Minister of Correctional Services Budget Speech

Speech By Minister Dr Pieter Groenewald, MP

Geagte Huisvoorsitter,

Deputy Minister of Correctional Services, Members of the Portfolio Committee, Honourable Members,
National Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services, Inspecting Judge, Justice Edwin Cameron,
Members of the National Council for Correctional Services, Members of the Parole Boards,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are in exciting new times with an abundance of possibilities but also complexities and challenges. The success of the new administration is dependent on our commitment. We have been afforded the opportunity to bring about real change to the lives of ordinary South Africans. We have been afforded the opportunity to restore and build; to fix what is broken; and to render hope for a safe, peaceful and prosperous future.

On Thursday, 18^th July, the world will commemorate Nelson Mandela International Day. President Mandela said: “Crime must be brought under control... Freedom without civility, freedom without the ability to live in peace, is not true freedom at all.”

Alle gemeenskappe in Suid-Afrika kry tans swaar weens buitensporige hoë geweldsmisdaad. Ons howe is onderbefonds, onderbeman en ons tronke is oorvol. Misdaad is buite beheer en die mees weerloses in ons samelewing – vroue en kinders
– ly die meeste as gevolg van ‘n gebrek aan effektiewe beskerming en bekamping van geslagsgeweld.

The Department of Correctional Services is paramount in our fight against crime and realising a South Africa of peace and prosperity for all. The Department has the important task to safeguard communities against convicted criminals whilst providing rehabilitation of offenders in order to ensure safe reintegration into society.

Our country is ushering in the seventh administration through a Government of National Unity. As the 2020-2025 Strategic Plan period comes to an end, it is imperative to realise initiatives aimed at improving the lives of our people. DCS must play a leading role.

To achieve this, we need strategic investments, innovative programmes and a commitment to justice and humanity. During the current financial year, our main task is to build on interventions of making correctional facilities safe and secure.

We need to identify and acknowledge the challenges and problems facing correctional services. We need to prioritize addressing the areas of inefficiency in the department, root out corruption, ill-discipline, and restore effective service delivery to create a system that not only corrects but heals, educates, reintegrates and contributes to the eradication of crime.

These challenges include overcrowding, dilapidated facilities, ever-increasing remand detainees, deteriorating infrastructure, staff shortages, crime syndicates and gangs operating in our facilities, and new forms of crime patterns challenging our rehabilitation programmes.

The total budget allocation for the Department over the 2025 MTEF period, amounts to R87.1 billion. The Department’s expenditure is expected to increase at an average annual rate of 4.5%, from R26,6 billion in 2023/24 to R30.3 billion in 2026/27.

South Africa is experiencing insufficient economic growth, a budget deficit and an unsustainable government debt burden. This necessitated budget cuts which includes the DCS baseline being cut by R2.525 billion.

The impact of these cuts is severe. The provision of security equipment is compromised; capital investment in skills developments were cut; the budget for nutritional services had to be cut; capital works projects will be on hold; and the monitoring of parolees could be negatively impacted.

We will and have to do more with less. This will require innovation, discipline and commitment.

Die behoeftes is baie, maar die begroting onvoldoende. Dit is egter nie onmoontlik om onder hierdie omstandighede en realiteite wel verbetering en uitnemendheid teweeg te bring nie.

Agbare voorsitter, “oom Pieter” sal nie alleen sukses kan bereik nie. Ons sal moet saamwerk. I look forward to working with the Deputy Minister, the National Commissioner, his executive and each and every DCS official in ensuring quality service delivery and a safer South Africa.

Two of the priorities that will receive urgent attention are effective contract management and the reduction of outsourcing. We must ensure value for money. It is also important to build a capable workforce and to ensure that the skills and expertise of our officials are utilised rather than outsourcing tasks and services.

Ons moet ook daarop fokus om die fasiliteite en infrastruktuur wat ons het effektief binne die beperkte begroting instand te hou.

