Questions and Replies
11 April 2023 - NW83
Tarabella - Marchesi, Ms NI to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What are the details of the (a) make, (b) model, (c) year of manufacture, (d) cost and (e) purchase date of all the official vehicles purchased for (i) him, (ii) the former Minister, (iii) the Deputy Minister and the (iv) former Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019?
Reply:
- Hon. Marchesi, both Minister Nxesi and Deputy Minister Moloi were appointed to their portfolios on the 1st of June 2019.
- Former Minister and former Deputy Minister left the Department few weeks before the applicable date of 1st June 2019.
- Having stated the above, kindly find below information relevant to your question.
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 |
|
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 |
11 April 2023 - NW382
Mmutle, Mr TN to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
By what date will vacant posts (a) in the board of Armscor and (b) of senior positions in the Department of Defence and Military Veterans be filled?
Reply:
a) The ARMSCOR Board of Directors currently has three (3) vacant positions. The Ministry and ARMSCOR intend to ·fill these vacant positions as soon as possible, but no later than the conclusion of the first quarter of the current fiscal year, which begins on April 1, 2023.
b) Following the completion and upgrading of the job profiles, the senior vacant positions in the Department of Defence, namely the Secretary for Defence and Chief Financial Officer (CFO), will be posted.
Other senior positions in the Department of Defence, including Chief Defence Material (C Def Mat), Chief Director(ate) International Affairs (COIA), Chief Director(ate) Legal Services (COLS), and Chief Audit Executive (GAE), were submitted to DPSA, but there was disagreement about rank levels. The Department of Defense is working with the DPSA on the topic.
Furthermore, the senior empty jobs in the Department of Military Veterans have been re-advertised because the period in which they were advertised had since lapsed without any acceptable candidates being selected .
11 April 2023 - NW811
Cebekhulu, Inkosi RN to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
Whether negotiations and terms of the contract between her department and the Central Energy Fund to supply the SA National Defence Force with fuel in order to get its aircraft off the ground have been concluded, which were estimated to be finalised by 31 October 2022; if not, why not; if so, what are the details of the agreement?
Reply:
The DOD has a Memorandum of Cooperation (MOC) with Central Energy Fund (CEF) which was signed by the Sec Def (Accounting Officer) as the Head of the Department in 2019.
The DOD is in the process of concluding a new Service Level Agreement (SLA) with Petro SA, which is a subsidiary of CEF, for the supply and delivery of fuel.
11 April 2023 - NW830
Cebekhulu, Inkosi RN to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
(1) Whether, with regard to reports of trespassing and poaching on SA National Defence Force (SANDF) occupied land in Makhanda, which led to her department registering a project to construct perimeter fencing around the training area, the specified fence has been erected; if not, why not.(2) If so, whether the perimeter fencing resulted in reduced reports of trespassing; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details.(3) Whether the SANDF is involved in any collaborative anti-poaching efforts in the area with other departments; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
1. The Chief of Logistics registered and approved the project to build a perimeter fence around the training area because it falls under his responsibility, but it was unable to be executed due to lack of funding.
2. The project will be carried out depending on the availability of funds after it was unable to be executed owing to financial restrictions.
3. The SANDF is currently not involved in any collaborative anti-poaching efforts in the area with other departments due to roles and functions as well as boundary management.
11 April 2023 - NW671
Mafanya, Mr WTI to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
Whether she has assessed the efficacy of the deployment of the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) to the Cape Flats to assist in fighting violent crimes; if not, why not; if so, lo what extent has she found did the deployment of the SANDF assist in fighting violent crime in Cape Town?
Reply:
The efficacy of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) deployment in the Cape Flats or anywhere else it is deployed is always under constant review as the situation evolves, with force levels up scaling or downscaling, or even withdrawal of forces, as the situation demands. The deployment of the SANDF on the Cape Flats must be regarded as part of the support provided to the South African Police Services as requested and mandated by the President of the Republic of South Africa.
However, the question of whether the deployment has reduced crime in the Cape Flats is best answered by the SAPS and through monitoring and evaluation, which fall outside the ambit of the defense establishment.
11 April 2023 - NW193
Tarabella - Marchesi, Ms NI to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
(1)What are the details of the (a) destination and (b) total costs for (i) accommodation, (ii) travel and (iii) any other costs incurred for international travel of each (aa) Minister and (bb) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019; (2) what is the total cost incurred for domestic air travel for each (a) Minister and (b) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019?
Reply:
Question 1
What are the details of the (a) destination and (b) total costs for (i) accommodation, (ii) travel and (iii) any other costs incurred for international travel of each (aa) Minister and (bb) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019;
Minister
Office Minister |
(a)) Destination |
(b)Total cost |
(i)International accommodation |
(ii) travel Flight International |
(iii)insurance & fees |
Financial Year |
|||||
2019-2020 |
Cuba (HAVANA) Côte Divoire (ABIDJAN) Switzerland (GENEVA) Brazil (BRASILIA) Switzerland (ZURICH) Cuba (HAVANA) Côte Divoire (ABIDJAN) France (PARIS (CDG)) |
R575 017.70 |
R 559 196.06 |
Fees: R15 758.64 Insurance: R 6 300.00 |
|
2020-2021 |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
2021-2022 |
Switzerland (GENEVA) Côte Divoire (ABIDJAN) Côte Divoire (ABIDJAN) Botswana (KASANE) |
R189 395.34 |
R87 372.34 |
R98 900.46 |
Fees: R3 116.14 Insurance: R640.00 |
2022-2023 |
Brazil (BRASILIA) Switzerland (GENEVA) Côte Divoire (ABIDJAN) Indonesia (DENPASAR-BALI) Indonesia (Jimbaran) Switzerland (GENEVA) |
R481 813.53 |
R87 372.34 |
R385 738.00 |
Fees: R7 468.19 Insurance: R1 235.00 |
Total |
R1, 246 226.57 |
Deputy Minister
Office Minister |
(a) Destination |
(b)Total cost |
(i)International accommodation |
(ii) travel Flight International |
(iii)insurance, fees |
Financial Year |
|||||
2019-2020 |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
2020-2021 |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
2021-2022 |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
NIL |
2022-2023 |
Spain (BARCELONA) DRC (KINSHASA) Spain (MADRID) |
R146 861.31 |
R142 870.58 |
Fees: R3 983:88 Insurance: R685 |
|
Total |
R146 861.31 |
Question 2
(2) what is the total cost incurred for domestic air travel for each (a) Minister and (b) Deputy Minister of his department since 1 June 2019? NW189E
Minister |
a) Total cost for Domestic air travel |
Financial Year |
|
2019-2020 |
R375 383.82 |
2020-2021 |
R30 875.68 |
2021-2022 |
R327 218.01 |
2022-2023 |
R369 300.90 |
Total |
R1, 102 778.41 |
Deputy Minister
Deputy Minister Minister |
a) Total cost for Domestic air travel |
Financial Year |
|
2019-2020 |
R73 623.84 |
2020-2021 |
R29 381.05 |
2021-2022 |
R109 480.94 |
2022-2023 |
R206 634.58 |
Total |
R419 120.41 |
11 April 2023 - NW383
Mmutle, Mr TN to ask the Minister of Defence and Military Veterans
What (a) progress has she made in implementing the resolution to relocate Denel from the Department of Public Enterprises to the Department of Defence and (b) are the timelines in this regard?
Reply:
a) The relocation of Denel, the state-owned armaments manufacturing institution, necessitates the participation of the entire government, especially the Department of Public Enterprises, under which it falls, as well as National Treasury. The Ministry of Defence and Military Veterans cannot execute this process on their own; they must also be satisfied that there is due diligence prior to relocation. There will also be legal ramifications from the relocation.
b) The deadlines cannot yet be defined because they are dependent on the fulfillment of the conditions outlined in the preceding paragraph. (a).
11 April 2023 - NW844
Montwedi, Mr Mk to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What total number of electricians are registered in the Republic since 1 January 2015?
Reply:
National Skills Authority is not an entity of the Department of Employment and Labour. This entity resides in the other sister department. We can therefore reply to your question by stating what is in our purview, the total number of registered persons that have been registered in terms of the Electrical Installation Regulations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, Act 85 of 1993, as amended, since 1 January 2015 is 8512. They are registered in the following categories:
Electrical Testers for Single Phase: 2814
Installation Electricians: 5387
Master Installation Electricians: 311
11 April 2023 - NW462
Alexander, Ms W to ask the Minister of Employment and Labour
What (a) is the salary of each (i) chief executive officer and (ii) top executive position in each state-owned entity reporting to him and (b) total amount does each get paid to attend a meeting?
Reply:
1. Unemployment Insurance Fund
a) (i) The Unemployment Insurance Fund is headed by a Commissioner. The position of the Commissioner is on a salary level 15, which is equivalent to a Deputy Director-General.
(ii) The Commissioner is supported by four Chief Directors who are appointed on a salary level 14.
b) The Commissioner and the Chief Directors do not receive payment for attending Unemployment Insurance Fund’s meetings.
2. Compensation Fund
a) (i) The Chief Executive Officer (Compensation Commissioner) of the Compensation Fund is equivalent to the Deputy Director-General salary, which is at salary level 15 and,
(ii) Top Executive positions which are Chief Directors in the Compensation Fund are equivalent to Chief Director salary, which is at salary level 14. For the financial year 2021/22 and 2022/23 there are 6 Chief Director positions.
b) Compensation Fund is a schedule 3A entity of the Department of Employment and Labour and the conditions of appointment including remuneration are derived from (or linked to) the salaries and conditions of service which apply to Senior Management positions (SMS) in the Public Service as per DPSA salary scales. The CF SMS members do not get paid to attend meetings.
3. National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC)
(a) In respect of Nedlac,
- For the 2021/22 financial year the annual salary for the (i) chief executive offer, called Executive Director was R 2 257 687,45.
- for the 2022/23 financial year, the annual salary for (i) the chief executive officer, called Executive Director is R 2 400 624,89.
(ii) The annual salary for the top executive positions for the:
- 2021/22 financial year was as follows:
- CFO: R 1 917 900,00;
- Executive Manager: Programmes: R 1 501 529,63;
- Senior Manager: Corporate Services: R 1 049 271,47.
- 2022/23 financial year is as follows:
- Chief Financial Officer: R 2 039 444, 42;
- Executive Manager: Programmes: R 1 596 859,37l and
- Senior Manager: Corporate Services: R 1 116 127,04.
