MEC Lebogang Maile
Members of Mayoral Committees of Sport and Recreation and Arts and Culture
Executive Directors who are present here
Ladies and gentlemen
“The aim of Sport and Recreation South Africa is to maximise access, development and excellence at all levels of participation in Sport and Recreation to improve social cohesion, nation building and the quality of life of all South Africans.”
SRSA “strives to support the creation of an enabling environment and provide support to increase the number of participants in Sport and Recreation in our country and communities.”
SRSA “supports recognised Sport and Recreation bodies and public entities; and monitor and report on their performance, facilitates the provision and management of sustainable Sport and Recreation infrastructure and facilities to all South Africans especially the needy and poor.”
We further coordinate inter and intragovernmental Sport and Recreation relations and support the hosting of identified major events. Over the Medium Term, Sport and Recreation South Africa continued and will continue to use Sport and Recreation as a developmental instrument, in line with all national priorities especially those that are aimed at fostering inclusive citizenship, physical wellbeing, skills development and economic growth.
In this regard, our work is integrated to the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) which is an official tool to directly articulate our government electoral mandate that is embedded in our vision of contributing to and promoting the creation of a ‘Better Life for All.’
The electoral mandate of the fourth democratic government articulates the need to create a nation united in diversity, working together to waive the threats that will seek to undermine the building of a country and people free of poverty and hunger.
To action this vision of our ‘national democratic society’, the Ministry of Sport and Recreation determines a policy, confirms the roles and responsibilities amongst the various stakeholders and role-players in Sport and Recreation to ensure that all efforts are well coordinated in an efficient and effective way.
In the same vein, the Ministry is obliged to continuously provide funds for the creation and upgrading of basic Sport and Recreation infrastructure, including basic Multipurpose Sport and Recreation facilities subject to the provisions of Section 10 of the Sport and Recreation Act of 1998, which makes provisions for funding mechanisms of Sport and Recreation in South Africa.
In this case, in 1995, the Intergovernmental Relations Framework (IGRF) Act was passed by Parliament of the Republic of South Africa to make sure that the principles in Chapter Three of the Constitution of the Republic on cooperative government are implemented. This piece of legislation seeks to set up mechanisms and systems to coordinate the work of government to provide services, alleviate poverty and fight under-development; and establishes structures and lines of communication between local, provincial and national government.
In this regard, our MINMEC and Heads of Education Departments Committee (HEADCOM) become the strategic vehicles for the purposes of effective intergovernmental relations. Structures and forums established by line managers from national to provinces are a living testimony of this exercise. These initiatives strategically respond to all government programmes that are developed based on the laws and policies that are made by Parliament.
This, displayed, attitude in the course of conducting our work is a microcosm of Cabinet Makgotla’s that sits each year to develop plans and goals and assess progress made each year. At the same time, Treasury develops a Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for every three year period so that government departments can see more or less how much money they can plan to spend in the medium term.
This system allows us to work together in a coordinated way on decision-making and must co-ordinate budgets, policies and activities, especially for those functions that cut across the spheres of government. We do this because implementation of policies and government programmes requires a close cooperation between the spheres of government in particular at Executive level.
Thus, the Division of Revenue Act (DORA) which lays down how the total government income (revenue) should be divided and allocated between the spheres of government and within government is so important for this gathering and government.
Hence, we need a strategic capacity to take the lead in defining our strategic priorities in relation to the national goals of our democratic state. This, in essence, means that the national developmental state should mobilise our ‘national democratic society’ to take part in the implementation of the strategic agenda of government and direct all resources at our disposal towards a shared goal.
In doing this, we must succeed in our resolve to unite all our people in the public sector, private sector, workers and civil society in a ‘contract’ geared to implement the ‘national agenda’. We engage in this mission by playing a much stronger and visible role in establishing clear, measurable and time-bound targets for common programmes and projects; and for monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of such programmes.
We equally need the Organisational Capacity; and quantitative and qualitative human capabilities and capital to ensure that we have the most effective mechanisms, structures and systems in place to realise our national strategic goals. To effect this, we need to improve our systems and structures i.e. institutional arrangements, within each sphere of government to deliver the results in a united and cohesive manner.
Our Technical Capabilities are to be realised by our ability to translate broad objectives into programmes and projects that ensures proper implementation. This capacity also includes our capabilities to plan, monitor and evaluate the implementation of the programmes by making effective and efficient use of the intergovernmental and integrated planning exercise across the spheres of government and between government departments.
