ATC160303: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation on the implementation of the National Sport and Recreation Plan in KwaZulu-Natal, September 2015, dated 16 February 2016

Sport, Arts and Culture

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation on the implementation of the National Sport and Recreation Plan in KwaZulu-Natal, September 2015, dated 16 February 2016.

 

A.        Introduction

During the period 14-17 September 2015 a delegation of the Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation conducted oversight in KwaZulu-Natal Province, in order to:

1. Assess the use of the Division of Revenue Act (DORA) grant allocated to the provinces for the implementation of sport and recreation programmes;
2. explore whether provincial plans and outcomes are aligned to the mandate of SRSA of implementing the National Sport and Recreation Plan (NSRP);
3. assess the impact of facilities built for sport and recreation through the assistance of the Sport for Social Change programme; and
4. monitor the implementation of the model on sport focused schools in assisting talented athletes to achieve their potential.

 

The delegation of the Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation included:

 

Ms B N Dlulane (Chairperson), ANC; Ms B J Dlomo, ANC; Ms B L Abrahams, ANC; Ms D P Manana, ANC; Mr S G Mmusi, ANC; Mr S M Ralegoma, ANC; Mr M S Malatsi, DA; Mr P G Moteka, EFF; and Mr M S Mabika, NFP.

 

Members of the corresponding portfolio committees in the KZN provincial legislature participated in oversight activities as their programmes allowed.

 

The visit commenced with a one-day joint oversight exercise in Pietermaritzburg on 14 September 2015, when the Portfolio Committee on Basic Education and Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation (National Parliament) met officials of the Department of Sport and Recreation (SRSA), Department of Basic Education (DBE), Department of Sport and Recreation (KZN), Department of Education (DOE KZN), KwaZulu-Natal Academy of Sport, KZN Sports Confederation.

 

On 15 September the delegation met the mayor, deputy mayor, council members and officials of the eThekwini Metro on sport programmes and resource allocation for sport, grant utilisation for infrastructure, and facility plans, programmes and related budgets, participation trends and statistics, employees dedicated to the implementation of sport programmes, the state of municipal facilities, and maintenance plans, and proceeded to a meeting on club development.

 

On 16 and 17 September the delegation met municipal councillors, officials of Umhlathuze Local Municipality and Big Five False Bay Local Municipality respectively, focusing on sport programmes and resource allocation for sport, grant utilisation for infrastructure, facility plans, programmes and related budgets, participation trends and statistics, employees dedicated to the implementation of sport programmes, the state of municipal facilities, and maintenance plans. The delegation proceeded to site visits at sport facilities, including facilities built through the Sport for Social Change initiative and the 2010 FIFA legacy programme.

 

B.         Information gathered during meetings and site visits, 14-17 September 2015

1.         KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation and Department of Education, Pietermaritzburg, 14 September 2015

1.1.       KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation

The KwaZulu-Natal Departments of Sport and Recreation and Education had a memorandum of understanding (MoU) in place and worked jointly from the memorandum, which was similar to the national MoU in terms of which the intra- and inter-school sport programme was the responsibility of the Department of Education at local level, and programmes from district level upward were the responsibility of the Department of Sport and Recreation (KZN).

1.1.1.    Funding for infrastructure

Facilities were a key issue, and the provincial department worked at reshaping the key area Facilities Infrastructure since February 2013, for which there was not a large budget. There were some carry-overs and backlogs. Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) funding for infrastructure went directly to municipalities, with oversight through the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta). Cogta data indicated that 3,5% - 4% of allocated MIG funding was spent on sport infrastructure annually.

 

Academies and sport focus schools systems were coordinated at the national Department of Sport and Recreation with the assistance of provincial departments. 

1.1.2.    Talent identification

It was of concern that for talent identification there was only focus on top schools, and that talent in other schools was lost for the most part. The provincial department would address the problem.

1.1.3.    High Performance

A large amount of money was being invested in High Performance. The department had several partners, including United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), Durban University of Technology (DUT) (capacity building), Department of Higher Education (DHE) and University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN) (research).

 

Capacity building programmes had been ongoing, and focused largely on training educators, increasing the number of volunteers, and skilling federations and clubs. An effective system was being put into place. In DUT (capacity building) a Sascoc-accredited institute of coaching was delivering the accredited programmes and rolling out the programme in the local municipalities. The programme included administrators' training, equipping administrators and mentoring administrators and federations. A data base and tracking system ensured availability of records, evidence and validation.

1.1.4.    Key development programmes

A rugby development programme would go to 800 schools incrementally. There was a township cricket programme and young athletes held bursaries in former model C schools and private schools. The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation ran a programme with Athletics SA and utilised talent identifiers to find the athletes. A canoeing academy had been set up, as well as a sailing and swimming programme. Netball had been aligned with the provincial netball federation, which ran a development programme. Triathlon and KZN province funded a cycling programme, the Umkhanyakude programme did well and a paracycling championship was available to athletes.

 

KwaZulu-Natal was the only remaining province offering the Salga Games, and Cogta focused on the officials and venue. It was a massive event and did well in communities.

 

Annual running events, Golden Games, and indigenous games were offered, and the province was proud of its rural horse riding code.

1.1.5.    School sport

Both the KZN Department of Education and the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had to report on school sport, and realised that the challenge for delivering school sport was the Memorandum of Understanding. The target of the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation was number of schools, educators and learners registered, but the Department of Education had a different target. If DOE was responsible for intra-school sport, there had to be a target related to the number of athletes and the number of schools registered in the programme and delivering inter and intra school sport.  Issues raised at lekgotla level were: How to hold officials accountable, how an official in the local circuit was reporting, and where the reports were going. The KZN Department of Education and the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had agreed to work out the system. The lekgotla resolution would be implemented by February 2016.

1.1.6.    Budget

The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had an equitable share with High Performance and two or three others. The department had an infrastructure budget for funding sport fields in schools and projects, and was only able to construct combo-courts/multipurpose facilities.

 

Siyadlala performance with 117 activity hubs in the province and at ward level was at 94%. The national Department of Sport and Recreation assisted with implementation of the programmes, however, the provincial department did not have sufficient funding (for remuneration) to renew volunteer contracts. Siyadlala had been initiated by the national Department of Sport and Recreation in 2004 to facilitate participation in sport and recreation within disadvantaged communities with specific focus on supporting Government priority nodes. The programme was intended to get the nation playing and involved partnerships between national and provincial government, the private sector, nongovernmental organisations and communities for the benefit of disadvantaged communities. It intended to unify diverse communities and cultivate volunteerism. It focused primarily on the youth in an attempt to combat crime and reduce the high levels of health risk, including the threats of HIV/AIDS and teenage pregnancy.

        

In 2014 the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had adopted the Sascoc national coaching framework, using the Durban Institute of Technology, but could not identify school educators because the entity required curricula vitae (CVs), therefore the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation was doubling up on capacitating educators in 2015.

 

The bulk of KZN Department of Sport and Recreation budget had been allocated to Programme 2: Administration and Sport. In the 2014-15 financial year there were no voted funds, increasing the allocation to R46,9 million.

 

The club development and academy system was accommodated in the Club Development programme, and Stakeholder Support accommodated High Performance, not School Sport, which created a disjuncture in talent flow. The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had therefore revised the school sport/ academy/high performance system to accommodate all elements seamlessly. Impact in sport focus schools would be measured in a year's time and talent spotters were being developed to scout talent in the club development programme.

1.1.7.    School sport

Over 6000 schools in the province had registered for school sport and the system for sport focus schools was being revised. Some ministerial bursary holders, such as disability challenged players, had been moved to schools in other provinces where they would receive more appropriate training for their individual needs.

 

The provincial schools championships were held annually over a 2-week period. It was found that the system needed to be revised, for example, there were 12 districts in KZN, 12 education districts in eThekwini and two each for Umlazi and Pinetown.

 

A gymnasium had been placed at Maritzburg College to assist Umgungundlovo region as well.

 

KwaZulu-Natal was implementing 16 sport codes in school sport. Equipment and attire to the value of approximately R7000 per school had been provided to 500 schools in 2014 and the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had appointed a new director responsible for school sport.

1.1.8.    Community recreation  

Community recreation under the Siyadlala programme was funded through voted funds. Organised recreation comprised nine (9) programmes, including indigenous games in school sport, one of the largest implemented codes, recreational horse riding (rural horse riding) aimed at addressing the social ills affecting youth, Golden Games, Work and Play with over 5000 departmental officials participating, and motor learning for children in early childhood development centres.