Heinous crimes committed by a minority of parolees does affect our core business as it hampers the reintegration of former inmates into society. The impact on victims, our communities, families and individuals within the system is profound. It is imperative that we address these issues with urgency.

This brings us to the emotive issue of parole. It is a subject that has generated a lot of interest and mixed reaction from the public. Parole is a mechanism that allows for the conditional release of inmates to continue serving their sentences in society to better facilitate their reintegration. The debate on it is receiving necessary attention. I say this because the Department is working on reviewing the parole system. The time has come for DCS to finalise this matter, as reforming our parole system is not just a policy issue but a moral imperative.

People have been asking for a system of fairness and transparency. The current criteria seem not to be appreciated. Although victims of crime are allowed to participate in the parole process, how far do their voices go? This calls for a relook in the review and oversight mechanisms. It is critical that this Administration finalise this review in the interest of all.

Honourable Members, legislative reforms are a necessity as we explore new ways of conducting our business, but, most importantly, there have been several judgements that have pushed us to duly align our legal mandates and policies.

As such the Correctional Services Act (CSA) is further being reviewed taking into consideration developments in the correctional system, international and regional obligations, the Nelson Mandela Rules and judgements impacting on the interpretation of the CSA. This work started in the sixth administration, and our resolve is to see it being concluded without any delay.

On Nelson Mandela Day, the Department of Correctional Services will join the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in calling for the universal application of the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners – the Nelson Mandela Rules.

The cardinal factor in the success of Correctional Services is its correctional officials being fit for purpose. We shall be paying more attention to the type of investment made in training and development of staff members. It is vital that they are equipped with the skills and the necessary equipment to perform their functions effectively. A well-trained and motivated staff is essential for creating a rehabilitative environment and ridding crime from our correctional facilities.

As part of the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster, we should not compromise on enforcing discipline. Our Code Enforcement Unit will continue to play its crucial role with action already taken against 66 officials for theft, fraud, corruption and maladministration. The Departmental Investigation Unit has finalised 77% of investigations (334/432).

The Correctional Services Youth Programme aims to place young people in suitable positions within the Department through the normal recruitment processes, learnerships, internships as well as experiential learning. The DCS Learnership Programme is one of DCS’ foremost programmes for the alleviation of poverty and unemployment among the youth.

The Department will further direct its efforts in promoting equality at all levels in the Department whilst ensuring fit for purpose appointments.

We must pay attention to overcrowding which has become an established phenomenon in our correctional centres. Some have defined it as a ‘wicked problem’. A wicked problem is one that is social or cultural in character and is difficult or impossible to address owing to its complexity and interconnection. Overcrowding is the consequence of the rampant crime rate. Overcrowded correctional facilities have a negative impact on all conditions of incarceration resulting in a restricted living space and such is associated with loss of human dignity. Overcrowding also results in a reduction of general services to be provided in a correctional facility to comply with the demands for medical treatment, sanitary equipment and educational, training and rehabilitative programmes.

Societal issues such as poverty, lack of education or employment opportunities, drug or alcohol abuse, exposure to others involved in criminal activity and mental illness do impact the crime rate and subsequent inmate population. These complex societal issues cannot be addressed by a single state agency nor solely by the criminal justice system.

For the financial year 2022/23 the inmate population increased by 13 833 from 143
223 to 157 056 inmates constituting a 9.7% upward movement in one year. Unsentenced inmates – that is remand detention – comprises 59 574 of these inmates.

An Overcrowding Reduction Strategy is being implemented, yet for it to succeed calls for all entities in the criminal justice system to work in unison. The Department cannot refuse to admit any person referred by the court regardless of its occupancy level.

