Questions and Replies

Reply:

1. When Labour inspectors find that an employee does not have a valid work permit, the matter will be reported to Home Affairs who has jurisdiction over such matters.
2. The Department of Labour does not have a legal mandate or powers to remove such employees from the workplace but will refer the matter to Home Affairs to take further action.

Reply:

1. According to information available at the Division: SCM there are no SAPS members linked to any supplier used by the SAPS for building contracts in the mentioned periods. However, on 14 August 2012 during a Police Portfolio Committee Meeting at Parliament (Building Police Stations: SAPS progress report: SAPS Quarterly Performance 2012), Ms Kohler Barnard stated “a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) investigation revealed that 115 SAPS members linked to suppliers for building contracts came to R50 Million …..” (See attached PCOP Minutes - Page 8). Neither this information nor any subsequent progress thereafter has ever been reported to the Division: SCM.
2. Unknown as this is linked to (1) above.
3. Unknown as this is linked to (1) above.

Original signed MAJOR GENERAL

ACTING DIVISIONAL COMMISSIONER: SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT

RS PILLAY

Date: 27 July 2015

Reply to Question 2628 recommended/not recommended

LIEUTENANT GENERAL

DEPUTY NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

SJP SCHUTTE

Date:

Reply to Question 2628 recommended/not recommended

GENERAL

NATIONAL COMMISSIONER: SOUTH AFRICAN POLICE SERVICE

MV PHIYEGA

Date:

Reply to Question 2628 approved/not approved

MINISTER OF POLICE

NPT NHLEKO, MP

Date:

Reply:

(a) Minister Ngoako Ramatlhodi and (c) the officials of the Department of Mineral Resources (DMR) travelled to China in the 2014-15 financial year on two occasions, See details below.

A. 2014 China Mining Congress and Expo (Tianjin-Beijing, 21 - 22 October 2014)

(i) The purpose of the visit:

China Mining is a standing item on the international promotional programme of the DMR. Minister Ramatlhodi led the Department’s participation in 2014. The DMR has participated in the past five sessions of China Mining, including the 2014-15 financial year. The assessment is that it will continue doing so, because the Conference offers South Africa an opportunity to engage with the investment community in the mining sector and to promote the country as a top mining investment destination.

The following officials provided support to the Minister: Dr T. Ramontja (DG Mineral Resources); J. Raphela (DDG Mineral Regulation); P. Mabelebele (Media Liaison Officer); and R. Motau (PA to the Minister).

(ii) (aa) total cost and (bb) breakdown of costs of the visit:

Accommodation	R 89 149.24
Air travel	R 276 307.00
TOTAL	R 365 456.24

B. Kimberly Process Certification Scheme

South Africa is a founding member of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) in 2003, aimed at preventing trade of conflict diamonds:

• Plenary Meeting (Guangzhou, 10 - 14 November 2014)

(i) The purpose of the visit: The KP Plenary is the highest decision body of the scheme. Minister Ramatlhodi travelled to China as part of the country’s standing obligation. The following officials provided support to the Minister: Dr T. Ramontja (DG Mineral Resources); R. Muthige (DD Mineral Policy); and T. Sekaya (Assistant PA to the Minister).

(ii) (aa) total cost and (bb) breakdown of costs of the visit:

Accommodation	R 169 285.91
Air travel	R 159 636.56
Ground transportation	R 40 300.33
Total cost	R 369 222.80

• Intersessional Meeting (Shanghai, 9 - 12 June 2014)

(i) The purpose of the visit: The Intersessional Meeting is implementing structure of decisions taken at the highest decision body of the scheme, KP Plenary. The DMR participated in this Meeting as part of the country’s standing obligation. One DMR official attended the KP Intersessional Meeting: R. Muthige (DD Mineral Policy).

(ii) (aa) total cost and (bb) breakdown of costs of the visit:

Accommodation	R 36 200.00
Air travel	R 27 000.00
Total cost	R 63 200.00

(b) Deputy Minister Godfrey Oliphant did not travel to China in the 2014-15 financial year.

Approved/not approved

Adv N.A Ramatlhodi

Minister of Mineral Resources

Date Submitted:-……………/………………/2015

Reply:

1. Yes there is a plan to upgrade the Hospital as part of our hospital revitalisation programme – but not necessarily through a private-public-partnership (PPP).
2. No. The Hospital has had its casualty upgraded before the FIFA 2010 World Cup but not through a PPP. It was done by the Department of Public Works in Gauteng.

END.

Reply:

The Minister wishes to inform the Honorable member that  at the time the original genocide warrant was issued by the International Criminal Court in July 2010 against President Al Bashir, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development received confirmation from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) that the second warrant relating to genocide charge and accompanying statements had been dispatched but that it had not been received at the Department for processing.

Following the receipt of this Parliamentary question, the Department has since forwarded a request to DIRCO urging them to obtain confirmation from South Africa’s Mission in The Hague of the specific date upon which the  original genocide warrant was transmitted to DIRCO for onward transmission to DOJCD. The Department therefore awaits a response in this regard from our Mission in The Hague.

As there had been difficulty locating the whereabouts of the original genocide warrant, the Magistrate’s Court for the District of Pretoria has not as yet been seized with the task of endorsing and ultimately issuing the second warrant against President Al Bashir for crimes of genocide for which he has been indicted by the International Criminal Court on 12 July 2010.

Reply:

(1)(a) According to Census 2011, 11,9% of the population in Bushbuckridge had access to piped water in their dwellings, the remaining was supplied with water at Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) standard (i.e Boreholes/communal taps) and Water Carts.

(1)(b) A total of 24 villages have received water since the appointment of Rand Water.

(2) All projects which were implemented under Phase 1 to reticulate 24 villages in Bushbuckridge were completed.

(3) Initially, the scope of the work was under estimated, upon assessment and finalization of technical designs of the projects, it was discovered that bulk of the work was not included in the initial scope of the work, therefore additional budget was required to complete the projects.

(4) The intervention was initiated in the 2013/14 financial year, 24 villages were completed in the 2014/15 financial year and a further
15 villages are currently being reticulated.

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Reply:

The disclosure of the information requested could compromise the confidentiality of the contracts that Eskom signed with third parties as some parts thereof are commercially sensitive.

Reply:

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation did not spend any funds on advertising in the Sowetan and the Daily Sun newspapers during the 2012/2013, 2013/2014 and 2014/2015 financial years.

