Programme Director;
Deputy Minister of Sport and Recreation, Honourable Gert Oosthuizen;
Director-General of SRSA, Mr Alec Moemi;
Distinguished Guests;
Delegates;
Ladies and Gentlemen;
On Thursday, 29 November 2012, Sport and Recreation South Africa (SRSA), together with the Culture, Arts, Tourism, Hospitality and Sport Sector Education and Training Authority (CATHSSETA), officially launched the Sport research programme. The programme has three key pillars, namely:
- Applied Research programme (focusing on knowledge generation and to be implemented in partnership with the Department of Science and Technology and its agencies including the National Research Foundation in lieu of long term policy development);
- Action Research programme (focusing on researching contemporary matters affecting sport in lieu of providing solutions and evaluating the current policies and programmes of sport),
- Post-Graduate Development Programme (PDP). The PDP is a partnership between SRSA and the CATHSSETA, which will allow for a significant amount of post graduate research to be conducted towards addressing the information and research gaps identified in the Sport, Recreation and Fitness sector in the Republic of South Africa.
This programme will focus on the areas of research in order to support a few students who will present their preliminary research findings and on progress of their studies in this Conference today. These students will be identified based on their research topics, to receive bursaries for the remainder of their studies. The full amount of the bursary scheme is R9 174 million over three years, and will be offered to a total of thirty (30) post graduate students per annum over a period of three years as from 2014 onwards.
This is but one of the contributions that SRSA is making in order to fulfill the mandate of the SASRECON Conference held in Durban in 2010.
When we met in Durban in August 2010 under the theme: “Sport, Recreation and Physical Education – An Essential Triad”, we declared to the country and the world that we are committing ourselves to using scientific inquiry as a base for research in South African sport, recreation and movement education; we also committed ourselves to providing a networking platform for academics, scientists and practitioners to bring together the theory and practice of the sport, recreation and movement education triad. As a result we announced that recreation, physical education and sport science are inter-dependent and we must go forward and treat them as such.
Therefore, this newly formulated annual South African Sport and Recreation Conference (SASRECON) should, as a matter of necessity, be used as a platform to assess the road we have traversed since the 2010 Durban Conference. We need to assess and review all programmes and targets that we have set ourselves in the last two years. We should understand what were the challenges in the course of programme implementation as well as opportunities presented by the advancement of the 2010 resolutions.
As a matter of interest, we should ask the conference difficult questions whether we have been successful in implementing our declarations on the three theme focus areas of the conference which included recreation, physical education and sport science. The conclusion of our assessment, in this regard, will assist the conference to honestly and objectively address the issues of sport development in the context of successful recreation, physical education and sport science programmes.
Delegates, I am raising these pertinent issues because we South Africans are good at organising conferences and taking resolutions and not implementing them; let alone assessing and reviewing such resolutions; as a result we find ourselves directionless in the next conferences because of this oversight.
I trust that the distinguished speakers who will present in this conference, especially on issues of recreation, physical education and sport science will assist the conference with evidence-based presentations on the road traversed in implementing the 2010 Durban Conference Declarations which will help us to develop new strategies for sport development in the context of “An Essential Triad”.
In this instance I would like to take the conference through our 2010 Durban Conference declarations. The following declarations emanated from the three theme focus groups as we resolved:
On recreation, it was envisaged that all stakeholders of facilities and recreation opportunities work towards the provision of high quality recreation experiences to which all South African citizens are entitled to and deserve.
That leadership, cooperation and partnership must be demonstrated at all three levels of government, role players and other interdisciplinary departments.
And that this service must be underpinned by good governance practices and accountability to ensure the availability of quality recreation resources, opportunities, programs and services.
That civil society needs to feed into leadership decision making. This means in essence that, recreation activities and participation must revolve around shared interests, hobbies and pastimes to meet individual recreational needs.
That recreation provision should be based on a needs assessment and public consultation through research. These include, but are not limited too, the establishment of parklands, waters (dams, lakes and rivers), open space, recreation facilities and services must be available to meet future and current demands, particularly in the rural and urbanised areas. There should be creation of safe spaces.
That there should be holistic development of all South Africans through educating the community on the life- long participation in meaningful recreational activities programs and increased opportunities.
That citizens should be educated about their invaluable resources (environmental stewardship). This is an important part of ensuring that these resources are preserved as a legacy and continue to be available for the enjoyment of current and future generations. The principles of Ubuntu should be promoted be integrated in all our programmes.
That recreation should be promoted to all citizens as an essential service through capacity building through national driven programs. Social and community development should be facilitated through flexible programs enabling individuals and communities to run sustainable programs.