 

Funding was taken from the conditional grant framework, per category. The department had to divide the budget quantitavely to determine the number of schools to which they could deliver. The percentage for delivery was low in the first quarter of the 2015-16 financial year, since most of the targets had been set in the third and second quarters, when the school programmes started. The bulk of programmes such as the provincial indigenous games had been scheduled for September.

1.2.       KZN Department of Education presentation on school sport

The presentation by officials of the KZN Department of Education focused on areas on collaboration and transformation, gaps and proposals, and supported the proposal to rework annual performance plan targets toward providing an integrated school sport programme that promoted transformation through mass participation.

 

Contributions from sponsors were reported to be invaluable for implementation of school sport in the province. KZN province participated in the top school tournament annually, and 3828 out of 6017 schools, 63,6%, implemented the Magnificent Wednesday sport programme. Not all KZN schools, and not all KZN districts, had code structures, and an audit was under way.

1.2.1.    Challenges (KZN Department of Education)

Some educators and officials (three to four persons) did not follow the instructions in implementing inter- and intra-school programmes and reports were pending on instances of officials breaking rules.

 

A shortage of manpower caused gaps in implementation of school sport. In the 2014-15 financial year Core Curricular Services, which was responsible for sport, arts, culture and youth development, had an allocation of R50 million for the entire province. The KZN Department of Education required an increased allocation in order to provide visible support to structures, and assist the code structures and educators at implementation level.

 

The department had improved in capacity building for educators, but had not managed to reach 100%. Funding for capacity building had been obtained from the conditional grant allocation.

 

Lack of facilities: There were not enough facilities to accommodate school sport programmes. The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had provided a number of combo-courts, and provincial schools needed as many as possible, especially in rural areas.

1.3.       KwaZulu-Natal Sport Confederation (Interim)

The Interim Sport Confederation of KZN was been put in place after SRSA had identified budget issues with the Confederation after allegations that they did not account for funding.

1.4        UNICEF

UNICEF emphasised the need for a specified school sport/physical education curriculum, and observed that sport focus schools did not address the transformation problem, because they did not assist the previously disadvantaged, but prolonged their disadvantaged situation instead.

1.5.       University of Johannesburg

University of Johannesburg (UJ) had set up a forum, and wished to initiate a national project. UJ was writing a case for physical education, to be one port of call, and had established an Olympic Studies Centre. The purpose was to collaborate, and to be a resource for all to tap into.

 

1.6.       Challenges

1.6.1.    Challenges (KZN Department of Sport and Recreation)

Challenges were mainly related to manpower, budget/funding, structures and educators, facilities and poor geographic correlation or overlap between partners' implementation areas.

 

1. The challenge for delivering school sport was exacerbated by the lack of correlation in the targets and measurement criteria of the KZN Departments of Education and Sport and Recreation;
2. It was of concern that for talent identification there was only focus on top schools, and talent in other schools was lost for the most part;
3. Sustainable implementation of school sport at cluster, league and school levels, in view of the lack of correlation in provincial and education geographic district location;
4. The school sport system needed to be revised, for instance, there were 12 districts in the province, 12 education districts in eThekwini and two each in and Umlazi and Pinetown;
5. Implementation of sport on a sustainable basis at cluster level and league and school levels;
6. Sport focused school: There was no MoU in place between the identified sport-focused school (PMB Girls High School) and SRSA to ensure that the resources allocated could be accounted for properly;
7. Facilities was a key issue, and since February 2013 the department had worked at reshaping the key area facilities infrastructure, for which there was a small budget. There were some carry-overs and backlogs. Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) funding for infrastructure went directly to municipalities, with oversight through the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta). Cogta data indicated that 3,5% - 4% of allocated MIG funding was spent annually on sport infrastructure;
8. Accountability, reporting and data: Issues such as how to hold officials accountable, how an official in the local circuit reported and where the reports went had been raised at lekgotla level. The KZN Department of Education and the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation had agreed to work out the system;
9. Infrastructure budget of KZN Department of Sport and Recreation:  The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation received an equitable share with high performance and others. The department had an infrastructure budget funding sport fields in schools and projects, and was only able to construct combo-courts/multipurpose facilities;
10. Siyadlala performance, with 117 activity hubs in the province and at ward level, was at 94%. The national Department of Sport and Recreation assisted with implementation of the programmes, however, the provincial department did not have sufficient funding to renew volunteer contracts;
11. Coaching framework: In 2014 the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation adopted the Sascoc national coaching framework, intending implementation by the Durban Institute of Technology, but could not identify school educators because the institution wanted CVs;
12. There was a disjuncture in flow from school sport to club development to High Performance. Club development and the academy system were located under the Club Development programme, and Stakeholder Support handled high performance;
13. Some ministerial bursary holders had been taken out of schools in KZN to other provinces, for instance, disability challenged players, when schools in other provinces could offer more appropriate training for each athlete.

1.6.2.    Challenges (KZN Department of Education)

1. Some educators and officials (three to four persons) did not toe the line and reports were pending on instances of officials breaking rules;
2. More collaboration was needed between previously advantaged and disadvantaged schools, and more rural schools needed to be accommodated;
3. Many rural schools and farm schools were not able to match the teams of schools with more resources. The Department had a special programme to enable rural schools and farm schools to compete;
4. Support to code structures: The reason for gaps was a shortage of manpower and budget: In the 2014-15 financial year Core Curricular Services, which was responsible for sport, arts, culture and youth development, had an allocation of R50 million for the entire province. The KZN Department of Education required an increased allocation to provide visible support to structures and assist the code structures and educators at implementation level;
5. There were gaps in capacity building of educators, but, the department reported better delivery than in previous financial years. Funding for capacity building was obtained from the conditional grant allocation;
6. The need for more sport facilities, especially in rural areas, was a challenge, and the combo-courts provided by the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation were valued and appreciated;
7. Maintenance of facilities was a challenge. At a meeting between the MEC and district mayors it had been resolved that there would be monthly meetings. The KZN Department of Sport and Recreation undertook to build facilities if the municipality took responsibility for, or paid an amount towards, maintenance. Some challenges remained and the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation looked at the EPW grant for that as well. It was the department's position that it would be a challenge if they did not have control directly, as well as input in managing what they did;
8. Accessibility and managing of clubs: The department did not have the budget to pay contract workers to take responsibility for the hubs. There were hub managers, however, communities had to take responsibility, not federations, since communities formed clubs;
9. Hubs were not taken care of well: The department was able to deal with only a limited number of contractors and did the best they could with stakeholders and contract workers on the ground. Service providers had also been allocated to one or two provinces. The provincial department had raised the challenges with SRSA in that regard;
10. The department had meetings in the areas and federations had voluntary workers, but the funding was largely for the sport, not for volunteers to do their work;
11. Federations were not visible in rural areas;
12. Teacher apathy: It was felt that teachers needed to take responsibility in implementation of school sport programmes;
13. The condition of sport and recreation facilities was problematic;
14. Improving on inter and intra school games participation:

Ÿ       More schools than had registered participated in the games. It was thought that some principals were lazy to complete the registration forms;

Ÿ       Problems with inter school sport participation were compounded in rural areas because learners needed to commute to facilities, and because schools in rural areas did not have proper facilities for most of the codes in inter school games.

2.         Meeting at eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality, Durban, 15 September 2015

2.1.       Briefing by officials of the eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality on sport programmes, infrastructure and preparation for hosting 2022 Commonwealth Games

The committee had requested information from eThekwini Metro on their sport programmes and resource allocation for sport, facility plans, budgets, participation trends and statistics, employees dedicated to the implementation of sport programmes, the state of municipal facilities, maintenance plans and new facility development plans, and use of the MIG allocation for sport and recreation facilities.

2.1.1.    Budget-related information for eThekwini Metro

For the 2015-16 financial year the Total Operating Budget for the city was R29 billion, of which the Parks, Recreation and Culture (PRC) Unit received R1.5 billion, and an amount of R72 million was allocated to the eThekwini Sports and Recreation department.

 

For the 2015-16 financial year an amount of R48 million was allocated from the Urban Settlements Development Grant (USDG) for sport facilities.