(b) There is no payment for meeting attendance of executives.
4. ProductivitySA
The salary cost for Productivity SA is as follows:
a) (i) The Chief Executive Officer’s salary was as follows:
2021/22: R 1,773,770
2022/23: R 1,849,160
(b) (ii) The consolidated salary of Executive Managers was as follows:
2021/22: R 9,801,636 (7 Executive Managers)
2022/23: R 10,974,535 (8 Executive Managers)
c) The Chief Executive Officer and Executive Managers do not receive meeting attendance fees.
5. Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA)
Name of the Entity |
Question (a) (i) What (a) is the salary of each (i) chief executive officer |
Financial Year (2021/2022) |
Financial Year (2022/2023) |
CCMA |
Chief Executive Officer( Director) |
4 222 667.70 |
4 336 560.85 |
|
CCMA Director (Acting) |
45 160.38 |
N/A |
|
Question (a) (ii) |
Financial Year (2021/2022) |
Financial Year (2022/2023) |
CCMA |
National Senior Commissioner |
2 896 550.92 |
1 013 660.36 |
|
National Senior Commissioner (Acting) |
66 050.24 |
172 976.12 |
|
Executive Governance and Strategy |
2 706 573.99 |
2 686 758.44 |
|
Executive Governance and Strategy (Acting) |
N/A |
49 022.77 |
|
Chief Financial Officer |
2 706 706.85 |
1 481 078.23 |
|
Chief Financial Officer (Acting) |
N/A |
126 920.02 |
|
Chief Audit Executive |
2 827 986.32 |
2 813 587.48 |
|
Question (b) -total amount does each get paid to attend a meeting |
Financial Year (2021/2022) |
Financial Year (2022/2023) |
CCMA |
Chief Executive Officer( Director) |
N/A |
N/A |
CCMA Director (Acting) |
N/A |
N/A |
|
National Senior Commissioner |
N/A |
N/A |
|
National Senior Commissioner (Acting) |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Executive Governance and Strategy |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Executive Governance and Strategy (Acting) |
The Chief Executive Officer and Executive Managers do not receive meeting attendance fees. |
||
Chief Financial Officer |
|||
Chief Financial Officer (Acting) |
|||
Chief Audit Executive |
11 April 2023 - NW332
Mogale, Mr T to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
What disaster measures of intervention have been taken to prevent further flooding in affected areas?
Reply:
The department through the National Disaster Management Centre (NDMC) is coordinating and collaborating with relevant stakeholders focusing on emergency preparedness to enable a state of readiness by relevant organs of state in anticipation of disasters. In case of the floods, the following key intervention measures were taken by my department:
- Collaboration with the South African Weather Service (SAWS) in the further dissemination of early-warnings and advisories to relevant organs of state, stakeholders and organs of state for informed decision-making as well as ensuring that further damages and losses are avoided where possible;
- Activation of the National Joint Floods Coordination Committee (NJFCC) as well as facilitate activations of relevant structures across the spheres of government for the coordination of collaborative efforts by all relevant stakeholders regarding response and recovery efforts in affected provinces;
- FacilitateS the deployment of search and rescue teams from the Security Cluster for search and rescue missions in support of the affected provinces;
- Technical support to municipalities through the Municipal Infrastructure Agent (MISA) in addressing some of the critical infrastructure;
- Coordinate relevant national organs of state to mobilise resources and support to respective counterparts through existing sectoral arrangements and programmes;
- Ongoing monitoring of the conditions on the ground and providing support where required to prevent the situation from deteriorating further;
- Classification of the occurrence as a national disaster by the NDMC as per Section 23 of the Disaster Management Act, 57 of 2022 (DMA). This was with the primary objective of strengthening the coordination and management of the occurrence as well as the mobilisation of resources for intervention measures.
- Declaration of a national state of disaster by the Minister of CoGTA as per Section 27 of the DMA. This was mainly to augment existing legislation and contingency arrangements of the affected organs of state as well as activate other extraordinary measures as and when required.
- Facilitated the development of Seasonal Contingency Plan for the Summer Season by organs of state to deal with seasonal climate and weather-related events based on the Weather Outlook issued by SAWS. The NDMC further developed the National Seasonal Contingency Plan for the Summer Season outlining the preparedness/readiness measures by respective organs of state to deal with flooding eventualities during the Summer Season.
- Furthermore, the National Seasonal Contingency Plan for the Summer Season provides details of the preparedness and response procedures and activation protocols to be followed at national level to respond to disasters.
End.
06 April 2023 - NW904
Ismail, Ms H to ask the Minister of Tourism
What are the plans of her department to mitigate the impact of (a) load shedding, (b) the fuel shortage at our airports as the specified fuel shortage negatively impacts flight schedules and (c) climate change on the tourism industry as global warming is negatively affecting the tourism industry, such as rising sea levels, floods and/or drought?
Reply:
(a) I have been informed that the Department’s Green Tourism Incentive Programme assists in mitigating the impact of loadshedding on the tourism industry. The main objective of the GTIP is to encourage tourism establishments to adopt more energy and water efficient operational practices to ensure long term sustainability.
(b) The Department is not mandated to deal with the fuel shortage, but does engage with the industry as and when needed. The issue of fuel shortages is dealt with by relevant institutions i.e. Airports Company South Africa, Department of Transport and Airlines Association of Southern Africa. It is recommended that the member refer the above question to the above institutions.
(c) The Department’s Tourism and Climate Change Response Programme and Action Plan, developed in 2011, addresses both climate change mitigation and adaptation measures within the tourism sector.
The Response Programme and Action Plan were designed to deliver on the following five (5) outcomes:
- Improved understanding of the vulnerabilities of tourism to the physical impacts of climate change in order to build resilience and adaptive capacity of the industry;
- Reduced Tourism-related greenhouse gas emissions;
- A fully informed tourism industry through consistent and effective industry outreach and communications;
- A nationally consistent, inclusive and cooperative approach to implementation; and
- Maintain effective climate change messaging and positioning in our key markets.
06 April 2023 - NW806
Ngcobo, Mr SL to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
Whether her department has any intentions to implement and/or introduce a framework that will make it easier to prioritise the swift action of curriculum reform and improve the quality of education; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
Curriculum reform and review, by its very nature is dynamic and cyclical. The Department has a long history of reviewing and amending curriculum based on the needs, independent research and monitoring and evaluation findings to ensure relevance and improved learning outcomes. The Departmental approach to curriculum review is ongoing and needs based. For example, since the implementation of the CAPS curriculum in 2012, the DBE has introduced new subjects, such as 9 new technology subjects and Marine Sciences. We are currently also piloting 13 new vocationally and/or occupationally orientated subjects in the GET phase ( Grade 8 and 9) as part of our ongoing review of curriculum in order to improve learning outcomes. The Three Stream Model, that we are currently implementing, is also a result of ongoing monitoring and efforts to improve the quality of learning outcomes. The additional learning pathways will ensure that we provide our learners with multiple opportunities to transition successfully from school to life after school.
In keeping with the pursuit of improving the quality learning outcomes, the Department of Basic Education is in the process of reviewing and strengthening the curriculum, to equip learners with skills and competencies for the future. These efforts will continue to focus on the improvement of learning as the end result of schooling. To achieve this lofty goal, the DBE is reviewing the current curriculum, to strengthen it and align it to realise the full implementation of the Three-Stream Curriculum Model.
The key levers of the review, will focus on the curriculum; teaching; assessment; learning and teaching support materials (LTSM), and the learning environment. Due to the centrality of curriculum to ignite the other key levers, the DBE is focusing on strengthening the curriculum at this stage, with a focus on -
- Infusing competencies in the curriculum;
- Review and modernise existing curriculum content; and
- Subject modernisation
To realise the curriculum strengthening, the DBE is currently developing the South African Competency Framework, which will prioritise the key competencies (knowledge, skills, attitudes and values) to develop in our learners to equip them with skills for the future. As part of this review, the DBE will also develop a curriculum review policy framework, to ensure regular and faster curriculum renewal. The strengthened curriculum will include in its design, opportunities for continuous automatic renewal to stay abreast with the fast changing world.
At the same time, work is continuing in the areas of reviewing our assessment practices, teacher development and LTSM to ensure we improve learning outcomes sustainably.
06 April 2023 - NW249
Ismail, Ms H to ask the Minister of Tourism
(1) On what date were the members of the SA Tourism Board replaced; (2) whether the (a) vacancies were advertised and (b) appointments were made in accordance with the requirements of the law; if not, why not in each case; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?
Reply:
I am currently seeking legal advice on matters relating to the South African Tourism Board, which includes all appointments and the processes that were followed.
06 April 2023 - NW982
Matumba, Mr A to ask the Minister of Tourism
(a) On what date did the tenure of the previous Tourism Transformation Council of South Africa (TTCSA) expire, (b) what are the reasons she did not appoint a new TTCSA on time, (c) what progress has been made in appointing the new TTCSA since the closing date of nominations on 30 November 2022, (d) how did her department advance and track transformation in the sector without the TTCSA in place and (e) what progress was made in implementing programmes that were presented by the previous TTCSA to the Portfolio Committee on Tourism?
Reply:
(a) I have been informed that the previous Tourism Transformation Council of South Africa (TTCSA) expired on 30 June 2022.
(b)
This process ensued before I took office.
However, I have been informed that after the closing date, the Department embarked on process to capture the nominations and to recommend a selection committee to make recommendations on the suitability of candidates for appointment.
It then came to light that some nominations may have not been successfully delivered to the Department because the email system of the Department went down during the period when the call for nomination was open.
The failure of the email system on the process for the submission of nomination was investigated. It was found that the GroupWise database of the Department got corrupted and prevented the delivery of some emails to the Department.
The email outages towards the closing date of the nominations and subsequent loss of emails was found to have impacted negatively on the nomination process for new members of the TTCSA.
It was evident some nominations could not have reached the Department which would then render the nominations process unfair, unless nominations were opened again to remedy the situation.
Approval to start a new process to call for nominations was granted on 9 September 2022.
(c)
Following approval to re-advertise calls for the nominations of new TTCSA members, the Department of Tourism sent adverts in the main newspapers with national coverage detailing the requirements, and the closing date for nominations was 30 November 2022.
