Honourable Minister Maloi and delegation
Mr Morotoba, the Acting Director-General of Labour and your delegation
Ladies and gentlemen
I take this opportunity to warmly welcome you, Minister and your delegation. I should upfront also again express my country and department’s condolences for the loss of four Basotho lives in Marikana and humbly request you to pass this information to the families of:
- Mr Khanare Elias Monesa (aged 36)
- Mr. Molefi Osiel Ntsoele (aged 40)
- Mr Javeneke Raphael Liau (aged 45)
- Mr Telang Vitalis Mohai (aged 36)
We meet today to continue on our expressed objective to work together and improve our bilateral relations between our countries.
We share a history that is intertwined wherein Basotho played a pivotal role in the development of South Africa through their contribution in our labour market.
This trend continues to this day even though the focus has shifted from the mining industry to domestic work, farming and other industries.
Minister, you will appreciate that challenges in these fields are huge, but I can assure you that we are tackling them head-on. We are not oblivious to the need to collaborate with our neighbouring countries as they are also impacted by developments in our labour markets. Talking to each other, being open about the problems we face in the labour market and discussing possible solutions is the only way and our only hope for achieving positive results.
This is an approach that underpins the bilateral arrangements we are renewing today. More than most, we understand the potential benefits of making these relations successful for the socio-economic development of our countries.
Minister, we continue to value your countries’ continued support in our engagements in foras within Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union and International Labour Organisation (ILO). We remain available for supporting you during your tenure as our representative in the Governing Body of the ILO from next year. I must indicate that we have unfortunately observed some challenges in the current dispensation and hope we can engage you on the way forward to improve this situation. I will thus avail my Officials from International Relations to assist in whatever way, should it be your wish.
Our current MoU has specific focus areas as identified by our experts. I assure you Minister, we remain available at all times should you need any support in identified areas. I am advised that you currently are engaged in a process wherein your Ministry through the Lesotho Advisory Board is reviewing wage determination with a view to introduce bargaining councils at sector level, we will avail the necessary expertise to assist you in this process and Officials from Labour Policy and Industrial Relations are amongst us.
I hope the presentation from the officials will also help in highlighting the work we do in various areas identified. This will help in pointing to specific support that might be needed, for example, on the issue of processing claims with the Compensation Commission or the indicated consideration to possibly establish the Unemployment Insurance Fund for Basotho.
In the Inspection and Enforcement Services field, the Officials will share our operational approach indicating specific tools for compliance. This is a field that we need to do more in not only sharing information but actively engaging each other to develop a common inspection approach.
I am aware that during this stay, you will also visit the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) and one of our provincial offices in Gauteng. As you might be aware, NEDLAC is our Social Dialogue Institution where social partners negotiate as equal partners. This has proven very helpful in ensuring an early buy–in in our process of socio-economic policy formulation.
Whilst it was not possible for us to confirm a visit to the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) due to their programme, we will try to make it happen in the near future.
Minister, let me conclude by saying to the officials, after signing this MoU, make it alive through specific programmes/projects of which progress will be reported in six months’ time.
I thank you