2.1.2.    Framework for Parks, Recreation and Culture (PRC) Unit

The Infrastructure Development Plan (IDP) strategy comprised an eight-point plan, including a framework for the Parks, Recreation and Culture (PRC) Unit. Budgeting was not zero-based. The unit's social budget operating budget was linked to plan 6 of the 2014-15 financial year, and R1,52 billion was available for the unit.

 

Key cost drivers were Learn to swim, Salga Games team selection, team preparation, team delivery, stakeholder support and management (federations, confederations, clubs), Women in sport, Recreation; code development; and Sister City programmes.

 

2.1.3.    Challenges and successes

2.1.3.1. Programmes

Clubs

Budget support for clubs that had received support since before 1994 had grown to R58 million, however, the city had failed to introduce clubs from other communities as beneficiaries, therefore a predominantly white club with a 99-year lease would receive a municipal subsidy for a facility. The department had identified the need for unlocking the resources to enable other clubs to benefit as well.

Mass participation

Mass participation was managed in partnership with the provincial department of sport and recreation.

Commission research

The metro department had decided to review its key objectives in line with the social cohesion mandate by tasking five commissions to research aspects of its mandate.  All reports had not been completed at the time of the oversight visit.

2.1.3.2. Facilities

Some facilities had been vandalised, were not managed properly, and some had reached the 50% deterioration rate.

 

Challenges were: Vandalism, overuse by certain sport codes and not enough facility variation.

Sport facilities overview

The facilities asset base comprised stadia and sport facilities (292), indoor sport complexes (4), golf courses (2), swimming pools (53), beaches (68), community halls (147); libraries (84), museums (9); natural resources (16), gardens, parks, etc.

 

The metro had banned weddings and funerals at indoor sport complexes because it was found that such events occupied the entire annual calendar of week-ends.

 

Durban international sports academy would be close to Moses Mabhida stadium.

Development and rehabilitation of sport facilities in rural areas

The metro was building new facilities in Inanda-Ntuzuma-KwaMashu, Umlazi, etc, and had provided outdoor facilities in 2014-15, with a view to providing 10 outdoor facilities per year. Outdoor facilities created community spirit, and people queued to use facilities.

 

The city was putting together a business plan to meet the demand for hosting the Commonwealth Games.

2.1.4.    Concerns (eThekwini)

Members of the delegation expressed concern:

 

1. That poor and rural communities did not receive appropriate facilities for sport and recreation. An example was made of a playground at Inanda and implementation of plans for restoration;
2. About social cohesion in KwaZulu-Natal, since it seemed as if children in rural areas did not mix with other race groups;
3. About limited development in rural areas;
4. That municipalities sometimes prioritised Salga Games and the Mayoral Cup instead of assisting the community;
5. About the need for communicating with communities via the sport confederation and other available avenues to ensure participation in Integrated Development Plan (IDP) processes.

2.1.5.    Replies (eThekwini)

2.1.5.1. Social cohesion

Social cohesion was a priority and the metro had offered a number of seminars, for instance with editors of newspapers (isiZulu and English) regarding more inclusive reporting on sport codes. The metro interacted with sport codes on their role in social cohesion and to find the best avenue for attracting people from different communities. On Sunday, 20 September 2015, a large number of schools and learners across the race and culture continuum would participate in an event funded by a businessman.

2.1.5.2. Stadia, facilities and events

1. J L Dube Stadium had been completed. A gospel event would be hosted there in the near future. Design and planning for the cover for J L Dube Stadium was under way. The other parts, pitch and clean-up and ablution had been completed in the previous financial year and had been carried over to 2015-16;
2. Regarding planning and completion status of facilities in rural areas, Inanda had not been completed. It was a new development and the metro was in the preliminary design stage, after which the tender phase would be initiated;
3. Umshwathi and Umzumbe existed and the metro was rehabilitating parts of the facilities;
4.  Msunduzi project in uMgungundlovu  was on hold;
5. The facilities that were presented to the delegation were meant to illustrate the metro's utilisation of the Urban Settlements Development Grant (USDG), and were not the only facilities in rural areas;
6. Umzinyati sport field had a caretaker and the metro provided a caretaker in Umsetisweni in to prevent vandalism;
7. The metro made use of security staff to look after the facilities in some areas. Vandalism was a global problem, but affected the metro most in the townships and rural areas. The metro was considering a programme to raise awareness.

2.1.5.3. Stakeholder involvement

The metro involved stakeholders when introducing a project in communities by making sure that the ward councillor had been informed, or the inkosi and induna in rural areas, ensuring that the community gave input about what they needed.

2.1.5.4. Swimming pools and access for persons with disabilities

Approximately 80% of swimming pools had ramps for wheelchairs and some offered a hydraulic chair in which a person with disability could be lowered into the water. There were also facilities for less abled persons.

 

On 4 September, in Parks, Recreation and Culture (PRC) week the metro catered for 300 children from rural areas, taking them to the beach and teaching them to jet-ski. Floatable wheelchairs were used to take children with disabilities into the sea.

 

The city offered international wheelchair events and ran programmes with other municipalities such as Umlazi, and recognised the logistics involved in events for persons with disabilities and the need to integrate those aspects into its programmes.

2.1.5.5. Women in sport

The metro recognised that women were not treated equally in sport and was trying to link all sports with special emphasis on access for women. A programme was offered to women to teach skills in refereeing, judging, and technical positions, also for rural areas, in order to ensure that women were able to enter, register and qualify for races, and also to link them with sister city programmes to run in Bremen or Reunion to expand their knowledge and opportunities. The city was looking at international participation opportunities for female athletes and had entered into a programme with the United States embassy to link with programmes in New Orleans and in Chicago.

2.1.5.6. Leases for facilities

The name Hoy Park had been registered as Hoy Park Management, but Hoy Park had been relocated to the northern end of the King's Park precinct. It had been earmarked as a sport zone. The SA Football Association (Safa) had a 50% stake in and the city had committed an amount annually.  Part of the 50-year contract was a clear obligation that the company had to have a sport delivery plan. The entity would be in breach of the lease contract if they did not meet the development stipulation. This also applied to other codes, including testing and measurement facilities, athletics, rugby etc. There would be five Astroturf facilities.  The sport department was closely linked to that project, and would ensure that the deliverables were met.

 

2.1.5.7.     Relationship of sport officers and officers on the ground, and management and oversight

The sport officers worked closely with structures on the ground and there was constant engagement to fine tune programmes. In terms of management and oversight the department was measured annually and their performance was audited. The department completed their scorecard and was subject to report. The Salga Games had been held for 15 years and eThekwini always won first place.

 

The view was to have sport officers deployed to zones, and not allow informal sport participation in future, because it affected facilities. The metro would firstly cater for its 3,5 million citizens to participate in sport before looking at international aspects.

2.1.5.8. Vandalism and expenditure on new facilities

The metro believed vandalism hampered its ability to utilise more funding for new facilities, and were of the view that councillors and ward councillors could assist.

 

USDG grants were spent in terms of the DORA framework, with Health and Social services and youth funding providing basic infrastructure, and R48 million of the USDG grant had been allocated to the development and upkeep of facilities. 

2.1.5.9. Sport councils

There were 19 sport councils in eThekwini, and the 17 zones were under federations, the mini Sascocs, which were essentially the sport councils with which the metro worked. There was also the KZN provincial federation and an eThekwini local federation.

2.2.       Preparation and planning for the hosting of the 2022 Commonwealth Games

The presentation included an illustration of the development of the athletes' village, which was integrated with the housing programme. The metro had developed a partnership with the Department of Human Settlements to ensure that the people of Durban would benefit from the housing units.

2.2.1.    Role of the Department of Human Settlements

eThekwini was reportedly one of the best human settlements metros. Key to the preparation for the 2022 Commonwealth Games was how they set aside USDG money. The construction phase had been scheduled, and the roles of the metro and the Department of Human Settlements were described in a cabinet memorandum.  The Department of Human Settlements believed all was on track to deliver on the assets for sport and recreation, however, the department was not in a position to dictate where and how the metro utilised USDG funding, but worked in concert with the city.

2.2.2.    Questions, concerns and comments

Members of the delegation requested:

1. More information regarding current and future USDG-funded facilities and projects;
2. Further information on stakeholder relationships and intergovernmental relations.

