Questions and Replies

Reply:

(a) I have been informed that the Department is not responsible for the appointment of tourist guides. The appointment of tour guides is a provincial competency.

(b) Not applicable

Reply:

The DBE will work with PEDs to ensure the implementation of section 19 of SASA, which expects of the PEDs to have a programme to train SGBs.  Part of the training! will be on keeping schools safe for learners and teachers.

The DBE will ensure the implementation of section 18A of SASA, which expects of PEDs to have in place a Code of Conduct of the School Governing Body, aimed at establishing a disciplined and purposeful school environment, dedicated to the improvement and maintenance of a quality governance structure at a public school.

Furthermore, PEDs will be monitored that they have a programme to—

1. provide introductory training for newly elected governing bodies to enable them to perform their functions.  This training will include SGB roles and responsibilities and the importance of having a mission that is in line with the PED vision; and
2. provide continuing training to governing bodies to promote the effective performance of their functions or to enable them to assume additional functions. The training will amongst other areas cover policy development by SGBs.

The DBE will also support PEDs to take Representative Council of Learners to play a role in contributing to school safety and security.

Schools will be required to involve the parents in ensuring that schools are safe for learning and teaching.

Reply:

(a)  All provinces have established QLTC structures, with the exception of the Western Cape Province.  Functionality is informed by programmes that are implemented in each province.  The DBE has shared programmes for implementation through the Provincial QLTC structures and the District QLTC Structures.  

The challenge is that where QLTCs have not been established, they have not been incorporated as part of the SGBs.  The DBE is taking advantage of the 2024 SGB elections to re-establish and strengthen QLTCs; and ensure that they are both functional and have programmes in place.  The number of functional QLTC structures in each province is provided on teh table below.

(b)

NAME OF PROVINCE	NUMBER OF SCHOOLS WITH QLTC STRUCTURED	NUMBER OF FUNCTIONAL QLTC STRUCTURES
Eastern Cape	5 283	2 030
Free State	1 026	718
Gauteng	2 400	326
KwaZulu-Natal	5 898	1 769
Limpopo	3 038	1 880
Mpumalanga	1607	769
North West	1 564	866
Northern Cape	289	104
Western Cape	0	0

Reply:

Learners of parents who accepted placements as allocated by PEDs are in schools. Entry grades learners have been placed.

(a)(i) A majority of learners was placed during the school closing of 2023.  PEDs continued to place learners at the beginning of 2024 school year, especially those that were not part of the admitting province. (a)(ii)  The statistics of these learners are changing on a daily basis, as the learners get placed.  The actual data is managed by PEDs.

 (a)(iii)  Some learners followed their parents to areas that are economically viable.  Some parents refused placements, as they were not of their schools of choice, even though their schools of choice were full.

(b)(i)  Learners should be placed before the end of term. The DBE is monitoring progress closely and getting regular feedback from provinces.

Reply:

I have been advised by the South African Post Office (SAPO) as follows:-

a) list of branches that are due to close:

Gauteng (Most of Gauteng and Vaal Triangle)	17
Northern region (North Gauteng, Limpopo, Mpumalanga, North West)	41
Western region (Western Cape, Northern Cape)	28
Eastern region (Eastern Cape) -	24
Central (Free State, North West)	104
KwaZulu-Natal (KwaZulu-Natal)	21
TOTAL	235

The Joint Business Rescue Practitioners (BRPs) are not prepared to share the actual list of branches as it stands to be amended whilst the process of liaising with landlords is in progress and the possibility of branch relocations are at hand. Once the list is finalised, same will be provided.

(b) The BRPs have advised that they cannot disclose the proposed number of employees that will face retrenchment as the Section 189A facilitation process conducted by the CCMA is underway. The disclosure of a proposed number prior to the conclusion of the facilitation process jeopardizes the course of action.

Thank you

Reply:

I have been informed by the Department as follows:

1) Yes

(1)(i) Total cost R 1 893 441

(1)(ii) Cost breakdown:

	Minister	Ministry Support Staff	Departmental Staff
(a)Accommodation	R 75 960	R 396 920	R 473 290
(b)Air Travel	R 85 927	R 75314	R 73 045
(c)Ground Transport	R 137 315	R 274 630	R 297 740
(d)Local Shuttles	R nil	R 1600	R 1700

(2) Yes, the trip was covered by funds from the National Treasury, it was funded from the Voted Funds of the department.

Thank you

Reply:

(a) What is the total number of inappropriate and unsafe ablution facilities?

1. In 2018, the Department of Basic Education launched the Sanitation Appropriate For Education (SAFE-2018) initiative. 
2. This programme initially identified 3 898 schools dependent on basic pit toilets.  Additional 809 were identified during the process of monitoring.
3. 867 schools did not proceed to implementation, after initial assessment, because they either had appropriate sanitation facilities, OR only needed maintenance; and therefore did not meet the SAFE criteria; OR were on Private land and could not be developed further; OR schools closed due to low learner enrolment.

(b) What progress has her department made in replacing such inappropriate and unsafe facilities?       

1. 3 379 schools proceeded to implementation, and 3 003 of these schools have been provided with appropriate sanitation.
2. DBE plans to complete the balance of the schools in the 2024/25 financial year due to National Treasury budget cuts during 2023/24 financial year. 

Reply:

(1)

As a point of departure, we wish to draw the attention of the honourable Minister to the fact that the NPA is required to present on a continuous basis progress made in TRC matters to the Justice Portfolio Committee. The latest presentation can be made available to Mr B N Herron if he has not been privy thereto.

Specifically, regarding the “Cradock 4” matter a fully motivated request for the reopening of the inquest was submitted to the Minister which led to the Minister’s announcement on 5 January 2024. The NPA submitted in the application that new evidence consisting of primarily the amnesty applications and evidence obtained during the evidence during the TRC amnesty hearings of several SAPS Security Branch members and not placed before the two previous inquests rendered a reopening of the inquest in the interest of justice. This is especially important that finality and closure is brought to the families of the deceased who have waited decades for the truth of who murdered their loved ones.

(2)

As to measures, checks and balances TRC matters has since September 2021 been prioritised within the NPA, resulting in the creation of a separate TRC Component, within the office of the Deputy National Director of Public Prosecutions (DNDPP) Adv RJ de Kock.

Pertaining to capacity at national level a Special Director and a National TRC co-ordinator were appointed to assess the progress on all TRC matters and account directly to the DNDPP. There is strict monitoring and accountability.

Dedicated prosecutors and investigators were appointed within the divisions to specifically deal with TRC matters to expedite investigations and decisions. Deviation was obtained from DPSA for prosecutors to be appointed on a contract basis for a period of three years.

An audit of all outstanding matters migrated to the divisions in 2019 were done. It was important to gauge as to how far the investigation had progressed, what was outstanding, and provide a time frame for investigations to be finalised. Decisions in matters are made by the Directors of Public Prosecutions and submitted to the national office where it is carefully assessed, and due consultation and further engagement takes place where required. The NDPP retains her powers of review regarding all decisions. This is important to ensure checks and balances.

Additional matters emanating from the TRC were identified, and provided they had not prescribed, were referred formally for investigations to DPCI. Thereafter they were referred to DPPs for appointment of prosecutors to guide investigations.

Certain matters were identified for fast tracking. Factors considered were age of the matter, age of witnesses/persons of interest, availability of dockets or inquest records etc.

There are regular meetings and updates to the families, as per the instructions of the NDPP. There is also ongoing involvement of relevant stakeholders and government departments.

Accountability sessions are a joint initiative between NPA/DPCI to drive progress on TRC matters. There has been a demand and increase in sessions for upskilling of both prosecutors and investigators in relation to TRC matters.

At National level, comprehensive reports are submitted monthly where progress from all divisions, are accurately gauged. Accountability is stressed. Divisions are held to account. Interventions are staged in non-performing divisions. DPCI/NPA interactions and workshops are critical in so far as training/evaluation and progress is concerned.