Reply:

The disclosure of the information requested could compromise the confidentiality of the contracts that Eskom signed with third parties as some parts thereof are commercially sensitive.

Reply:

(1)(a) Yes, there were contracts which were awarded without complying with Treasury Regulation 16A8.4 in 2013/2014.

(1)(b) None in 2014/2015.

(1)(b)(i) Four (4) Contracts were awarded.

(1)(b)(ii) Details of each contract awarded listed below:

Name of supplier	Description of Award
Mihle and Ayola General Trading CC	Supply of Material
TD New Look Construction	Supply of Material
Oratile Kgadi Trading CC	Supply of Material
Meondo Trading 392 CC	Repair and Services

(1)(b)(iii) These goods and services were not linked to specific projects but they were normal day to day operational activities.

(1)(b)(iv) The value of each award is indicated below on the amount column:

Name of supplier	Description of Award	Amount
Mihle and Ayola General Trading CC	Supply of Material	R18 724,50
TD New Look Construction	Supply of Material	R 8 669,00
Oratile Kgadi Trading CC	Supply of Material	R15 340,00
Meondo Trading 392 CC	Repair and Services	R 6 508,00

(2)(a) Yes, they were 3 employees who were implicated.

(2)(b) Letters were issued to the employees concerned. Employee Relations is in the process of drawing up the charges, this process will proceed in terms of the Labour Relations Act.

(2)(c) Measures have been put in place to stop the contravention of Treasury Regulations 16A8.4 where employees are disciplined for the transgression and an internal circular was circulated to all employees.

(3) Yes, measures have been put in place by means of an internal circular to all employees to stop the contravention of the specified Treasury Regulation.

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Reply:

(a)  (i) Post Mortem unprocessed drunk driving blood alcohol samples:

28 February 2015: 6 980

31 July 2015; 3 964

(ii) Pre Mortem unprocessed drunk driving blood alcohol samples:

28 February 2015: 54 129

31 July 2015; 39 433

(b)  (i) New samples that have been received from January 2015 to 31st July 2015: 41 925

(ii) New samples that have been processed from January 2015 to 31st July 2015: 63 431

This means that new samples received by the 31 July 2015 since the beginning of the year are 41 925, but in that period 63 431 samples were processed.

This is because we have divided all samples into two categories. One category is for new samples which must be done immediately to avoid backlogs. The second category is for historically backlog samples. These are done bit-by-bit as soon as the current samples are done. Hence the 20 000 extra samples are from this backlog category.

END.

Reply:

The disclosure of the information requested could compromise the confidentiality of the contracts that Eskom signed with third parties as some parts thereof are commercially sensitive.

Reply:

1. The Provincial Departments of Health have conducted patient satisfaction surveys in health facilities during 2014/15.2.
2. Nationally 42% of public health facilities conducted patient satisfaction surveys during 2014/15 financial year;
3. In total 1 810 334 patients participated in surveys at these facilities, and from these 1 377 851 patients were satisfied with services rendered at public health facilities.
4. In addition STATSA conducts patients satisfaction surveys as part of the Annual Household surveys.

END.

Reply:

Between, 1 January 2013 and 31 July 2014, the Department of International Relations and Cooperation has spent funds on advertising as appended hereunder:

• Departmental Campaign promotion/advertising : R 980 179.16

ADVERTISING: 1 JANUARY 2013 TO 31 JULY 2014
Placement Date:	Media:	Medium	Amount:
14 February 2013	SA PRESS ASSOCIATION	Print	60 000.00
19 February 2013	THOBELA FM	Radio	114 000.00
22 April 2013	HIGHBURY SAFIKA MEDIA	Print	16 092.00
11 June 2013	SABC	Radio	142 614.00
26 June 2013	HIGHBURY SAFIKA MEDIA	Print	54 628.80
27 June 2013	PICASSO HEADLINE	Print	23 940.00
28 June 2013	ALL MEDIA AFRICA INTERNATIONAL	Print	47 000.00
28 June 2013	HIGHBURY SAFIKA MEDIA	Print	54 628.80
10 October 2013	KAYA FM D8301	Radio	200 000.00
10 October 2013	ALIVE ADVERTSING D7360	Outdoor	143 838.36
23 October 2013	BENHLE MEDIA BN033/ BETHEL HOUSE MEDIA	Print	15 100.00
04 February 2014	HIGHBURY SAFIKA L9478	Print	27 314.40
11 March 2014	KASHAN ADVERTISING R0154	Print	81 022.80
Total			R 980 179.16

• Departmental Recruitment Advertising : R11 330 928.45

RECRUITMENT ADVERTISING: 1 JANUARY 2013 TO 31 JULY 2014
Placement Date:	Media:	Medium	Amount
January 2013	Sunday Times, City Press & New Age	Print	477 351.87
January 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	296 082.95
January 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	433 341.05
February 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	472 912.40
March 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	305 499.98
June 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	477 351.87
June 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	359 965.23
June 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	486 045.71
July 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	436 345.71
August 2013	Legal Brief	Print	73 341.05
September 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	394 299.02
September 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	472 912.40
October 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	405 454.98
October 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	436 345.71
October 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	396 082.95
November 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	394 199.36
November 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	477 351.87
November 2013	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	396 082.95
February 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	473 351.87
February 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	396 082.95
February 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	433 341.05
March 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	472 912.40
March 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	305 499.98
March 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	473 352.89
May 2014	Legal Brief	Print	75 155.90
June 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	352 005.07
June 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	396 470.75
June 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	296 370.30
July 2014	Sunday Times & City Press	Print	465 418.23
TOTAL			R11 330 928.45

Reply:

(a) Yes, I undertook a trip to China from 09 - 12 September 2014.

(b) No, the Deputy Minister did not travel to China during the 2014/15 financial year.

(c) I was accompanied by my Special Advisor: Mr J Pampallis, Chief Director: International Relations: Mr G Jeppie, Media Liaison Officer: Mr K Nkwanyana, and my Personal Assistant: Ms M Sako.

(i) The purpose of my visit was to participate in the World Economic Forum (WEF), which took place in Tianjin, China, from 09 - 12 September 2014. I was requested by the WEF to chair a working session titled “Skilling STEMS (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths)” on 11 September 2014.

(ii) (aa) The total cost of the visit was R293 416.62.