Members of the delegation raised concerns about:

1. Sustainability of facilities in view of the high rate of vandalism.

2.2.3.    Replies

2.2.3.1. Relationship with stakeholders, partnerships and planning

The metro had a good relationship with all the stakeholders in the city at King's Park, and had a strong partnership with the provincial department of Sport and Recreation. Memoranda of Understanding were in place and cooperation was ongoing. The city was required to do extensive planning, and was not able to develop facilities or structures that were not included in prescribed processes. Planning was done on a 30-year scale.

2.2.3.2. Current and planned USDG-funded structures and facilities

The different phases of USDG-funded structures and facilities were related to the budget. The metro attempted to illustrate projects in rural and local areas where preliminary work was under way, and submitted a complete project list of the 3-year cycle of their MTREF.  eThekwini metro officials emphasised the importance of proper planning and illustrated how planning factored in to ensuring accurate costing and avoiding spending errors. Projects included cemeteries development of integrated facilities.

2.2.3.3. State of facilities

The unit had set up a task team to carry out physical assessment of the state of facilities, and was able to list worst condition assets in order to budget accordingly. The metro was unable to cater for all facilities because of the large number of facilities in its jurisdiction.

2.3.       Club Development Pilot Programme and Academies (eThekwini Metro Council Chamber, 15 September 2015)

Stakeholders attending comprised officials, experts, practitioners coaches, members and players at: The KZN Provincial Legislature, eThekwini Metro Council and administration, Sport and Recreation SA, Department of Human Settlements, KZN Department of Sport and Recreation, KZN Department of Education, and Arts and Culture, KZN Academy of Sport, Prime Human Performance Institute, the provincial high performance committee (representing the school sport directorate of the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation), the High Performance Centre at Moses Mabhida stadium, the University of KZN, sport clubs, provincial and local federations and clubs such as netball, basketball, football, athletics.

 

The PC on Sport and Recreation sought to assess progress and required information on the club development programme, role players, utilisation of money, as well as problems and challenges.

2.3.1.    Provincial Sport Academy framework

Officials of the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation briefed the committee on the KZN provincial academy framework and its alignment to the national framework. Stakeholders had identified the need for a clarified and defined pathway for athletes and coaches, and the academy plan had been drafted by experts in various fields.

2.3.2.    Academies

Structure: District Academies vs Sport Focus Schools, Provincial Academy and Elite Athlete Development Programme.

 

Personnel and key aspects: Two KZNDSR officials (the chairperson and one person responsible for School Sport), a UKZN official for Sport Science, a DUT official for LTAD (long-term athlete development) and LTCD (long-term coaching development); Hoy Park officials for talent scouting and the finance model, Prime Human Performance Institute officials for medical support, the Elite Athlete programme and the Framework for Sport Focus Schools and Academies, and a Sport Confederation official for involvement of federations. Members of the core group and stakeholder departments were responsible for delivering on the respective aspects of the action plan.

 

The action plan for drafting the pathway for academies included a needs analysis in line with framework, an audit tool, a willing/easy and able document for schools, developing a framework and reporting for the KZN system, meeting with federations after establishing a programme, a facilities audit, reporting back to workshop stakeholders, and meeting with principals.

 

The talent pathway needed close attention, since the challenge was that the budget for the development programme was low and rollout across the province would be costly. The team had identified schools with appropriate facilities with a view to setting up a team approach to work on a common goal, for example, in order to achieve academy system goals, the pathway would be for sport focus schools across districts to double up as district academies.

 

The department had an action plan for circulation to every school. The next step was to identify what schools' codes strongest codes in order to identify the most suitable schools to place bursary recipients.

2.4.       Club development pilot project update

The idea had been that eThekwini would take care of the urban study for club development and Limpopo would take care of the rural study.

 

The task included categorisation, and a service provider would be appointed to survey, provide toolkits and make recommendations.  With regard to categorisation, the presenter had not found international practise indicating categorisation of clubs, for instance in terms of gold or silver, or premier, advanced, etc. Engagement with netball, football and athletics federations had been completed.

 

In the previous financial year the national department did not allocate funding for the project, and funds became available in April 2015. Approximately R4 million had been allocated for the research project. At the time of the oversight visit the club development programme covered 43 areas, with 439 clubs in the programme and on the date base, covering all 11 districts and 6 codes. The programme accommodated ongoing area leagues, area tournaments and district tournaments. Every district had 4 areas, except eThekwini, which had 3.

2.5.       KZN Academy of Sport

The KZN provincial academy of sport was based at Sahara Kingsmead cricket stadium, with a staff complement of five. The presentation included objectives, core business, performance indicators, beneficiary codes, athlete progression pathway, services rendered, organisational environment, stakeholders and district academy rollout plan. Beneficiary codes were informed by national priority codes. Focus groups were primarily junior and youth athletes, with special focus on athletes with disabilities, and services were mainly directed towards federations the provincial academy had good relationships with all federations, particularly provincial federations.

 

2.5.1.    District academy rollout plan

The KZN Academy of Sport had intended to establish a district academy at Uthungulu - Esikhawini College before the end of the financial year, another at uMgungundlovu in Midlands in the 2016-17 financial year, and the rest in subsequent financial years.

 

A 15-year lease agreement had been signed with Umhlathuze Municipality to house an academy. Engagements that had been initiated with other districts were affected by lack of resources. At the time of the meeting, 15 September 2015, the academy was waiting for funds and implementation from the Department of Sport and Recreation.

2.5.2.    Funding

The KZN Academy of Sport received had received R2,5 million from the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation as annual allocation in the 2015-16 financial year, and R1,5 million from the National Lotteries Board in 2013. Funding from the province had been allocated to administration and salaries, and transfer payments from the KZN Department of Sport and Recreation kept the office operational.

2.5.3.    Successes

1. There had been a steady increase in participation by African women in codes such as rugby, gymnastics, swimming, boxing, volleyball. More athletes receiving support from the academy were achieving national and international success.  Strong partnership had been secured with all prioritised and some nonprioritised federations;
2. The provincial academy had conducted technical team preparation strategy activities in partnership with Salga KZN in all Salga Games and in all 11 district municipalities in the months June to August 2015.

2.5.4.    Challenges (KZN Academy of Sport)

1. Facility for headquarters: The KZN Academy of Sport was struggling to find a bigger and better facility as headquarters, since it preferred a standalone structure to accommodate the gymnasium and all other functions;
2. Slow implementation pace of the district academies; 
3. There was inadequate funding to run programmes;
4. A 15-year lease agreement had been signed with Umhlatuze municipality to house a district academy, but the provincial academy was waiting for budget from the Department of Sport and Recreation. Engagements initiated with other districts were affected by lack of resources;
5. There was a lack of coordinated training programmes in many of the federations;
6. There was a shortage of qualified senior coaches, though there were experienced coaches who did not have formal qualifications;
7. Most of the good athletes were poached by other provinces.

2.6.       Elite Athlete Development Programme (EADP KZN)

The Elite Athlete Development Programme had started in 2004, and included athletics (including Comrades), gymnastics, boxing, triathlon, golf, aquatics, baseball, softball, canoeing, cycling, badminton, netball, lifesaving/water polo, and Disabled Sport SA (DISSA), and accommodated 115 (plus 19 pro bono) top-performing athletes. Differentiation was made between elite performance and high performance.

 

Athletes received medical screening, musculoskeletal screening, dietary assessment, high performance testing, functional movement screening, medical support, high performance training, coach, athlete and federation and nutritional support.

2.7.       Talent identification

In rural areas much talent remained untapped and the scouts and talent identifiers were sent to all tournaments to find talented athletes.  Federations were consulted to enable accurate differentiation between elite performance and high performance.

 

From 2016 the academy would look at learners aged 8-9 with the view to preparing for the 2022 Commonwealth Games and World Games.

2.8.       Input by clubs and federations

A representative for Illovo reported that the department's club development initiative in the rural areas had resulted in progress and changed headlines, especially regarding football and netball. Challenges were being experienced regarding athletics.

 

The club development programme had assisted to overcome a lack of capacity by helping clubs to formalise, and adhering to basic principles as set out in the guide on club development. Not everything was implementable in the exact manner, but clubs tried to follow requirements.

 

Increased exposure, competition opportunities and capacity building. Most of the children had managed to compete with children from other districts, and children from Illovo slept in hotels for the first time, which encouraged them to participate in sport. Club development had brought down the number of children participating in drug abuse and crime, and the municipality was able to ensure that the facilities were maintained. More coaches were participating in capacity building.