Reply:

a) South Africa advances its national priorities and national interests through mutually beneficial BRICS cooperation, shaping a multipolar world and driving global governance reform to be more fair, just, inclusive and representative. The Russian Federation chairs BRICS in 2024 under the theme “Strengthening Multilateralism for Equitable Global Development and Security”. The Chair's priorities for 2024 include 1) Strengthening the BRICS Strategic Partnership based on continuity and consensus, 2) Enhancing the BRICS role in addressing major issues on the global agenda, 3) Forging partnerships with emerging markets and developing countries (EMDCs), 4) Contributing to the social, economic, investment, innovative and human development of BRICS countries, and 5) Enriching people-to-people cooperation and raising mutual cultural awareness. The Chair's theme and priorities build on existing BRICS cooperation and continue the implementation of BRICS strategies, action plans and cooperation frameworks as well as BRICS Summit and Ministerial declarations. Implementation of the outcomes of the Johannesburg II Declaration continues in 2024 including the further development of a BRICS Partner Country model and the consideration of the use of local currencies, payment systems and platforms. A particular focus for 2024 is the full incorporation of new members into all BRICS cooperation tracks, including in BRICS structures such as the BRICS Business Council, BRICS Think Tanks Council, BRICS Women's Business Alliance and the newly established BRICS Youth Council.

(b) The strategic leadership of the rotational Chair of BRICS is implemented in close consultation and consensus with other BRICS members. South Africa continues to play a significant role in the advancement of mutually beneficial BRICS cooperation outside of its tenure as Chair of BRICS during 2023. South Africa will closely support the Chair in the implementation of the outcomes of the XV BRICS Summit, including the further development of a Partner Country model and the consideration of the issue of local currencies, payment instruments and platforms before the XVI BRICS Summit to be hosted by the Russian Federation in October 2024. South Africa will also work with all BRICS members to maintain the momentum on recent BRICS initiatives including meetings of BRICS Ministers responsible for Women and BRICS experts on persons with disabilities, the operationalisation of the BRICS Youth Council, BRICS Digital Economy Working Group, BRICS Working Group on Nuclear Medicine and BRICS Think Tank Network for Finance, the establishment of the BRICS Centre for Industrial Competences with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), the development of a BRICS Sport Cooperation Framework and workshops on the mutual recognition of BRICS qualifications to name but a few. South Africa also looks forward to engaging with new BRICS members on opportunities for mutually beneficial BRICS cooperation as result of the historic decision on membership expansion taken during the XV BRICS Summit.

Reply:

Engagement with the US

At the request of the USA, a telecon with Minister Pandor was initiated by the United States (US) Secretary of State, Mr Antony Blinken, on 25 January 2024. The purpose of the telecon was to discuss South Africa-US bilateral relations, with a specific focus on the state of global affairs, including a reflection on the Genocide Case between South Africa and Israel that was before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) at the Hague.

The discussion considered the potential outcomes of the ruling and how the two countries should work jointly to ensure the smooth continuation of relations after the ruling, which the Court had delivered on Friday, 26 January 2024.

As such, no threat was issued by Secretary Blinken regarding our future trade relations with the US and both Principals reinforced the need to refocus attention on the strengthening of bilateral cooperation in key areas of common interests, such as trade, investment, energy, climate change and the JET-P. This sentiment was also reiterated in a press statement released by the US State Department following the telcon on 25 January 2024.

Engagement with the EU

Following the request from the European Union Delegation to South Africa, Minister Pandor had a friendly and engaging meeting with EU Ambassadors on 12 February 2024. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss matters of common interest to both South Africa and her Strategic Partner, the European Union. The Minister used the opportunity to do a global scan of the current geopolitical environment and the importance of sustainable peace and prosperity across the world. It is also at this meeting that the Minister contextualised South Africa’s approach to the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The Minister used the recent European Parliament’s debate “on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the need to reach a ceasefire and the risks of regional escalation” as a case in point. The Minister further stated that this debate underscored the imperative of adhering to international law together with peace enforcement through established global institutions such as the United Nations Security Council. South Africa has condemned the killing and kidnapping of Israelis by Hamas, however, the disproportionate reaction by Israel cannot be justified. It is against this background that South Africa approached the ICJ. Powerful countries have a responsibility to sit down with both Palestine and Israel to define an outcome that will lead to lasting peace, security and statehood for both, the Minister further remarked.

No other Western European countries were engaged separately on the ICJ hearings on Palestine.

Reply:

Office	Financial year	(a) Make	(b) Model	(c) Year Model	(d) Cost	(e) Purchase date
Minister	2019/ 2020	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2020/ 2021	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2021/ 2022	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2022/ 2023	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2023/ 2024	Audi	Q5 TDI Quattro	2023	R799,999.01	31/10/2023
Deputy Minister	2019/2020	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2020/2021	Audi	Q5 TDI Quattro S Line	2020	R 748 353.50	18 October 2021
	2021/ 2022	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
	2022/ 2023	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

N.B

• The Minister and Deputy Minister of the Department of Employment and Labour were appointed to their portfolios on 01 June 2019. (Refer to applicable date above: Q83 (iv)
• Minister- did not purchase any car up until a Jeep Grand Cherokee that he was using experienced mechanical problems, and in 2023 got replaced by Audi Q5 TDI.
• DM- used an Audi A6 2.0 TDI which ended up being uneconomical to repair, and it got replaced by Audi Q5 Quattro, in Pretoria.

Reply:

(1)(a) In the period 1 April 2023 to 31 December 2023 the Department processed 15 047 newcomer applications.

(1)(b)(i) 877 cases were granted status

(1)(b)(ii) (aa) 5009 Cases were adjudicated as Unfounded.

(bb) 8415 Cases were adjudicated as one of the Manifestly Unfounded categories for SCRA review

(2)(a) The total number of processed files for the Backlog Project is 10 890.

• Hearings conducted: 3 910
• Notices sent for No Shows: 894
• Paper determinations: 167
• No Show decisions: 406
• Family Joining decisions: 201
• Cancellations/ Withdrawal: 5 312

(2)(b) Of these processed files, 3 872 were rejected.

(2)(c) Of these processed files, 713 were granted refugee status.

(3) Of cases processed and finally rejected, some Appellants have launched Judicial Reviews in terms of Rule 53 of the Uniform Rules of Court. The total number of appeals under review is: 78

• Desmond Tutu Refugee Centre: 59
• Musina Refugee Centre: 5
• Durban Refugee Centre: 9
• Gqheberha Refugee Centre: 3
• Cape Town Refugee Centre: 2

END:

Reply:

Innocent individuals who find themselves in debt due to identity theft are informed by the creditors of their debts and if disputed, they are advised to report the matter to the SAPS for further investigation.

The Department has online verification services whereby any member of the public when applying for identification in the Department, the document is verified online to ensure authentication of the owner of the identity to be issued.

Banks have online verification platforms whereby they can verify the legitimacy of the fingerprints of the clients as they are linked to DHA systems.

All reported cases of corruption involving officials are analysed and investigated. Cases reported with elements of fraud and corruption are referred to SAPS for further handling.

If misconduct is detected, the case is referred to Employee Engagement for disciplinary processes.

The Department has also embarked on Awareness Campaigns regarding identity on both Internal and External platforms.

END

Reply:

1. No, the Hospital and Emergency Centre Tracking Information System (HECTIS) is not available in all hospitals. The system has only been implemented by the Western Cape Provincial Department of Health. It has not been implemented in any other province as it is not part of the national Emergency Medical Services Plan.

2. (a) HECTIS is not in a pilot phase. It has been successfully integrated into a total of 64 health facilities in the Western Cape in both hospitals and Primary Healthcare facilities (see annexure showing HECTIS Sites List).