The matter was not concluded by the previous Minister. I have not been consulted by the Department on the new process
(d)
I am informed that before the end of the previous Council’s term in June 2022, the TTCSA, in partnership with the Department of Tourism, appointed a service provider to conduct an annual survey to measure the extent of transformation in the tourism sector across all the three tourism sub-subsectors, namely (1) Accommodation; (2) Travel and (3) Hospitality as well as covering all nine provinces.
The Department established the Tourism B-BBEE Sector Transformation Directorate, which also serves as a Secretariat to the TTCSA. The directorate continued with the research work to gauge transformation levels in the sector.
(e)
I have been informed that the Department conducted policy advocacy presentations on the Amended Tourism B-BBEE Sector Code to various tourism stakeholders in various provinces to create and broaden awareness.
06 April 2023 - NW335
Mokgotho, Ms SM to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Whether she intends to put any intervention measures in place under the provisions of the Constitution of the Republic, 1996, to provide relief to residents of the City of Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality who are currently experiencing delays regarding refuse removal; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
The Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs convened a meeting with the City of Ekurhuleni on the 2nd September 2022, to engage the Executive and Senior management on petitions, amongst which the matter of refuse removal was discussed. The Metro indicated their constraints (financial and tools of trade) towards sufficiently servicing communities on refuse removal, amongst other services. In response, a medium to long-term mitigation plan was tabled to remedy the situation, which would have been shared with the Portfolio committee.
Based on the details provided in the foregoing engagement, the nature and extent of these challenges generally, particularly refuse removal, there is no trigger for a Constitutional “intervention”. However, further to the mitigation plan that the City tabled, both National and provincial governments continue to implement the provisions of Section 154 of the Constitution, in the form of a Gauteng ‘Local Government Support Framework’ anchored around Multi-Disciplinary Regional Support Teams (inclusive of Sector Departments) and implementation of Regional Support Plans. This plan is monitored on an ongoing basis and reported to Cabinet as part of the State of Local Government report (SOLG) and the Portfolio Committee. End.
06 April 2023 - NW1057
Joseph, Mr D to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
(1)Whether the Government held any discussions with the United Nations (UN) about the UN Declaration on Indigenous People; if not, (a) on what grounds did the Government enact the Traditional and Khoi-San Leadership Act, Act 3 of 2019 and (b) is the promulgation of the specified Act in line with the specified UN Declaration; if so, (2) whether there were any agreements made about indigenous people during the discussions; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, on what date were the agreements arrived at? NW1167E
Reply:
1. Yes, the South African government participates annually in the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) through representation by the Departments of Traditional Affairs and International Relations and Cooperation respectively. The implementation of the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Peoples is a standing agenda item at the UN Permanent Forum which takes place every year. South Africa played a central role in the establishment of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) which came into existence on 28 July 2000, and a leading role in the negotiations of the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), a process that took 27 years and that culminated in the adoption of the Declaration in 2007.
The UNDRIP is considered the most comprehensive international instrument on the rights of indigenous peoples. It establishes a universal framework of minimum standards for the survival, dignity, and well-being of indigenous peoples. It further elaborates on existing human rights instruments and clarifies how they apply to the specific situations of indigenous peoples. However, the Declaration is a non-binding text, meaning that the Member States of the United Nations are not obligated to implement the declaration. Nonetheless, South Africa as a democratic State observes, protects, and promotes the rights of all the citizens including the Khoi and San.
2. Yes, South Africa participated in the high-level plenary meeting of the General Assembly known as the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples held in 2014, which was attended by the Heads of State and government ministers. The main agreement was for States to take concrete action to achieve the ends of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
End
06 April 2023 - NW1074
Nodada, Mr BB to ask the Minister of Basic Education to ask the Minister of Basic Education
Whether her department reached the target to provide 3 898 schools with appropriate sanitation facilities through the Sanitation Appropriate for Education Initiative on 31 March 2022; if not, (a) why not, (b) what number of projects are still outstanding, (c) which schools’ facilities have not been completed, (d) on what date is it envisaged that each school project will be completed and (e) what type of sanitation facilities and/or toilets do the schools currently have; if so, what (i) type of facility and/or toilets will be provided for each school and (ii) costs are associated with each project?
Reply:
The 3898 schools on the SAFE programme have not been provided with appropriate sanitation facilities by 31 March 2022.
a) The Provincial Departments made several changes to the list. This may be due to the rationalisation of small & unviable schools, or due to further detailed assessments. The initial number of school assessed to be dependent on BASIC pit toilets, was 3 898. This number has been amended as more detailed information became available. Some schools were removed from the list, and other schools were added to the list. Even in 2022 and 2023, new schools were added to the SAFE Initiative. After revision, the current number of schools on the SAFE programme is 3 397.
b) Of these 3 397 schools, sanitation projects at 2 489 schools have already progressed to Practical Completion with either water-borne or dry sanitation solutions; resulting in 908 schools remaining in the SAFE programme.
c) A list of the 908 schools can be made available.
d) The outstanding 908 sanitation projects are scheduled for completion during the 2023/24 financial year.
e) All the schools that were part of the 3 397 schools, that were part of the SAFE programme, had BASIC PIT TOILETS. As stated above, some of these schools received flush toilets (where there is sustainable water supply), and dry sanitation solution |(where there is water scarcity).
(i) Among the remaining 908 SAFE projects, schools with sustainable water supply, may receive flush toilets; and schools without a sustainable water supply, will in general receive VENTILATED IMPROVED PIT TOILETS, that conform to the requirements of SANS 10400 Q. We are working with the Water Research Commission to pilot other innovative technologies, which included closed-circuit flush toilets.
(ii) Average construction cost per school, is in the order of R2.4 million, including VAT, the demolition of basic pit toilets, all earthworks, building works, and the construction of walkways and retaining walls.
06 April 2023 - NW723
Spies, Ms ERJ to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Whether she has any powers to take any measures against municipalities to deal with concerns around the appointment of officials under investigation and/or whose disciplinary processes have not yet been finalised by a previous municipal employer; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are (a) her powers and (b) steps has she taken?
Reply:
Yes. If the Minister receives concerns about the appointment of municipal officials, section 106 of the Municipal Systems Act, 2000, as amended, (the Act) empowers the Minister to refer the concerns to the MEC for local government under whose jurisdiction the municipality falls for investigation and to make appropriate recommendations to the relevant municipal council.
a) nNotwithstanding the above, section 57A of the Act empowers the Minister to maintain a record of all staff members dismissed for misconduct and to make such record available to municipalities before they finalise their recruitment and selection proceses. Candidates shortlisted by municipalities are screened against the record kept by the Minister.
Sections 54A(8) and 56(6) of the Act prescribe that if a person is appointed as municipal manager or manager directly accountable to municipal manager in contravention of the Act, the MEC must within 14 days of receiving the appointment report take appropriate steps to enforce compliance by the municipal council with the Act, which steps may include an application to a court for a declaratory order on the validity of the contract, or any other legal action against the municipal council.The Act empowers the Minister upon becoming aware to take such appropriate steps if the MEC fails to take appropriate steps.
b) N/A.
End.
06 April 2023 - NW663
Komane, Ms RN to ask the Minister of Tourism
(1) What reasons has she found lie behind the delays in configuring the process between Brand SA and Tourism SA; (2) whether both Ministries and boards have met to engage on the proposed merger; if not, why not; if so, how long will the engagements take?
Reply:
(1) and (2)
I have discussed the matter with the Minister in the Presidency responsible for BrandSA.
It appears that there was no Cabinet decision on the matter as it had never served in Cabinet.
Furthermore, consultations with affected and interested parties had not been concluded.
06 April 2023 - NW717
Xaba-Ntshaba, Ms PP to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
What key initiatives is her department undertaking with traditional leaders to strengthen support for local governance?
Reply:
Following the adoption of the District Development Model (DDM), the Department of Traditional Affairs developed a guideline on the participation of Local Houses of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders in the DDM. The Department continues to use the guideline to support and promote the role of traditional leaders in the DDM. Secondly, the Department of Traditional Affairs and the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders (NHTKL) are finalizing a Memorandum of Understanding with the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) which will assist in strengthening and harmonizing relations between traditional leadership and municipalities. This is one of the resolutions taken at the Local Government Summit that was held last year.
Furthermore, Section 81 of the Municipal Structures Act has been amended to provide greater clarity on the participation of traditional leaders in municipal governance. Before the amendment, concerns were raised, among others, about the lack of specific provisions that would guide provinces to ensure effective implementation. Finally, the Department has also put in place Guidelines on the participation of traditional leadership in municipal lntegrated Development Planning) IDP processes, and these provide a simplified uniform approach for involving traditional councils in the planning processes of municipalities.
End.
06 April 2023 - NW864
Matumba, Mr A to ask the Minister of Tourism
What total (a) number of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) were supported by her department to exhibit in Meetings Africa 2023 and (b) budget was spent to support SMMEs to participate in the specified event?
Reply:
(a) I have been informed by the Department that the total number of small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) that were supported by the Department to exhibit in Meetings Africa 2023 were Eighteen (18).
(b) Participation and exhibition cost of R1 065 552,95 has been paid by the Department.
The Department is awaiting final invoices for the approved flights and accommodation of supported enterprises, as well as outstanding claims from some of the supported enterprises for costs incurred on ground transport and shuttle services.
Thus the total estimated cost of support for the 18 enterprises that participated at Meetings Africa 2023 is not finalised.
06 April 2023 - NW154
Mathulelwa, Ms B to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
(a) On what date will the coronation of the amaXhosa King be held and (b) what are the relevant details in this regard? NW159
Reply:
The coronation of a King or Queen is the competence of the Royal Family concerned and government participates based on the invitation from the relevant Royal Family. At this point, the Department has not been informed of the coronation that the Honourable Member is referring to nor do we have any further details to that effect.
End
06 April 2023 - NW1079
Mokgotho, Ms SM to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
What (a) is the total number of employees of the George Local Municipality who have (i) faced disciplinary hearings, (ii) resigned and (iii) been dismissed from their jobs since the appointment of Dr Michelle Gratz and (b) reasons were given for their resignations, dismissals and disciplinary hearings?
Reply:
The total number of George Local Municipality workers who have gone through disciplinary proceedings, quit their jobs, or been fired since Dr. Michelle Gratz's appointment is not known to the department.
End.
06 April 2023 - NW725
Opperman, Ms G to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
What is the total number of persons that her department reported to the SA Police Service for causing the high number of deaths of initiates in the past 10 years?