 

Successes (Netball)

Netball had seen a rapid increase in membership and had experienced a boom in support and funding from DSR and municipalities, and the money was reaching the people and the programmes. Teams had participated at Ugu and the sport was growing. Talent had been noticed in other districts. Restructuring was taking place in netball and administration was being updated.

 

The link between school sport, club development and academies had not been illustrated in the presentation, and it was desirable to add stakeholders such as the Department of Education, the departmental head of school sport and the national Department of Basic Education.

2.9.       Hoy Park Management

The Hoy Park Management Academy programme had been started under Dr Danny Jordaan and others present at the meeting. The objective had been to start with football and to include seven other codes, working according to three pillars, namely talent, development and career path. In the three--and-a-half years they had sat with SRSA and the KZN province they had trained 370 scouts and had identified over 4000 players on their database. The Hoy Park Management Academy brought boys into camps in Durban, hosted them in hotels, entered them in a 7-day programme and selected top players. The names of other boys were added to the database. Hoy Park Management Academy also hosted tournaments and brought international teams to play in an under 19-tournament, for instance. The athletes in the KZN team were from the poorest of poor backgrounds and they were successful. The Hoy Park Management Academy would send a boy to represent SA in the under-17 World Cup tournament in October 2015.

2.10.     Challenges (Club Development, eThekwini)

Club development stakeholders identified the following challenges:

1. The Department did good work in Kwadukuza and Illovo, and the community required them to be more involved in challenges;
2. The equipment provided to clubs were not of adequate quality for high performance;
3. Capacity building and accredited qualification of coaches: Grassroots coaches needed qualifications as coaches so that their children did not have to leave the area to attend elite, better equipped clubs;
4. Bursary schemes in province: As soon as national school championships were over talented learners were relocated, therefore it was requested that the Durban University of Technology and other stakeholders provide bursary schemes for such athletes;
5. A pilot programme offered by the university in 2014, teaching learners in townships about different sport codes had been discontinued, and the national Department of Sport and Recreation was requested to  consider possible solutions;
6. Sport facilities were lacking, even though housing was being built, and school leavers did not know where to go for recreation because the spaces were built up;
7. Codes other than soccer needed attention;
8. Facilities security and vandalism: One hardly saw security at township facilities. An alternative plan was needed regarding security at facilities in townships, since it was known that such facilities would be vandalised;
9. DSR (KZN) contracts for coaches ended in October 2015. Contract workers had heard that the contracts would not be renewed by the national Department of Sport and Recreation;
10. Grassroots coaches and volunteers who had been contributing to developing the athletes who would participate in the 2022 Commonwealth Games requested the opportunity to be employed at the 2022 Commonwealth Games events.

3.         Umhlatuze Local Municipality, Richard's Bay, 16 September 2015

3.1.       Briefing: Umhlatuze Local Municipality Environmental and Recreational Services: Sport and Recreation

Officials of the Umhlatuze Local Municipality Department of Sport and Recreation presented information about sport and recreation development plans, operational plans, facilities, swimming pools, beaches, sport hubs, maintenance, lease agreements, upgrade plans for facilities and development plans for new facilities by means of internal funding, MIG planned projects 2015-16, challenges, grant allocations from the council to clubs and athletes who excelled, proposed facility development, budget and expenditure.

3.1.1.    Basic sport facilities

The municipality offered 43 entry-level or basic sport facilities. Basic sport facilities were located in each ward, and were commonly grassed (natural grass) soccer fields with poles. Basic sport facilities were utilised by the community daily. Users/local federations and teams scheduled their activities and shared facilities. The council maintained the fields and provided poles/posts.

3.1.2.    State of facilities

The state of facilities was generally regarded to be acceptable. Shortfalls were: Limited lighting (inadequate for league matches or broadcasting), inadequate ablution amenities at some facilities which could accommodate two teams at most, and a lack of ablution amenities at the Ngwelezane and Esikhaweni facilities which the committee had visited, limited seating, absence of fencing at some facilities, aging infrastructure and overutilisation. Facility maintenance was carried out every two weeks on a rotational basis and included marking for football league matches, grass cutting, weeding, top dressing and rehabilitation programmes during off-season, litter removal, replacing goal posts, and painting.

3.1.3.    Upgrade and new facilities development plans (Internal funding)

One internal-funding project under 2015-16 upgrade and new facilities development plans had been completed, three were in progress, a R6,4 million project for Meerensee beach rehabilitation was awaiting sand dredging by Transnet, and the municipality was able to allocate only R5 million out of R12 million needed for a new project for floodlights at the Richard's Bay stadium in ward 2.

3.1.4.    Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) projects

The municipality planned four MIG-funded infrastructure-related projects from the 2015-16 allocation at an estimated cost of R15 million.

3.1.5.    Municipal Infrastructure Grant (MIG) allocations

The Municipal Infrastructure Grant allocation for the 2015-16 financial year was R93 154 000, with R15 000 000 (R13 973 100), 15%, to sport and recreation, and projected amounts of R14 250 000 out of R95 000 000 in the 2016-17 financial year and R14 250 000 out of R98 000 000 in the 2017-18 financial year.

3.1.6.    Lease agreements

The municipality had lease agreements of R0,00 per month with the squash club, yacht and skiboat Club, R0,10 per month for the Empangeni Sport Club (Erico Park), R63,50 per month with the Richard's Bay Athletics Club, Richard's Bay Rugby Club, Richard's Bay Bowling Club, Zululand Multi Sport Club and Richard's Bay Country Club, and R7 500 per month with Thanda Royal Zulu Football Club.

3.1.7.    Challenges regarding facilities

In 2015 the municipality experienced challenges regarding vandalism because of a high crime rate and inability to provide sufficient security, overutilisation, droughts, unavailability of land for new facility developments, facilities used for other activities such as traditional festivals, rallies etc - after which the council normally had to effect repairs - limited/minimal resources, limited financial support for federations, and lack of an indoor facility.

3.1.8.    Proposed developments

Proposed developments in the next two financial years at R15 million per annum comprised upgrading of seating and roofing at the central sport complex, resurfacing of combo-courts and an indoor sport centre.

3.2.       Input by stakeholders

Natal Rugby Union development officer for uThungulu, Mr Thabiso Mndaweni, said there was a need to invest more in coaches in order to achieve transformation. The federation had been working on a number of programmes in the past three years, including the Hotspot project for high and primary schools, and the primary schools' Get into Rugby programme. The programme was aimed at reaching a large number of schools in the vast area. Hotspots were in Enseleni and Esikhaweni.  In Enseleni the programme was offered to 6 primary schools and 8 high schools, and there was a league. In Esikhaweni the programme was offered to 11 primary and 12 high schools and league games were played in the area. Courses offered were: An introductory course for coaches who had never coached/played rugby and the Bok Smart course outlining the basics of first aid for rugby.

 

The field and club in Esikhaweni, at the technical high school, was shared with football. Ideally there had to be a rugby field in each hot spot, since it was difficult to transport children to Empangeni or Richard's Bay rugby club for mini tournaments.

3.3.       Challenges (Richard's Bay sport development federations and clubs)

Rugby development:  There was a need to invest more in coaches in order to achieve transformation. The main problem was facilities and coaches, cost of transporting children to tournaments and a shortage of facilities and playing fields for the children. Availability of more facilities would cut down on transport cost.

Department of Education:  People who leased the sport facilities require schools to pay for using the facilities. There was much duplication by the municipality and within school sport space.

Swimming:  The municipality reportedly did not give discounts or free use of the swimming pool for training children.  Children were expected to pay when using the swimming facility for practice, which was especially problematic for those from rural areas. Every child had to pay R7,50, and the federation had to pay an hourly fee for using the municipal pool, and additional fees for floodlights. The volunteer coach had to pay taxi fees to transport children from rural areas to practice, and invoice the club for reimbursement. 

