Honourable Chairperson
Honourable Ministers and Deputy Ministers
Honourable Members
Director General of the Department
Leadership of our SOC
DPE colleagues
Distinguished guests
Ladies and Gentlemen
This year marks the 40th Anniversary of the Soweto uprising.
The blood of the young shed on that fateful day paved the way for the course of future generations.
From that generation, Solomon Mahlangu implored us through these words:
“My blood will nourish the tree that will bear the fruits of freedom…
“…Tell my people that I love them. They must continue the fight…"
Today, through the platform created by the SOC, under the ANC led government it is not blood nor death but innovation that young people are exposed to.
Today same age as Solomon Mahlangu was when he was hanged, A group of 5 interns at Denel developed a Tactical Observation Ball System that can be used by soldiers for surveillance without putting their lives in danger.
Young people at Denel are at the forefront of making South Africa to rise from her ashes.
Lindokuhle Mpanza (30) and Anish Punnen (32) are software engineers at Denel Aviation, who developed a computerised Oryx Mission Planning System, that is used by the South African Air Force pilots on the Denel-manufactured Oryx aircraft to plan their missions and share information across locations.
Selaelo Mojela (31) and Isak Sokuwe (34) developed a Robot to Detect Landmines which minimises the risk on human lives.
It is easily monitored through its on-board camera and has a wireless route that sends information back. Our young people are giving meaning to the hope of Solomon Mahlangu through innovation.
SARA Project
In 2015, Denel invested R467 million in research and development, for developing a new Small African Regional Aircraft called SARA.
SARA will serve regional destinations that are currently not accessible for existing passenger planes.
Preshni Govender (30), Puseletso Matlala (28), and Naadira Hassim (26) are three of our young female engineers involved in the project.
The Design Institute
We are aware that some of the great innovators do not reach post matric institutions. Transnet working with the SABS want to unearth that talent at secondary schools.
They have conceptualized a design and innovation skills development programme based on the SABS Design Institute.
The intention is to have mini design institutes in the rural provinces of our country such that anyone, especially young people, with a product idea are able to walk into the centre and emerge with a blue print, including a patent of the concept, and start commercially exploiting the idea.
Already with the design institute in Pretoria they have discovered a 16 year old, Vuyo Klaas from Monwabisi High School in De Aar, Northern Cape an asthmatic learner who was assisted to design a Master Duster that is currently at prototype stage. This duster is able to recycle the choke as it dusts.
If this product succeeds it can be a game changer in Africa, whose schools still use a blackboard and a choke.
Matlalane Ramashiane from Club view Secondary School in Phutaditjhaba, Free State who is in Grade 10 designed a concentration arm-band, it detects concentration levels of people. This also at a prototype stage.
Through the design institute we envisage building of new industries that will help to fight unemployment and grow the economy.
Chairperson, our SOC were given a target of producing 11958 technical trainees by the skills accord.
Eskom, Transnet and Denel enrolled and qualified 13405
Exceeding the target, the skills were as follows,
5 300 artisans,
3 876 technicians,
1 599 engineers
Safcol has been able to produce 65 foresters.
100 pilots were enrolled and qualified by South African Express.
Transnet and Eskom were able to employ a total 8 170 of the qualifying technical graduates.
Beyond these numbers, Transnet, in support of Operation Phakisa’s Oceans Economy has opened maritime schools in KwaZulu-Natal and in the Eastern Cape.
Moving forward, Transnet will be spending R34m in the next two years to produce 415 artisans and engineers in marine related occupations.
Eskom is planning on training (100) nuclear plant operators over the next 5 years.
Safcol has appointed the first black female plantation manager in the country, Ms Nondumiso Kheswa.
Our SOC have continued to support TVET colleges through various partnership agreements, focusing mainly on learner and lecturer support, donation of machinery and equipment, curriculum support as well as participation in TVET College Councils.
During the 2015/16 Financial Year, this support has been extended to Technical High Schools, which are feeder schools to both the TVET colleges and the State Owned Companies themselves.
Denel has provided support to 4 colleges in Gauteng to the value of R523 195 covering bursaries for engineering students, and experiential learning.
Alexkor supported 14 colleges in both Northern and Western Cape to the value of R515 611 over the past financial year.
Over the past three years, Eskom has donated machinery and equipment to support Electrical workshops to 8 TVET colleges in 8 provinces. Transnet is also doing the same.
To those who said what is the use of teaching a Bantu child maths and science where is he or she going to use it?
Through the SOC under the ANC led government they are using it.
Chairperson please allow me to acknowledge a remarkable South African whom we met during our career expo to Enhlanzeni Municipality, Mr Mpapane and Mrs Mpapane.
He is a maths teacher who has produced distinctions for the past 18 years.
He is a teacher at Nkomazi High school. He has produced no less than 10 doctors, 15 engineers and many other professionals.
We are proud of your contribution Sir.
Eskom has devised Contractor Academy as a tool to equip emerging contractors and suppliers, especially black women and youth-owned companies, with the relevant competencies to sustain and grow their businesses.
Over the last three years, 518 contractors were trained from all nine provinces. This benefited both woman and youth contractors.
These SOC investment programmes are executed in provinces with a view to aligning with provincial programmes.
We are working with the Gauteng Provincial Government in realising the implementation of the Tshepo 500 000 over the next 5 years (2014-2019) through a set of identified projects.
On CSI our SOC have been exemplary,
Eskom is committed to developing a strong base of educated and skilled young South Africans in the fields Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Innovation for learners in grade 6-12 through its Young Scientists Expo.
In 2015, the Expo saw 12,244 learners participating from all nine provinces.
This is the programme that discovered the Umthatha born Mr Siya Xuza.
Today he represents a few of our own to have graduated from Harvard University and to have a planet named after him because of his excellent contribution to the development of renewable energy. We are working on this expo being feeder to the design institute.
Through this process we are creating new horizons for young engineers and artisans who are entering the industry.
SAFCOL brought hope to the people of Nongoma, They built a day care center, a primary school, a community hall and boreholes for both the school and the community.
All our SOC have been responsible corporate citizens.
Last year we spoke of our commitment to contribute to the transformation of the legal fraternity.
The DPE has developed and is implementing a Transformation Framework and Guidelines intending to unlock opportunities for black lawyers and black law firms for meaningful economic empowerment.
The Director General will be monitoring the process through Group CE.
As the department we have briefed black attorneys and advocates in more than 90% of our matters.
The DPE has a programme of assisting their legal interns post their internship period.
The programme entails assisting them with registration into the Practical Legal Training School. We also assist them to find firms to serve their articles of clerkship.
Ms Hlamarisa Ndaba from the Eastern Cape is here with us today, she is currently running her own law firm in Gauteng, she is one of the beneficiaries of the program
We continue to foster collaboration between the public and the private sector.
This is evidenced by the support both the private and public sector companies had on Mamellong Technical high school in Tsakane in the Ekurhuleni Metro.
Through this initiative, three of the school’s workshops are being equipped with machinery and equipment of by Hamisa Group, an Engineering & Mining company. It is one of the suppliers of Transnet.
Ms Bongile Tsotetsi the MD of the Hamisa Group, is here with us today. We thank you and your company for the partnership.
We believe that through the creation of new industries, the
South African economic landscape is bound to change.
Our SOC have been at the forefront of supporting the programme of industrialisation.
Cde Solomon, we are continuing with the fight. Cde Hector we are continuing with the fight, to all our fallen heroes and heroines we are continuing with the fight.
We ask you to support this budget vote.
