Environment Khabisi Mosunkutu, at the Gauteng media briefings
15 February 2006
Programme director: Annette Griessel
Fellow MECs
Journalists present
Ladies and Gentlemen
It is a pleasure to address you on the Departmentâs priorities for the
2006/2007 financial year. Making his State of the Nation Address at the
National Assembly on 3 February 2006, President Mbeki spoke of the pervading
spirit of optimism within our country â optimism of the different sections of
our population - about our common future.
In opening the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, on 13 February 2006, Premier
Shilowa emphasised our provincial governmentâs continued commitment to the
realisation of our five year programme which entails:
* Enabling faster economic growth and job creation; and
* Fighting poverty and building safe, secure and sustainable communities; among
other strategic objectives.
In view of these broad mandates, my Department, like other national and
provincial departments will be seized with the task of ensuring that we do all
we can to deliver on the mandates and to do nothing that will dampen that
spirit characteristic of the age of hope that President Mbeki spoke of. It is
within these expectations and the prevailing mood that we have set ourselves
the goals of:
1. Fighting poverty and building safe secure and sustainable
communities:
On 24 February 2005 we committed ourselves to establishing 32 new community
food gardens. It is a pleasure to note that this target was met. At a cost of
R25m, we plan to establish another 32 new community based food production
units. With a budget of R3.5 m, R3 503 000 to be exact, we also plan to
complete the establishment of 9 000 homestead food gardens.
We have also set ourselves the target of ensuring that 1 580 emerging
farmers benefit from our departmentâs Land Redistribution for Agricultural
Development (LRAD), comprehensive infrastructure grants and from the provincial
farmer settlement programmes. To this end, we have set aside R8.6 m.
2. Enabling faster economic growth and job creation:
In his opening address, Premier Shilowa spoke about, among others, the
Gauteng provincial agricultural development strategy. It is my pleasure to
announce that the strategy will be launched on 23 February 2006, ahead of the
date set by the Premier. Through this Gauteng Agricultural Development Strategy
(GADS), which was endorsed by the executive council during November 2005, we
shall contribute towards job creation and economic development.
The provincial Treasury has committed to allocating R14 m for the strategy,
for 2006 and another R16m and R18m respectively during the financial years
ending in 2009.
An amount of R4.7m has been budgeted for the development of Hydroponics
Farming Projects. An amount of R3 096 000 has also been set aside for the
enhancement of our medicinal plant projects.
The Hydroponics and tunnel farming projects and the medicinal plant
processing initiatives will not only contribute towards job creation but will
also enhance the provincial goal of enabling faster economic growth.
The Gauteng Agricultural Development Strategy is underpinned by our
commitment to Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment and further development of
the first economy for the benefit of all. The success of this strategy
pre-supposes easy access to high potential agricultural land. Towards the
realisation of the objectives of this strategy we shall, of course, not be
stymied by absurd and dangerous sentiments such as those advanced by Agri-SA to
the effect that only market forces should guide land and agrarian reforms.
3. Developing healthy, skilled and productive people:
The impressive economic development within our Province is something that we
obviously welcome and all our policies should be geared towards further
enhancing this growth. We talk here specifically about sustainable development
that benefits all our people.
Sadly there are some, not all, companies that seem to want to completely
ignore the wellbeing of our communities in their haste to maximize profits. We
have areas within Gauteng that will soon be declared hotspots by the Department
of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT). The Vaal area is likely to be one
such area to be declared a hotspot.
To deal with this challenge, we shall, among others, intensify our air
monitoring efforts to ensure that our communities are not recklessly exposed to
dangerous fumes and poor quality of air. To this extent, we have set aside, for
the current financial year, an amount of R8.4m towards further improving the
working of the various Air Quality Monitoring Stations that we have
established, including those that the Premier referred to in his recent address
to the Legislature.
We also have developed best practice guidelines and decision support tools
for mining in Gauteng. The Magaliesmoot guidelines for sustainable mining and
the strategy for dealing with brickwork open air stack kilns have been
completed. This will enable environmental officers and mines to implement best
practices and minimise environmental impacts.
We are developing similar guidelines for the Metsweding region. This
development will also focus on issues on improving tourism. We are also
focusing on the development of guidelines for the sustainable rehabilitation of
Tailings Dam, with a particular emphasis on attaining mine closure. This will
reduce dust impacts on local communities.
In further contributing towards building safe, secure and sustainable
communities, we shall also rely on our Environmental Management Inspectors
(EMIs), the so-called green scorpions. An amount of R7 m, for the 2006/2007
financial year, has been set aside to designate, train and equip 20 EMIs whose
task will be to undertake environmental compliance and enforcement
activities.
Not relying only on the EMIs efforts, we shall also continue to develop, as
mandated by the executive council, the Gauteng Strategy for Sustainable
Development (GSSD). The development and implementation of this strategy relies
not only on provincial government departments and local municipalities. Broad
consultations, involving the largest possible involvement of organs of civil
society, are also encouraged. One such imbizo will take place on 24 March
2006.
I thank you all.
For more information contact:
Sizwe Matshikiza
Tel: (011) 355 1316
Issued by: Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Environment, Gauteng
Provincial Government
15 February 2006