3.4.       Replies to questions by delegation

Officials and councillors replied:

 

1. Women participated in sport, and the 31 wards included rural areas;
2. Facilities were divided into two categories. Generally. G, when an association was allowed to use a facility for free, it was their facility (they owned the facility) and the municipality did not have the capacity to manage it. Such associations managed the facilities themselves;
3. The municipality entered into service level agreements with schools of which the facilities were used by the community as well;
4. Outdoor gyms: Members of the community took take care of and ran the facilities;
5. Leasing certain facilities clubs that seemed to be elitist had been stopped at one time, but the practise was reinstated;
6. Abuse occurred at some facilities where lessees had started subletting, and the municipality had started to link leases to market-related cost;
7. Development: The municipality had received financial assistance from the KZN Department of Sport for coaching development courses;
8. MIG had reportedly been disregarded in terms of the funding. The municipality had a prioritisation model to allocate funding. Up to the previous financial year all MIG funding went to water and sanitation, until Cogta raised the matter and pointed out the municipality's obligation to comply, after which money was allocated and the municipality followed the processes to identify projects;
9. MIG plans had been drawn up in terms of the full prescribed process;
10. The geographical spread of facilities was 50:50 urban:rural, and resource allocation was readily available under component 5 of the municipality's report to the department;
11. Income generation: In smaller facilities there was no possibility for income generation, but clubs offered an opportunity for generating money. Council was reviewing items that the municipality had been requested to improve, and for which charges would be levied;
12. A council member of Umhlatuze municipality and member of community services portfolio committee added regarding lease agreements that long-standing lease agreements stipulating very long lease periods had been questioned, and that legal obstacles to terminating them had been raised; Access to clubs was zero, for instance, the Richard's Bay Rugby Club were not welcoming at grassroots level and did not want to see black people entering rugby clubs. Officials did their best but the people who utilised the clubs were not assisting at all. The monthly fee of R63,50 paid by Erico Park was regarded as problematic in light of the fact that a bottle store, a restaurant and a bar were operated on the site. The council had only learnt in 2014 that MIG could also apply to sport development, which was the reason for starting it only then. He said they could not be blamed for not using the MIG, since it had been hidden. He supported the plea to the Minister of Sport and Recreation to assist with the sport complex, since it was the only sport complex in the region;
13. The municipality had been battling to convince the private sector to sponsor sport, and had lost a good coach to Durban in 2014;
14. Swimming pools were available and the municipality could have discussions with swimming and the schools to improve access;
15. Umhlatuze Department of Sport and Recreation club support programmes were implemented at ward level through cooperation between the provincial department, district and local municipalities. There was a club development programme in Umhlathuzi, Umlalazi, Umfolozi as well as Nkandla municipality for football, netball, basketball, volleyball and athletics, though there was a lack of interest in some codes. Clubs were supported with equipment, training and everything they needed to develop, including trophies for club tournaments. The main function of Club Development was to assist clubs, and the main focus was on deep rural areas. Clubs were assisted to formalise and directed to federations. Federations were assisted when they needed sport equipment. The department did not specifically assist individual clubs, but ensured that there were committees in areas;
16. In terms of the outreach programme from the Department of Sport and Recreation. R126 000 had been allocated in the 2015-16 financial year to support clubs with equipment, and stakeholders who came on board in programmes were assisted, for instance with tournaments during off-season, where a professional player from the area worked with communities and partnered in football tournaments and coaching clinics;
17. Municipal officials informed the delegation that support for federations and rural development was not financial, but that the municipality gave support with plans and activities. Club development support at ward level took the form of equipment e.g. balls, bibs, cones, goal posts and playing kit per ward. Most federations and clubs were in townships and rural areas, and municipal offices as well as an official to assist were at their disposal for faxing and making phone calls. Transport assistance was also given to attend training courses and workshops outside the jurisdictional area, and medals and trophies were provided;
18. The beach had a disability toilet and wheelchair. Building of a wheelchair ramp building had been interrupted because of beach erosion. Some beaches were dangerous for bathing and had been closed;
19. Large wards and wards with large populations had 2 or 3 facilities;
20. Funding was not specified per sport codes, and the municipality selected activities to support after codes made submissions;
21. Capacity building to women was provided, and special support and opportunities for further training were given to talented women. The only female referee in the province was from the municipality;
22. Sponsorships for specific events were obtained on a once-off basis.

3.5. Further questions, comments and concerns (Richard's Bay)

Members of the delegation raised the following questions and comments:

 

1. How did the municipality maintain facilities before MIG funds were allocated;
2. Politicians in the municipality had to deal with racism and lack of access to rugby facilities;
3. The question on the size of wards had not been answered completely;
4. Why did the officials and Auditor-general not advise councillors about the MIG.

3.6.       Replies

Stakeholders and municipal officials replied:

 

1. The municipality had been encouraged to attend the Cogta and Salga meetings on MIG;
2. The Sport for social change programme (previously youth development against violence through sports) was implemented in terms of a memorandum of understanding between the SA and German governments. Letters had been sent to all municipalities and metros, 48 municipalities applied and Umhlatuze Local Municipality was selected as one of 8 beneficiary municipalities. R3,9 million had been used to construct the 3 facilities which were to be viewed by the delegation later that day;
3. Umhlatuze Local Municipality applied and qualified in terms of their proposal.

4.         Big Five False Bay Local Municipality, Hluhluwe, 17 September 2015

The chairperson of the delegation, Ms B N Dlulane, indicated that the committee had been informed that volleyball, football and rugby federations implemented programmes at the municipality, and requested information on the municipality's sport development programmes, school sport and club development programmes, budgets, challenges and achievements, MIG allocation for sport and recreation facilities, utilisation of the MIG and cooperation with the provincial sport department to ensure availability of sport programmes.

4.1.       Briefing: Big Five False Bay Local Municipality (Hluhluwe)

The mayor, councillors and officials informed the delegation that the Big Five False Bay Local Municipality was small. There were 7 councillors and 4 wards for the vast area. The municipality was struggling because of its size-income ratio.

 

Town development was constrained because the area was mostly dominated by the wards, and they found it difficult to develop the town because of the ownership of the land by those white people. The fact was confirmed in the Big 5 False Bay Municipality IDP 2012/2013 – 2016/2017 2nd Review 2014/2015: Three wards (Mnqobokazi, Makhasa and Nibela), traditional authority areas, were administered by the Ingonyama Trust Board (ITB) in terms of the KwaZulu-Natal Ingonyama Trust Amendment Act, Act 9 of 1997, [which posed a difficulty] to the municipality, as regulating development within such area had become a challenge since the inception of Planning Development Act (PDA) [Spatial Planning and Land Use Management Act, Act 16 of 2013].

 

Tenure options in the three Traditional Authority Areas were limited to PTOs (permission to occupy) for residential developments on short leases, and long-term leases for all other types of development. The greatest portion of the land was privately owned, followed by state-owned land, and there was a number of farms in Hluhluwe (ward 3). Full tenure and sectional title commercial land in Hluhluwe town, Phumlani Township and the commercial farm and private conservation areas comprised 45% of the geographic area.

 

Big Five was a plenary municipality because of the small number of councillors. There were no portfolios for councillors and all council members took part in what was done in the municipality.

4.1.1.    Facilities

The municipality had prioritised construction of sport and recreation fields over past financial years. Operations and maintenance of the facilities were problematic because of funding problems - the municipality had a low revenue base.

 

Sport facilities were: Phumlani sport field, Mnqobokazi sport field, and Nibela sport field, of which construction had commenced in June 2014. Makhasa regional sports complex was larger and most events were hosted there.

 

Programmes and activities included Salga games, Mayoral Cup, indigenous games, disability sports day, KZN indigenous sport games and Golden Games for senior citizens. Sport codes included athletics, basketball, football, netball, rugby, indigenous sport, volleyball.

4.1.2.    Maintenance

Maintenance was a challenge since the district had no water for irrigation.  Fields were vandalised and more funds had to be allocated to maintaining sport fields. Personnel had been allocated to maintain each of the completed sport facilities (Phumlani, Makhasa and Mnqobokazi), and to clean and cut grass. EPWP funding was allocated for maintenance at each of the municipal facilities, and security guards had been placed at all municipal facilities to ensure safety and prevent vandalism.

 

R2 029 210 of the R11 156 000 MIG allocation in the 2014-15 financial year had been used for sport. The maintenance plan included sport fields, repairs and maintenance, though some sport fields were not well maintained.

 

Phumlani facility had been allocated R200 000 for small breakages, lights and water and infrastructure maintenance, Makhasa had been allocated R100 000 for upgrading the lights and water system, repairs, grass cutting, marking, and R100 000 had been allocated to Mnqobokazi sport facility for repairs and maintenance. There was a facility on private land which the municipality could not afford to buy.