(b) HECTIS is a web-based hospital and emergency centre tracking information system. The system was developed as an in-house custom-built system by an emergency physician from Mitchells Plain Hospital in the Western Cape for their internal processes. It is a Clinician driven innovative healthcare technology initiative, focused on improving the management and efficiency of Emergency Centres.

END.

Reply:

(1)(a) The average waiting time inside an office is calculated per service as different types of services follow different process flows. Where all systems are working and the offices do not experience load shedding, which now affects network coverage in the offices, the average waiting period for pre-booked services is 7 minutes; for birth, marriage, and death services is 10 minutes and 15 minutes for walk-in services.

(1)(b) There is constant monitoring of the queues to check that those who are waiting in the queue will indeed be served without being asked to come back on another day. The queues are divided into product categories and floor/ queue walkers check the queues at regular intervals to see if clients are eligible to apply for the enabling documents and if so, have the correct supporting documents. This is to avoid clients queueing for long periods only to be turned back for not having the correct supporting documents. The total number of clients on the queue at any given time is also reported to management for resource planning purposes. Each official is allocated a specific period to process an application to keep up with the demand on the booking system and clients in the offices.

(1)(c) The ticket allocation system only operates on ID or passport numbers which are validated against the National Population Register before a ticket is issued to a client. This helps to eliminate illegal blocking and selling of slots by agents.

(1)(d) ID numbers or passport numbers are used as unique identifiers by the system. A valid cellphone number or email addresses is required from clients for verification purposes and sending the reference numbers. The system is able to detect any duplicate active booking.

(1)(e) The Department undertook the Home Affairs Customer Satisfaction Survey during the 2022/2023 financial year. The objectives of the study were to assess citizens’ perceptions and satisfaction level of services provided by the DHA, identify and document main problems in service delivery of the Department, document service areas which needs improvement and provide appropriate recommendations to the management of Home Affairs on ways in which service delivery in the selected study areas could be improved. The implementation plan for this study was developed and recommendations are currently being implemented.

(2) The findings of the 2022/2023 survey were as follows:

For Citizens’ perceptions and satisfaction level of services provided by the DHA

• In summary, the 2022/2023 customer satisfaction research findings are a mixture of positive and negative news regarding DHA service delivery efforts across all service centers
• 96% of the customers surveyed endorsed the DHA pricing structure as affordable.
• When asked about the likelihood of recommending the DHA offices they visited using a scale where those who would recommend were captured as promoters, those neutral would be passives whilst those who would not recommend would be detractors. The majority of respondents (i.e. 82%) were DHA promoters whilst 6% were detractors, giving a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 76%. The higher the NPS is the healthier the brand. The main reasons mentioned by the minority that would not recommend DHA across all customer segments were poor customer service, slow customer service, and bad staff attitude.
• Friendliness of Home Affairs officials was highlighted as the biggest challenge.
• Most of the customers were serviced on the same day, however there were some who had to visit the Home Affairs more than once for the same service. For those who were not serviced on the same day their reasons were due to long queues, not having all the required documents and the system being offline.
• The findings show a general improvement in queue management, with an increase of the scores across the different customer interaction points.
• The DHA was generally praised for effectiveness – i.e. its capability to deliver expected output; and criticised for lack of efficiency.
• The findings indicate that most DHA customers visit the DHA offices for the application of birth certificates and smart IDs.

For Customer Satisfaction Score (CSI)

• Customer Satisfaction Score for each service channel was generally high with scores above 70%. However, harbours and airports had the highest satisfaction score of over 90% whereas refugee centers had the lowest score of 73%.
• Inaccessibility, waiting in unmanaged queues for long hours, and unwelcoming staff attitude emerged as the most popular barriers to service excellence at Home Affairs offices. These also include the ability of staff to resolve queries, wait to get attention, and fair treatment.

Overall, DHA online processes were rated relatively high. However, lack of speed, particularly regarding receiving documents, and the payment process, emerged as the most popular barrier to online service excellence.

END

Reply:

1. According to the KZN Department of Health, the responses are as follows:

(a) There were no persons admitted at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Hospital due to contaminated water

(b) There were no persons admitted at King Edward VIII Hospital due to contaminated water.

(c) There were no persons admitted at Addington Hospital due to contaminated water.

(d) There were no persons admitted at surrounding hospitals in eThekwini due to contaminated water.

(2) According to the KZN Department of Health, there were (a) no children and (b) no elderly persons admitted as a result of contaminated water.

END.

Reply:

The purpose of the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG), to develop new, refurbish, upgrade and replace ageing bulk water and sanitation infrastructure of regional significance that connects water resources to infrastructure serving extensive areas across municipal boundaries or large regional bulk infrastructure serving numerous communities over a large area within a municipality. The Water Services Infrastructure Grant (WSIG) facilitates the planning and implementation of various water and sanitation projects to accelerate backlog reduction and enhance the sustainability of services, especially in rural municipalities.

Although comprehensive planning is done by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) together with municipalities prior to the implementation of RBIG and WSIG funded projects, a myriad of challenges arise during implementation which result in unavoidable delays such as:

• Inability of municipalities to contribute their share of funding for water and sanitation projects that should be co-funded by the DWS RBIG Grant and the municipalities’ own funding
• Supply Chain Management challenges in municipalities often result in delays in procurement of required professional services and commencement of projects
• Poor performance of contractors, couples with inadequate project management capacity in municipalities often leads to lengthy litigation processes which also bring projects to a halt
• Projects are often brought to halt by communities with demands for employment opportunities or construction mafia with demands for 30% of contracts
• Non-payment of contractors by the municipalities or non-payment of workers by contractors
• Inclement weather conditions also contribute to delays in ongoing projects

Details of projects gone beyond the estimated construction time since 1 April 2023 are indicated in Annexure A.

---00O00--

ANNEXURE A

Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant

Project name	Original project cost	Revised project cost	Initial completion date	Revised completion date
Free State
Welbedacht Bulk water supply (Manguang pipeline)	R500 000 000	R583 677 787	July 2021	March 2024
Tokologo bulk water supply Phase 2 of 3	R717 535 306	R717 535 306	December 2024	March 2026
Maluti-a-Phofung BWS Scheme(Sterkfontein WTW)	R619 590 000	R619 590 000	March 2024	April 2025
Mohokare Bulk water supply (Rouxville)	R300 000 000	R320 000 000	March 2020	June 2025
Mantsopa Water and Sanitation Intervention	R17 660 652	No adjustment	June 2023	October 2024
Construction of reversal gravity pipeline in Phuthaditjhaba and Harrismith	R57 100 000	No adjustment (this should be N/A as per same categories below)	March 2023	August 2024
Metsimaholo Bulk Sewer. (Upgrading of Denneysville WWTW)	R164 499 946	R224 352 940	October 2019	March 2024
Mafube Bulk sewer phase 2 of 2 (Upgrading of Frankfort WWTW)	R141 448 501	R164 858 228	June 2023	"TBC” Contractor terminated due to poor performance
North West
Ratlou Bulk Water Supply: Phase 1a – Setlagole Water Supply	R 146 600 000	R153 000 000	April 2016	November 2024
Mahikeng Bulk Water Supply: Upgrading of the Mmabatho WTW to 30 Ml/day	R 185 500 500 (IRS - 2012)	R449 700 000	October 2018	August 2025
Upgrade and Extension of the Brits Water Treatment Plant from 60 Ml/D to 80 Ml/D: Madibeng Bulk Water Supply	R845 000 000	R800 000 000	31 Aug 2017	31 Aug 2024
Western Cape
Lamberts Bay Desalination Plant	R89 812 568	Not yet determined	Mar 2022	Not yet determined
Provision of Dry sanitation toilets	R 8 383 078	N/A	June 2021	May 2022
Northern Cape
Upgrading of Noupoort sewer netwok	R 22 398 854	N/A	October 2022	February 2023
Refurbishment of Nababep waste water treatment works (Phase1)	R 40 702 697	NA	June 2025	NA
RS028_Dawid Kruiper_Refurbishment of Kameelmond WWTW Upington	R78 225 986	R78 225 986	22 September 2022	31 May 2023
RS029_Magareng_Warrenton Water Treatment Works	R80 438 842	R122 917 873	22 April 2021	March 2025
Eastern Cape
Makana Bulk Water Supply (Phase 2)	R133 286 055	R393 090 217	March 2021 (All phases)	Phase 2, at a reduced scope - end of June 2024.
Ndlambe Bulk Water Supply	R161 000 000	R422 945 139 (Anticipated that the project cost might increase by another R50mil due to escalation.	May 2015	March 2025.
Xhora East Bulk Water Supply	R258 541 304	R 576 687 000 (including co-funding).	December 2022.	May 2024
Ngqamakhwe Regional Bulk Water Supply	R724 million	R646 000 000	September 2023	September 2025
Sundays River Valley BWS (Paterson Project)	R73 300 000	R101 792 000	March 2016	Phase 6 - 31 March 2024 Overall – 31 March 2025
Xonxa Bulk Water Supply	R 413 017 890	R 657 663 506	August 2023	February 2025
Cluster 9 BWS project at Chris Hani DM	R254 695 667	R485 700 000	November 2022	February 2024
Cluster 4 BWS	R427 099 000	R 849 474 094	May 2020	February 2024
Cluster 6 BWS	R323 952 670	R474 323 951	May 2023	January 2025
Mpumalanga
Driekoppies Phase 1a	R424 000	No adjustments	December 2023	June 2024
Sibange Phase 2	R186 600	No adjustments	September 2022	February 2024

