPW) on 29 October 2010 for the extension of the lease agreement for a period of five (5) years as the building (Commission House in Arcadia, Pretoria) was still suitable and met the requirements of the PSC. The PSC experienced challenges with the renewal process.

Seeing that there were delays with the renewal of the lease as well as the fact that the PSC had reached the optimal occupancy of the building, the PSC requested the DPW to procure alternative office accommodation in July 2012.

In order to allow the DPW to commence with the procurement process of the alternative accommodation, the PSC agreed that the lease agreement be renewed for a further period of eighteen (18) months to ensure that PSC relocates into the new alternative office building on 1 April 2014.

A building was identified as suitable alternative accommodation for the PSC and a lease agreement was signed. However, during tenant installation process there were concerns raised by the PSC e.g. additional costs to be borne by the PSC relating to tenant installation. This resulted in the process being suspended by the DPW. Due to the dispute, the PSC did not take occupation of the building.

The PSC forwarded another request to DPW in June 2015, after receiving notice to vacate Commission House, to commence with the sourcing alternative accommodation.

1(a) (ii) The PSC requested DPW on 1 June 2015 to re-advertise the bid as the PSC was notified of the refurbishment of the building (Commission House) taking into account that the building was supposed to be already vacant then (the PSC was supposed to have vacated the building in 2014).

(b) The term of the lease for the current offices is for a period of 24 months, with an exit clause after 18 months.

(c) The PSC has requested DPW to source permanent accommodation. The process will be completed by no later than January 2017.

2(a) The PSC paid R1.2 million once off costs towards the relocation to temporary accommodation (Absa Towers) for IT network infrastructure.

2(i)(aa) The PSC did not incur costs to move furniture. The Department of Public Works absorbed 50% of the relocation costs and the current landlord paid 50%.

2(i)(bb) The PSC paid R1.2 million for IT network infrastructure costs.

2(i)(cc) The PSC did not incur costs for refurbishing office space. The costs were covered by the tenant installation allowance paid by the landlord.

2(ii) The PSC did not pay estate agents fees.

2(iii) There is no other expenditure that was incurred.

2(b) The total current monthly cost of the rental of the temporary office accommodation is R1 407 312.79 for 8907 square metres.

2(c) The rental for the previous office accommodation was R523 087.00 per month for 6533.75 square metres. The rental for previous accommodation was not market related as ever since the PSC took occupation of the building in 1997, the ownership of the building changed 4 times without the annual rental escalation affected. The current monthly rental expenditure is high compare to the previous monthly expenditure on office accommodation.

(3) The monthly costs would have been lower if the PSC would have moved to the office accommodation identified by the Department of Public Works

The monthly rental for the office accommodation identified by the DPW would have been R 1 361 352.36 for 8907 square metres including parking.

Reply:

One official, Dr Molefe Pule, Chief of Staff in the Ministry of Economic Development, accompanied me to Kigali, Rwanda for the World Economic Forum Africa.

-END-

Reply:

(a) (i) The national department of Human Settlement spent R 2,941,920.20 for advertising in the 2015-16 financial year.

Entities spend on advertising in the 2015-16 financial year

(a)(ii) 1. The EAAB spent R1, 172,583.00.

2. The HDA spent R1, 200, 209.39.

3. The NURCHA spent R178, 478.07.

4. The SHRA spent R189, 017.65.

5. The NHBRC spent R7,700,000.00.

6. The NHFC spent R433 975.00.

7. The RHLF spent R197, 280.29.

8. The CSOS spent R225, 000.00.

(b) (i) The department has budgeted for R1, 5 million in the 2016-17 financial year.

(b)(ii) Entities

1. The EAAB budgeted for R135,367.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

2. The HDA budgeted for R1, 311, 886.60 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

3. The NURCHA budgeted for R 400 000.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

4. The SHRA budgeted for R1, 6 000.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

5. The NHBRC budgeted for R30, 000, 000.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

6. The NHFC budgeted for R500 00.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

7. The RHLF budgeted for R210 000.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

8. The CSOS budgeted for R0.00 for advertising in the 2016-17 financial year.

Reply:

(a) Yes, plans have been put in place to formally house the residents of the Kya Sands Informal Settlement. Due to the dense nature of the informal settlement, there is not enough land surrounding the area to formalise the project in situ. As a result, it was proposed that the project be developed in conjunction with the Lion Park Project further north, near the Lanseria Airport. The concept envisaged was that the Nietgedacht Property on which the Lion Park Project would be located would be formalized first due to the fact that the density is lower and it is envisaged that some of the residents of Kya Sands will then be relocated to the Lion Park Project. The remaining Kya Sands informal settlements residents would be formalized in situ. It should be noted that because of the high housing demand, both projects would be developed as high density housing and as such incremental formalization is not possible.

(b) A total of 13 000 beneficiaries have been identified and the scope of the project was increased to include all the informal settlements on Malibongwe Drive, between Kya Sands and Lanseria. 8 000 beneficiaries will be accommodated at the Lion Park development and 5 000 beneficiaries will be accommodated at the Kya Sands site. Beneficiaries from Lanseria/Freeway, Lanseria/Lion Park, Lanseria/Selina Park, Sands/iNanda Holding 57, Houtkoppen, Plot 5 Riverbed and Malatje informal settlements will be accommodated at the two developments.

(c) The planning process is currently underway and indications are that the development will commence during 2019/2020 financial year.