4.1.3.    Concerns

1. The municipality could not afford to buy the land on which the people's FIFA legacy facility had been built;
2. The municipality claimed that they had funding problems, but had spent only R2 029 210 of the R11 156 000 MIG allocation in the 2014-15 financial year;
3. That a government facility had been built on someone's land and that the person expressed the intention not to renew the lease was problematic, and the delegation was of the opinion that the Government needed to be involved;
4. That MIG funding for social cohesion and facilities had not been utilised fully and it was unclear for what the remainder of the allocation had been used.

4.1.4     Proposal

It was proposed that:

1. A cooperative be formed to perform maintenance so that the community could benefit from the project;
2. The legacy lease agreement be rectified;
3. The thorny grass be rectified;
4. The Government assist the people to purchase the land on which the legacy facility had been built;
5. The land programme be looked at and the government and amakhosi be involved and options discussed, for instance purchasing land with the help of the applicable government department.

4.1.5.               Replies by councillors, stakeholders and officials

1. MIG spending: R11 million was the total allocated amount, the R2 million which was more than 15% was for the stadium that was being built;
2. Indigenous games such as Morabaraba, Kho-kho and Ncuvu were played in 54 hubs and activity coordinators and Salga Games ensured link-up with the municipality. The community was also reached through Golden Games codes such as dress up, passing the ball, goal shooting and football for males;
3. The Disability Forum in the district was not fully functional, though each local municipality was represented. The municipality had organised a professional federation for disability to present information, for instance table tennis, though athletes were not keen on table tennis, but were more interested in wheelchair racing. It was difficult to accommodate wheelchair racing because of the terrain, number of facilities and the cost of wheelchairs;
4. Cycling was included in priority codes. There were four (4) development cyclists;
5. There was a task team to support school sport and there was supposed to be a sport confederation at district level to make sure that policies were implemented. The department was in the process of procurement to support structures, supporting the structure with laptops etc, and had a problem with providing transport;
6. They were still battling with sport confederation at district level: Amongst five municipalities in the district they were not doing well, and did not get participation in sitting of structures;
7. Participation: Women's football was one of the priorities from the MEC, as well as cycling and school sport. The department was trying to balance those priorities and was doing well with boxing. Two boxers had participated at Commonwealth Games level. The athletes were there, but structures were found to be lacking;
8. Lease agreement: The municipality entered the lease agreement in the hope to afford to buy the property later, but realised that they could not afford it. They had entered into discussions with the new owner, it was not that he was being difficult, just that the municipality had to apply more muscle. The field was located well because it was close to a rugby facility;
9. The municipality needed a sport facility, and were hoping for an indoor facility for the Big Five;
10. It was acknowledged that the municipality had gone into the mode of coming up with new projects and neglecting maintenance, and had not performed maintenance 100%, but instead tried to put sport facilities all over without enough money to build new as well as maintain old facilities. Most wards had facilities and the municipality had a maintenance plan;
11. The pending amalgamation in May 2016 contributed to capacity challenges in the municipality in that it was difficult to fill the vacancies for heads of the three municipal departments;
12. The small municipality did not pay large salaries, which led to staff losses monthly as people found better salaries elsewhere. It was hard to draw skilled people because of the town was so small;
13. Swimming: The municipality had approached Hluhluwe private and Hluhluwe primary school, who were happy to assist by making their swimming pools available, and agreed to assist nearby primary schools on how to teach learners how to swim. In 2015 two athletes had represented the municipality at provincial level;
14.  Disability sport in schools: Khulani Special School (KSS) participated in the schools league and 12 athletes from the special school participated at provincial level the week before;
15.  23 primary and 6 high schools participated in sport, had registered and were all active.

4.1.6.    Salga KZN

1.  Salga assisted municipalities with implementation of the Municipal Infrastructure Grant by offering workshops and technical services to help with planning, since it became clear that funds were returned because municipalities did not plan in time. Salga therefore assisted at planning stage, and took a more hands-on approach with some municipalities, for example Mkhambathini Local Municipality in the UMgungundlovu District where there was no technical director. That project is well under way.
2. Hosting of Salga Games was rotated, therefore municipalities had to develop facilities for the games, even if they did not offer all the codes. The biggest municipality was uMKhanyakude, with 16 codes.

4.2        Input on sport development and programmes

4.2.1.    SA Football Association (Safa)

The head of women's football, Safa KZN, highlighted problems and successes of the women's football programme.

4.2.1.1. Challenges in rural areas

1. Because of tradition in rural areas it was not popular for girls to play football and in deep rural areas girls had many had chores;
2. On provincial level women's football was not included in club development;
3. Women's football should had to be included in club development as part of empowerment;
4. Some schools claimed to play football but did not, and only one high school had showed up for the district final;
5. Players' development and coach development would be done if finance was provided;
6. The centre would need a centre manager, community service officer, maintenance person and security;
7. The owner of the private land had threatened that he was not willing to do anything, but he had not ended discussions.

4.2.1.2. Successes

1. There had been great progress in coordinating women's football. A committee with representatives of the Department of Education, South African Schools Football Association (Sasfa), Safa, SRSA, and Football for Life, initiated by FC Rosengard, a Swedish football club, was a programme under NGO Safa Umkhanyakude foundation;
2. The regional Safa league of 20 teams had been decentralised to enable all girls to take part, since it assisted in saving cost for travel;
3. It was a DSR Club Development requirement for clubs to have a women's team and the clubs were very supportive towards the girls;
4. Department of Education (KZN) had the top school leagues; (What does this mean)
5. Football for Life was working with stakeholders trying to capacitate coaches, develop players, coordinate, and give general support;
6. Club development was with Football for Life, the department had funds for kit, and they cooperated in clinics and workshops and coaching courses. The. T top schools league was working together in that activity;
7. A women's football and development centre would be opened on 3 Oct 2015 in Mathubathuba centre - the uMKhanyakude women's football and development centre;
8. The Department of Education had been happy that girls slept on mattresses on the floor when attending a talent camp at Makasa sports complex, and a Swedish construction company had agreed to donate funds for a facility with dormitories, toilet, a hall, kitchen etc at Masibonisane High School on land owned by the Department of Education;
9. The football field had been built in partnership with SRSA. It was well maintained, but the grass was long and the sprinkler pump was not working.

4.2.2     Department of Basic Education

The Department of Basic Education responded regarding the discussion on 14 September of MTEF funding of R49 million and what it was for. The provincial chief financial officer provided information that R35 million went toward compensation of employees. The director general had requested a narrative report, because it was necessary to see that the money went directly to the programme, and had been distributed. The DBE was in contact with districts at the time to verify how much they had received and how it had been allocated. When the local municipality informed the department that it had not received money DBE needed to see where the money had been utilised. If there was no funding for level 1 and 2, and if the money did not go to services and goods, the DBE wished to gather all the information, identify the problem and provide reports.

4.2.3.    KZN Sharks Rugby Umkhanyakude

1. KZN Rugby Union gave a district breakdown of activities and teams. The federation worked closely with teachers and learners in three schools in the Hluhluwe hotspot, and in Umhlabuyalingana (Manguze – Kosi Bay area), and aimed to work with Salga.
2. Women's teams were stronger in the Hluhluwe area and worked closely with the Sharks. Learners participated in the programme after school and efforts were made to ensure that learners were kept close to their teachers.

4.2.4.    Volleyball

1. The schools coordinator and volleyball uMkhanyakude had 42 registered teams affiliated to the provincial federation; local leagues matches and tournaments were held, including a women's tournament on 9 August 2015;
2. Women's volleyball was promoted, and workshops were held;
3. The district department of sport and recreation had contributed funding since the 2014-15 financial year.

Challenge (volleyball)

The children and community were not accepting volleyball and did not know what volleyball was.

4.2.5.    Safa Umkhanyakude

1. Safa Umkhanyakude was based in Hluhluwe at the Legacy Trust building;
2. 48 teams in the league were also in SAB league;
3. Players were in three age groups, the numbers were huge, but resources and facilities were problematic;
4. The only proper facility was the one built on private land, and even that was not maintained well;
5. School sport went well, though proper courts and sport fields were needed;
6. Transporting of learners was problematic: Department of Sport and Recreation provided funding for transportation in district, but in schools there was no funding and the distance between the schools was vast;
7. The local, provincial and national departments of Sport and Recreation provided equipment, but more was needed because of growing numbers.