Water Services Infrastructure Grant

Municipality	Project	Original Budget	Revised Budget	Planned Completion date	Actual completion date
Free State
Masilonyana	Theunissen WC/WDM	R18 800 000	R 20 403 462	June 2021	March 2024
Tokologo	Dealesville Emergency Water Supply: Phase 3	R15 921 972	NA	June 2020	June 2024
Tswelopele	Bultfontein: Refurbishment of sewer pump station	R11 552 960	NA	April 2023	March 2024
Dihlabeng LM	Upgrading of Clarens Water Treatment Works From 1 Ml to 4Ml/day	R49 989 987	R59 314 755	February 2024	June 2024
Mantsopa LM	Ladybrand: Construction of 6ML Reservoir & Pipeline	R16 837 385	R16 837 385	December 2023	June 2024
Mantsopa LM	Ladybrand: Construction of 3Ml Reservoir (Phase 2)	R 13 459 632	R 13 459 632	December 2023	June 2024
Mantsopa LM	Ladybrand: Re-Construction of Sewer Outfall Line	R2 500 000	R2 500 000	December 2023	June 2024
Mantsopa LM	Hobhouse: Refurbishment of a Weir	R 2 053 181	R 2 053 181	December 2023	June 2024
Setsoto LM	Upgrading of the Van Soelen Outfall Sewer in Ficksburg	R39 994 762	R39 994 762	November 2023	June 2024
Phumelela LM	upgrading of Outfall sewer line and revamping of pump station station #3 and WWTW in Warden/Ezenzeleni	R22 001 373	R22 001 373	September 2023	June 2024
Nketoana LM	20,34km Pipeline (250mm dia) from Lindley to Arlington	R75 400 794	R75 400 794	June 2024	June 2025
Kopanong LM	Bulk Water Supply in Trompsburg	R19 000 000	R 22 000 000	June 2021	TBC
Kopanong LM	Water Supply Reddersburg	R 13 534 058	No adjustment	May 2017	TBC
Kopanong LM	Water Supply Bethulie	R 6 500 000	No adjustment	June 2021	TBC
Kopanong LM	Upgrading of Philippolis WWTW	R 12 000 000	R 38 994 885	June 2021	TBC
Mohokare LM	Rouxville Abstraction Works	R39 412 741	No adjustment	July 2022	TBC
Mafube LM	Namahadi 12Ml Reservoir	R36 904 336	No adjustment	November 2022	May 2024
Majuba LM	Mafube WC/WDM (Pre-paid Water Meters	R15 000 000	No adjustment	August 2023	March 2024
Metsimaholo LM	Oranjeville WWTW Upgrade	R61 938 621	No adjustment	July 2022	TBC
Ngwathe LM	Refurbishment of pipelines from Parys WTW to Reservoirs 3 & 4	R24 691 873	No adjustment	July 2022	January 2024
Ngwathe LM	Construction of sewer line in Heilbron / Phiritona	R8 604 802	TBC Contractor terminated due to poor performance	December 2022	TBC Ngwathe LM must procure new contractor
Ngwathe LM	Heilbron – Elevated water tower and 3km water pipeline	R18 720 677	No adjustment	April 2023	March 2024
Moqhaka LM	Kroonstad – 11th Avenue water pipeline and Bloemhoek Dam sluice gate	R24 189 695	R25 022 859	August 2023	June 2024
Northern Cape
ZF Mgcawu	Kakamas: Water treatment works	R 11 370 115	N/A	March 2023	N/A due to fact that IA’s allocation was converted from schedule 5b to 6b
Frances Baard	Construction of Carters Ridge Pump station (Phase1)	R 32 832 662	N/A	November 2018	June 2021
Frances Baard	Construction of Carters Ridge Pump station (Phase 2)	R 25 966 926	N/A	June 2021	July 2023
Frances Baard	Provision of dry sanitation toilets	R 8 383 078	N/A	June 2021	May 2022
Eastern Cape
Blue Crane Route Local Municipality	Refurbishment of Cookhouse Water Treatment Works	R18 799 060	N/A	November 2023	September 2024
Chris Hani DM	Chris Hani DM Cluster 7 Water Supply Scheme: Ngxogi Emadizeni Mantlaneni Xuka Entabeni Emantlwaneni Cefane Emafusini Mhlontlo KwaMhlontlo and Dwaleni/Matyeni Water Backlog Project	R2 000 000	N/A	July 2023	June 2024
Mpumalanga
Thaba Chweu LM	Refurbishment of the Lydenburg Waste Water Treatment Works	R114 777 382	N/A	June 2025	NA

Reply:

According to the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA):

(a) It is a legal requirement that all practising health professionals register with their Professional Council namely the HPCSA, South African Nursing Council, South African Pharmacy Council, Dental Technicians Council and the Allied Health Professions Council. The Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974) requires health professionals to register with the HPCSA before practicing. As section 17 of the Health Professions Act, 1974 (Act No. 56 of 1974) states the following:

If the registrar is satisfied that the qualifications and the other documents submitted in support of the application satisfy the requirements of this Act, he or she shall, upon payment by the applicant of the prescribed registration fee, issue a registration certificate authorising the applicant, subject to the provisions of this Act or of any other law, to practise the health profession in respect whereof he or she has applied for registration, within the Republic.

The HPCSA legislation does not require that unemployed practitioners (non-practising) to pay registration fees. Infact a person not practising a health profession registrable with the HPCSA may apply for voluntary erasure from the register in writing before 31 March of the year that he/she wishes to be voluntarily erased in line with section 19 (1) (c) of the Act.

When the health professional decides to resume practice then a restoration fee is payable and the person could be restored to the register. There may be additional requirements such as continuous professional development, depending on the number of years the health professional is unregistered with the Council.

(b) There is no need for an intervention since there is no obligation on a non-practising health practitioner to registered with the HPCSA.

END.