That awareness and education for recreation services should be driven. All programs must be outcomes driven and not focussed on activities which are an end to the means. A diverse range of recreational opportunities and experiences need to be provided in order to provide citizens the freedom to fully engage in developing their intrinsic capabilities and creatively use their energies, while transforming their lives and improving their health and sense of well-being.
Research evidence, without fail, shows that participation in recreation activities is vital to the physical, emotional, social and spiritual well-being of individuals, and communities. It is essential that South Africans be afforded exciting opportunities which will allow them to follow their personal recreational interests.
There is a vast array of recreational opportunities that exist in the built environment and natural setting: the lands, waters, facilities, programs and support functions. Recreation contributes to the benefits which contribute to the individual, community, economic and environmental which accrue through the scope of essential recreation services and that the recreation services must be developed to be broad in scope and take into consideration the full range of recreation activities - active, passive, indoors, and out-of-doors.
On physical education, conference agreed to establish Physical Education as a curriculum subject, appropriate for the current and future needs of South Africa.
We agreed to appoint appropriately qualified teachers hence a review of initial and post experienced training provisions. A national review of spaces, resources and facilities for physical education in schools needs to be conducted.
Issues of accountability for quality delivery through mandatory assessment, recording and reporting where the highlights of the conference; their implementation will assist us to deliver on our promise. This will allow us to check our performance based on our international commitments.
There is International support for physical education as an integral part of the school curriculum. We reaffirm these international declarations:
- UNESCO Decleration1978 Charter on Physical Education
- Berlin agenda (1999) World Summit on Physical Education
- Magglingen Commitment (Switzerland 2005) (2nd World Summit on Physical Education);
- MINEPS Declarations (1999, 2005)
- Commonwealth Ministers (1998)
- WHO (2008)
The 1st SA Youth Risk Behaviour Survey 2002 articulates that there is increasing incidence of juvenile delinquency, drug abuse, HIV/AIDS and risk behaviours. Therefore there is an imbalance in the current school curriculum which has limited focus on physical development and competence.
Hence we need to monitor the implementation of physical Education in all our schools. We must do this because physical education promotes physical competence and engagement in health enhancing physical activity. It facilitates sport participation, development and performance. It further promotes social and emotional development in children. Physical Education can improve academic achievement, school attendance, retention and behaviour.
On sport science, we agreed to form a sport science forum/committee for coaches and sport scientists to share information and bridge the gap. To call organise and call meetings/workshops/brainstorming sessions where coaches and scientists can meet and discuss specific topics; to set up a database of practitioners /scientists with different specialities; to look at improving the knowledge transferred to coaches at grass roots level; and to share information for specific tiers of development. We also said that scientists must prioritise collaboration with coaches and find a way to share their information i.e use of technology, position statements.
These were our commitments which we need to assess and check whether we have managed to integrate them in the Declaration of the National Sport and Recreation Indaba (NSRI) as adopted in November 2011.
To this end, in order to fulfill the obligation of the Durban Conference Declarations and those of the National Sport and Recreation Indaba about school sport and physical education; in February 2012, the Ministry of Sport and Recreation South Africa (SRSA) together with the Department of Basic Education (DBE) kicked-off the school sport programme and leagues in Mamelodi. This programme will culminate in a first ever national School Sport Championships in South Africa that will take place from 10 to 15 December 2012. More than 5 500 participants will participate in these championship from more that 6 000 schools of the Republic of South Africa. It seams though that physical education is beginning to be embraced as part of the school activity in many schools in our country. Many educators are being recruited to be trained on coaching, administration and technical officiating. We are currently partnering with the British Council to draft a ‘school sport manual’ to enable educators to deliver quality school sport in our schools.
At the same time we have appointed an Eminent Persons Group on Transformation in sport and recreation in South Africa, in May 2012, to advise on the adequacy and efficacy of the current instruments being driven to set transformation goals and transformation outcomes thereof; to also advises on the design of a short-term, medium and long-term transformation strategy within the context of the 2020 Vision of SRSA; to further advise on the design of a transparent and democratic tool for monitoring and designing public reporting system for all federations and sporting and recreation bodies with a view to measure the success or failure for the implementation of transformation values and targets; and lastly to monitor and advise the Ministry on incentives and punitive measures that must be taken on Federations and sport bodies that are not driving transformation to its logical conclusion.
In the same vein, in June 2012, we further appointed a Ministerial Advisory Committee on Recreation in South Africa to, among others, conduct qualitative and quantitative research on the international best practice in recreation and the delivery of recreation which will include the norms and standards of delivery, management and maintenance of recreational facilities as well as advising the Ministry on the best way to administer and manage both sport and recreation activities in South Africa in line with the revised SRSA Facilities Framework document.
