Keynote address by the Honourable Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation, Ms Pamela Tshwete MP, during the handing over of a media classroom to Marota Primary School at Gamotodi Village, Greater Tubatse Local Municipality, Limpopo
Programme Director,
Premier of the province, Mr. Mathabathe,
Your worship the mayor of greater Sekhukhune District municipality,
Members of the Executive Council,
Members of the Provincial Legislature,
MTN foundation SA our Sponsor
Mayors and Speakers of the Municipalities Hlabirwa a Dimo
Traditional and religious leaders
Proportional representative and ward councillors
The school principal and all teachers of Marota primary school
School governing body and all learners of the school
Parents and community leaders
Government officials
Ladies and Gentlemen
Thobela
I would like us all to observe a moment of silence in honour of our late minister of Public Service And Administrations, the honourable Mr. Collins Chabane and Sergeants Lesiba Sekele and Lawrence Lentsoane who tragically lost their lives in a car accident in the early hours of Sunday morning, our condolences goes to their families.
As we celebrate the national water week, water still remains a key commodity in the development of our communities and our county. ‘’ WE SAY WATER HAS
Access to safe and clean drinking water is one of the rights that is enshrined in our bill of right and this right is one of the major milestones that the Department of Water and Sanitation has to achieve.
Since the dawn of our democracy Government has been committed to providing clean safe drinking water to our peoples and to this point we have been able to provide 70% of our population with access to clean drinking water.
We have done this through previous initiatives one of the latest being the building of infrastructure like the De Hoop dam in the Greater Sekhukhune District Municipality to increase the storage capacity and benefit surrounding communities.
We are also committed to the education and awareness of our youth about the integrated management of our water resources and healthy hygiene practices so that we are able to use, conserve and enjoy our water resource for current and future generations while eradicating sanitation related diseases.
To achieve this we have existing partnerships between public and private sector organisations so we may be able to pull resources together for the betterment of our country and its people.
As the Public and private sector the Department of Water and Sanitation, together with the Department of Basic Education and MTN foundation SA we are able to support projects such as Baswa le meetse from year to year and during the water week to highlight the importance of education as a Nation.
Baswa le meetse is one of our flagship projects aimed at educating our learners about integrated water resources management and the encourage learners to take up science and engineering careers in the water and sanitation sector so as to address the current scarce skills challenges. With this project learners learn through art, music, drama, poetry, praise singing and poster tools to convey water and sanitation messages.
"Educate a learner educate a nation"
Ladies and gentlemen Marota primary school is one of our water wise ambassadors and winners of the National level prize who must continue to convey the message of water education from the school, to their families and the community.
Through this media classroom the school and the community must benefit because it is equipped with educational programmes and software to assist in the learning areas within the school curriculum. Learners must have excess to the world’s e-libraries by a click of a button and also take part in looking after the condition of this valuable asset.
I call upon the whole community to support learning in the school by safeguarding and protecting the assets of the school as they are for the betterment of our learners and community now and in the future. Let us refrain from bad practices such as vandalism and burning down of community property when there are challenges in our communities but work hand in hand to solve them for our good.
Let us congratulate and recognise the hard work and dedication of Marota primary school educators, parents, school governing body and the learners for taking their time and hard work on the Baswa le meetse project.
In particular I say thank you to Mamasegare Eunice Sekhukhune the educator, Loveness Maphanga, Keabetswe Mashabela and Antoinette Mamphoke the learners who are the team that represented the school in the project. It gives me great pleasure to handover this media classroom to Marota primary school for representing the province and obtaining first prize in the Baswa le meetse, poetry category.
The school receives a media classroom sponsored by our partner MTN foundation SA and a cash prize of R 6000.00 sponsored by Rand water board.
I would like to thank you all for coming to celebrate the water week and the official media classroom handing over and opening with the school.
Thank you to all our partners and stakeholders for supporting the Department in achieving its mandate of Water education service delivery. In particular let me thank the department of Basic education, Greater Sekhukhune district municipality, Greater Tubatse Municipality and MTN.
I will further urge you to work together with your Water boards and Municipalities in safeguarding water resources and the profile of good sanitation by spreading the messages of active citizenship. Let us all report theft and vandalism and reporting water leaks and illegal water connections so that we can help reach all people with water and sanitation services.
Let us all remember that water has no substitute.
I thank you.
