W Jacobs: Handing over of sport assistants

30 March 2006

Thank you Programme Director for affording me this opportunity.

Members of school governing bodies
Leaders of sport federations and clusters management of EMDS's Learners,
Ladies and gentlemen

On 25 January 2006, I launched one of the most important programmes of our
department, the School Sport programme, reviving the olden days when Wednesdays
were renowned for competitive sport activities at schools. That announcement at
Sinethemba High School in Philippi set the tone for the future of school sport
in our province.

I stand here today happy that we have taken giant strides as a Department to
ensure that the Wednesday Sport Programme we announced in January indeed
becomes a success. I therefore have pleasure to announce the readiness and
deployment of 21 sport assistants to 18 schools in the Lavender Hill, Retreat
and Grassy Park clusters.

The hand-over of these sportsmen and women today is a highlight and a
culmination of a process that was started primarily to add value to the
Wednesday Sport programme of the Department.

This initiative in our view will assist in fulfilling some of our objectives
namely, the deployment of dedicated sport personnel for the sustainable
development of sport at schools, and importantly, we are reducing the workload
of teachers who had previously out of love for sport, spent many, many unpaid
hours running sport and recreation activities.

Ladies and gentlemen, the contribution of the Department of Cultural Affairs
and Sport in the overall Human and Social Capital strategies of the province
has been quite remarkable during the past few months.

Through our interventions we are not only assisting schools to better
coordinate their sport activities, we are also providing employment
opportunities to the young men and women within our communities. Undoubtedly
this small gesture will enable these young people to put food on the table at
the same time enjoy what they like best sport.

The Sport Assistants we are allocating to these schools are part of the SSS
programme, which was piloted with success about five years ago at places like
Mannenberg, Elsies River, Hanover Park, Bonteheuwel and Paarl areas.

This programme has been a great success in these places, and some of the SSS
volunteers who started this programme have since developed skills needed at the
department. I want to take this opportunity to thank those who have defied all
odds and eventually managed to secured employment in the department.

I want to acknowledge the role SSS Co-ordinators have played in the
recruitment and the subsequent training of the applicants we are deploying
today.

While the initial objective was to co-ordinate sport and recreation
activities at identified crime-ridden areas in the Peninsula, we have since
seen the need to boost the capacity of schools to better run sport activities
in other areas.

We are well aware that this gesture from the Department is far from being
enough, but we believe it is a good start. However, taking into account that
the Social Incubator programme we launched in Khayelitsha, Mitchell's Plain and
lately in Beaufort West, more resources accompanying these programmes, with
better integrated co-ordination, we would achieve the desired impact within our
communities.

It is also with delight to inform you that a further 26 sport assistants
will be handed-over to Gugulethu, Nyanga, Crossroads and Philippi Clusters in
30 days after the completion of the recruitment exercise and training that
would follow. I am happy that with limited resources at our disposal, we have
listen to request for SSS volunteers and delivered in areas where these did not
exist previously.

The next official hand-over of 26 sport assistants for these clusters will
bring a total of 206 sport assistants that would have been placed in the
corresponding number of schools across the province. Against the backdrop of
negligible budget allocations we are satisfied that in the medium to long-term
we would make serious inroads in addressing this specific need.

We still note, however, that our challenges are too astronomical to overcome
overnight. I therefore want to appeal to other communities and schools to
exercise patience; we will eventually heed their calls.

I have always maintained that we need the private sector to come to the
party so that; together we can impact our communities positively. We
acknowledge that projects like these specifically require partnerships to
succeed.

I will ask the Department to finalise the proposals and presentations to the
business sector in this regard so that we are assured of partners that will
help us take this initiative forward with much vigour.

I want to pay special tribute to the teachers that have shouldered the
responsibility of managing and running sport, putting in extra hours, in some
cases abnormally for nothing. I want to say to them their effort were not in
vain.

Athletes like Babalwa Ndleleni, the first weigh lifting medallist in Africa
got her first motivation from school, many other athletes and sportsmen and
women who compete at international levels owe their foundation to teachers.

I am saying to teachers keep up the good work, from our side as the
department charged with the responsibility of developing sport, we will
endeavour to facilitate your work and where possible take steps to reduce
it.

I want to thank in advance the young people that will be helping these
schools for availing themselves for little compensation. We know and admire
their passion for sport and hope that sport and recreation activities at these
schools would be reach the sky.

I thank you

Mandla Yeki
Tel: (021) 483 9804
Fax: (021) 483 9801
Cell: 082 553 3477

Issued by: Ministry Cultural Affairs, Sport and Recreation, Western Cape
Provincial Government
30 March 2006