Ladies and Gentlemen, This conference takes place hardly seven days after SRSA hosted its symposium on transformation in sport in South Africa. SRSA also held its official launch of the ThinkSport Journal for the Department of Sport and Recreation South Africa (SRSA) in particular and the sport and recreation fraternity in general. As the National Sport and Recreation Indaba (NSRI) had instructed us to continue the intellectual debates and discussions about issues affecting sport and recreation; ThinkSport is therefore a structured response to that instruction to continue positive intellectual dialogue on the course of transformation of sport and recreation in South Africa.
SASRECON and other similar platforms are the direct continuation of inquiry and knowledge accumulation in sport and recreation in the Republic of South Africa. They will assist the sport community and SRSA new discoveries and new knowledge that can advance sport and recreation in South Africa and the world including in science and technology.
It is therefore of pivotal importance for platforms such as the SASRECON not to be “talkshows”, but platforms of inquiry and enquiry about new knowledge and cutting edge research findings on issues of sport and recreation in South Africa. We must utilise them to assess our strengths and weakness on policy formulation and implementation; and what the gaps are related to that. This exercise will help us to realise the relationships that exist between certain disciplines in sport which do not need to be treated as “mutually exclusive” matters. This approach in the end will assist all our stakeholders which include, but are not limited to, sport practitioners, academics, sport research communities, students, sport scientists, and business people, etc, to grasp the inherent relationship between theory and practice.
If well organised and with concerted efforts, these initiatives will be able to respond to many international debates about the role and responsibility of intellectuals and academics in society which sport people are an integral part of. Hence we believe that the responsibility of intellectuals as said by Mr Noam Chomsky is to speak the truth to power and to expose their lies. In doing so they should facilitate debates and shape the general policy directions. This is the generally accepted wisdom about the role of intellectuals. Therefore the sport sector should be seen as actively contributing to such debates and discussions as to place sport issues at the centre of development of our nations.
Ladies and Gentlemen we are therefore gathered here today to bring together different stakeholders in sport and recreation to promote stakeholder engagement on strategic issues to promote community involvement on social issues of sport, wellness and health whilst at the same time using scientific evidence to promote the role of sport in business and economics.
It is in this context that the Ministry of Sport and Recreation South Africa (SRSA) is honoured to welcome all our delegates who are from different provinces of South Africa to attend the historic gathering of the South African Sport and Recreation Conference (SASRecCon) under the Theme: Sport for Development.
As we are all aware; Sport and Recreation South Africa assumed the responsibility to organize and host the bi-annual conference of sport science in South Africa. Since then, our conferences have been attended mostly by sport academia, sport scientists and practitioners including government, sport federations and civil society. Most of the previous conferences have concentrated on dealing with theories of sport and recreation.
The 2012 SASRECON is aimed at bridging the gap between theory and practice in the conduct and delivery of sport sciences in the Republic whilst at the same time closing the gaps between science and techniques implemented in the practice of sciences in sport. We will also utilize it as a systematic platform for the research communities in sport sciences and academia to share experiences and results of both current qualitative and quantitative research findings.
It is for this reason that SRSA hosted the first ever National Sport and Recreation Indaba (NSRI) in November 2011. At the NSRI delegates adopted a National Sport and Recreation Plan (NSRP) as their blue-print to revitalize sport and recreation system in South Africa. At the heart of the NSRP is the Transformation Charter with the score card to bring about the establishment of the competitive and demographically representative sport system guided by a value set based on equal access and opportunity, fairness and just behaviour, equitable resource distribution, empowerment and affirmation.
As a result, SRSA is in the process of reviewing all its programmes to realign them with the recently adopted NSRP. Such developments have led to our department making a paradigm shift in the way it views research and its research support strategies.
This change in research strategy will include but not be limited:
- To focus on the method of delivery through SASRECON.
- To encourage the participation of Master’s and PHD students in sport sciences research.
- To use our Tertiary Institutions as the support base for selected sport academics.
- To provide tailored support for academics who conduct sport research and scientific projects by contributing towards their travel and accommodation costs including subsistence allowances.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to call on this conference to devise strategies to help in the successful implementation of the National Sport and Recreation Plan (NSRP), especially to achieve our objectives in all spheres of government and across the country. Of particular interest to me is the inquiry on “The main factors that could impact negatively on the implementation of the National Sport and Recreation Plan and solutions to address these factors”.
In conclusion, we are happy to inform all delegates at this conference that they will find interesting topics and research findings from various leaders in sport and recreation. These topics will be officially launched by Conference and be used as a focal point for SASRECON and other research institutions going forward. These topics are:
- Action research by practitioners in the field of sport.
- Academic research by both students and academics.
- Conference papers based on desktop studies by department officials on their respective fields of operation.
Please enjoy your stay and contribute meaningfully in the conference topics and deliberations.
Thank you.