(bb) The breakdown of costs are as follows:

• Flights: R161 485.00
• Accommodation: R47 354.65
• Ground transport: R34 892.97
• Daily allowance: R49 684.00

Compiler/contact persons:

Ext:

DIRECTOR – GENERAL

STATUS:

DATE:

REPLY TO QUESTION 2700 APPROVED/NOT APPROVED/AMENDED

Dr BE NZIMANDE, MP

MINISTER OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND TRAINING

STATUS:

DATE:

Reply:

(1)(a) My Department has opened a total of Sixty Seven (67) cases with the South African Police Service (SAPS) for contravening the National Water Act (Act no 36 of 1998) (NWA). (i), one (1) case was opened for not complying with water use authorizations and (ii) Fifty Eight (58) were cases opened for engaging in water uses without authorisation.

(1)(b) Below is the region and sector breakdown of criminal cases opened:

Criminal Cases Opened with SAPS
Region	Sectors
	Mining	Agriculture	Industries	Water Services Authorities	Tourism	Total
Eastern Cape	-	-	-	-	-	-
Free State	-	1	-	7	-	8
Gauteng	2	6	-	-	-	8
KwaZulu-Natal	10	-	1	-	-	11
Limpopo	-	1	-	-	-	1
Mpumalanga	9	14	3	1	1	28
North West	1	2	-	1	-	4
Northern Cape	4	-	-	-	-	4
Western Cape	-	-	2	1	-	3
Total	26	24	6	10	1	67

(2) The relevant Department to answer the question is the South African Police Service (SAPS).

 

(3) The relevant Department to answer the question is the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

(4) The relevant Department to answer the question is the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).

(5)(a) The highest monetary fine was One Million Rand (R1 000 000.00) in 2013/2014.

(5)(b) No imprisonment was obtained for convictions for the offences of transgressions of the NWA.

---00O00---

Reply:

The disclosure of the information requested could compromise the confidentiality of the contracts that Eskom signed with third parties as some parts thereof are commercially sensitive.

Reply:

I set out in a detailed report to Parliament the facts and circumstances of which I had knowledge relating to the security enhancements at my Nkandla residence. The report is attached for ease of reference.

NW478E

Reply:

1. The EMS Priority 1 (P1) response rate under 60 minutes in the Odi District is 78.7%;

The EMS Priority 1 (P1) urban response rate under 15 minutes in the Odi District is 40.4%.

The provincial average response times are indicated below:

Indicator	Period
Sort Order	Indicator Name	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	Grand Total
104	EMS call transport rate	89.2	97.7	92.1	90.4	92.5
105	EMS inter-facility transfer rate	0.0	0.0	88.5	90.4	42.9
106	EMS obstetric client transport rate	36.5	31.1	31.9	34.9	33.4
107	EMS operational ambulance coverage (annualized)
109	EMS operational Obstetric Emergency Unit coverage
110	EMS P1 call response under 60 minutes rate	46.7	100.0	50.0	100.0	78.7
111	EMS P1 rural responses under 40 minutes rate
112	EMS P1 urban response under 15 minutes rate	46.7	28.6	50.0	45.0	40.0
334	EMS P1 Urban Maternity and obstetric call under 15 minutes response rate	100.0	100.0

(a)   It serves Ga-Rankuwa, Mabopane, Soshanguve and Winterveldt, in Gauteng Province.

(b)    Botshabelo, Hebron, Hoekfontein, Kgabalatsane, Klipgat, Koedoespoort,Kromkuil, Madidi, Makau, Makaunyane, Mothutlung, Odinburg, Rabokala – all in North West Province.

2.  Odi Hospital, which refers to Dr George Mukhari Academic Hospital.

END.

Reply:

1. (a) Interns

Year	Number
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015	350 371 374 361 369 384 271

 

(b) Community Service Medical Officers

Year	Number
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015	223 229 202 193 198 215 230

 

(c) Registrars

Year	Number
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015	150 170 209 194 165 39 0

2.  (a) 2014:

(i)  Interns – Yes.

As a result of the Nelson Mandela School of Medicine at the University of KwaZulu Natal (UKZN) reverting to a six-year programme for medical students there were no students in 2014 completing the sixth year and this reduced the number of students that could be placed for internship.

(ii)  Community Service Medical Officers – No decrease.

(iii)  Registrars – Yes, due to limited available funding.

3.  (a) (i) and (ii) No fixed amount was allocated.

(b) (i) 2013-14

Interns: R363,583,000.00

Community Service Medical Officers: R138,136,500.00

Registrars: R471,970,000.00

(ii) 2014-15

Medical Interns: R373,614,200.00

Community Service Medical Officers: R155,466,000.00

Registrars: R430,000,000.00

END.

Reply:

(a)   Mainstream newspapers are defined as the dominant or established newspapers in the South African media landscape. This reference is widely understood and used in the collaborative publication Media Landscape 2014, Celebrating 20 Years of South Africa’s Media.

(b)   Therefore the mainstream newspapers referred to are commercial newspapers that fall under the following stables: Times Media Group; Caxton, Independent News and Media SA, and Media24.

MR D LIPHOKO

ACTING DIRECTOR-GENERAL

GCIS

DATE:

MS AF MUTHAMBI, MP

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

Reply:

CIVITAS BUILDING:

(i) No. The National Department of Health has not installed any generator since 1 January 2015.

(ii) The existing generator installation costs were included in the overall major upgrading of the building four which was completed in 2010. The running costs are included in the monthly rental payment to Public Works.

Forensic Chemistry Laboratories buildings (4)

(i) No generators were installed at the three forensic chemistry laboratories ( Pretoria; Johannesburg and Cape Town) since 1st January 2015.. The National Department of Health has not installed any generator since 1 January 2015.

A new generator has been installed at the newly operational Forensic Chemistry Laboratory in Durban (85 Magwaza Maphalala street) on 31 March 2015 at a cost of R294,120.00 as a standard feature for any of our forensic laboratories.

(ii) The maintenance costs are included in the monthly rental payment to the Department of Public Works.

Medical Bureau for Occupational Disease (MBOD) /Compesation Commissioner for Occupational Diseases (CCOD)

(i) No. The National Department of Health has not installed any generator since at the MBOD/ CCOD building since 1 January 2015.

(ii) The generator installation costs were included in the overall major upgrading of the building four which was completed in 2007. The running costs are included in the monthly rental payment to Public Works.