Reply:
Through the office of the Deputy Minister which played a significant role in encouraging and supporting families to report to the South African Police Services (SAPS) to open criminal cases against Izincibi and Amakhankatha who have kidnapped and taken the under-age children to Initiation school without parental concert and permission.
According to the information at the disposal of the Department, received from the Provinces by the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders (NHTKL), through the South African Police Services (SAPS) and the National Prosecution Authority (NPA) from the year 2012 to 2018, there were two hundred and forty (240) arrests in relation to initiation related casualties.
The Honourable member is requested to note that according to section 31(1) of the Customary Initiation Act, 2021 (Act No. 2 of 2021) principals of initiation schools concerned are responsible for reporting the deaths of initiates.
In this regard, section 31 of the Act provides that if an initiate dies while attending an initiation school, the principal of such school must immediately inform among others, the South African Police Service.
End
06 April 2023 - NW780
De Freitas, Mr MS to ask the Minister of Tourism
What (a) are the dates on which the board meetings of the SA Tourism Boards were held, (b) was the budget allocation for each board meeting, (c) was the expenditure for each board meeting and (d) are the details of each expenditure item for each board meeting that was held (i) in the past three financial years and (ii) since 1 January 2023?
Reply:
(b) I have been informed that the organisation has an annual budget for all Board expenses, inclusive of Board Fees and Travel and Accommodation expenditure. Budgets are not allocated per meeting. The breakdown of responses for questions (a), (c) and (d) are tabulated, below.
(i) 2020-2021
(a) What are the dates on which the board meetings of SA Tourism Boards were held |
(c) What was the expenditure for each board meeting |
(d) What are the details of each expenditure item for each board meeting that was held: |
|
Board remuneration/Board Fees |
Travel and Accommodation |
||
15 April 2020 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
20 April 2020 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
21 April 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
24 April 2020 |
R20 031.00 |
R20 031.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
28 April 2020 |
R17 412.00 |
R17 412.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
30 April 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
05 May 2020 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
07 May 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
14 May 2020 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
26/30 June 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
08 July 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
06 August 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
19 August 2020 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
22 September 2020 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
30 September 2020 |
R22 650.00 |
R22 650.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
22/23 October 2020 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
7 December 2020 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
29 January 2021 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
02 February 2021 |
R22 650.00 |
R22 650.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
31 March 2021 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
(i) 2021-2022
(a) What are the dates on which the board meetings of SA Tourism Boards were held |
(c) What was the expenditure for each board meeting |
(d) What are the details of each expenditure item for each board meeting that was held: |
|
Board remuneration/Board Fees |
Travel and Accommodation |
||
29 April 2021 |
R34 824.00 |
R34 824.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
28 May 2021 |
R29 586.00 |
R29 586.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
29 July 2021 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
19 August 2021 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
03 September 2021 |
R17 412.00 |
R17 412.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
15 September 2021 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
22 September 2021 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
04 October 2021 |
R33 126.00 |
R33 126.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
22 &23 October 2021 |
R77 694.8 |
R53157 |
R24 537.80 |
28 October 2021 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
10 November 2021 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
22 November 2021 |
R25 269.00 |
R25 269.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
27 November 2021 |
R27 888.00 |
R27 888.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
14 December 2021 |
R20 031.00 |
R20 031.00 |
N/A – Virtual Meeting |
27 January 2022 |
R81018,95 |
R30507.00 |
R50 511. 95 |
(i) 2022-2023
(a) What are the dates on which the board meetings of SA Tourism Boards were held |
(c) What was the expenditure for each board meeting |
(d) What are the details of each expenditure item for each board meeting that was held: |
|
Board remuneration/Board Fees |
Travel and Accommodation |
||
25 April 2022 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
Virtual meeting |
27 May 2022 |
R30 507.00 |
R30 507.00 |
Virtual Meeting |
29 July 2022 |
R0 |
R0 |
No Board (ACEO appointed as the Accounting Authority) |
13-16 September 2022 |
R190633,51 |
R45300 |
R145333,51 |
21 September 2022 |
R22650 |
R22650 |
Virtual meeting |
23 September 2022 |
R25269 |
R25269 |
Virtual Meeting |
26-28 September 2022 |
R337757,66 |
R50538 |
R287 219.66 |
3 October 2022 |
R17412 |
R17412 |
Virtual Meeting |
27 October 2022 |
R73453,81 |
R27888.00 |
R45 565.81 |
04 November 2022 |
R58 661.74 |
R27888.00 |
R30 773.74 |
19-20 November 2022 |
R176 094.00 |
R61014 |
R115 080.00 |
25 November 2022 |
R23809 |
R23809 |
Virtual Meeting |
01 December 2022 |
R47902,85 |
R27888.00 |
R20014.85 |
03 December 2022 |
R27888.00 |
R27888.00 |
Virtual Meeting |
22 December 2022 |
R20 031.00 |
R20 031.00 |
Virtual Meeting |
(ii) Since 1 January 2023
(a) What are the dates on which the board meetings of SA Tourism Boards were held |
(c) What was the expenditure for each board meeting |
(d) What are the details of each expenditure item for each board meeting that was held: |
|
Board remuneration/Board Fees |
Travel and Accommodation |
||
16 January 2023 |
R20031 |
R20031 |
Virtual Meeting |
27 January 2023 |
R94167 |
R43656 |
R50 511.95 |
31 January 2023 |
R24526 |
R24526 |
Virtual meeting |
4 February 2023 |
R32620 |
R32620 |
Hybrid – No travelling members |
5 February 2023 |
R32620 |
R32620 |
Hybrid – No travelling members |
10 February 2023 |
R32620 |
R32620 |
Hybrid – No travelling members |
16 February 2023 |
R32620 |
R32620 |
Hybrid – No travelling members |
26 February 2023 |
R23332 |
R23332 |
Virtual Meeting |
1 March 2023 |
R79158,32 |
R26030 |
R53128.32 |
06 April 2023 - NW950
Sithole, Mr KP to ask the Minister of Tourism
Whether, in view of the fact that South Africans are paying 30% to 55% more for local flights than they did in 2019, with travel spend on tickets for domestic flights nationwide having increased six times more than that on international flights, her department has had any communication with the various airlines and the Airports Company South Africa on interventions to limit price increases during a cost-of-living crisis; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
I have been informed that neither the Department nor the SA Tourism has had any communication or engagements with the Airports Company (ACSA) or the various airlines to limit the price increases.
The issue of pricing lies solely with the airlines, in conjunction with ACSA.
05 April 2023 - NW760
Clarke, Ms M to ask the Minister of Health
(1)For each province, what (a) total number of nurses have been terminated due to their registration lapsing at the Health Professions Council of South Africa and (b) has been the reasons for the registration lapses; (2) given the critical shortage of nurses, what steps have been taken to assist nurses with their lapsed registration?
Reply:
1. The honourable member should note that nurses do not register with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), but with the South African Nursing Council (SANC).
(a)-(b) As per the information received from the SANC, the total number of nurses whose membership was terminated or their names removed due to their registration lapsing is 21 332 over the period of 2021 to 2022, as per the table below. The reasons are also reflected in the very table below.
Table 1.
|
Reason for removal |
|||||
Province |
Deceased |
Removed - Administratively |
Removed - At own request |
Removed - Disciplinary |
Removed - Non-payment of annual fee |
Grand Total |
Eastern Cape |
14 |
2 |
8 |
1 |
3020 |
3045 |
Free State |
|
|
3 |
|
1086 |
1089 |
Gauteng |
24 |
3 |
32 |
5 |
5257 |
5321 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
39 |
5 |
27 |
0 |
4708 |
4779 |
Limpopo |
16 |
|
2 |
3 |
1622 |
1643 |
Mpumalanga |
2 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
929 |
934 |
North-West |
8 |
|
5 |
|
1362 |
1375 |
Northern Cape |
1 |
|
0 |
1 |
343 |
345 |
Outside RSA |
|
|
4 |
|
84 |
88 |
Western Cape |
7 |
6 |
21 |
0 |
2679 |
2713 |
Grand Total |
111 |
18 |
103 |
10 |
21090 |
21332 |
2. In order to assist nurses with their lapsed registration, the Department has successfully signed Resolution 3 of 2019 at the Public Health and Social Development Sectoral Bargaining Council (PHSDSBC) which is an agreement on payment of annual statutory registration fees in respect of health and social development professionals (including Nurses)
The objective of the Resolution amongst others is to:
- Introduce mandatory deductions of professional registration fees from salary of employees by PERSAL as required by the respective statutory professional bodies in the Health and Social Development Departments.
- Assist in the monitoring of potential risks and compliance with registration requirement for appointment and practice as stipulated in the respective Statutory Professional bodies in the departments
END.
05 April 2023 - NW761
Clarke, Ms M to ask the Minister of Health
(1)With reference to his reply to question 2091 on 17 June 2022, and given the vacancy rate of 27 137 doctors, nurses and Emergency Medical Services personnel in the Republic, (a) what are the main reasons for the massive number of vacancies, especially nurses, (b) what steps have been taken by his department to fill the specified positions, (c) in which provinces will the positions be filled and (d) what total number of each position will be filled; (2) what (a) are the reasons that medical students are still struggling to be placed into internships, given the specified vacancies and (b) practical solutions and/or plans will be put in place to ensure that no one is left behind; (3) what (a) are the reasons that intern doctors are still struggling to be placed into community service, given the vacancies and (b) practical solutions and/or plans will be put in place to ensure that no one is left behind; (4) given the total number of foreign medical personnel employed in the Republic, what are the reasons that South African medical personnel who qualified and trained in foreign countries are struggling to obtain accreditation from the Health Professions Council of South Africa?
Reply:
1. The response to parliamentary question 2091 that which was provided on 17 June 2022 indicated a total vacancy posts of 27 137 for doctors, nurses and emergency medical services personnel in the Republic. As of 28 February 2023, there were 18 804 vacant posts of doctors, nurses and medical care personnel. This demonstrates a 31% achievement rate in the filling of vacant posts.
a) The main reason for the recorded vacant posts is general budget cuts introduced by National Treasury. These cuts also affect Compensation of Employment (CoE) negatively resulting in not all posts being filled simultaneously.
b) As demonstrated above in order to reduce the vacancy rate by 31%, the Department introduced several interventions which amongst others, include:
- (i) Prioritisation of the posts in the Annual Recruitment Plan – where funding permits;
- (ii) Prioritisation of the posts for conditional grant funding;
- (iii) Filling of replacement posts considered and approved weekly;
- (v) Advertisements published National wide through print media.
c) Filling of these vacant posts will be prioritised in all provinces as per above method to ensure that there is no over expenditure of Compensation of Employment (CoE).
d) Posts are prioritised according to the availability of funding and the Annual Recruitment Plan as informed by the service delivery model.