4.2.6.    Department of Education KZN/District sport

1. The department made sure all learners in the registered schools participated, because they cooperated with the district planning section from the start and took forms to workshop principals and circuit managers. When the schools submitted their school statistics to the districts they also had the forms, therefore district school registration was at 100%;
2. Schools were visited to ensure a structure for all codes, and circuits were clustered into zonal code structures (5 executive members and the codes). The executive monitored the operation of sport in the zone;
3. In the district zones and schools made up the district and school structures. Schools were required to submit minutes and fixtures of the games that were played in the schools.

4.2.6.1. Challenges

1. The main challenge was a shortage of funds, and the transport and the shortage of meals for the children was a burden;
2. The department, as custodian of school sport, needed funding for the function.

4.2.6.2. Successes

1. Five bursaries were paid to learners who excelled nationally (learners had been relocated to schools in the Western Cape);
2. Football supported the sport initiative, and Safa worked hard to support the Department of Education.

4.2.6.3. Request

It was requested that:

1. A sports field and combo-courts be provided at each school;
2. The Department of Sport and Recreation construct a sport complex in the area similar to the one in Richard's Bay.

4.2.7.    Comments, questions and concerns

Members of the delegation expressed concern:

 

1. Money for sport focus schools was given to already resourced schools that did not need the money;
2. The Department of Education was reminded that registration by schools translated into actual participation.

 

Members of the delegation commented:

 

1. The issue of land was government policy and not under the control of the delegation;
2. It was appreciated that the Big Five False Bay municipality, which was vulnerable and among the poorest, made use of the MIG money. What they were doing with the MIG money had impressed members of the delegation;
3. Excellent work was done to develop sport. All the federations, sport clubs, stakeholders and municipal officials who had made input did excellent work in sport in the municipality;
4. The work done by sport and recreation and in the districts was appreciated, and it was important, in view of the vastness of the area, that they not only concentrate on obvious areas, but also reach people who lived in remote areas;
5. There was a need for Safa to intervene at regional level to help with funding in addition to Lottery funding;
6. There was a need for the department and the municipality to negotiate terms with the owner of private land on which the sport facility had been built. The matter of the facility on private land was regarded as serious;
7. The response by the DBE that R35 million out of R49 million in MTEF funding had been allocated for salaries, and the initiative to report on detailed distribution in municipalities and districts was the kind of transparency that the committee had asked for.

5.         Findings

5.1.       Findings (KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation and Department of Education, Pietermaritzburg, 14 September 2015)

1. The province had been innovative in its efforts to develop and ensure implementation of school sport, for instance through hubs, because it was not always possible to offer all sports and infrastructure in all schools, and with regard to maintenance and the plan to ensure that assets for sport infrastructure would be sustainable;
2. Only one learner, who had applied for the bursary herself, had been placed at the PMB Girls High School through the Ministerial Bursary Programme and no MoU was in place with the school at the time of the oversight visit;
3. The sport focus school programme had not been done as per the model that SRSA had established;
4. The provincial school championship system needed to be revised in light of the fact that there were 12 districts in KZN, 12 education districts in eThekwini and two each for Umlazi and Pinetown;
5. The KwaZulu-Natal sport council was functioning through an interim structure, which was preparing for elections. The committee had met the acting president of the interim committee in Pietermaritzburg.

5.2.       Findings (Club Development)

1. The province was on the right track and had made good progress on the club development pilot project, the manual was good, and 439 clubs had been registered;
2. Club development and school sport as foundation for development had to be complementary;
3. Grassroots coaches were not taken care of, or remunerated accordingly, but remained poor despite being instrumental in producing sport stars; and
4. Contracts of volunteer coaches in hubs would expire in October 2015, and the provincial department was to prioritise renewing contacts of those volunteers whose districts were active.

5.3.       Finding (eThekwini)

1. eThekwini had succeeded in developing new facilities where there had been a great need for such facilities.

5.4.       Findings (Richard's Bay)

1. The municipality's sport and recreation implementation and development plan was well set out and more than just a wish list;
2. Every ward had at least a basic facility;
3. The municipality had started to budget for MIG allocations, and needed support from other social clusters. It seemed as if MIG money had a lot to do with implementation issues
4. The municipality's work was exemplary;
5. The lease charges in certain municipal sport facilities were  far below maintenance cost, which was carried by lessees in some instances, and at least one was subletting and some were charging revenue; and
6. The stadium that was used by Thanda Royal Zulu for its matches did not have floodlights, but the adjacent rugby field had floodlights.

5.5.       Findings (Big Five False Bay Local Municipality, Hluhluwe)

1. The Big Five False Bay municipality had very little funding and lacked human resource capacity, which was why they were not able to present an implementation plan for sport;
2. The 2010 FIFA legacy facility had been built on private land and was leased by the municipality, with the undertaking that they would maintain the facility, however, the owner had said that he was considering not renewing the lease. The municipality intended to engage in further discussions with the owner regarding the lease; and
3. Football for Life was working with stakeholders trying to capacitate coaches, develop players, coordinate, and give general support.

6.         Conclusion

1. The KZN approach in not separating work and planning for sport focus schools, placing of bursary recipients from work on the talent pathway had resulted in a slightly slower implementation in the interest of better eventual coordination, integration and efficiency; and
2. Steps are necessary to ensure that the sport council in KZN functions well.

7.         Undertakings

7.1.       Club Development

The committee undertook to discuss the quality of equipment with the department.

7.2.       Big Five False Bay Local Municipality, Hluhluwe

The chairperson of the Portfolio Committee undertook to discuss the matter of the problem that the FIFA legacy facility had been built on private land with the political heads who dealt with land issues.

 

8.         Recommendations

8.1        KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sport and Recreation and Department of Education, Pietermaritzburg, 14 September 2015

The Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation recommends that the Minister of Sport and Recreation:

1. Require that federations comply with transformation imperatives and geographic alignment;
2. Encourage identification of sport codes in which focus is needed with a view to participation in at the Commonwealth Games, and departmental cooperation with the respective federations;
3. Strengthen departmental cooperation in establishing an MoU with PMB Girls High School;
4. Assist sport focus schools by providing training with regard to the MoU and responsibilities of partner departments and schools;
5. Emphasise the need for municipalities to be seen to treat all sport clubs equally;
6. Encourage municipalities to mobilise private partnership as part of their plans;
7. Encourage municipalities to engage more with local stakeholders to improve land allocation, and to include the amakhosi where applicable, regarding development and facilities;
8. Encourage municipalities to advertise the issue of vandalism so that people are alerted not to vandalise their own facilities; and
9. Encourage municipalities to address lease agreements of municipal facilities and ensure that lease revenue benefits the community.

8.2.       Club Development

The Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation recommends that the Minister of Sport and Recreation:

1. Encourage federations to establish school sport coordinating structures to ensure alignment with the school sport programme;
2. Ensure alignment with school sport through closer cooperation with the Department of Basic Education in terms of the MoU;
3. Encourage the provision of funding for the club development pilot project as well as enhanced focus on club development and schools;
4. Require and facilitate improved coordination between clubs, federations and stakeholder departments in programmes and implementation;
5. Facilitate improved coordination between club development and provincial departments;
6. Explore ways to ensure that rural facilities be covered in terms of funding and facilities, and that grassroots coaches be employed permanently and remunerated with living salaries as their fellow elite coaches; and
7. Look into the problem experienced by volunteer facilitators at hubs regarding contracts and compensation, explore ways to ensure that hubs are taken care of in terms of human resource capacity and support.

8.3.       Municipalities

The Portfolio Committee on Sport and Recreation recommends that:

8.3.1.    The Minister of Sport and Recreation:

1. Encourage municipalities to mobilise private partnership as part of their plan;
2. Encourage municipalities to engage more with local stakeholders to improve land allocation, and to include the amakhosi where applicable, regarding development and facilities;
3. Encourage municipalities to publish information about the issue of vandalism so that citizens are alerted not to vandalise their own facilities;
4. Encourage municipalities to address lease agreements for municipal facilities, to ensure that lease revenue benefits the community as well as a fair and equitable lease agreement for all codes; and
5. Engage the relevant stakeholders with regard to the facility that had been built on private land.

8.3.2.    The Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs:

1. Liaise with political heads who dealt with land issues regarding problem of the lease of the FIFA legacy facility that had been built on private land.

 

Report to be considered.