Programme Director, (Hon M Qoboshiyane, MEC for Local Government, E Cape)
Ministers:
Hon E Molewa, Environmental Affairs
Hon B Dlamini, Social Development
Hon P Gordhan, COGTA
Deputy Minister, Hon J Cronin, Public Works
MEC Hon N Mayathula-Khoza, Infrastructure Development, Gauteng
Representative(s) of the Portfolio Committee
Executive Mayor Hon K Ramokgopa, Tshwane
Councillors
Director-General, Mr Mziwonke Dlabantu
Heads of Departments
Senior staff in all spheres of government
Municipal managers
Representatives of the non-state sector and NPOs
Representatives of DPW entities
Members of the media
Ladies and gentlemen
And most important of all, our Award winners
Good evening and welcome.
Let us remember the reason we are gathered here tonight – to celebrate excellence and to acknowledge the successes and collective and individual efforts of EPWP implementers.
The Kamoso Awards were instituted in 2007 to encourage, motivate, recognise and reward the best performing government departments, municipalities, provinces and public bodies for their contribution in creating work opportunities for unemployed South Africans. Suffice it to say that the large number – and rich variety – of Awards – is indicative of how far EPWP has come.
The public bodies and projects that will be acknowledged at these awards have greatly contributed to the creation of 1,017,265 work opportunities across all sectors of the EPWP and spheres of government in the 2013/14 financial year.
To the Award-winners let me say this: your hard work and creativity has paid off. You have been justifiably honoured by your peers. Let me also say that by recognising excellence in the work of individuals and organisations, we also raise the bar and we inspire others to emulate their example.
Moreover, as we strive for excellence, we contribute to the broader socio-economic development of society and we improve the conditions of the people as a whole.
The American Civil Rights leader, Dr Martin Luther King Jnr expressed similar sentiments when he said:
“All labour that uplifts humanity has dignity and importance and should be undertaken with painstaking excellence.”
Whilst I have you all here – a captive audience, so to speak - I want to touch briefly on the following areas:
- The 2014 EPWP Summit
- Some reflections on EPWP Phase 2
- The significance of EPWP Phase 3, and
- A brief report-back on the Turnaround at DPW
The 2014 EPWP Summit
Since 2010, the National Department of Public Works has hosted three EPWP Summits. The aim of Summits is to raise awareness and increase participation in EPWP by the different role-players.
The objectives of the 2014 Summit are as follows:
- To report on progress in implementing the 2012 summit resolutions;
- Secondly, to accelerate and improve the implementation of EPWP by all implementing bodies; and
- To introduce EPWP Phase 3 to all implementing bodies. Indeed, the theme of the 2014 Summit is:
“EPWP Phase 3: Towards increased community participation and developmental impacts.”
The key purpose is to ensure that municipalities and provincial and national government departments are able to contribute to the EPWP Phase 3 targets. The timing of the Summit is critical, given that this is the first year of Phase 3. This therefore provides us with ample time to work together towards realizing the set targets by 2019.
It is anticipated that the summit will achieve the following outcomes:
- Improved understanding of EPWP Phase 3 objectives;
- Renewed commitment to implementing the EPWP;
- Improved coordination between municipalities, Non-Profit Organisations and implementing agents.
I wish you well in your deliberations over the next two days.
Some reflections on EPWP Phase 2
Based on the reports and statistics for Phase 2, let me make some random comments:
- First congratulations to Eastern Cape and KZN for exceeding their provincial work opportunity targets over Phase 2; and to Gauteng and Western Cape for exceeding their municipal work opportunity targets.
- A big thank you to the Non-Profit Organisations – collectively you exceeded the 2% target for participation of people with disabilities, achieving over 3% in year 2013/14. (That deserves a round of applause)
But it also brings into sharp focus our underperformance in the other EPWP sectors. For year 2013/14, the level of participation by people with disabilities across all the sectors was only 0.46% (roughly half of one percent). In other words we achieved only a quarter of the target. It’s simply not good enough.
Colleagues, we are all aware that this is National Disability Rights Awareness Month. Indeed, next week we are launching the Department of Public Works Disability Advisory Council – and yet as EPWP we continue to under-perform on this crucial target. I appeal to you, that during your Summit, you find time to reflect on this matter:
- You ask the Non-Profit Organisations what they are doing right;
- you ask the Eastern Cape how they achieve a higher rate than other provinces; and
- you come up with a plan to take us forward.