Reply:

 

Find reply here

Reply:

Find reply here

Reply:

Following the rapid decline in the condition of Provincial and Municipal roads, the Cabinet retreat of 1 June 2022 then appointed SANRAL as the lead agent to support Roads Authorities in fixing their roads in an integrated way through Operation Vala Zonke programme. In order to effectively provide this support, the Minister of Transport launched Operation Vala Zonke as part of the build-up to Presidential Imbizo that took place on 12 August 2022.

a) As part of the National intervention, the Department did put forward a national plan for road refurbishment and rehabilitation, that is: (i) Availing of Integrated Transport Information System (ITIS) for all authorities to use; (ii) Handing over of Road Condition and Traffic Data for uploading into ITIS; (iii) support on Network Verification, Data upload and spatial map, (iv) Rollout of the National / Centralised Road Authority App for authorities and the public to report potholes; (v) Signing of MOUs between SANRAL and Provincial Road Authorities for technical support; (vi) Consideration and transfer of Strategic and Primary road network to SANRAL to enable SANRAL to reprioritise its existing non toll budget to address the immediate maintenance needs of some of the critical roads and (vii) Private Sector Involvement and Adopt a Road programme to enable various private companies to make contributions towards the maintenance and upkeep of roads through their Corporate Social Investment and claim for BEE Scorecards and obtain Tax deduction for such donation and (viii) Upgrading of low volume gravel roads using block paving bricks and Nano technologies to maximise jobs through labour intensive methods.

To date, the public has reported over 45 000 of potholes using the App for the repair of which has actively been monitored via central war room. The above process is creating much higher levels of accountability at all spheres of government regarding road network and its maintenance.

b) The breakdown of budgetary allocation provided by the Department for road restorations per annum over the MTEF is summarised in table below:

Table 1: The breakdown of 2023/24 to 2026/27 budgetary allocation

Authority	2023/24 R’000	2024/25 R’000	2025/26 R’000	2026/27 R’000
SANRAL	25 430 715	25 720 319	28 845 591	30 169 036
Provincial Road Maintenance Grant (supplementary fund to assist the 9 Provinces	15 867 086	16 672 290	17 882 779	17 278 699
Total	41 297 801	42 392 609	46 728 558	47 447 735

Though the Department does not have a mandate to address municipal roads, the Department do provide support to municipalities by inviting them to participate on the joint Vala Zonke Operations to fix potholes.

Reply:

3.1 In respect of Qatar, Iran and Russia for the period that covers 1 January 2021 up to the latest date in 2024, the reply is as follows:

a) Sponsorships

(aa) (i) Not applicable (aa)(ii) Not applicable (aa) (iii) Not applicable

(bb) (i) Not applicable (bb) (ii) Not applicable (bb) (iii) Not applicable

(cc) (i) Not applicable (cc) (ii) Not applicable (cc) (iii) Not applicable

b) Donations

(aa) (i) Not applicable (aa) (ii) Not applicable (aa) (iii) Not applicable

(bb) (i) Not applicable (bb) (ii) Not applicable (bb) (iii) Not applicable

(cc) (i) Not applicable (cc) (ii) Not applicable (cc) (iii) Not applicable

(c) Financial Transfers

(aa) (i) Not applicable (aa) (ii) Not applicable (aa) (iii) Not applicable

(bb) (i) Not applicable (bb) (ii) Not applicable (bb) (iii) Not applicable

(cc) (i) Not applicable (cc) (ii) Not applicable (cc) (iii) Not applicable

Reply:

a) The referenced reply (to question 3312) stated that the Department is developing a public transport subsidy policy that will locate the subsidisation of minibus taxi users within the wider, multi-modal subsidy framework as part of the public transport funding reforms. This implies a move away from mode specific subsidisation to a subsidised network serviced by a combination of modes to minimise the cost of transport. Therefore, subsidy would be for public transport in general and not necessarily for taxis separately. The different models being considered includes the supply side, demand side and user targeting just to mention a few. Direct public transport subsidy applies exclusively to formalised public transport services and, in many cases, take the form of different types of contracting.

(b) The draft public transport subsidy policy has been published for public comments on the 23rd of February 2024 in Government Gazette 50176. The public consultation process will close on the 31st of March 2024 where after the Department will start the process of submitting the policy for Cabinet approval. Implementation will only commence once the final subsidy policy is approved by Cabinet.

(c) Refer to (b) above.

Reply:

The table below provides the number of official complaints received during the period 2020 until 2024; and the outcomes of the complaints.

Year	Number of complaints	Breakdown per grant type	Outcome
2020	106	Type of Grant Number of Complaints SRD 01 Care Dependency 00 CSG 14 FCG 00 DG 12 Grant in Aid 00 Older Persons 79 War Veterans 00	Finalised Not 106 nil
2021	40	Type of Grant Number of Complaints SRD 00 Care Dependency 00 CSG 03 FCG 01 DG 13 Grant in Aid 00 Older Persons 23 War Veterans 00	Finalised Not 40 nil
2022	119	Type of Grant Number of Complaints SRD 03 Care Dependency 00 CSG 10 FCG 00 DG 22 Grant in Aid 00 Older Persons 84 War Veterans 00	Finalised Not 119 nil
2023	424	Type of Grant Number of Complaints SRD 262 Care Dependency 00 CSG 21 FCG 01 DG 32 Grant in Aid 00 Older Persons 108 War Veterans 00	Finalised Not 409 15
2024	256	Type of Grant Number of Complaints SRD 414 Care Dependency 00 CSG 02 FCG 00 DG 08 Grant in Aid 00 Older Persons 31 War Veterans 00	Finalised Not 252 4

(2) Thus far there’s no linkage of the lodged complaints on ID fraud with a) public servants outside the department, b) SASSA employees and c) employees of the department.

(3) The issue of “duplicate IDs” SASSA has identified two situations mainly affects older clients where two persons share the same ID number, unknowingly. These cases are not necessarily fraudulent, but in part the result of various legacy issues. Such matters are flagged and referred to the Department of Affairs for investigation and resolution.

(ii) Recently, the same issue of “duplicate IDs” is affecting those applying for the SRD grant. These are not necessarily duplicate IDs but some form of Identity theft. Fraudsters steal and use another person’s ID number and personal details to apply for the SRD grant; as well as open accounts with private banks, pretending to be the rightful owners of the ID.

When such cases are detected, SASSA will flag the applicant as fraudulent and require the applicant to provide a HANIS report to confirm their identity. SASSA is also implementing a system that will allow for these clients to digitally verify themselves through a facial recognition process. We however, cannot make the specific fraud prevention mechanisms public as this would weaken the mechanism and defeat their purpose. At high level, as part of the detective mechanism, we conduct compliance inspections and systems to detect any internal control deficiencies across the regions. As part of corrective mechanism, we conduct investigations and ensure that corrective measures are taken. Where necessary, members of the South African Police Service also assist in the investigation of fraud cases.

Reply:

SASSA suspended 81 687 Child Support Grants since 1 April 2023 up to 31 January 2024.

These grants were suspended because the banking details of grant recipients captured on the SASSA database did not correspond with details captured by their respective banks, indicating possible changes in the clients’ records. The suspension was implemented as per the provision of Section 14(5) of the Social Assistance Act (Act No. 13 of 2004), which requires clients/beneficiaries to ensure that their records are accurate and updated with the Agency.

Reply:

(1)(a) GBV Command Centre Statistics Report: 01 November 2013 – 31 December 2023
Date	Telephone Calls Received	GBV victims assisted
01 JAN 2023 – 31 Dec 2023	65 311	5 845
01 JAN 2022 – 31 Dec 2022	40 700	3 086
01 JAN 2021 – 31 Dec 2021	65 490	5 036
01 JAN 2020 – 31 Dec 2020	136 940	5 954
01 JAN 2019 – 31 Dec 2019	59 800	1 955
01 JAN 2018 – 31 Dec 2018	64 680	3 015
01 JAN 2017 – 31 Dec 2017	12 020	4 048
01 JAN 2016 – 31 Dec 2016	71 040	1 816
01 JAN 2015 – 31 Dec 2015	64 820	2 214
01 JAN 2014 – 31 Dec 2014	7 607	940
01 NOV 2013 – 31 Dec 2013	1 997	325
TOTAL	590 405	34 234

(b)The GBV Command Centre is a call-centre service that can be contacted by anyone who need assistance with issues of GBV or any issue relating to abuse or threat to personal safety, at any time of the day (24/7) and throughout the year.