PUBLIC ENTITIES:

The South African Medical Research Council

(i) In the process of replacing the generator at an estimated cost of R1 500 000.00.

(ii) There is no actual fuel consumption data to provide cost nor associated maintenance cost as the installation has not been started. The specifications for fuel consumption for the generator that will be installed are 199 g/kwh to 206 g/kwh at 100% capacity.

The Council for Medical Schemes

(i) In the current year the old generator was replaced at a total cost of R569, 621. The amount includes a trade in / rebate amount on the old generator set.

 

The Council for Medical Schemes has a service level agreement with the supplier to test and maintain the generator at a contractual rate. Actual running costs of the generator for the period 1 January 2015 to 30 May 2015, including total cost paid to the supplier for servicing and replacing parts amounts to R19, 618. R27, 221 was spent on diesel. (The estimated running costs of diesel are estimated at R1, 575 per load shedding event.)

END.

Reply:

(a)  There is no specific protocol in place for climate refugees. The department is not presently developing a protocol to document climate refugees.

The Refugees Act No 130 of 1998 provides for the documentation of all asylum seekers and refugees respectively in terms of section 22 and 24 (3) of the Act.

Refugee status is granted on merit and on the credibility of each asylum claim in terms of provisions transcribed under section 3 of the Refugees Act No 130 of 1998 which stipulates that, a person qualifies for refugee status for the purposes of this Act if that person –

(i)  Owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted by reason of his or her race, tribe, religion, nationality, political opinion or membership of a particular social group, is outside the country of his or her nationality and is unable or unwilling to avail himself or herself of the protection of that country, or, not having a nationality and being outside the country of his or her former habitual residence is unable or, owing to such fear, unwilling to return to it; or

(ii)  Owing to external aggression, occupation, foreign domination or events seriously disturbing or disrupting public order in either a part or the whole of his or her country of origin or nationality, is compelled to leave his or her place of habitual residence in order to seek refuge elsewhere; or

(iii)  Is a dependant of a person contemplated in paragraph (i) or (ii).

As part of the existing protocol to document refugees, the department provides enabling documents to recognised refugees such as Refugee Certification in terms of section 27(C), Refugee Identity Documents in terms of section 30 (1) and Refugee Travel Documents in terms of section 31.

(b)  The department is not developing a protocol to receive climate refugees. This is because refugee status is already clearly outlined in the current legislation and international protocols. Section 21 of the Refugees Act No 130 of 1998 provides for the reception of all those who - because of reasons indicated in Section 3 of the same Act – have been forced to migrate and seek asylum in South Africa.

Asylum seekers are received, registered, accepted and processed with their claims adjudicated according to the relevant domestic legislation (The Constitution, Refugees Act No 130 of 1998) and international protocols (1951 UN Convention, the 1967 Protocol and the 1969 OAU Protocol).

Reply:

Portions 87, 148, 149 were sold through an open tender by the Department of Local Government and Housing. As part of the agreement with the successful bidder, the Sizwe Tropical Disease Hospital will be relocated to a site opposite Edenvale Hospital.

(a)   The patience currently at the Hospital will remain at the Hospital until relocation. Any patients that will be at the Hospital when the new premises is complete will be relocated to the new premises.

(b)   New patients will continue to be admitted at the Hospital until the relocation, after which all new patients will be admitted at the new premises.

(i) The Hospital will be relocated to a site opposite Edenvale Hospital;

(ii) As part of the agreement with the successful bidder, the successful bidder will relocate the Hospital at his own cost;

(iii) The relocation will only commence once the developer complete the construction and commissioning of the new premises.

END.

Reply:

All reports, including my report to Parliament, are currently under consideration by the Adhoc Committee on the Police Minister’s Nkandla Report appointed by Parliament. Such committee is still seized with the matter and in the circumstances it would be improper and premature for me to comment.

NW110E

Reply:

The Department of Health has several initiatives to assist young people to access contraceptive and family planning services.

-  Ensuring that all primary health care facilities are adolescent and youth friendly. Facilities that are classified as youth friendly need the following standards:

• Policies and processes to support adolescent and youth health rights available;
• Provision of safe and supportive environment;
• Systems to train and develop staff on youth issues;
• Individualised care with privacy and confidentiality maintained; and
• Effective referral systems in place.

The Department has contracted and NGO (loveLife) to assist with the training of clinic personnel and to ensure that standards listed above are in place. We have trained 615 health professionals during the past year and will be training an additional 375 during this financial year.

• An effort to increase condom use among the youth in particular, the Department has decided to procure coloured and scented male condoms. A contract to supply 50 million coloured and scented condoms has been awarded and 38 million have already been distributed in universities and TVET colleges. The distribution of these condoms is a partnership between the Departments of Higher Education and Training and of Health – the ‘First Things First’ campaign for institutions of higher learning – which has been implemented on an annual basis since 2011. The aim of this campaign is to offer HIV counselling and testing, Medical Male Circumcision (MMC), TB screening, condom distribution, appropriate prevention messages and treatment referrals to the students in Universities and TVETs. Condoms are also distributed during HCT as dual protection against unplanned pregnancies, STIs and HIV. Over 100 000 students were reached in the last financial year;
• In order to expand the range of contraceptive commodities available the Department introduced the sub-dermal implant in April 2014 and to date more than 850,000 women have had the implant inserted. Although the implant method was not specifically targeted at the youth, earlier indications seem to be showing that the majority of the 850 000 women are actually young people who have never been on any contraception before;

• In collaboration with Soul City, the Society for Family Health and Stellenbosch University and funding from a development partner, the Department is implementing the ‘Families Matter’ project whose objective is to prepare youth to make informed health choices, including sexual and reproductive health choices. The project is currently running in Gauteng, KwaZulu Natal, Free State, Mpumalanga, Northern Cape and Western Cape;

• With funding from the Department of Health and Global Fund, Soul City is implementing the Rise Women’s clubs (the clubs target young women between 15-24 years of age with health education messages and has currently reached 17,000 young women through 1 000 Rise Young Women’s clubs) and Soul Buddies clubs (to empower primary school children to make healthy life choices). In addition, the Department of Health funds loveLife’s ground breakers programme which is a peer-to-peer programme that focuses on learners in high school and out of school and empowers them to make healthy life choices;

• As part of the Integrated School Health Programme (which is a collaborative programme between the Departments of Health and of Basic Education), school health teams provide age-appropriate messages and information to learners in both primary and secondary schools.