Reply:

On 09 September 2014 Cabinet approved the establishment of an internal pool of legal experts and labour relations specialists to deal with the backlog cases of precautionary suspensions in the public service. The DPSA has established a pool of panellists to deal with the backlog of precautionary suspension cases in the public service.

(a) The pool comprises 298 expert investigators, departmental representatives and presiding officers to ensure that the value chain is expedited in an optimal manner. Departments and provinces request assistance on their backlog cases from the DPSA.

(b) According the national and provincial statistical report of September 2014 to 31 March 2016 the total number of the backlog of precautionary suspension cases for national departments and provinces referred to DPSA is 687. The total breakdown consist of 291 cases for the provinces and 396 for the national departments.

(c) The progress made since the inception of the project is the resolution of 384 precautionary backlog cases. The total breakdown of the resolved cases consist of 57 for provinces and 327 for national departments. The percentage for the resolved cases is 56%. Members of the pool are allocated cases on a rotational basis so as to achieve an even spread of cases amongst panellists.

Reply:

1. Social grant increases are determined in consultation with the National Treasury and the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA). The amount of money available for the individual grant increases is subject to government’s expenditure ceiling and is guided by the appropriation made for grants by Parliament. For this financial year a budget increase of 8.2% was allocated for grant increases. This increase needs to provide for both demographic and economic factors. All these factors have a considerable influence in determining annual grant increases. However, these increases are constrained by the available budget.

2. All grants, with the exception of the Child Support Grant (CSG) are above the country’s basic food poverty line as determined by Statistics, South Africa. They are also above the highest Upper Bound Poverty line (of R753 per month in 2014). Hence these beneficiaries should have enough to buy adequate food as well as additional non-food items.

Reply:

(a)

    (i) There are currently 73 nonprofit / privately run alcohol and drug rehabilitation facilities

(b) For capacity of each centre, see attached annexure

Reply:

(a) (i) The Department completed the feasibility study on the Moloto Development Corridor in September 2014. PRASA submitted the Treasury Approval 1 (TA1) application to National Treasury at the end of October 2014. National Treasury only responded in December 2016. The allocated budget provided for an Option Analysis to be undertaken on the establishment of an appropriate structure to manage and oversee the implementation of the Moloto Rail Development Corridor. As a result of the protracted response by National Treasury and the fact that it was not supportive of the Moloto Rail Development Corridor, the Department did not occur expenditure.

(ii) The reasons underspending on the National Railway Safety Amendment Bill was due to delays in the procurement processes in securing a suitable service provider with the appropriate technical expertise to assist the Department. The service provider was appointed in October 2016.

(iii) The reasons for underspending on the National Railway Safety Strategy is a result of scarce skill related to railway safety expertise within the transport sector. A Request for Proposal was advertised in July (Bid Number DOT/04/2015/RT), however, by closing date, the Department did not received any bids. The tender was re-advertise and a service provider was appointed in January 2016.

(b) (i) The Appeals Committee is operational since 2010. An amount of R 1,45 million was provided for the remuneration of Committee Members. Committee Members are remunerated in terms of Section 123(1) of the Civil Aviation Act, 2009 and in line with the Minister of Finance’s approved Service Benefit Packages for Office Bearers. The need for the Committee to meet is guided by the number and complexity of appeals lodged by Appellants against decisions taken by the Director of Civil Aviation of the South African Civil Aviation Authority. Thirty seven (37) meetings were held in 2015/16 where eight (8) appeals were considered. The allocated amount for this project has been reduced to R 0, 803 million in the 2016/17 financial year.

(ii) Provision has been made in the 2015/16 financial year for and amount of R 1,0 million for the appointment of a specialised legal service provider to draft the Civil Aviation Amendment Bill. There was an urgent need to amend the Civil Aviation Act, 2009, to ensure compliance with international standards and practices set by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). A decision, in line with Government’s Cost Saving Initiatives, has been taken to draft the amendments internally by officials in the Department. This has resulted in the under-expenditure as reported under Programme 5.

Reply:

As the honourable member is aware, the GFIP e-toll system basically uses camera images and dedicated short range communications equipment. In the case of the camera equipment installed on the GFIP system, this equipment complies with the technical requirements of SANS 1795, Part 5 on data capturing and recording devices for road traffic law enforcement.

With regard to the legislation referred to, there are currently no technical regulations published under the Legal Metrology Act which e-tolling must comply with. In the absence of specific technical regulations, this matter is being handled by the National Regulator for Compulsory Specifications (NRCS) in terms of Section 22(2)(c) of the Legal Metrology Act, 9 of 2014.

The CEO of the NRCS is required to set requirements and conditions for use of the equipment in terms of Section 22(2) (c) of the Legal Metrology Act. The NRCS and SANRAL are addressing these requirements which will apply as an interim measure until technical regulations are published under the legislation. The Legal Metrology Act allows for interim measures to be used.

Additional information for the Minister:

The CEO of the NRCS also clarified this position in a letter to the Freedom Front Plus and this letter was made available to the public sometime last year. Unfortunately the contents of the letter are being mis-interpreted to cause confusion. The Legal Metrology Act allows for interim measures to be used.

In its letter of 4 March 2016 to the Freedom Front Plus, the NRCS clarifies the above and states the following:

" As there are currently no technical regulations which set out the specific requirements that the measuring instruments are to meet, compliance or non-compliance could not be established by the NATIONAL Regulator and hence there is no criminal prosecution taken against SANRAL at this stage. However, should non-compliance issues arise or be detected once interim measures are in place, enforcement measures will be applied as [provided for in the Legal Metrology Act."