2. (a) The Department working together with Provincial Departments of Health and National Treasury has put in place mechanisms to ensure that all eligible South African Citizens and Permanent Residents are allocated to accredited medical internship positions within the Cycle that applicants qualify for. This is evident by the conclusion of allocating 2 505 medical interns applicants in the January Annual Cycle 2023.
Only 55 applicants are still to be allocated as they were not eligible due to various reasons e.g., applicants declining the posts and preferring to wait for the next cycle.
(b) All eligible applicants will again be given an opportunity during the Midyear Cycle which will start on the 1 July 2023.
3. (a) The Department working together with Provincial Departments of Health and National Treasury has put in place methods to ensure that all eligible South African Citizens and Permanent Residents are allocated to medical community service positions within the Cycle applicants qualify in. This is evident by the conclusion of allocating 2 509 medical community service applicants in the January Annual Cycle 2023.
(b) All other eligible applicants, who met the allocation requirements later, will again be given an opportunity during the Midyear Cycle which will start on the 1 July 2023.
(4) Registration of foreign qualified medical applicants with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA) is a multi-layered process. The HPCSA has to satisfy itself that applicants studied in legally recognized Institutions, by both the health and regulatory authorities of the countries of training. Applicants are required to submit several documents that will assist the HPCSA to establish their competency, including the hours that they would have spent in training and the domain training completed. As most of them study in non-English speaking countries, for example China, Russia and Turkey, documents have to be translated into English and notarized before the HPCSA can submit them to relevant committees of the board to make a determination about the equivalence of their training to that provided in South Africa. Any delays in one of the steps in this process ordinarily lengths the processing of applications.
END.
05 April 2023 - NW776
Masipa, Mr NP to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
With reference to her reply to question 2356 on 11 January 2022, what are the reasons that the drafting of the bill (a) has not been completed and (b) is contemplated to be put out to tender after a period of one year has lapsed?
Reply:
a) It has come to the Department’s observation that there is a significant amount of research that needs to be conducted to ensure that the ultimate legislation is modern and is not misleading. With limited capacity within the Department and dependency on the Animal Welfare working group, comprising of veterinarians from the national and provincial departments, this has led to delays in finalising the bill.
b) The Animal Welfare working group has drafted the first version of the Bill, which is now being studied carefully for the purpose of benchmarking the draft against international best practices and the latest research publications on animal welfare. With such investigations being necessary the Department is considering placing the project on tender especially because time has elapsed since the completion of the draft.
05 April 2023 - NW1048
Masipa, Mr NP to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
What happened to the remedial actions that were prescribed by the Public Protector South Africa Report 112 of 2019/20, relating to the (a) Tshwale land claim and (b) Pheeha land claim?
Reply:
(a),(b) Public Protector recommended that the matter be referred to court. The Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development implemented Public Protector’s remedial actions by referring the matter to court under case number LCC15/2020.
END
05 April 2023 - NW814
Hlengwa, Ms MD to ask the Minister of Health
(1)Whether, in view of Gauteng reportedly having 47 confirmed cases of measles, North West 157, Mpumalanga 97 and Limpopo with the highest number of infections recorded at 167, his department is taking any steps towards containing the outbreak; if not, why not; if so, what steps; (2) whether his department has considered an immunisation drive at all schools, primarily primary schools; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
(1) The Department is taking the following epidemiological responses to contain measles outbreak:
a) Measles campaign vaccination
Nationwide mass measles vaccination campaign is conducted in all 52 districts to contain outbreak by administering additional measles dose to all children from 6 months to 15 years regardless of their previous history of measles vaccination.
b) Epidemiological and clinical management of cases and contacts.
- All confirmed measles outbreak cases are epidemiologically investigated through field visits, and support to the affected areas are provided by both provincial and national teams.
- All suspected measles outbreaks are confirmed by the National Institute of Communicable Diseases (NICD) to be due to measles virus infection.
- There is clinical management of cases including isolation, administration of Vitamin A, management of complications and follow-up of close contacts.
c) Intensified Measles surveillance
- Measles surveillance is intensified to actively seek additional cases both in public and private health facilities.
- Health workers are urged to be on the alert to detect, investigate and appropriately manage cases.
- There is an ongoing full investigations of possible outbreaks in non-affected districts and urgent measures to strengthen surveillance are implemented.
d) Enhanced communication
Various Risk Communication and Community Engagement platforms are used to raise awareness in the communities about the disease and its prevention - and alerted to report people with measles symptoms and to ensure that children are fully vaccinated according to the national schedule.
e) Establishment of Outbreak Response teams
Outbreak teams have been established at district, provincial and national levels. The following work streams have been established within the national outbreak response team:
- Case management (including contact tracing)
- Surveillance and reporting
- Risk Communication and Community Engagement
- Supplementary vaccination campaign planning and execution – includes vaccine procurement and data management sub-streams.
(b) Children from 6 months to 15 years are given an additional measles dose at Early Development Centres, Primary schools and High schools.
END.
05 April 2023 - NW763
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
(1)What number of times has the anti-corruption forum within the health sector (HSACF) met in each year since it was established in 2018; (2) what (a) number of allegations of corruption have (i) been referred to the forum and (ii) resulted in investigations by the HSACF in each year since 2018 and (b) was the nature of the allegations, such as fraud, maladministration and/or corruption; (3) what number of the specified investigations have resulted in (a) successful criminal prosecutions, (b) civil recoveries, (c) medical practitioners struck off the roll, (d) medical aid scheme sanctions emanating from HSACF referrals in each case, (4) what specified preventative and/or risk-management measures were implemented by the HSACF?
Reply:
1. The Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum (HSACF) has convened its meetings on Nine (09) occasions since 2018, below is the details of the meetings:
# |
Date of Meeting |
1. |
23 August 2018 |
2. |
20 November 2018 |
3. |
27 November 2019 |
4. |
21 May 2019 |
5. |
30 June 2020 |
6. |
02 December 2020 |
7. |
29 June 2021 |
8. |
30 March 2022 |
9. |
21 September 2022 |
In addition, the HSACF has established the Steering Committee that has been mandated to assess all health-related corruption allegations that have been reported. The Steering Committee serves as an operational structure of HSACF and meets more frequently or as and when there are new allegations that has been reported, which requires to go through assessment process.
2. (a) Number of allegations of corruption have (i) been referred to the forum and (ii) resulted in investigations by the HSACF in each year since 2018.
- A total number of eleven (11) allegations were reported to the HSACF in 2018/19/20. All allegations were referred to the relevant entities who are part of the HSACF for formal investigations as per their legislative mandate.
- A total number of twelve (12) allegations were reported to the HSACF in 2020/21. All allegations were referred to the relevant entities who are part of the HSACF for formal investigations as per their legislative mandate.
- A total number of five (05) allegations were reported to the HSACF in 2021/22. All allegations were referred to the relevant entities who are part of the HSACF for formal investigations as per their legislative mandate.
- One (01) allegation was reported to the HSACF in 2022/23. The allegation was referred to the relevant entity who is part of the HSACF for formal investigations as per their legislative mandate.
3. The HSACF has registered quite a significant investigations outcomes or successes in twelve (12) matters that were reported to the Forum and formally investigated by member entities. The below table highlight some of the successes in terms of criminal prosecution, civil recoveries, and medical aid sanctions:
# |
Entity Investigated |
Investigation Outcomes |
1 |
Health Professional Council of South Africa |
|
2 |
Provision of Aero Medical & Patient Transport – NW |
|
3 |
Provision of Aero Medical & Patient Transport – FS |
|
4 |
National Health Laboratory Services |
|
5 |
Council for Medical Schemes |
|
6 |
Office of the State Attorney |
Focus Area 1: Maladministration in connection with the affairs of the office of the State Attorney in relation to― (a) legal services that were provided, or procured, by the office of the State Attorney in the performance of its functions as contemplated in section 3 of the State Attorney Act, 1957 (Act No. 56 of 1957), on behalf of― (i) the Gauteng Department of Health and the Eastern Cape Department of Health in respect of claims based on medical negligence; Legal Practitioners
Medical negligence cases in Court.
Focus Area 2: Maladministration in connection with the affairs of the office of the State Attorney in relation to ― the South African Police Service in respect of claims based on wrongful arrest or detention, assault, or malicious prosecution.
Focus Area 3: The procurement of legal services, as contemplated in paragraph 2(a) of this Schedule, by the office of the State Attorney, or payments which were made in respect thereof, in a manner that was― (a) not fair, competitive, transparent, equitable or cost-effective; or (b) contrary to manuals, policies, procedures, prescripts, instructions or practices of, or applicable to the office of the State Attorney, and any related unauthorised, irregular or fruitless and wasteful expenditure which the Department or the State incurred as a result thereof.
Focus Area 4: Irregular conduct by— (a) employees or officials of the office of the State Attorney; or (b) any other person or entity, relating to the allegations referred to in paragraphs 2 or 3 of this Schedule."
|
7 |
South African Health Product Regulatory Authority |
|
8 |
National Department of Health Medico Legal Claims |
|
9 |
National Department of Health |
|
10 |
Government Employee Medical Scheme (GEMS) |
|
11 |
COVID-19 National Proclamation |
|
12 |
Pretoria Eye Institute |
|
4. Specified preventative and/or risk-management measures were implemented by the HSACF
- A series of webinars were successfully rolled out in 2020/21FY under the banner of HSACF Corruption Prevention Program with the following objectives:
- To create public awareness about corruption in the health sector
- To profile the Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum (HSACF)
- To raise awareness about whistleblowing and witness protection
Amongst the thematic areas in relation to health sector corruption that were discussed include the following:
- The corruption pandemic in South Africa’s health sector
- National Health Insurance (NHI) and its vulnerability to corruption
- Combatting corruption in the private health sector
- When corruption and Covid-19 intersect
- Unpacking whistleblowing protection in South Africa
2. Collaboration with UNODC to implement corruption prevention programs in South Africa’s health sector.
- The HSACF is collaborating with the UNODC to implement corruption prevention initiatives in the health sector, which include strengthening whistleblowing/reporting mechanism and corruption risk assessments. Two (2) health sector entities were identified to implement these projects.
