Programme Director
MEC for Health and Social Development, Mme Ntombi Mekgwe
Chairman of the National Lotteries Board, Professor Ntshengedzeni Nevhutanda
Deputy Director-General, Mr Selwyn Jehoma
Deputy Director-General, Ms Shoki Tshabalala
Members of the media here present
Members of Diepsloot community
Good morning ladies and gentlemen,
I am pleased that you have joined us this morning to be part of a noble cause to distribute flood relief to households and communities that were ravaged by the ferocity of nature early this year.
The launch of the flood relief disbursement project reaffirms our government‘s commitment to social solidarity not just in words but also in deeds. We take pride in this as it is not only about providing humanitarian relief but also upholding the principles and values that are at the core of our Constitution.
At the beginning of this year our country experienced heavy and recurrent rain fall, which wreaked havoc in various parts of the country, especially in the Gauteng, North West, Free State, Northern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga provinces. Besides taking a terrible toll in terms of human sufferings, livestock, property and infrastructure, the natural disasters also resulted in loss of human life.
The Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Mr Shicelo Shiceka declared 28 municipalities in seven of the nine provinces as disaster areas in terms of the Disaster Management Act. In Gauteng, this included the Sedibeng District Municipality, City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality, City of Johannesburg, Ekurhuleni and West Rand District Municipality.
In order to cope with this challenge proactively, the government provided immediate humanitarian relief to rebuild the lives of households and communities affected by the natural disasters in the first phase. We have mobilised all our national resources to provide immediate relief to the affected people. I must commend the outstanding services provided by civil society and the business community in reaching out to the families who have lost their livelihoods and belongings to the ferocity of nature. I wish also to take this opportunity to once again, thank all our social partners who have in one way or another been involved in providing humanitarian relief to the affected communities.
The South African Social Security Agency (SASSA) disbursed Social Relief of Distress to the affected families in the affected provinces. In addition to other relief efforts, 71% of the R143 million allocated for Social Relief of Distress was used for flood relief interventions.
Considering the magnitude of the disaster, the mammoth task of rebuilding the lives of families and communities could not be achieved by government alone. Alive to this, we appealed to the nation at large and the business community to come forward and lend a helping hand to the affected households. It gives me immense satisfaction to note that the response to our appeal has been overwhelming and the people of our country, especially the business community and civil society have come forward in a big way to help those in need. Such exemplary display of generosity reinforces our faith in social solidarity.
The National Lotteries Board under the chairmanship of Professor Ntshengedzeni Nevhutandu is one of the organisations that responded promptly to our appeal for assistance and donated R50 million to the Disaster Relief Fund Board to provide further assistance to the affected families and communities in the areas disaster declared areas.
As part of our government’s determination to rebuild the lives of affected households and communities we have finalised arrangements for the final phase of disbursing relief to eligible households. Guided by the basic humanitarian principle that assistance should be given on the basis of need, our staff members at provincial and local level conducted house to house assessments to select the most appropriate beneficiaries.
The information was verified by the Disaster Relief Fund Board members and corrections were made correction where it was needed. Special emphasis was placed on the most affected and poverty-stricken families and I am pleased that our people gave us adequate cooperation in this regard.
In all, a total of 9 465 households in the seven declared provinces will benefit from the flood relief project. Each identified household will receive two blankets and a once-off payment of R3 420.00. The provincial breakdown in terms of the beneficiaries is as follows:
Eastern Cape: 1 019
Free State: 1 129
Gauteng: 3 355
KwaZulu-Natal: 1 277
Limpopo: 948
Northern Cape: 798
North West: 1 619
The total number of identified beneficiaries in this area is 50. Today’s flood relief payments will be made to 35 families who were able to trace. We understand that the other families might have been relocated to other areas after they were displaced by the floods. Making sure that the affected households receive assistance available to them is an essential part of rebuilding the lives of those affected.
I do not want any of the identified households to miss out on this opportunity. I therefore would like to take this opportunity to urge community members and leaders to share this information with your friends, your family and your neighbours to make sure they get the help they need to rebuild their lives.
I want everyone affected by the flood to get every penny of flood relief available. As government we are pleased to provide this assistance in responding to the needs of our people.
I would like to take this opportunity to once again thank the National Lotteries Board for the generous contribution to the Disaster Relief Fund Board and all other organisations that responded to our appeal. Indeed, the response from the South African community has been truly inspiring. On behalf of our government, I offer my heartfelt gratitude for the generous donations and offers of help that have rushed in from across our nation. These donations, big and small, have helped us to help the victims of the devastating natural disasters to get back on their feet.
I thank you.