END.

Reply:

It is the prerogative of the Inter-Ministerial Committee on State Funerals, together with the Presidency, to declare the status of funerals, whether they are national or provincial.

The SABC is then obliged to follow the broadcast coverage, as prescribed in the regulations pertaining to official funerals.

Irrespective of the individual (or public appeal or popularity), the broadcast parameters are clearly stipulated in the regulations.

Whether a funeral is covered “live” or not, is not at the discretion of the SABC, but what is dictated in the regulations.

In the case in question, the deceased was neither honoured with a State or Provincial funeral status.

The SABC did however cover the announcement of his death widely on all our platforms. Television and radio carried extensive obituaries. All the memorial services were covered in all the news bulletins as was the actual funeral.

MR N MUNZHELELE

[ACTING] DIRECTOR GENERAL

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

MS AF MUTHAMBI, MP

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

Reply:

(1) (a) A total of 6 facilities in Mpumalanga are currently operational.

(b) Please refer to the Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act, 1996 (Act No. 92 of 1996)

(c) and (d) The Department of Health provides the service at no cost to the clients if indigent and costs are determined depending on the income of the patient in public hospitals as for any other medical condition.

(2) (a) (i) Legal termination of pregnancy statistics are recorded below:

	(aa) 2012-2013	(bb) 2013 - 2014	(cc) 2014- 2015
	3,104	3,046	2,539

(ii) The National and Provincial Departments of Health do not keep a record of illegal abortion statistics.

(b) This is not known as statistics for illegal abortions are not recorded separately.

(c) (i) (aa)-(bb) The Department does not keep a record of separating legal and illegal abortion statistics.

(ii) Statistics of children between the age 12 and 16 years who had terminations of pregnancy over the periods are:

PERIOD	NUMBER
2012-2013	55
2013-2014	49
2014-2015	52

(d) “The provisions of the Choice of Termination Act, Act No. 92 Of 1996: Choice on Termination of Pregnancy Act92, 1996. Is applicable with respect to consent.

(3) (a)-(b) No study has been conducted by both National Department of Health or the Mpumalanga Health Department that we are aware off.

(4) The Department of Health provides Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) in the designated health facilities which comply with the prescripts of the CTOP Act for safe performance of the procedure. The Department is continuously conducting value clarification workshops to address the issue of limited TOP services.

In addition the Department is conducting Manual Vacuum Aspiration training in partnership with partners that support the implementation of TOP services has introduced medical abortion services to increase access to this service.

However, the key to reducing unwanted pregnancies is to increase knowledge and access to sexual and reproductive health services. In line with this the department launched a revised Contraceptive Policy and introduced the contraception implant as a new and additional contraception method to increase the range of contraceptives available to woman.

END.

Reply:

1. Yes.

The Government continues to pursue diplomatic channels to secure the release of the South African hostage, Steven McGowan.

(a)  A Task Team chaired by DIRCO was established comprising security departments to oversee this case. The Task Team meets regularly and informs the McGowan’s family of developments. In Mali, the South African Embassy is part of the Troika comprising the Netherlands and Sweden. The Troika holds meetings and engages with the Malian government to get updates on developments regarding this matter. This Troika has since been reduced to two members following the release of the Dutch hostage by the French security forces. Furthermore, a Special Envoy was sent to Mauritania in February 2015 specifically to establish more information on the kidnaping and raise South Africa’s concerns on the continued kidnapping.

(b)  The political and security situation in North Mali makes it difficult for the Malian government to engage with the kidnappers but efforts continues from both the South African and Malian governments to secure Mr McGowan’s release.

UNQUOTE

Reply:

     (a)  Yes

     (b)  The Department makes provision for the procurement of the necessary or required equipment.

Reply:

Yes, there are clear criteria set for the removal of underperforming hospital managers as per the goals listed in the National Development Plan (NDP).

END.

Reply:

 

(a)  The Department of Labour does not have a planning model for the inspection of valid work permits as this is a legislative responsibility of the Department of the Home Affairs and South African Police.

(b)  In its normal work aligned with granting of work permits the Department of Labour mere conducts inspections at work places to determine compliance with prescribed conditions of employment. Furthermore the Department notifies the Department of Home Affairs should it discover employees without valid work permits.

(c)  (i) N/A and (ii) N/A

Reply:

1. (a) 1 623;

(b) No nurse is ever registered with the HPCSA;

(c) I do not understand what “other medical practitioners” means.

2. (a) 6 729;

(b) 61;

3.  (a) 22;

(b) There is no remedy available for practitioners who have failed the examination three times.

4. There is currently no list of accredited qualifications obtained outside South Africa.

5. Since registration is a pre-requisite for practising the profession of medicine in South Africa, applicants will not be able to work as medical practitioners until such time as they are appropriately registered with the Medical and Dental Board.

END.

Reply:

Due to the dynamic nature of SABC operations, there are instances where the SABC is required to broadcast without a contract in place, however, endeavours are carried out to regularise the agreements after the fact.

The SABC has initiated a project to review and align the SABC Procurement Policy to PFMA requirements in terms of original tax clearance certificate.

Disciplinary and criminal action has been instituted where warranted.

MR N MUNZHELELE

ACTING DIRECTOR-GENERAL

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

MS AF MUTHAMBI, MP

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

Reply:

(a) The table below reflects the details in this regard.

PROVINCE	ADMISSIONS
Eastern Cape	284

Other provinces do not collect this information as the boys arrive at health facilities as general patients and not as initiates. The Eastern Cape Province is able to collect the information because the boys are brought by members of initiation monitoring teams at hospitals.

(b) The types of injuries suffered by the initiates in this period requiring them to be hospitalised were as follows:

• Penile mutilations including amputations
• Assaults

END.

Reply:

Yes.

1. (i) A total of 210 Cuban medical doctors.

(ii) A total of 26 Cuban medical doctors.