DDG: EPWP I would like to be able to announce what measures you propose to take, when I launch the DPW Disability Advisory Council on 2nd December.
The significance of EPWP Phase 3. Phase 3 of EPWP was launched under the theme: ‘EPWP – changing many lives for the better.’ This theme reflects two things:
- The increased targets for Phase 3 – to create 6 million work opportunities between 2014 and 2019;
- Equally, we are saying it is not just about the numbers. In Phase 3 we seek to also improve the quality and developmental impact of the EPWP projects through:
- A renewed emphasis on training to equip individuals to earn a living;
- Greater attention to the quality of the services that are provided and the new assets and facilities created in communities;
- This necessarily involves facilitating greater community participation and ownership of projects.
The target of 6 million work opportunities for Phase 3, announced by the President in the State of the Nation Address and enshrined in the ANC 2014 Election Manifesto represents a sacred commitment and pledge to the people of South Africa.
As the Department of Public Works – responsible for coordinating the Expanded Public Works Programme –we have said that delivering on the EPWP targets is the number one priority of my Department over the five years of this Administration.
Let me hasten to add that EPWP is not the property of Public Works. It is a cross-cutting programme of government and involves a number of departments and all spheres of government.
Examples include:
- the Working for Water programme led by the Department of Environmental Affairs which contributes hugely to conserving the country’s water resources;
- the Community Work Programme - which is led by the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs; and
- the social sector programmes – particularly Early Child Development and Home-Based Health Care - led by the Department of Social Development.
- We are confident that we will deliver on the Phase 3 targets, for the following reasons:
- The EPWP has a long and successful track record of delivering 5,5 million work opportunities over the last ten years;
- The EPWP model works by mobilising all relevant government departments and agencies across all the spheres of government – and more recently involving non-profit, community and faith based organisations.
- The model was further strengthened with the establishment of the Presidential Public Employment Inter-Ministerial Committee (PPE-IMC) exactly tostrengthen planning and coordination of programmes and resources.
Truly, in the case of EPWP, we can confidently assert that working together we can achieve so much more.
Report-back on the turnaround at NDPW
2014 has been a decisive year in the history of the Department of Public Works. In 2014 we began to see the positive results of our Turnaround Strategy. Key indicators are the following:
- Clean audit project – DPW received an unqualified audit; PMTE moved from multiple disclaimers to a qualified audit.
- Lease audit – We have re-taken control of the leases.
- Immovable Asset Register – for the first time in its history DPW has a credible and comprehensive register of its properties. 98% of these have been physically verified.
A major reason for our success has been the fact that we have stable and committed leadership in the Department committed to good governance and accountability.
We are now in the second phase of the Turnaround – “Efficiency Enhancement” – where we improve the way that DPW does business.
Key programmes during this phase are the following:
- Operationalisation of the PMTE – to ring-fence and professionalise management of the state’s property portfolio;
- Operationalisation of the Governance Risk and Compliance Branch – to spearhead anti-corruption and to enhance planning, monitoring and evaluation to improve performance and service delivery;
- The enhancement of core mandates of the DPW:
- Policy regulation and transformation of the Built Environment – the property and construction sectors;
- Coordination and leadership of the wider public works family in the provinces, in line with the concurrent mandate of the Department;
None of this would be possible without the hard work and commitment of the majority of honest public servants who continue to serve often in difficult conditions.
Concluding remarks
In closing, we need to remind ourselves that EPWP is much more than just the work opportunity statistics reported. Indeed the testimonies of the EPWP beneficiaries tell the story:
- Re-awakening the dignity that comes with work and the ability to contribute to household income.
- Acquiring skills and re-entering the job market, in some cases.
- Providing an opportunity to access education,
- And providing hope for a better future.
Allow me to acknowledge the hard work of the organisers of this event, as well as thank the participants who responded to the call by the DPW to enter for the EPWP Kamoso Awards nominations.
As we work together with different stakeholders - including provinces, public entities, municipalities, Non Profit Organisations and implementing agents - I urge the officials of EPWP to provide leadership and give our partners the maximum support. We cannot work in silos.
I hope that these awards will encourage and motivate us all to redouble our efforts in taking the EPWP to new heights of achievement in the years ahead.
Again congratulations to all the Award winners. You are living proof of the sentiments expressed by the Greek philosopher, Aristotle (over 2000 years ago) and I quote: “Excellence is an art won by training and habituation… We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit.”
I thank you.