Despite all the challenges, we shall not throw in the towel. Our job is to find solutions and create working systems. Working teams with other criminal justice agencies will be strengthened to address the causes of delays in criminal justice process to ensure case backlogs can be approached in a systematic manner and pressure on correctional facilities relieved by joint action. The long-term solution requires Departments and agencies within the JCPS Cluster to develop comprehensive and evidence-based criminal justice reform strategies that address overcrowding in an effective and sustainable manner. Structures involving Judge Presidents in various provinces and visits by the judiciary to our correctional centres assist in sharing knowledge.

Offender rehabilitation defines our standing as the Department of Correctional Services. In line with stipulations of the White Paper on Corrections in South Africa (2005), the Department has adopted an offender needs-based approach that is specifically aimed at eliminating offending behaviour. The benefits of rehabilitating offenders are the reduction in costs of managing correctional facilities, the transformation of offenders into productive members of society and the promotion of labour-intensive community-based development projects which promotes self sufficiency and sustainability.

Key to rehabilitation, is empowering offenders to function effectively upon their release but, equally important, is to ensure that offenders are involved in productive activities whilst incarcerated. The Department is committed to ensuring that offenders gain skills, education and experiences that will reduce reoffending and in turn make safer communities. Offenders are engaged in work which provides meaningful, structured days and opportunities to learn skills and responsibilities.

The Department is implementing its Strategic Framework on Self-Sufficiency and Sustainability to increase self-sufficiency through agricultural productivity, vegetable production, fruit production, milk production, chicken-broilers, chicken-layers, red meat abattoirs, white meat abattoirs and piggeries that take place at correctional centre farms.

The Department is also armed with production workshops, which include bakeries, wood workshops, steel workshops, textile workshops, a shoe factory and a lock and key manufacturing workshop.

We will prioritise efficient security at these facilities and will also address the current short comings at some of these farms involving animal health standards.

I will also engage with my counterpart in public works and infrastructure as I believe goods such as furniture produced by inmates at these workshops could be procured by public works and other government departments, providing a sustainable market for these products and contributing to effective cost containment throughout government departments.

Honourable members, the two Public-Private Partnership (PPP) Correctional Centres are being monitored closely by the Department as there are challenges being addressed. A court application on the Mangaung Correctional Centre by the Bloemfontein Correctional Contracts (BCC) interdicting DCS from proceeding with the contract termination was heard on 16 and 17 April 2024. The court ruled against G4S as it applied to be one of the parties in the case. G4S has since appealed the court judgement, indicating that this case is likely to be a drawn-out process. After all documents are filed, the judge will allocate a date for oral argument of the application for leave to appeal. Should their application for leave to appeal fail, they have made it clear that they will institute a petition for leave to appeal to the Constitutional Court. It is clear that the matter will take some time before it is finalized.

Repairs at Kutama Sinthumule Correctional facility are near completion as the Yellow and Green centres, housing a total of 1 872 inmates, have been completed and inmates admitted. Only the Green centre, with a bed capacity of 1 152, is receiving finishing touches, and should be back into full operation by 1 August 2024. Let me remind members, this facility was gutted down by fire in August 2023.

In conclusion, globally, what defines a successful correctional system is to have an environment where individuals can rebuild their lives, develop new skills and contribute positively to society upon release. Our vision is to provide the best correctional services for a safer South Africa.

Honourable Members, transparency and accountability are crucial for the success of this Department. We need robust oversight mechanisms to ensure that our facilities are meeting the highest standards of care and rehabilitation. Regular audits, independent inspections and community involvement in oversight can help maintain the integrity of our correctional system.

Hierdie is ongekende tye – ‘n veelparty regering van nasionale eenheid. Ons moet nou hande vat en saam werk om ons land te bou tot die voordeel van almal. Daar is hoop vir ‘n beter toekoms.

We have started this journey, and, one thing is certain, there will be turbulence, but I am optimistic that we shall overcome. We are here to serve and create hope for a better future.

By instilling discipline; fostering mutual respect; rooting out fraud and corruption; ensuring that there is consequence management; investing in rehabilitation, education and restorative justice, we can create a system that not only corrects but heals.