1. Medical Practitioners.

1. The following table reflects the details on the skills profile

(i) Currently employed:

Clinical Discipline	Number
Anaesthesia	7
Anatomy	1
Biochemistry	1
Biostatistics	1
Cardiology	1
Clinical Laboratory	1
Dermatology	3
Embryology	1
Ear Nose and Throat	4
Epidemiology	2
Family Medicine	105
Gastroenterology	1
General surgery	13
Internal Medicine	20
Maxillo Facial	3
Neurology	1
Obstetric and Gynaecology	12
Opthalmology	4
Orthopaedics	8
Paediatrics	8
Pathology	1
Pharmacology	1
Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery	2
Psychiatry	3
Public Health	1
Urology	3
Total	210

(ii) Due to be employed

Clinical Discipline	Number
Cardiology	1
Emergency Medicine	1
Family Medicine	10
Internal Medicine	1
Maxillo Medicine	1
Obstetrics and Gynaecology	1
Opthalmology	2
Orthopaedics	2
Paediatrics	4
Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery	1
Radiology	1
Rheumatology	1
Total	26

 

1. It is generally acknowledged that there is a big shortage of medical doctors in the public health care system.

1. The doctors recruited from Cuba earn the same remuneration as other doctors employed by the Government based on the years of experience and expertise.

END.

Reply:

No, the department does not have a Regulatory Burden Reduction Strategy.

MR N MUNZHELELE

[ACTING] DIRECTOR-GENERAL

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

MS AF MUTHAMBI, MP

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

Reply:

1. None of the entities reporting to the Minister of Health provided any type of sponsorship.
2. None of the entities reporting to the Minister of Health intends to enter into any type of sponsorship deal or contract in the 2015 and 2016 financial years and the reasons provided are as follows:

• The National Health Laboratory Service (NHLS) - due to the current financial situation; and
• The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC); the Council for Medical Schemes (CMS) and the Office of Health Standards Compliance (OHSC) – do not provide any sponsorship deals or contracts.

END.

Reply:

The following Tables reflect the situation in this regard:

(a) The Department of Health

Newspaper	2012/13	2013/14	2014/15
Sowetan	R564,376.17	R153,029.57	R256,159.31
Daily Sun	R245,149.33	R230,794.39	R175,800.71

(b) Entities

Neither the Council for Medical Schemes, the Office of Health Standards Compliance, nor the South African Medical Research Council spent on advertising in either of the newspapers in questions during the stated period.

The National Health Laboratory Service spent on advertising as follows:

Newspaper	2012-13	2013-14	2014-15
Sowetan	R226,896.48	Nil	Nil
Daily Sun	Nil	Nil	Nil

END.

Reply:

In June 2012 the Department of Health requested Professor Jack Moodley (Chairperson of the National Committee on Confidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths), and Dr Nat Khaole (then Acting Chief Director for Maternal and Women’s Health) to investigate allegations that HIV positive women have been sterilized without their consent. They visited two hospitals in Durban, namely, Addington Hospital and King Edward Hospital and found two evidence of systematic abuse of the consent process as alleged by the researchers.

When the issue was first brought to the attention of the Department of Health, I requested that details be provided, including names of the complainants, to enable the Department to investigate the matter fully. However, the Department was informed that the complainants did not wish to be identified to the Department as they were afraid of being victimised, despite our reassurance that I would personally ensure that the complainants are not victimised.

In 2015 the issue of forced sterilisation was raised with the Department of Health again. The Department again requested the NGO, Her Rights Initiative, to provide the names of the complainants, to enable the Department to fully investigate the allegations. In addition, a commitment was made that an independent team would investigate the allegations, if need be. However, to date, there has been great reluctance in providing the Department with the information necessary to investigate this matter.

The Department’s policy on any surgical procedure, including sterilization, is very clear – all surgical procedures require informed consent. In this regard, transgression will not be tolerated and disciplinary action will follow transgression when there is evidence to this effect.

END.

Reply:

(a) Mr Frans Matlala

(b) 01 July 2015

 

 

MR N MUNZHELELE

[ACTING] DIRECTOR GENERAL

DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

MS AF MUTHAMBI, MP

MINISTER OF COMMUNICATIONS

DATE:

Reply:

 

1. When Labour inspectors find that an employee does not have a valid work permit, the matter will be reported to Home Affairs who has jurisdiction over such matters.
2. The Department of Labour does not have a legal mandate or powers to remove such employees from the workplace but will refer the matter to Home Affairs to take further action.

Reply:

1. (a) 60% of patients on bedaquiline are in South Africa, i.e 361 patients in South Africa out of a total of 600 worldwide.

(b) A tender to procure Linezolid is being prepared. Linezolid is available off code in the meantime.

2.  (i) and (ii) For year 1 (1st April 2015 to 31 March 2016) we are prioritising XDR-TB, pre-XDR-TB and MRD-TB with hearing impairment, renal impairment and those to be operated.

Because the main focus will be on XDR-TB, we have started rolling out at our 12 facilities responsible for treating XDR-TB which are:

• Jose Pearson and Fort Grey Hospitals (Eastern Cape);
• Dr J S Moroka (Free State);
• Sizwe Hospital (Gauteng);
• King Dinuzulu Complex Hospital (KZN);
• FH Odendaal (Limpopo);
• Witbank TB Hospital (Mpumalanga);
• Dr Harry Surtie and West End (Northern Cape);
• Tshepong Hospital (North West);
• Brooklyn Chest and Khayelitsha (Western Cape)

The 12 facilities treat all XDR-TB patients in the country.

• Jose Pearson, Fort Grey, King Dinuzulu, Sizwe and Brooklyn Chest Hospitals treat 50% to 60% of all MDR-TB in the country.

• So we believe that there will be a good coverage to years 1, 2 and 3;

• Mines and prisons will follow after 2 to 3 years.

3. A costed plan to make the drugs available has been developed and budgeted for in the HIV Conditional Grant. The drugs will be made available to 3 000 patients in year 1 (1st April 2015 to 31 March 2016), and then gradually increase to 6 000 at the end of year 3.

END.

Reply:

Yes the department maintain an updated asset register.

(a)  Five motor vehicles

(b)  Total value for five vehicles is R2 926 330.69

All these vehicles are more than five years old and purchased as follows;

• BMW 525i (Kept and being used when other vehicles went for service)

Price; R349 561.40

Purchase date: 30 June 2004

MINISTER

• Mercedes-Benz E200

Price; R451 804.00

Purchase date: 08 January 2010

• Mercedes-Benz E500

Price; R760 794.01

Purchase date: 08 January 2010

DEPUTY MINISTER

• BMW 520d

Price; R466 449.30

Purchase date: 15 February 2011

• BMW 740i

Price; R897 721.99

Purchase date: 07 March 2011

END.