Therefore, the success of all the above strategic goals rest on the active involvement of the people and our democratic society through organised structures of civil society and other social partners. Our approach to the developmental state delivery mechanisms should place strong emphasis on building a strong ‘Social Front’ for development and to ‘sign a social contract’ with all our people. There should be well organised and strong ‘marriage’; a symbolic ‘wedding’ ceremony between the state, labour and capital as well as other civil society organisations. This should be a well cemented cooperation between the ‘Organs of Political Society and Organs of Civil Society.’
To this effect, the Ministry and MECs have engaged themselves in a Strategic Planning exercise from 10 to 12 January 2011. In that stratplan session, SRSA together with provinces emerged with the ‘Road Map to Optimal Performance and Functional Excellence’.
At the centre of this ‘Road Map’ are six strategic priorities namely:
- transformation
- schools sport
- institutional mechanisms
- mass mobilisation
- recreation
- funding
These strategic areas calls for a paradigm shift and provide a new marching order and a fresh thinking in the organisation and running of Sport and Recreation in the Republic. Therefore, ‘these imperatives will inform and guide the business of sport and recreation in South Africa and therefore influence the five year horison, which is disaggregated in annual operational frameworks in the short, medium, and long-term.
This exercise will require all of us to:
- Strive to finalise the gathering the status of transformation in sport and recreation; develop a transformation perspective coupled with a national transformation policy that will incorporate transformation action plans and programmes which will include among other things a transformation framework for sport and recreation in South Africa.
- Take charge of school sport in South Africa and offer sport and recreation in all schools within the Republic; and further investigate international best-practice in the provision of school sport before the end of this financial year, etc. This work is in progress between the Ministry of Sport and Recreation and Basic Education.
- Commission a national facilities audit to ensure proper planning and maximum use of facilities and therefore advocate and pursue for improved funding allocation of sport and recreation. This means, in essence, that the usage of DoRA and who is the accounting authority for conditional grants should be clearly clarified develop appropriate policy interventions which include ‘ring-fencing’ or utilise a percentage of MIG funding.
- Strengthen local, regional, provincial and national recognised civil society structures in sport and recreation, build them from grassroots level to upwards through guidelines to ensure uniformity in the establishment of local, regional, provincial and the actual formation of the. South African National Sport Council.
- Vigorously mobilise all resources from local companies, multi-national companies and foreign aid to build sports and recreation infrastructure and facilities informed by the national facilities audit. To fast-track this we met with Cogta with the aim of unlocking resources within the MIG to address the collapsing and in most cases absent facilities. The process appointing a Ministerial Advisory Committee on the issue of Recreation is work in progress.
- Open adequate opportunities for positive social interaction through national youth gatherings and jamborees as to strengthen, in an organised and coordinated manner, the ability of young people to work cooperatively across race, ethnicity, gender, geographical location, class, language and creed.This is being organised through a national Annual Youth Camps that we will host in September this year which will incorporate SA Youth Games.
- Increase the number of hubs and clubs where communities can be given opportunities to participate in various sporting activities in order to ensure links between communities and schools to work closely with Federations and local sports councils to ensure seamless talent development through the alignment of hubs and/to ward structures.
- Establish a national funding forum, incorporating the Sport Trust, to coordinate the allocation of financial resources in order to disburse and distribute financial resources, including lottery funding, in a more equitable way through the engagement and management of the lottery distribution agency.
These are the matching orders enshrined in the ‘Road Map to Optimal Performance and Functional Excellence’ document. This meeting is therefore expected to plan in line with these marching orders. No deviation will be tolerated because it will be in violation of political and administrative directives.
This political stance is informed by a notion that begins to say, government has adopted an outcomes based approach in terms of service delivery. Ministers have signed Delivery Agreements that outline key deliverables for each department. As a result, government departments are under continuous monitoring and evaluation.
It is therefore an imperative for everyone to follow strictly all the decisions taken by and with the political principals in order to realiSe the objectives of both their delivery agreements and key deliverables.
The following are the 2011 events for immediate planning and implementation:
The launch of the school sport, structures and programmes, scheduled to take place at the end of next month presents an opportunity to work together as national, provincial and local government.
The 2011 World Cups of Cricket and Rugby including the Championships of Netball also present that opportunity through provincial roll-out of the ‘Magnificent Fridays’.
The hosting of the 123rd IOC’s General Assembly to take place in June 2011 is another showcasing event of our ability to co-operate on strategic events.
The hosting of Youth Camps and Sport Indaba will consolidate our resolve to collaborate effectively and efficiently on the running and organisation of the business of sport in South Africa, including the hosting of Sports Awards linking them with the 6 strategic priorities.
In conclusion, “the Ministry of Sport and Recreation is the custodian of sport and recreation in South Africa; charged with legislative powers to oversee the development and management of sport and recreation in the country and therefore, the principal authority of government with regards to all sport and recreation matters.”
Thank you.