Since inception, the GBV Command Centre is managed by qualified social workers registered with the SA Council for Social Service Professions. Depending on the nature of the call, the client is referred to the relevant services, including Health, SAPS and local NGOs that provides shelters for survivors of GBV

(2)(a)(i) and(ii) The awarding of the tender followed the prescripts in terms of the Public Finance Management Act and its regulations. This included amongst others, a compulsory briefing, a 2-stage shortlisting, verification and recommendation of bidders consisting of the Bid Evaluation and Bid Adjudication Committees. This was further strengthened through a requirement of submission of verifiable project qualifications and skills of the respective Project leaders of each bidder, and the submission of verifiable, written references of past provision of services by the prospective service providers.

(b) The Department has established a Project Steering Committee that meets on a weekly basis to measure progress in the implementation and roll-out of the GBVCC project. This is further assisted by a weekly meeting between the Director-General and the CEO of Brilliantel to further measure progress and resolve, any outstanding contractual or project delivery matters.

Reply:

(1) As stated in my reply to Parliamentary Question 4207, SASSA works closely with the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) on data validation and conducts monthly checks to confirm the life status of clients before a payment is generated. Payment is effected for clients who are confirmed to be alive, as per validation outcome.

The life status (proof of life) confirmation is sourced from DHA on the day that the payment file is created. If proof of life is confirmed, payment is included in the payment file and effected for that month. As soon as SASSA receives notice of death from DHA, payment is immediately cancelled and not included in the payment file for that month.

It is important for the Honourable Member to note that social grants payments are effected upon confirmation of proof of life by the Department responsible for this function, which is the DHA. It is incorrect to insinuate that SASSA knowingly pays social grants to deceased beneficiaries.

The activities and the period between payment extraction and payment date can be outlined as below: Using February 2024 payment as example:

• Fourth weekend of the month payment file is extracted (26-28 January 2024) – It must be noted that due to the controls and volumes of the payment file, the payment file is done over a weekend when there is no production work being processed.
• Payment file QA and approval on Monday (29 January 2024).

(2) It will be appreciated if the Honourable can clarify this question because SASSA does not have the data readily available.

Reply:

a) It is important for the Honourable Member to note that SASSA is a tenant at the aforementioned premises that are owned by the Western Cape Provincial Department of Social Development. As the Honourable Member is aware, SASSA has temporarily relocated to Kuyasa Library to ensure continued service to the people of Khayelitsha.

SASSA is also working with local community-based organisations such as Khayelitsha Development Forum and Freedom To The Forgotten to find a long-lasting solution on this matter. In addition, SASSA has made an application to the City of Cape Town for the permanent use of the Kuyasa Library.

b) Refer to (a)

 

Reply:

a) At the time of this response, I have not been informed of any cases anywhere in the country where SASSA has defaulted on rental payments.

b) Refer to (a). SASSA has a system in place to manage ahead of time all office rentals to ensure no offices are closed due to non-rental payments. Hence, there has been no closure of any leased offices in the last two years.

 

Reply:

(1) (a) Information provided to Question 4207, was for grant overpayments to Post Bank clients. Over the last three years grant overpayments to deceased Post Bank clients were as follows:

• • 2021/2022 = R59 256 000
  • 2022/2023 = R50 372 000
  • 2023/2024 = R31 928 000

SASSA does not have data on other Banks readily available to provide statistics as requested above. A special script is required to extract the required data; which takes time to develop, execute and analyse for accuracy and to ensure this part of the question is responded to adequately.

(b) Considering that the above-mentioned grant overpayments were made to the most vulnerable members of society, SASSA’s ability to recover debt might be expensive than the debt itself. However, I must point out that each debt, irrespective of the amount, remains “recoverable “until it is s written off.

There are a number of questions and factors that can be considered when dealing with deceased grant beneficiaries to whom a grant was paid before SASSA received a notice of death from Home Affairs:

• Would it be economical to invest all the resources required to recoup a debt for one-month payment made to a deceased grant beneficiary?

• Does the deceased have an estate or the value of the estate is so small to claim against such that the full value of the grant may not be recovered?

• Would recovery cause undue hardship to his or her dependents?

(2) (a) and (b) Information on private bank accounts, such as balances within those accounts, is confidential information, to which SASSA dos not have access.

(3) (a) SASSA is not currently a registered creditor to any deceased estate. There is currently no system interface between SASSA and the Office of the Master of the High Court. When death occurs, the majority of Social Grant beneficiaries’ families make no effort to wind up an estate with the Office of the Master of the High Court (estates between R125,000 and R250,000) or with the Magistrates Office (estates below R125,000) as required by law. Therefore, if no “case file” is created no-one can register as a Creditor.

(b) All debts are considered “recoverable”, until National Treasury approves the write off. Hence the full amount referenced above is considered recoverable until this process is completed.

(4) It’s important to note that for the SASSA cards, funds are paid into a bank account at Postbank, which is governed by the same laws as any other bank account. SASSA with the assistance of National Treasury is investigating the possibility of all banks to return balances remaining in social grant beneficiary’s bank as a result of grants not withdrawn back to government. The technicalities and implications of this proposal are still under discussion.

Reply:

a) (i0(ii)(iii) The reply to Question 4207, was for total grant overpayments of Post Bank clients. Data related to payments and debts, including recoveries, is housed on two different systems, and requires an extensive cross referencing of the two data sets to answer the question in its current form. This will also require remapping of data across multiple years.

With regard to recoveries, refer to the table below:

FY 2021-2022	FY 2022-2023	FY 2023-2024
R10,826,491.53	R17,900,226.07	R20,001,986.99

Reply:

1. The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA) has spent no public funds in opposing the application seeking the North Gauteng High Court to declare the practice of cadre deployment unconstitutional and unlawful.

The DPSA opposed an application by the Democratic Alliance against the Minister for Public Service and Administration (the Sixth Respondent) in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, under case No 31418/2022, to declare Chapter IV of the Public Service Act 103 of 1994 to be inconsistent with the Constitution. The costs expended by the DPSA, to date in this regard, is R 450 340-00.

The High Court ordered that the Democratic Alliance pay the costs of the Sixth Respondent in this matter. The order is being appealed by the Democratic Alliance and if the Appeal is dismissed, the DPSA will recover the amounts so taxed.

2. Public funds were not expended by the DPSA to defend the policy of a political party.

The DPSA opposed the application by the Democratic Alliance against the Minister for Public Service and Administration in the High Court of South Africa, Gauteng Division, under case No 31418/2022, which sought to declare Chapter IV of the Public Service Act 103 of 1994 to be inconsistent with the Constitution, on the basis that-

1. the Minister for the Public Service and Administration was cited by the Democratic Alliance as the Sixth Respondent;
2. the Minister is responsible for the administration of the Public Service Act, 1994;
3. the provisions of the Public Service Act were affected by the recourse sought by the Democratic Alliance in declaring the Act unconstitutional; and
4. the DPSA was required to respond and place a case before the Court on the incorrectness of the allegation by the Democratic Alliance with regard to the unconstitutionality of the Public Service Act.

In this regard, the High Court found that there was “no valid constitutional attack” and the case of the Democratic Alliance must therefore be rejected.