- These entities include HPCSA where a pilot project will be implemented on strengthening their internal whistleblowing/reporting channels and National Department of Health where corruption risk assessments will be implemented in particular around procurement.
3. Corruption Risk Mitigation Plan for COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-Out
- The COVID-19 Corruption Risk Mitigation Plan (CRIMP) was initiated to supports the National Covid-19 Vaccine Roll-Out Plan, led by the Inter-Ministerial Committee, chaired by the Deputy President
- The key objective of CRIMP was to develop and implement a specific anti-corruption lens on the roll-out of the vaccine taking lessons from the PPE investigations.
- The development of the CRIMP was led by DPME, working closely Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum, convened by the SIU under the ACTT Prog 4.
The specific purpose of CRIMP was to enhance and complement existing efforts by providing:
- Framework and template to assess COVID-19 Vaccine corruption risks.
- Consolidate and Assess (“hack”/stress test) the workstream plans into a single, living anti-corruption risk mitigation plan.
- Act as coordination interface between the IMC work streams and specialist anti-corruption capacity (such as ACTT and its Fusion Centre) where required.
- Act as coordination interface with civil society, business, and labour; and optimise the existing mechanisms (e.g., with the SIU led Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum) on broadening the anti-corruption response.
END.
05 April 2023 - NW706
Breedt, Ms T to ask the Minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development
(1)With reference to the statement issued by Onderstepoort Biological Products that a number of animal vaccines that currently are out of stock, will be in stock by the end of February 2023, (a) what is the current status of the specified vaccines, (b) could a list be made available of the vaccines that are (i) in stock now and (ii) still out of stock and (c) by what date does she envisage the vaccines will be available; (2) whether, with regard to the vaccines that are still out of stock, any vaccines are available from other countries; if not, why not; if so, (a) which vaccines, (b) from which country and (c) will they be imported from such countries; (3) what long term solution does her department have to satisfactorily meet the vaccine demands?
Reply:
(1)(a) The current status of specified vaccines available is as follows:
VACCINES IN STOCK |
AVAILABILITY (Y)/(N) |
COMMENT |
Anaplasmosis |
Yes |
N/A |
Heartwater |
Yes |
N/A |
Redwater Asiatic |
Yes |
N/A |
Redwater African |
Yes |
N/A |
Anthrax |
Yes |
N/A |
Black Quarter |
Yes |
N/A |
Pasteurella |
Yes |
N/A |
Elephant Skin Disease |
Yes |
N/A |
Tetanus |
Yes |
N/A |
Bluetongue |
Yes |
Product available in stock but already invoiced to a client |
African Horse Sickness |
No |
Product going into production on the week ending 17 March 2023 and available on the market the week ending 7 April 2023. |
Lumpy Skin Disease |
No |
Product available end April 2023. |
Pulpy Kidney Alum |
No |
Product available end April 2023 |
Brucella S19 |
No |
Product available end May 2023. |
Brucella Rev 1 |
No |
Product available end May 2023. |
Rift Valley Fever Live |
Yes |
Product available in stock – minimum quantities, in planned production |
Rift Valley Fever Inactivated |
Yes |
Product available in stock more than 500 000doses |
Botulism |
No |
Product available end April 2023. |
(b)(i),(ii) List of vaccines in stock and not in stock. Please refer to the table below. Please refer to the table below.
(i) VACCINES IN STOCK |
(ii) VACCINES NOT IN STOCK |
Anaplasmosis |
Bluetongue |
Heartwater |
African Horse Sickness |
Redwater Asiatic |
Lumpy Skin Disease |
Redwater African |
Pulpy Kidney Alum |
Anthrax |
Brucella S19 |
Black Quarter |
Brucella Rev 1 |
Elephant Skin Disease |
Rift Valley Fever Live |
Tetanus |
Rift Valley Fever Inactivated |
Botulism |
- Expected date on which vaccines currently not in stock would be available: Please refer to the table below.
Vaccine |
Expected Date of Delivery to the Market |
Bluetongue |
Product awaiting Quality Control results due the week ending 10 March 2023. Product to be distributed to the market week ending the 24 March 2023. |
African Horse Sickness |
Product going into production on the week ending 17 March 2023 and available on the market the week ending 7 April 2023. |
Lumpy Skin Disease |
Product expected delivery date end April 2023. |
Pulpy Kidney Alum |
Product expected delivery date end April 2023. |
Brucella S19 |
Product expected delivery date end May 2023. |
Brucella Rev 1 |
Product expected delivery date end May 2023. |
Rift Valley Fever Live |
Product awaiting packaging and will be available to the market the week ending 17 March 2023. |
Rift Valley Fever Inactivated |
Product awaiting packaging and will be available to the market the week ending 17 March 2023. |
Botulism |
Product expected delivery date end April 2023. |
All vaccines above are scheduled for production in March 2023 and April 2023, and to undergo quality testing in April 2023 and May 2023.
2. The other vaccines that may replace unavailable vaccines are imported products of companies from other countries. Bluetongue, African Horse Sickness and probably Rift Valley Fever, as far as we know are only produced at OBP. Vaccines such as Brucella S19 may be replaced with vaccines from companies such as MSD Animal Health which makes available a vaccine known as RB 51 which has the advantage that it can be given to animals older than 8 months. A vaccine such as S19 normally has a restricted age of between 4 and 8 months. S19 provides much longer protection. Botulism may be available from combination vaccines from similar pharmaceutical companies. All other vaccines may have alternative products.
3. The Department is supporting the Entity in its three-pronged long-term strategy to satisfactorily meet market vaccine demands. The four-pronged strategy as approved by the entity includes:
- Implementing a sustainable planned and preventative maintenance programme;
- Seven-year critical equipment recapitalisation plan;
- Finding an alternative manufacturing site for its vaccines;
- Completing the Current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) facility project; and
- To augment the Entity’s strategy, the Department will also be looking at ways of supporting the entity in its renewable energy initiative as well as infrastructure recapitalisation programme.
05 April 2023 - NW828
Hlengwa, Ms MD to ask the Minister of Health
With regard to the reported increase in Cholera outbreaks in the Republic as of 28 February 2023, with a total of six confirmed cases, including one death, having been reported in Gauteng (details furnished), what steps is his department taking towards containing the outbreak?
Reply:
Steps the department has taken to raise awareness amongst the public about the prevention and management of cholera.
After the WHO reported that the cholera outbreak had occurred in Malawi and Mozambique, and other countries in the SADC regions, the National Department of Health alerted all the provinces about the cholera outbreak. The provinces were requested to use the risk assessment and contingency plan tools to assess their capacity for preparedness and readiness for cholera outbreak. The National Department of Health met with the provinces to discuss the plans and actions required in preventing and controlling the spread of cholera. Steps that were taken to raise awareness amongst the public about the prevention and management of cholera are outlined below as follows:
a) Prevention and Control
The National Department of Health has activated the Multisectoral National Outbreak Response Teams (MNORT), which includes members from the National Department of Health, National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD), provinces and the World Health Organization (WHO). The focus areas include surveillance; water, sanitation and hygiene; social mobilisation; Risk Communication and Community Engagement. The MNORT meetings are held on weekly basis (Fridays) to discuss the ongoing cholera outbreak in the country.
- A public announcement was made to inform and alert the public about the outbreak of cholera.
- All provinces received cholera guidelines and case investigation forms.
b) Surveillance
Disease surveillance, preparedness and outbreak response activities to detect outbreaks rapidly are ongoing in the provinces and at national level.
c) Water and sanitation interventions
The long-term solution for cholera control lies in access to safe drinking water and adequate sanitation. Actions targeting environmental conditions including the implementation of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) solutions to ensure use of safe water, basic sanitation and good hygiene practices in cholera hotspots are being addressed.
d) Community Engagement
Community engagements were conducted in all provinces, and distribution of Information, Education, and Communication (IEC) pamphlets and posters to teach the public about potential risks, symptoms of cholera, precautions to take to avoid cholera, when and where to report cases and to seek immediate treatment when symptoms appear continues to take place.
Awareness was raised about prevention through:
- Development and distribution of posters and flyers
- Giving health talks on community radio stations
- Cholera prevention and management messages were shared using departmental social media.
- Continuous health education is conducted in health facilities.
END.
05 April 2023 - NW764
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
Whether he will provide Mrs E R Wilson with a list of the name of each (a) hospital and (b) clinic that is (i) currently exempted from load shedding and (ii) next in line to be exempted in each province in each case; if not, why not; if so, (aa) what are the relevant details and (bb) on what date will each hospital and clinic be exempted?
Reply:
a) Not all hospitals have been exempted from the load-shedding. However, the National Department of Health has provided Eskom with a total of 213 hospitals to be considered for possible exclusion from loadshedding. About 67% of these hospitals are supplied by municipalities while Eskom supplies about 33% of the identified hospitals. Out of the 213 hospitals, 76 hospitals have been exempted of which 26 are directly supplied by Eskom and 50 by Municipalities. The number of hospitals exempted to date have doubled since the meeting held on 22 September 2022 between Eskom and National Department of Health. To date, there are 7 hospitals exempted in Eastern Cape, 9 in Limpopo, 15 in KZN, 4 in Mpumalanga, 4 in Western Cape, 2 in Northern Cape, 3 in North West, 14 in Free State, and 18 in Gauteng provinces. Should there be a need of hospitals names per province, a breakdown list of hospitals is available on request.
b) Load-shedding has a negative impact to the provision of health services at primary health facilities, hospitals, community health centres, clinics, EMS centres including the forensic laboratories. In order to reduce the impact of load-shedding, the National Department of Health is seeking for the financial support to assist with the effective delivery of the following areas:
(i) Additional funding support for fuel, oil including the servicing of generators. The hospitals have been forced to use its budget on fuel, oil and medical gas just to keep healthcare facilities running. With persistent stage 6 load-shedding, greater energy demand is placed on generator capability which requires increased fuel consumption and vast expenditure.
(ii) Additional funding support for the installation of dedicated lines for certain key hospitals that are deeply embedded within the Eskom’s or Municipal networks rendering exclusion impossible in their current state as bigger loads are to be exempted.
(iii) Additional funding support for the roll-out of the solar energy + battery storage as back-up supply to all the clinics, CHC’s, hospitals, EMS centres including the forensic laboratories.
END.