Saam kan ons ‘n veilige Suid-Afrika bou en die nodige goeie waardes bevorder. Waardes wat nodig is om misdaad te bekamp, armoede uit te roei en gelyke geleenthede vir almal te bevorder.

EK DANK U.

 

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Speech By Debuty Minister Ms Lindiwe Ntshalintsha, MP

Honourable House Chairperson,

Minister of Correctional Services, Dr Pieter Groenewald,

Ministers and Deputy Ministers from sister Departments,

Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Correctional Services Hon. Kgomotso Ramolobeng and members of the Committee,

National Commissioner of the Department of Correctional Services, Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale,

Inspecting Judge, Justice Edwin Cameron,

Members of the National Council for Correctional Services, 

Members of the Parole Boards,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen

Good Afternoon,

 

1. The Department of Correctional Services (DCS) forms part of the criminal justice system that seeks to realize the vision of ensuring that people living in South Africa feel safe at home, at school and at work and that they enjoy a community life free of fear. A safe and secure country encourages economic growth and transformation and is therefore an important contributor to addressing factors such as poverty, inequality, and unemployment.  Within an extraordinary challenging socio and economic context, DCS has realigned its strategy and interventions to increase safety in our communities.
2. Honourable Members, the levels of crime in the country are a concern for us as Correctional Services because of their snowballing effect in security risks and threats in our facilities. Over the past three years, the Department has had basic training for Emergency Support Team (EST) officials to provide additional capacity to respond to various situations, such as riots, violent attacks, high risk tactical guarding, escorting and the use of minimum force, amongst others. 
3. We have been conducting searches, head counts and other security procedures to maintain adequate security standards. This was done to guard and preserve the integrity and dignity of officials, inmates and visitors to all our facilities. What needs to be understood is that correctional centres serve multiple purposes. They are centres where justice is administered, providing a deterrent to crime and a means of rehabilitation for those who violate the law. However, they are also institutions of second chances, offering education, vocational training and counselling to help inmates turn their lives around.
4. For this to be effective, the environment within correctional facilities must be both safe and secure. We have observed a disturbing trend where informal settlements are mushrooming closer to our facilities.  This is then followed by deliberate efforts to disrupt our services.  Illegal connections to electricity transformers and consistency in contraband items being thrown into our terrains are becoming a daily occurrence. One of the correctional facilities being gravely affected is St Albans in Gqeberha.
5. Security measures are essential to prevent escapes, contraband smuggling and other security breaches that could endanger officials, inmates and the public. Effective security ensures that correctional centres fulfil their role in protecting society from those who have committed crimes. Effective security measures have seen the Department record a reduction in escapes, assaults and unnatural deaths. The Department has deployed various mechanisms in dealing with perennial escapes in the past, and, indeed, this has made a difference. There has been a reduction in the number of escapes between 2021/22 and 2022/23 financial years as a result of the effective implementation of escape prevention strategies and adherence to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs). Over the MTEF, the Department will continue to reduce all security incidents across correctional facilities.  Escapes will be reduced by 0.002% across the MTEF from 0.029% in 2024/25 to 0.027% in 2026/27.
6. From the 2018/19 to 2022/23 financial years, there was an improvement in the rate of injuries to offenders due to the deployment of the Emergency Security Teams (EST) to identified correctional facilities to provide support in terms of clean-up and search operations as well as effective implementation of the assault prevention strategy. We intend reducing injuries by 0.05% across the medium-erm at 4.45% in 2024/25 to 4.35% in 2026/27, while unnatural deaths will be maintained at 0.032%.  
7. Implementation of Escape, Assault and Death Prevention Strategies in all correctional facilities ensure inmates are held in safe, secure and humane conditions. These strategies are not just safety measures but a multi-disciplinary approach to security. DCS has been implementing the Festive Season Security Operational Campaign annually, from December to January, in an effort to intensify security measures during the festive period. 
8. The Department is exploring approaches aimed at curbing incidents that take place after lock-up time, such as unnatural deaths caused by suicides. We require more than just regular patrols, and monitoring after hours, so that distress situations are acted upon timely. The National Security Committee is looking at the current procedures so that identified gaps can be closed. 
9. The wearing of civilian clothes by remand detainees presents a heightened security risk due to the difficulty of distinguishing between remand detainees and civilians working inside correctional facilities. The state of some private clothes also affects hygiene. Section 48 of the Correctional Services Act makes provision for supplying remand detainees with uniform which is different from that prescribed for sentenced offenders and may not be worn to court. The Department is thus enforcing wearing of yellow uniform by all remand detainees. Yes,  we are strained in terms of the material and resources but efforts are being made to ensure that this happens. Ensuring safe and secure correctional centres is a complex, but essential, task. It requires a holistic approach that prioritizes the well-being of inmates, the safety of staff and the security of the facilities. By committing to these principles, we can create a correctional system that not only upholds justice but also fosters rehabilitation and reintegration ultimately contributing to a safer and more just society.