End

Reply:

I have been informed by the Department as follows:-a) 231

1. See table below
2. See table below

b) As of 1st January 2024, Broadband Infraco achieved 9 056 household connectivity and 231 community WiFi hotspots in various district municipalities as indicated below:

i) Province	ii) District Municipality	Total HH Connections	HH Connections Speeds Tested	Total WiFi Hotspot	HH Connections Speeds Tested
Eastern Cape	Joe Gqabi District	1284	5-10 Mbps	16	10-80 Mbps
	Sarah Baartman	400	5-10 Mbps	0	-
	Buffalo City	317	5-10 Mbps	0	-
Limpopo	Waterberg	1003	5-10 Mbps	3	10-80 Mbps
	Vhembe	101	5-10 Mbps	0	-
Free State	Fezile Dabi	398	5-10 Mbps	1	10-80 Mbps
	Xhariep	501	5-10 Mbps	19	10-80 Mbps
KwaZulu- Natal	Harry Gwala	1753	5-10 Mbps	67	10-80 Mbps
	Ugu	1512	5-10 Mbps	90	10-80 Mbps
North-West	Dr Kenneth Kaunda	0	-	0	-
	Dr Ruth S Mompati	0	-	0	-
Northern Cape	John Taolo Gaetsewe	0	-	0	-
	Namakwa	0	-	0	-
	ZF Mgcawu	0	-	0	-
Gauteng	Sedibeng	700	5-10 Mbps	0	-
	West Rand	1087	5-10 Mbps	35	10-80 Mbps
Western Cape	Overberg	0	-	0	-
	West Coast	0	-	0	-
Total Connections Achieved on BAF	9 056	-	231	-

Thank you

Reply:

(1) The following progress has been made regarding consequence management of:

(a) 5 812 public servants who fraudulently received Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grants: In September 2022, Ms BJ Memela, the Chief Executive Officer of the SA Social Security Agency issued letters to Government Departments at National and Provincial levels advising them of the identification of civil servants on the Covid 19 SRD database and requested that consequence management be undertaken by those Government Departments.

No	Date of signing letter	Name of Department	Annexure
1	26/09/2022	Department of Basic Education	A
2	28/09/2022	Deed Office	B
3	26/09/2022	Department of Labour	C
4	26/09/2022	Department of Justice	D
5	09/11/2022	Department of Social Development	E
6	26/09/2022	Limpopo Provincial Department of Health	F
7	29/09/2022	South African Police Service	G
8	28/09/2022	Correctional Services	H

The indicated Departments are to be approached by SA Social Security Agency to establish progress with the execution of consequence management.

(b) 33 833 public servants who fraudulently received other social grants: This information is to be obtained from the SA Social Security Agency (Fraud and Compliance Department).

(2) Regarding investigations the following:

(a) The DPSA did not launch an investigation to determine whether the wrongful payments form part of a scheme to defraud the State, as the DPSA does not have a legal mandate to perform investigations.

(b) SA Social Security Agency launched an investigation. The details of the investigation are reflected under (1)(a) and is to be provided for (b).

End

Reply:

The World Economic Forum (WEF) 2024, which took place in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland, from 15 to 19 January 2024, provided South Africa an opportunity to engage international investors and policy-makers.

I was accompanied by the Acting DDG Invest SA and two DTIC permanent representatives to Geneva. The department’s appropriated budget covered all expenses.

The engagements and activities included

• More than 15 separate sessions with investors in sectors such as beverages, transport-logistics, energy, steel, engineering and retail.
• Meetings with a number of trade and economic ministers from across the world, including Norway, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Netherlands and Oman and with government advisors from Nigeria
• A meeting with the European Union Vice President and Trade Commissioner on SA-EU trade matters and on the WTO
• A session with a US Senator, covering SA-US trade and investment relations
• Participating as a speaker in panels dealing with development and with SMME promotion in value-chains
• A ‘South Africa Investment’ session hosted by Bloomberg
• Separate meetings with the Director General of the WTO and with the Secretary General of the AfCFTA
• Participation in a number of briefing sessions on global policy matters, including by the Premier of China and the US Secretary of State
• A WTO session attended by officials.

I am advised the total cost was R802 000, made up of accommodation, air travel, and ground transportation, food, subsistence and travel costs.

-END-

Reply:

I was advised by ICASA as follows:

The Authority is mandated through section 68 of the Electronic Communications Act (“the ECA”) (Act No. 36 of 2005) as amended to regulate the numbering resources. However, the ECA does not empower the Authority to regulate SIM registration.

Noting the challenges experienced in the country wherein numbers are hijacked either through SIM swap fraud or number porting, the Authority has tightened the number porting regime by prescribing a porting procedure and a port validation process in Schedule A of the Number Portability Regulations of 2018.

Additionally, the Authority resolved to amend the Numbering Plan Regulations of 2016, by inserting a provision that mandates licensees to collect subscribers’ biometric data during activation of services.

These regulatory measures are intended to empower and protect the public when activating/porting their numbers and/or services with the telecommunications service providers. Nevertheless, the biometric data collection provision was deferred by the Authority for further consultation with stakeholders on the technical and functional specifications associated with the implementation of the biometric provisions.

The Authority has been consulting with the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (“DOJ & CD”) on the review of Chapter 7 of RICA which places an obligation on telecommunications service providers, who are licenced by the Authority to register all SIM cards by verifying customer information. It also mandates telecommunications service providers to retain customer data, and to respond to lawful interception requests. Further, the Authority is addressing concerns that it does not have access to the RICA database which is managed by the DoJ & CD to monitor compliance.

The Authority is also in consultation with institutions that have successfully implemented the biometric verification system – South African Banking Risk Information Centre, the State Information Technology Agency and the Department of Home Affairs - to seek guidance regarding the development of a functional biometric system.

Furthermore, clarity is being sought from the Information Regulator regarding the application of the Protection of Personal Information Act (Act No. 4 of 2013) (“POPIA”) on the appropriate safeguards to protect personal information of the data subjects. This is to ensure that the Authority’s Numbering Regulations are not in conflict with the provisions of POPIA.

Thank you

Reply:

1. Five members of the State Information Technology Agency (SITA) SOC Ltd board resigned and two have been retained into the current board. The former representative of the Department of Public Service and Administration was recalled by their Minister. Only three board members were dismissed in July 2023. This followed the Cabinet guidance to reprimand them after they had violated the SITA Memorandum of Incorporation and went against the Cabinet resolution that had already considered and approved the salary of the Managing Director.

2. Yes. The salary grade for the CEO upon assumption of duties in April 2023 up to the departure in December 2023 was above maximum Paterson Band F3.

Thank you

Reply:

	(i) Minister of Finance	(ii) National Treasury	(iii) National Treasury Officials
(a) Sponsorships	None	None	None
(b) Donations
(c) Financial transfers
(aa) Qatari	None	None	None
(bb) Iranian
(cc) Russian organ of state, organisation and/or resident

Reply:

The National Lotteries Commission has furnished me with the attached response to the question.

-END-

Reply:

a) Because an international agreement will be binding on South Africa, the country must be able to maintain its international obligations in terms of the Treaty to which it has acceded. In order to accede to the Marrakesh Treaty, it is necessary therefore to finalise amendments to the Copyright Act, Act 98 of 1978. The Copyright Amendment Bill that addresses these matters was passed by the National Assembly recently, for referral to the President for assent.

b) The Constitutional Court found Section 13 of the Copyright Act to be unconstitutional. In its order, the court read into the Copyright Act, 1978 an exception that allows persons who are blind and visually impaired to convert published works into accessible formats without the consent of the copyright holder. The judgment thus offered the blind and visually impaired remedies with immediate effect. This exception is valid for a period of 2 years until 20 September 2024 pending the approval of the Copyright Amendment Bill, to ensure that the rights of the blind and visually impaired are not compromised. Clause 19D of the Copyright Amendment Bill extends to persons with disabilities such as learning disabilities, dyslexia etc and not only for the blind and visually impaired.

-END-

Reply:

(1) NERSA has 176 licensed distributors, 12 of which are private distributors. The 164 municipal distributors submit tariff applications to NERSA annually, prior to the 1 July implementation date. Although some municipalities occasionally submit their applications late, NERSA always follows up with such municipalities in an effort to have the approvals finalised by 1 July.