05 April 2023 - NW762
Wilson, Ms ER to ask the Minister of Health
(1)Whether the Republic attended the first draft deliberations on the Pandemic Treaty of the World Health Organisation on 1 August 2022; if not, why not; if so, who was the Republic’s representative at the deliberations; (2) whether the Republic submitted observations and proposed amendments to the draft before the end of October 2022; if not, why not; if so, what were the relevant details of all the observations and proposed amendments; (3) whether the Republic attended the second draft deliberations and adoption on 7 December 2022; if not, why not; if so, who were the Republic’s representatives?
Reply:
1. The Pandemic Treaty deliberation are still in the conceptualisation of a Zero Draft framework and negotiations have not yet commenced. South Africa participated in discussions focussing on the development of the Conceptual Draft Document which is a framework and outline of the envisaged pandemic instrument that looks at background, methodology and approach to be used during the development of the negotiation tool. South Africa was represented by our Health Attache to Geneva and the United Nations, Ms Lebogang Lebese, who is based in the South African Mission in Geneva.
2. South Africa is championing the cause of access and equity in pandemic preparedness and response. Therefore, the technical input to the Conceptual Zero draft referred to above, was centred around strengthening of the framework in the areas of “operationalisation of the instrument and on achieving equity” with emphasis on seven types of equitable access on Tools; Essential Supplies (strengthening supply chains and shortening supply lines); Financing; Vaccines; Health Workforce; Disease Surveillance and detection of zoonotic and environmental risks; and Equitable ramping up and diversification of manufacturing.
3. The Pandemic instrument discussions have not yet reached the stage of discussing a second draft. South Africa participated in further discussion on developing the Conceptual Zero Draft framework and was represented by our Health Attache, who was also joined by our Ambassador Mr Mxolisi Nkosi, the South African Permanent Representative to the United Nations office in Geneva and other international organisations in Switzerland.
END.
04 April 2023 - NW675
Motsepe, Ms CCS to ask the Minister of Public Service and Administration
What (a) is the current rate of vacancies in the Public Service, (b) are the details of these vacancies in each department and (c) plans does his department have in place to fill the specified vacancies?
Reply:
a) The vacancy rate in the Public Service is 12.12% as at 31 December 2022 which is the end of the 3rd quarter of the 2022/2023 financial year (source PERSAL).
b) The list of vacant posts per salary level in National and Provincial Departments is attached as Annexure A and B.
c) The filling of a post within a department is the responsibility of the relevant Executive Authority in terms of Section 3(7) of the Public Service Act, 1994. The practice of recruitment is therefore decentralised to the relevant Executive Authority.
The Minister for the Public Service and Administration and the DPSA support departments through policy and setting of norms and standards in order to efficiently fill vacancies within the parameters of the legislative framework. The responsibility to fill such vacancies resides with the relevant Executive Authority.
End
04 April 2023 - NW425
Gondwe, Dr M to ask the Minister of Public Service and Administration
What (a) is the total number of public servants whose service has been terminated due to (i) resignation, (ii) death, (iii) transfer, (iv) normal retirement and (v) discharge from duty since 1 March 2020, (b) are the reasons for each termination and (c) is the (i) age and (ii) race of each employee?
Reply:
The service termination in the Public Service is administered through PERSAL system, which is the function that is decentralised to the Departments. Based on the available data on PERSAL as at 01 March 2023, the following information has been extracted in response to the parliamentary question:
(a)
(i) Resigned employees |
60 896 |
(ii) Deceased employees |
24 317 |
(iii) Transferred employees |
4 549* |
(iv) Normal retirement |
54 395 |
(iv) Discharged from duty |
8 548 |
* Transfer within the Public Service is not regarded as termination of service
(b) The available data on PERSAL does not provide any reasons for the normal retirement, death, transfer and discharge, but it provides reasons for resignations. The main reasons for resignations include better remuneration, resignation from position, other occupation, personal grievances and nature of work. The detailed list of reasons sourced from PERSAL is attached.
(c) (i) The table below reflects service terminations according to the age group
Age category |
<=20 |
21-30 |
31-40 |
41-50 |
51-55 |
56-60 |
61-65 |
66+ |
TOTAL |
Retirements |
0 |
37* |
19* |
25 |
865 |
23511 |
29777 |
161 |
54395 |
Discharged |
11 |
656 |
2136 |
2336 |
1816 |
1422 |
169 |
2 |
8548 |
Resignations |
242 |
12733 |
18664 |
12380 |
5509 |
7477 |
3799 |
92 |
60896 |
Deceased |
2 |
685 |
3192 |
7148 |
5970 |
5602 |
1694 |
24 |
24317 |
GRAND TOTAL |
255 |
14111 |
24011 |
21889 |
14160 |
38012 |
35439 |
279 |
148156 |
*This is how it is captured op PERSAL.
(ii) The table below reflects service terminations as per race category.
Race Category |
White |
Asian |
Coloured |
African |
Total |
Discharged |
847 |
301 |
1305 |
6095 |
8548 |
Retirements |
6879 |
1638 |
4444 |
41433 |
54395 |
Resignation |
7951 |
2064 |
7322 |
43559 |
60896 |
Deceased |
998 |
410 |
1 735 |
21 174 |
24 317 |
Grand Total |
16675 |
4413 |
14806 |
112261 |
148156 |
End
04 April 2023 - NW1090
Sithole, Mr KP to ask the Minister of Human Settlements
Whether she will furnish Mr K P Sithole with an update regarding the (a) Director-General, (b) Chief Operations Officer and (c) Chief Financial Officer of her department who have been put on paid leave, with some of the specified persons even having jobs in other departments; if not, why not; if so, (i) on what date is it envisaged that the persons will return to work and (ii) what are the further, relevant details?
Reply:
a) The matter of the Director-General is managed by the Presidency.
- Not applicable.
- Not applicable.
b) There is no Chief Operations Officer post in the National Department of Human Settlements.
- Not applicable.
- Not applicable.
c) The erstwhile Chief Financial Officer left the employ of the National Department of Human Settlements when her contract came to an end on 28 February 2022.
- Not applicable.
- Not applicable.
04 April 2023 - NW709
Gondwe, Dr M to ask the Minister of Public Service and Administration
(1)On what date was Mr Lubabalo Makapela appointed as the Eastern Cape Director of the National Rural Youth Service Corps; (2) whether his appointment was in line with human resources (a) recruitment and (b) selection processes; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) whether he possesses the necessary (a) qualifications and (b) experience for the position of the Eastern Cape Director of the National Rural Youth Service Corps; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (4) on what date did he (a) enrol and (b) obtain his certificate for the Nyukela course?
Reply:
As mentioned in the previous reply to parliamentary question 633 posed by Dr MM Gondwe (DA), the filling of posts within a department is the responsibility of the relevant Executive Authority in terms of Section 3(7) of the Public Service Act, 1994. The practice of recruitment is therefore decentralised to the relevant Executive Authority.
The information on the filling of the post (in terms of the minimum requirements) can be obtained directly from the relevant Department.
End
04 April 2023 - NW647
Ceza, Mr K to ask the Minister of Water and Sanitation
Whether he has instituted any investigation into allegations of fraud and maladministration by officials in his department’s finance division in relation to water allocation and use that is reserved for blacks for their own farming operations in Groot-Marico, and that a certain person (name furnished) has been using the water for his own farming operations; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
The Department of Water and Sanitation is aware of the allegations and referred the matter to the Internal Audit Unit for investigation.
---00O00---
04 April 2023 - NW591
Gondwe, Dr M to ask the Minister of Public Service and Administration
(a) What total number of interns were appointed in the (i) 2019-20, (ii) 2020-21 and (iii) 2021-22 financial years and (b) how were they appointed; (2) whether they were all recruited within the prescripts of the (a) Public Service Act of 1994 and/or (b) Public Service Regulations of 2016; if not, is there a reason for a deviation in the process of their recruitment; if so, what are the relevant details in each case?
Reply:
1. (a) The total number of interns and learners appointed during (i) 2019/20 is 25 711, (ii) 2020/21 is 22 347 and (iii) 2021/22 is 22 303.
The breakdown per province and national is as follows:
Provincial/ National Departments |
2019/20 |
2020/21 |
2021/22 |
Grand Total |
Eastern Cape |
4 441 |
4 654 |
2 555 |
11 650 |
Free State |
0 |
1 430 |
895 |
2 325 |
Gauteng |
1 888 |
3 079 |
2 122 |
7 089 |
KwaZulu-Natal |
2 592 |
3 337 |
5 155 |
11 084 |
Limpopo |
3 187 |
3 187 |
2 348 |
8 722 |
Mpumalanga |
912 |
824 |
680 |
2 416 |
National |
8 839 |
4 384 |
4 637 |
17 860 |
Northern Cape |
689 |
689 |
629 |
2 007 |
North-West |
693 |
593 |
526 |
1 812 |
Western Cape |
2 470 |
170 |
2 756 |
5 396 |
Total |
25 711 |
22 347 |
22 303 |
70 361 |
(b) Paragraph 6.2 of the Directive on Developmental programmes in the Public Service states “ in line with the principle of open competition for these opportunities ,an executive authority shall ensure that all opportunities for developmental programmes within his / her department are advertised openly as contemplated in Regulation 65 of the Public Service Regulations and the selection shall be in line with the principles pertaining to the selection process contained in Regulation 67 of the Public Service Regulations”.
2. Based on the above prescript (Paragraph 6: Recruitment of Candidates into Developmental Programmes) of the Directive on Development in the Public Service, which is aligned with the prescripts of the (a) Public Service Act of 1994 and/or (b) Public Service Regulations of 2016, it is expected that all Heads of Departments comply with the provisions of this Directive.
End
04 April 2023 - NW515
Faber, Mr WF to ask the Minister of Public Service and Administration
What (a) is the salary of each (i) chief executive officer and (ii) top executive position in each state-owned entity reporting to him and (b) total amount does each get paid to attend a meeting?
Reply:
a) state-owned entities do not account, and/or report to the Minister of Public Service and Administration.
b) The Minister of Public Service and Administration does not have powers pertaining to the appointments, remuneration and employment conditions of Chief Executive Officers and top executives of any state-owned entity. Therefore, this question should be addressed to the departments which play an oversight role against the state-owned entities, such as Public Enterprises, Minerals and Energy, etc.
End
03 April 2023 - NW722
Spies, Ms ERJ to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Whether her department has conducted any studies, evaluations and/or investigations to determine the feasibility of consolidating the various Public Employment Programmes of her department with regard to local government and traditional affairs to minimize resource wastage and expenditure on administrative costs; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details?