Reply:

1. (a) (b) In June 2011, the Department established a compliance and enforcement structure in the Mineral Regulation. In 2013 funding was made available and accordingly utilised to enhance environment authorisation capacity.

(2) (a) (b) National Treasury has allocated funding sufficient to fund 22 positions, which are currently in the process of being filled.

(3)(a) 34 personnel have been appointed and designated.

(b) 28 persons have been successfully trained as Environmental Mineral Resource Inspectors whilst 6 had been previously trained. A further 60 persons will undergo training during this financial year.

(c) See (a) above

(4) The mining sector information will be provided to the Department of Environmental Affairs for inclusion into their relevant report.

Approved/not approved

Adv N.A. Ramatlhodi

Minister of Mineral Resources

Date Submitted:-………………/………………/2015

Reply:

The Department is not reviewing the Electronic Communications Amendment Act, Act 1 of 2014, as amendment Acts are normally not reviewed.

Reply:

1. (a) Minister is seriously concerned about the poor state of the Gauteng’s township industrial park and although has not engaged with the Premier of Gauteng regarding the matter, the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (Sefa), which reports to the Department of Small Business Development, is handling the matters of Gauteng’s township industrial parks.

(b) So far Sefa has reported that it will engage with the Office of the Premier of Gauteng through the Gauteng Enterprise Propeller (GEP) in order to understand the Gauteng Province’s plans for property revitilisation. Sefa is in the process of conducting visits to the industrial parks to determine the extent of neglect and disrepair on these industrial parks: this includes assessing the physical state of these properties in order to perform all the necessary repairs and maintenance to these properties in the coming months.

 

2. Sefa has done investigations to the validity of these claims, and has so far obtained some information on the matter dating back to 1999. During the 2014/15 financial year, Sefa held discussions with the Tenants Association on the terms and conditions of transfer of ownership of these properties. Sefa is now in a process to meet individual Tenants Associations to discuss the framework for the transfer of ownership of these properties to tenants who qualify under the initial framework for transfer.

Reply:

I have been advised by the Department and Entities as follows:-

DEPARTMENT:

1. Yes

The table below provides a full response to the questions asked by the Honourable Member:-

(ii) Name	Contract Period	Contract terminated	(iii) Termination reason	Contract period paid out	(i)(aa) Amount
S D L Dhlomo	13 July 2009 to 13 January 2011	31 May 2010	The Post of Deputy Director: Subsistence and Travel was not approved on the organisational structure. The appointment was made irregularly. The employee’s contract was terminated accordingly. The employee then took the department to arbitration.	1 June 2010 to 13 January 2011	Salary: R 249 192-70

South African Post Office (SAPO)

(b) Yes,

It is not a practice of the SAPO to pay the remaining value of the contract in cases where Executives leave the organisation before the expiry date of the employment contract. The Executives in the table below were only paid the arbitration awards agreed to, between the employees, their legal representatives, and the company. However, these payments are not linked to the contracted term of employment

See arbitration figures paid since the 2008/9 financial year to current within the SAPO Group.

 

(ii) Name	Job Title	(iii) Reason for Termination	(i)(bb) Settlement Amount	Settlement Date
JP WENTZEL	COO (2 A)	Resignation (Arbitration settlement)	548,058.25	10/07/2011
RM NESHUNZHI	GM (3)	End of Contract (Arbitration settlement - (Contract paid until 31 May 2012)	532,493.50	11/30/2011
MM LEFOKA	GCEO (1)	Resignation (Arbitration settlement)	1,466,810.00	01/24/2012
MS DIAZ	GE (2 B)	Resignation (Disciplinary hearing - Deed of settlement signed) Arbitration settlement	370,217.25	11/28/2013
ME LANCASTER	GE (2 A)	Retrenchment severance package (Voluntary Retrenchment Agreement)	1,698,977.00	12/3/2013
BS BULUNGA	COMPANY SECRETARY (3)	Dismissal (Settlement at CCMA)	404,615.93	26/3/2014

ZADNA

(b) No

ZaDNA has not had an employee’s contract terminated before its stipulated termination.

SENTECH

(b) Yes,

The table below provides a full response to the questions asked by the Honourable Member:-

(ii) Name of Employee	Position	Period	(i)(bb) Amount Spend	(iii) Reason for Settlement	Process
Mr. Cassim Mohammed Siddique	Chief Financial Officer	2010	R 360 000.00	Dismissed	CCMA Award settlement
Mosala Mojaki Frederick	Head: Employee Relations	2010	R 257 393.00	Dismissed	Employee lawyer based on the ongoing case with little evidence
Steenkamp Carin	Portfolio Manager: Special Projects	2010	R 515 824.47	Retrenched	Retrenchment
Ramokhufi Rachel Neo	Executive: Strategy and Co-ordination	2010	R 250 698.34	Ongoing disciplinary hearing	Employee lawyer based on the ongoing case with little evidence
Email [email protected]	Chief Financial Officer	2012	R 142 482.84	Claimed Constructive - Dismissed	CCMA Award settlement
Nevhutalu Tendani Gaylord	Head: Financial Accounting	2012	R 62 000	Dismissed	CCMA Award settlement
Emerich Rian	General Manager: Marketing and Sales	2012	R 83 503.27	Dismissed	CCMA Award settlement

NEMISA

(b) Yes,

The table below provides a full response to the questions asked by the Honourable Member:-

(ii) To whom were payments Made	Period	(i)(bb) Amount Spend	(iii) Reason for Settlement
Chief Operations Officer	2013-2014	R 779 055.00	Mutual Separation Agreement

BROADBAND INFRACO

(b) Yes,

From 2008-09 up to date, Broadband Infraco had no early terminations of contracts which involved paying out the remainder of an employee’s fixed term contract. However, Broadband Infraco did terminate the employment contract of three (3) employees due to disciplinary processes and after an assessment that it would cost the Company far less to have conclude a mutual separation agreement with each of the employees instead of pursuing long protracted legal proceedings and committing company resources and labour in pursuit of the legal cases against the employees. Refer to the table below:

(ii) Name of employee	Position	Period	(i)(bb) Amount Spend	(iii)Reason for Settlement	Process
Suren Maharaj	Chief Financial Officer	March 2011	R 395 916.50	The Board decided to part ways with the CFO after he was issued with a final written warning for dereliction of duties	Employee had been issued with a Final written warning
S Mapatagane	SHEQ Manager	June 2011	R 123 527.34	The settlement was paid out due to legal costs that were increasing and lawyers for the Company advised on paying the settlement to minimise litigation costs	Employee had been subjected to a disciplinary hearing
Ray Hamilton	Chief Sales & Marketing Officer	August 2014	R 400 000	Paid a negotiated settlement for four (4) months for mutual separation with R Hamilton.	Disciplinary Process- he exceeded his delegation of authority

USAASA

(b) Yes,

The table below provides a full response to the questions asked by the Honourable Member:-

(ii) To whom were payments Made	Salary Level	Salary per annum	(i)(bb) Amount Paid	(iii)Reason	Date of Exit
Senior Manager: Human Resources	13	R 540 429	R 135 107	Mutual agreement	31 May 2008
Chief Executive Officer	15	R 1 099 824	R 458 260	Mutual Agreement	31 May 2010
Chief Executive Officer	15	R 1 120 935	R 499 292	Mutual Agreement	30 March 2012
Senior Manager: USAF	13	R 782 883	R 547 000	CCMA Settlement Agreement	30 September 2015
Board Administrator	10	R 405 390	R 99 534	Mutual Agreement	31 December 2014
Payroll Administrator	9	R 296 100	R 74 025	CCMA Settlement Agreement	20 April 2015

SITA

(b) Yes

The table below provides a full response to the questions asked by the Honourable Member:-

(ii) Name	Designation	(i)(bb) Gross Pay Out	Date paid	(iii) Reason for Termination
Blake Mosley-Lefatola	Chief Executive Officer	R 1 439 606.45	May 2013	Early termination of contract (Board Decision)
Nontobeko Ntsinde	Chief Executive Officer	R 574 991.00	June 2013	Unfair termination of contract (Labour Court Decision)
Thandi Zide	SITA Company Secretary	R 550 000.00	August 2013	Unfair Dismissal (CCMA Decision)
Khumbuzo Ntshevheni	Chief Operating Officer	R 1 899 000.00	June 2014	Early termination of contract (Referred to Labour Court and resulted in a Settlement Agreement)
Tshidi Gumbi	Head of Department: Human Resource	R 265 898.52	May 2015	Unfair Dismissal (Referred to CCMA and resulted in a Settlement Agreement)

Reply:

(a) The department is in the process of development a Township and Rural Economic Development Strategy that will be aimed at supporting informal businesses, SMMEs, Co-operatives, youth, gender, people with disabilities, and rural enterprises. The support will range from the provision of financial and non-financial support to the creation of an enabling legislative and regulatory environment.

Currently, the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (sefa) works closely with the Small Enterprise Development Agency (seda) in relation to government’s small business incubation programme called the Seda Technology Programme (STP). Seda is the custodian of the government’s incubation programme and provides incubating businesses with non-financial and affordable rental space. Sefa in turn, provides financial support in the form of working capital, asset financing and revolving loan facilities to qualify businesses in these incubation centres.

(b) Sefa, administers a property portfolio comprising a mixture of commercial and industrial properties in the provinces of Gauteng, North-West, Free State, Eastern Cape and the Western Cape. These are old properties that were inherited from the Small Business Development Corporation (SBDC), now known as Business Partners, and are located in townships and peri-urban areas and provide affordable industrial premises to manufacturing enterprises. As at 31 March 2015, sefa provided support to 958 entrepreneurs through its property portfolio. These are old properties which were

(c) The department, together with the Departments of Arts and Culture, Economic Development and Tourism, Sports and Culture, provincial investment promotion agencies and the South African Bureau of Standards work together to promote artisanal businesses using township creativity and talent. The National Craft and Design Coordinating Body (NCDCB), in which all the stakeholders mentioned are represented, monitors the implementation of the craft and design programmes at national and provincial level. The NCDCB also serves as a platform through which government departments and the provincial agencies coordinate the information on the craft and design programmes.

Reply:

1. The department intends to review the National Small Business Act, 1996 (Act No. 102 of 1996), read with the National Small Business Amendment Act, 2003 (Act No. 26 of 2003). The reasons to introduce an amending legislation are to provide for the alignment of the Act to the mandate of the department, to provide a framework for business growth,
investment and the facilitation of small business development and promotion.

The areas to be reviewed are as follows:

1. The definitions of small businesses,
2. The schedule or sectoral classifications,
3. Provision for the informal economy,
4. Provision for the roles of the Small Enterprise Development Agency (Seda) and the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (sefa),
5. To institutionalise the coordination of a periodical national survey for SMMEs, and
6. The role and composition of the Small Business Advisory Council.

2. The department has not concluded any transversal agreements with other departments since the last reply. This is partly due to the complexity of requirements and conditions which must be met and be favourable to all parties. As a result, consultations take longer and require a detailed execution plan with specific deliverables and timelines.

The department, however, intends to conclude and sign a transversal agreement with the National Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) and Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA) by the end of 2015 in which the parties have mutually agreed to collaborate on training and development of co-operatives and SMMEs. The overall aim of this collaboration is to develop and enhance the capacity base of these small businesses to enable them to access procurement opportunities within PRASA. The department will be responsible for the building capacity of the suppliers with regards to technical and business management training whilst DHET, through the relevant Skills Education and Training Authorities (Setas), will provide technical training to co-operatives and SMMEs.

The department also intends to conclude transversal agreements with the following institutions in the near future:

1. Department of Human Settlements: to focus on procurement opportunities for small businesses and co-operatives in the development of industrial or commercial parks in the Western Cape.
2. Department of Public Enterprises: to develop and prioritise support and increase opportunities for emerging small businesses and designated groups through diverse small business support programmes.
3. Massmart: partnership with Massmart is focused on the Supplier Development Programme to improve local procurement linkages for Cooperatives and SMMEs. The programme will focus on three main areas: manufacturing, fresh produce and services to suppliers.
4. SAB Miller: the focus is on procurement opportunities to improve local linkages for Cooperatives and SMMEs. The programme will focus on three main areas: Maize, Barley and Wheat production.
5. The Swiss Confederation, represented by the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO): the overall goal of the pilot project is to establish a web-based centralized system where Business Development Service Providers (BDSP) register after a quality check, and will be assessed by their clients based on the performance of the service delivered. This will allow for the identification of the skills gap of services providers.