(2) Subsequent to the tariff approvals, NERSA requests tariff schedules from municipalities and compares them with the approved tariffs to ensure that the correct tariffs are being charged to customers.

Further to this, NERSA conducts compliance audits on the licenced distributors annually. This is done to ensure compliance with NERSA’s licence conditions, which, among others, relates to verifying whether licenced distributors implement NERSA-approved tariffs.

It must be noted that NERSA does not analyse the minutes of the Council meeting to check whether the adopted electricity tariffs are the same as those that have been transferred to the NERSA form for tariff application, as NERSA believes that the submission for tariff applications is made and signed off by the highest officer of the municipality, which represents the decision of the Council.

NERSA, therefore, does not undertake to verify the decision made by the Council. This is also done to avoid the further lengthening of the tariff approval process.

Reply:

(aa) Qatar:

In May 2022, the state of Qatar donated food, equipment and other support for the victims of the April and May floods in the KwaZulu-Natal Province. The donations were facilitated by the Departments of Cooperative Governance and Social Development. On Sunday 29 May 2022, the Province of KZN received the attached consignment as a donation from the State of Qatar. The equipment and goods were facilitated and distributed through designated provincial structures and mechanisms. Therefore, this donation was not presented to the (i) Minister of Cooperative and Traditional Affairs, (ii) the department or (iii) officials of the Department.

(bb) Iran:

Neither the (i) Minister of Cooperative and Traditional Affairs, (ii) the department nor (iii) officials of the Department received (a) sponsorships, (b) donations and (c) financial transfers provided for lawfare and/or any other purposes.

(cc) Russian:

In September 2023, during the BRICS meeting of Ministers responsible for Disaster Risk Reduction, the Minister of Civil Defence, Emergencies and Elimination of Consequences of Natural Disasters (EMERCOM) from the Russian Federation, Mr Aleksandr Kurenkov, presented to the Minister of COGTA, a bouquet of flowers and a vase from ERMERCOM.

End.

Reply:

1. a) The Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DOJ&CD) and the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) was not allocated emergency generators received from China.

b) Not applicable.

2. a) Not applicable

b) i) Not applicable

ii) Not applicable

3. Not applicable.

4. a) Not applicable

b) Not applicable.

Reply:

Find reply here

Reply:

1. Subsequent to the tariff approvals, NERSA requests tariff schedules from municipalities and compares them with the approved tariffs to ensure that the correct tariffs are being charged to customers. Further to this, when municipal compliance audits are conducted, NERSA checks the approved tariffs against the implemented tariffs to ensure that there are no discrepancies. It must, however, be noted that municipalities charge surcharges in addition to the NERSA-approved tariffs. Such surcharges fall outside of NERSA’s regulatory mandate.

Reply:

(aa) QATAR

a) Sponsorships

No sponsorships were received by the Minister (i), her department (ii) and officials in her department.

b) Donations

• The Minister (i) did not receive any donation.

• The Department (ii) facilitated the following donations from the Embassy of the State of Qatar to South Africa:

1) On 29 May 2022 the Amir of Qatar donated blankets, pillows, travel beds, mosquito nets, respirators, generators, medical consumables, kids’ sportswear etc to the value of QR471,883 which is approximately R2,4 million for flood victims in Kwazulu-Natal;

2) Donation of seeds, food, blankets, water tanks, gardening equipment, deep freezer and two cows to the Mookgopong Centre;

3) Donation of blankets, and food to the elderly homes in Mamelodi together with the Moses Mabhida Foundation on 15 February 2023;

4) Donation of blankets and soccer balls to the youth at the Kayamandi project in Cape Town;

5) Donation of two vehicles, an ambulance vehicle, medical fridges, medical equipment, microwave ovens, washing machines and laptop computer together with Nelson Mandela Foundation in support of the Qunu Clinic in Eastern Cape Province;

6) Donation of 50 laptops to benefit schools in rural communities of Limpopo and Mpumalanga Provinces;

7) Donation of laptops to the Zinikelene Secondary school in Carolina, in the Mpumalanga Province;

8) Assistance in arranging repatriation flights for South Africans abroad during the Covid -19 pandemic in collaboration with Qatar Airways. Passengers, however, paid for their own repatriation tickets.

• There were no donations to any official/s (iii) in the department.

c) Financial Transfers

• There were no financial transfers to the Minister (i), her department and (iii) officials of her department.

(bb) IRAN

a) Sponsorships

(1) The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran provided sponsorship for two officials from DIRCO to represent South Africa at the “Iran – BRICS Conference: Prospects for Partnership and Cooperation” on 08 August 2023, in Tehran, Iran. The sponsorship consisted of accommodation for the two officials, as well as economy class air fare for one official.

(2) The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran sponsored an official from DIRCO to participate in the 37th International Islamic Unity Conference, which was held in Tehran from 1-3 October 2023. The Government of the Islamic Republic of Iran provided a round-trip air ticket, as well as transport and accommodation for the duration of the conference.

b) Donations

• No donations were received by the Minister (i), her department (ii) or (iii) officials in her department.

c) Financial transfers

• No financial transfers were made to the Minister (i), her department (ii) and (iii) officials in her department.

(cc) RUSSIA

a) Sponsorships

• No sponsorship was received by the Minister (i), her department (ii) and (iii) officials in her department.

b) Donations

• No donation was received by the Minister (i), her department (ii), and (iii) officials in her department.

c) Financial transfers

• No financial transfers were received by the Minister (i), her department (ii) and (iii) officials in her department.

Reply:

1. The funding allocated to SAA was utilised to settle the obligations that arose from the business rescue processes. The settlement of the business rescue obligations is expected to be settled over several years.

2. One of the conditions attached to the funding provided to SAA was that government guarantees available to the airline would be reduced by the equivalent quantum. At present SAA does not have available government guarantees against which they can raise debt or other obligations. However, there is still a government guarantee exposure amounting to R91.5 million related to Unflown Ticket Liabilities and Letters of Credit. The airline is currently engaged in negotiations with lenders to provide a cash deposit in lieu of the guarantee. Once negotiations with lenders have been completed, these guarantees will then be cancelled, and government will therefore no longer have contingent liability exposure related to SAA.

3. SAA has and continues to submit monthly updates to National Treasury (NT) and the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE). Moreover, a Guarantee Monitoring Task Team comprising officials from the NT, DPE as well as SAA management meets monthly to discuss amongst other issues financial performance and forecasts, financial position and other developments. DPE, as convenors and secretariat of the monthly monitoring meeting and shareholder will be best placed to provide the monthly records.

Reply:

Tracer dye is added to Illuminating Paraffin to enable its detection once it is mixed into diesel. The presence of the tracer dye can only be detected through laboratory testing or specialized mobile equipment. The Department collects fuel samples randomly at service stations to test for the presence of the tracer dye, amongst others.

It is precisely this random testing that led to the detection of adulteration when the presence of the tracer dye was detected at the laboratory.

Reply:

1. (a) The National Department of Health has received 306 generators.

(b) 34 generators per province. In order to meet the minimum demand for each clinic, it’s going to be two generators per clinic. 6KW x 2 = 12KW. Therefore, it’s going to be 19 clinics earmarked for the generators.

2. (a) The National Department of Health is currently finalising the procurement process. The procurement process covers both the collection and installation of the generators directly to the main electrical distribution board of the clinics.

(b) (i) The details of the Service Providers will be provided after the completion of the procurement process.

(ii) the total cost will also be provided after the completion of the procurement process.

3. The National Department of Health will ensure that there is enough budget allocation for the fuel consumption of generators across the country. Currently, there is no fuel expenditure on these new generators.

4. (a) None installed yet.

(b) 306 to be installed.

END.

Reply:

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