Reply:
Regarding the consolidation of state employment programs, no evaluation has been conducted. This is because the department only has one program for public work, the Community Works Program. Since the agency oversees a number of Public Employment Programs, the Parliamentary Question ought to be directed to the Minister of Public Works.
End.
03 April 2023 - NW716
Msimango, Mr X N to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Under which powers is she able to support local municipalities to manage land invasions and a rise in informal settlements, as land invasions significantly impact on spatial planning, local government planning and budgeting?
Reply:
Using SPLUMA provision 2.2, the Department of Agriculture Land Reform and Rural Development; the Department of Human Settlements is in charge of regulating the use of land and controls of land invasion and Municipal By-Laws, Spatial Development Frameworks and Land Use Schemes are used in conjunction with Planning Instruments to address irregular communities. Municipality is the authority of first instance. (Informal Settlements). Therefore, it is advised that it be moved or redirected to the Department of Human Settlements and the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform, and Rural Development.
End.
03 April 2023 - NW783
Ismail, Ms H to ask the Minister of International Relations and Cooperation
Whether the SA Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC) has been mandated by her department to act on behalf of the Muslims in the Republic; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, (2) Whether she will furnish Ms H Ismail with a copy of the agreement authorising SAHUC to act on behalf of Muslims; if not, what is the position in this regard; if so, what are the relevant details; (3) What are the terms and conditions of the mandate given to the SAHUC; (4) Whether her department deals with SAHUC as part of its operations; if not, why not; if so, (a) for how long is the mandate given to the SAHUC and (b) what is the validity of the mandate?
Reply:
1. No, the South African Hajj and Umrah Council (SAHUC) has not been mandated by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation to act on behalf of the Muslims in the Republic.
2. There is no agreement between the Department of International Relations and Cooperation and the SAHUC authorising SAHUC to act on behalf of Muslims.
3. The SAHUC has not received any mandate from the Department of International Relations and Cooperation.
4 Yes, the Department deals with SAHUC as part of its operations, insofar as the SAHUC as the Pilgrims’ Affairs Office of South Africa liaises with the South African Consulate-General in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, regarding Consular services such as deaths, injuries, and distressed pilgrims.
.
03 April 2023 - NW724
Opperman, Ms G to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
What steps has her department taken to assist failing municipalities as provided for in the Constitution of the Republic, 1996, to improve (a) service delivery and (b) financial administrative capacities?
Reply:
a) Steps taken to improve service delivery capacities.
Municipal Infrastructure Support Agent (MISA) has deployed built environment professionals to municipalities in accordance with the District Development Model (DDM) to provide technical support for infrastructure development throughout the product life cycle from inception, planning, design development, implementation, operations and maintenance. This aims to augment and build State Capacity. 103 Built environment professionals (86 of which are professionally registered with Statutory bodies as engineers and town planners). In the current financial year, 150 Young Graduates have been deployed to augment the technical capacity whilst pursuing professional registration. These technical professionals support municipalities to implement infrastructure grant programmes that include the Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) administered by the Department of Cooperative Governance (DCOG), the Water Services Infrastructure Grant (WSIG) and the Regional Bulk Infrastructure Grant (RBIG) which are both administered by the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) as well as the Integrated National Electrification Programme (INEP) administered by the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE). The budget allocations are published annually in the Division of Revenue Act (DORA). These technical professionals also support municipalities to employ and maximise labour intensive construction (LIC) methods where feasible, by incorporating the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Guidelines during infrastructure development e.g. low volume roads, water, sanitation and electrification projects. The use of LIC methods during infrastructure development maximises the creation of job opportunities thereby alleviating unemployment. This will assist municipalities to meet the job opportunities target for the EPWP infrastructure sector administered by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).
1. MISA is implementing capacity building programmes aimed at building the capacity of municipalities for infrastructure development. These capacity building programmes aim at the current cohort of municipal officials as well as unemployed youth by creating a skills pipeline.
- The municipal officials responsible for infrastructure development are trained through short courses for continuous professional development throughout the project life cycle as well as taking them through a Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) programme. MISA is providing training on short technical courses in collaboration with the South African Institute of Civil Engineers (SAICE) and aims to train 500 officials this financial year. The RPL programme involves assessment, training provisioning and attaining a qualification of those municipal officials who gained work experience but did not get formal qualifications. MISA aims to enrol 100 officials for RPL Programme.
- The capacity building programmes implemented that are targeting unemployed youth are the Apprenticeship Programme, the Experiential Learnership Programme, the Bursaries Programme and the Young Graduates Programme. The implementation is done in collaboration with the Local Government Sector Education and Training Authority (LGSETA). MISA aims to enrol a total of 420 youths for these skills programmes for this financial year. The respective targets are 100 for Apprenticeship Programme, 70 for the Experiential Learnership Programme, 100 for the Bursaries Programme and 150 for the Young Graduates Programme.
2. MISA has implemented other capacity building initiatives for municipalities to provide infrastructure development viz. the building of internal built environment design development capacity so that there is less reliance on outsourcing to Consultants, the development of Public Infrastructure Unit Cost Guidelines as well as collaboration with professional bodies and Institutions of Higher Learning.
- MISA has bought design software and is currently piloting the establishment of a design office at OR Tambo District Municipality where selected infrastructure projects that are prioritised and funded by the municipality are designed through the support of MISA procured design software and technical support personnel and not outsourced to Consultants.
- The Unit Cost Guidelines were developed in collaboration with the University of Cape Town. These Guidelines provide cost estimates of providing infrastructure as one source of truth for planning, budgeting and implementation monitoring. The Guidelines can be used by all interested and affected stakeholders including municipalities, communities, oversight structures and law enforcement agencies. The Guidelines assist in building communities’ confidence in government expenditure on infrastructure development. The Unit Cost Guidelines were used during the assessment of municipal infrastructure that was damaged by floods in April 2022.
- MISA has entered into a collaboration agreement with the University of Cape Town and Wits University and is finalizing a Memorandum of Agreement with the Engineering Council of South Africa (ECSA). The collaborations with these institutions aim to use research to find innovative solutions to infrastructure development and service delivery challenges among other benefits.
3. MISA is also contributing towards the eradication of basic services backlogs through its meagre budget by funding and implementing 39 borehole projects in this financial year in low and medium capacity municipalities.
4. MISA, through DCOG, applied for the Presidential Employment Stimulus (PES) program that was aimed at addressing the devastating impact of COVID-19 on the economy to an amount of about R700 million. An amount of R284 million was approved for MISA to implement the PES through the Innovative Solid Waste Management Program that was piloted in 25 municipalities across the 9 provinces.
The project commenced in December 2021. To-date the programme has created employment opportunities as detailed below as the programme ensured removal of municipal waste:
Province |
Number of municipalities benefitted |
Number of jobs created |
Amount spent |
Eastern Cape |
7 |
3 200 |
R51 252 295.00 |
Free State |
4 |
1 996 |
R38 134 654. 50 |
Gauteng |
4 |
1200 |
R20 488 113.15 |
KwaZulu Natal |
9 |
4 400 |
R64 977 015.00 |
Limpopo |
3 |
1 500 |
R21 854 087.7 |
Mpumalanga |
2 |
1 038 |
R14 569 391.90 |
Northern Cape |
5 |
1200 |
R23 458 589. 68 |
North West |
4 |
1 200 |
R26 426 925.00 |
Western Cape |
3 |
900 |
R22 496 929. 95 |
TOTAL |
41 |
16 634 |
R 283 658 001.88 |
The participants were employed for a period of (16 weeks) 3 months and received a minimum stipend of R102 per day for general workers, and R150 per day for coordinators.
End.
03 April 2023 - NW732
Herron, Mr BN to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Considering that points (h) and (i) in the latest Government Gazette relating to the National State of Disaster in Electricity Crisis refer specifically to the exemption of pre-existing energy infrastructure and generation from environmental regulations while they are upgraded and/or maintained, what (a) specific environmental regulations were holding back development and/or refurbishment the most and (b) total amount of projected time is saved in the development process by exempting the specified regulations?
Reply:
The Department of Environmental Affairs, Forestry and Fisheries, as the custodian of the legal and regulatory frameworks that control environmental issues, can answer to this question with the necessary specificity and rigor. In order to achieve the goals stated in section 27 (3) of the Disaster Management Act, 57 of 2002, the NDMC's job is to coordinate the necessary actions aimed at reducing the likelihood of a complete blackout.
End.
03 April 2023 - NW1109
Buthelezi, Ms SA to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
With regard to the allocation of R630 million in backpay that iZinduna in KwaZuluNatal would be paid in the financial year which starts in April, what are the relevant details of an overview of the resources that her department will be availing to assist iZinduna with financial management?
Reply:
As the appointment and recognition of headmen/women is a provincial competence, we engaged with the Kwa-Zulu Natal CoGTA regarding the Honourable Member’s question. The provincial department has advised as follows: In anticipation of receipt of funding to pay iZinduna, the KwaZulu-Natal Executive Council resolved to conduct roadshows to eleven Districts to disseminate the information and to communicate the government decision to allocate R631 million for the back pay of iZinduna. The roadshows are led by Members of the Executive Council (MEC) and the central communication for these engagements is on the background and the plan in place (payment plan for current and terminated iZinduna) to pay the money to the qualifying iZinduna. An integral part of these sessions consists of financial counselling which incorporates elements of financial planning and management, investing in education, property and business to assist the beneficiaries to better manage the anticipated back pay monies. iZinduna have also been made aware of the significance of confidentiality in handling these anticipated funds.
End.
03 April 2023 - NW733
Herron, Mr BN to ask the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
Considering that point (p) in the National State of Disaster in Electricity Crisis regulations published in the latest Government Gazette makes specific reference to the increase in the requirements for water quality standards and capacity, specifically at the reservoirs and acknowledging that our water supply in a dry country is already at a breaking point with infrastructure collapse, most notably in Gauteng and throughout the Republic, (a) how do the specified regulation changes result in higher water quality and (b) what consequences will arise from any reservoirs and/or water infrastructure that does not meet the new standards?
Reply:
This question can be responded to with the required detail and precision by the Department of Water and Sanitation, as the custodian of legislation and regulatory frameworks that govern provision of water. The role of the NDMC is to coordinate necessary activities aimed at mitigating the prospects of a total blackout, towards fulfilling the purpose outlined in section 27 (3) of the Disaster Management Act, 57 of 2002.
End.