10. Availability and access to medicine is critical in ensuring the provision of comprehensive primary health care services to the inmate population.  Correctional Services has a total of 243 correctional centres across the country, which have clinics that cater for the health needs of all inmates. Linked to it are Departmental pharmacies responsible for supplying clinics with medicines and medical supplies in addressing the health needs of inmates. As at 31 March 2024, the Department managed to ramp up its portfolio of pharmacies to 37 and these are fully aligned to the requirements of Good Pharmacy Practice in South Africa. A total of 13 of these pharmacies were established in the last five (5) years. The pharmacy establishment projects came into fruition through offender labour. The use of offender labour further contributed to their skills development. The project entailed the innovative conversion of existing store rooms and offices as some were underutilised and dilapidated. The pharmacy establishment project contributes to Priority 3 of Government, as it relates to Education, Skills and Health as outlined in the Revised Medium-Term Strategic Framework (RMTSF). Bringing pharmacy services closer to the beneficiaries (inmates) is poised to enhance the quality of health care services and turnaround time in the delivery of medicines.
11. Since the advent of democracy, community corrections has become a core component of the South African criminal justice system as it provides a useful and less costly alternative to incarceration. Community corrections is a shift in focus from sanction and deterrence to rehabilitation and reintegration.  This shift in focus has resulted in the establishment, expansion and diversification of the current community corrections system.  Community corrections is mandated to provide supervision of offenders (probationers, parolees and awaiting-trial persons (ATPs), placed under the system of community corrections, in order to enhance public safety.  
12. There are 218 community corrections offices serving parolees, probationers and Awaiting Trial Persons (ATPs) for effective monitoring and supervision.  Reintegration of offenders under the system of community corrections provides offenders with an opportunity to lead a socially responsible and crime-free life within their communities.  The Department noted significant achievements during the sixth administration on the compliance with set conditions of parole and correctional supervision.
13. A total number of 518 vehicles were leased as a critical success factor to ensure effective monitoring and implementation of Social Reintegration programmes for effective reintegration. Vehicles were distributed in line with the demand and unique environment based on the road infrastructure, geographical areas and based on the challenged cases within those areas.  In addition, the Department procured three hundred and sixty (360) computers to boost service delivery as community corrections administration depend on information, communication and technology (ICT).
14. To enable offenders to be reintegrated into society upon release, correctional programmes are aimed at equipping offenders serving sentences longer than 24 months with life skills. The Department has progressively improved offender participation in rehabilitation programmes to ensure that offenders complete relevant correctional programmes. There was an increase of 6 295 offenders participating in correctional programmes from the 2021/22 to 2022/23 financial years.
15. The role of government and non-governmental partners is imperative to ensure achievement of education outcomes.  In order not to disadvantage offender learners, the Department ensures that offenders have access to education and training curricula that is aligned with that of the national education system. The performance of offender learners in standardised tests of the Department of Basic Education (DBE) is comparable to the performance of learners from the community or any other public school.  The Department provides offenders with education and training of the highest quality by partnering with the Departments of Basic and Higher Education to provide curriculum intervention programmes and educator development in various subject areas, thus leading to significantly improved learning outcomes. 
16. DBE and the Department of Higher Education train DCS Head Office and Provincial monitors on the monitoring of examinations and provide resident monitors at all of the DCS FET schools. The Department of Higher Education complements the numbers of educators that deliver Adult Education and Training (AET) classes at DCS AET facilities. Curriculum intervention implemented led to the increase in the Grade 12 pass rate obtained between the 2015/16 financial year with a 73% pass rate and the 2022/23 financial year with an 87% pass rate. 
17. TVET and skills development systems strive to fulfill the demands of all people seeking to learn relevant new skills in order to improve their career prospects, income or professional status.  By equipping offenders with knowledge, skills and competencies linked to labour market demands, TVET systems are recognised as a crucial instrument for increasing employability, job prospects and potentially improving social inclusion.  Providing offenders with vocational education and training will provide significant benefits in addressing issues that cause crime as well as reducing the reoffending rate. 
18. The Department has put measures in place to implement e-Learning in 45 registered TVET College Centres. Through skills development, offenders have access to participate in the National Vocational Certificate, Engineering, Business Studies and SETA Accredited Skills Programmes.  The Department is currently synchronizing programmes with curriculum and workplaces to maximize the utilisation of resources towards self-sufficiency and sustainability. 

In order to further contribute to self-sufficiency and sustainability, the Department managed to train offenders on programmes such as sewing machines repairs, vegetable production, bricklaying, plastering, plumbing and the like. Financial support from the National Skills Fund and SASSETA contributed to an increase in the participation of offenders in long occupational skills programmes between 2018/19 (4 127) and 2021/22 (39 560) financial years.

19. Social reintegration efforts, where the victims of crime play an active role, are starting to gain traction. This is due to deliberate efforts by Correctional Services, where interventions aimed at equipping parolees, probationers and community members with entrepreneurial skills and business ventures do involve participation by victims of crime. For instance, training on welding and plumbing in Makhanda, involving the Department of Employment & Labour and National Youth Development Agency (NYDA), was undertaken. As already indicated, these empowerment programmes are implemented through partnerships. We have signed a number of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with various institutions, including the Department of Small Business, Seda, SASSETA and other relevant stakeholders.
20. In the Free State and Northern Cape Region, Meals on Wheels Community South Africa (MOWSA) Project, in partnership with DCS and external stakeholders, saw 28 parolees and probationers receiving accredited training and certificates for biodiversity promotion in terms of producing products (such as soaps and lotions) from the use of local plants as well as the preservation of food and the establishment of Cooperative Organisations. Whereas, in the Gauteng Region, a total of 19 female parolees and probationers in Krugersdorp were certificated by Intensive Hygiene Adapts (Pty) Ltd in basic office and building cleaning with the possibility of employment placement during the 2^nd quarter of this financial year. These are just some of the interventions, and there are many more.
21. DCS has renewed its MoU with the National House of Traditional Leaders in an effort to enable traditional councils to assist in the reintegration of offenders and the process of restorative justice in the community.  Correctional Services has further created a platform to engage with communities and traditional leaders by staging 260 imbizo across the country in the last (2023/24) financial year.  These have provided a platform for the Department to market the social reintegration programme and services rendered.
22. In conclusion, I want to convey my appreciation to the Minister, Dr Pieter Groenewald, the National Commissioner, Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale, and his executive for your support in ensuring that we work together so that all people in South Africa are, and feel, safe.
23. As we mark Mandela Month, and our country ushers in the seventh democratic dispensation through a Government of National Unity, may we realign our collective energies to build the South Africa we envisioned at the start of democracy which includes taking care of the most vulnerable in our midst and providing hope for a better tomorrow.

THANK YOU!