Z Skweyiya: Social Development Dept Budget Vote debate, NCOP

17 May 2006

Honourable Chairperson,
Honourable Delegates,
Deputy Minister of Social Development,
Members of the Provincial Executive Councils,
Distinguished guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Introduction

It has been said that the life and character of late OR Tambo are an
exemplar of our struggle for human rights, democracy and social development. I
would like to draw on the wisdom of this illustrious son of our soil to present
Budget Vote 18 of the Department of Social Development.

I quote: “We believe that we must stand together in creating the new South
Africa. When our work is done, let all look at the new South Africa with hope
and encouragement, hope and encouragement because she will have demonstrated
that it is possible for people of different colours and different races and
nationalities to live together in peace and friendship, sharing a common sense
of nationhood and humanity.”

Budget Vote 18, is an expression of our promise to deepen and improve the
quality of life for all those that are impoverished, vulnerable and socially
excluded. In line with our Constitution we will continue to accelerate
equitable access to services whilst ensuring freedom from discrimination and
harassment.

Sustainable livelihoods and poverty eradication

In the context of a developmental state, the principle of equitable access
requires that we pay special attention to the most remote areas of our country.
We have therefore set aside over R56 million over the Medium Term Expenditure
Framework (MTEF) period to promote sustainable livelihood strategies,
principally in the nodal areas of the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development
(ISRD) and Urban Renewal Programmes (URP). These strategies are based on
national surveys as well as the lessons from two innovative sustainable
livelihood pilot projects in the Eastern Cape and Limpopo.

Let me take this opportunity to salute the efforts of numerous individuals,
the private sector and civil society organisations who in partnership with the
Independent Development Trust (IDT), the National Development Agency (NDA) and
Kaelo World Wide Media, have contributed to these projects. We will launch one
of these projects on Friday, in the community of Dutyini in the Alfred Nzo
District Municipality.

These community level efforts will be complemented by the allocation to
provinces, via the equitable share of a sum of R388 million as part of the
Integrated Social Development Grant (ISDG).

Youth development

Honourable Chair, the late O. R. Tambo, speaking on the occasion of the 10th
anniversary of the Soweto Uprising, remarked upon the fact that our young
people had begun the count down for their recognition and inclusion as a main
contributing force to political and economic liberation. 30 years ago, the
youth of Soweto, Mamelodi, Gugulethu and other parts of our country arose in
unison and declared that South Africa belongs to all, young and old, rich and
poor.

In commemoration of their heroism and in continuation of their efforts, on 1
June in Galeshewe we will launch the social aspects of the Youth Development
Framework which was adopted by MINMEC last year. Through this framework we
will:
1) Improve the material conditions in which young people grow up, study and
play;

2) Strengthen social cohesion and re-establish the people’s contract at
local levels; and

3) Professionalise Youth and Child Care Work.

Chairperson, I would like to remind delegates to the NCOP that on the 29 May
we will be launching Child Protection Week. Please wear a green ribbon as a
symbol of our commitment to nurture and protect our children’s future.

Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP)

Chairperson, the empowering and systematic involvement of our young people
is vital to attaining the target of a six percent economic growth rate set by
our Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA). The
social sector as a whole through conditional grants and the equitable share has
set aside R4.2 billion for the EPWP so as to realise the objectives of skills
development and the creation of work opportunities in the Home Community Based
Care and Early Childhood Development Sectors.

With the support of the Business Trust, the social sector has identified the
critical path for the implementation of the EPWP and we have begun to address
the capacity and project management deficits which have been identified.

Creating an enabling environment for the NPO Sector

Honourable Chair, the sectors we wish to target for the EPWP are largely
managed and run by Non Profit Organisations (NPO), often with very little State
and private sector support. We have therefore set aside R51.9 million over the
MTEF period to enhance policy, create an enabling environment and improve
service standards in the NPO sector. These funds will be complemented by the
strengthening of the regional offices of the National Development Agency
(NDA).

Social security

Our ultimate objective is to eradicate absolute poverty and our social
assistance programmes contribute to this effort. Through our income support
programme we provide vital assistance to more than 11 million poor people.
Disbursements in Gauteng province, the Western Cape and the Northern Cape are
now conducted under the supervision of the South African Social Security Agency
(SASSA) and by March 2007 all provinces will disburse over R57.7 billion in
social grants under the auspices of the agency.

Honourable chair, what remains is the deepening of our comprehensive social
security system through, amongst others, improving access and linking
contributory and non contributory schemes. Our ultimate objective is a system
of social protection that protects against particular vulnerabilities and
risks, addresses retirement needs and promotes economic and social
development.

System integrity

The building of a comprehensive social security system requires both
vigilance and persistence in preventing leakages and we will continue to
enhance our anti fraud campaign and other activities. Government has already
instituted criminal proceedings against more than 900 of the 12,000 public
servants who we believe are unlawfully accessing social grants. We have also
suspended payments to all 12,000 public servants and dismissed 100 public
servants in this regard. In order to help rectify our financial losses, 2,000
public acknowledgements of debt have been signed and we will recover R7 million
through these means.

We intend to investigate each and every one of the 35,000 cases of potential
fraud and corruption that have been reported by the public to our fraud
hotline, and we will be comparing databases with other government agencies and
the private sector. Through all these efforts aimed at improving the integrity
of the grant payment system, government has managed to save about R1.2 billion
in the past financial year. We will not rest until the right people get the
right grant in an appropriate manner that respects their dignity.

We will also accelerate our efforts to ensure that our clients know their
rights and receive the best possible service. In this regard we continue to
work towards attaining the set norms and standards. I am pleased to announce
substantial progress has been made in some areas such as in Pietermaritzburg,
where the MEC informs me that the turn around time for the processing of a
social grant is well within the 48 hours standard.

Telephone Interpreting Service for South Africa

We will now deepen these efforts by communicating to our people wherever
they are, in the language of their preference. This we will achieve through
innovative partnerships such as the one we have developed in the context of the
Telephone Interpreting Service for South Africa (TISSA) with the Department of
Arts and Culture. This service which will cost R31 million will ensure that all
government information and services are available to the public in any of the
official languages, including indigenous languages.

Social Welfare Services

Honourable Chair, access to services is not only restricted by language
barriers, but also by deficiencies in capacity. Because the quality and numbers
of critical social service professionals such as social workers are inadequate,
we are implementing critical elements of the Social Work Retention Strategy.
These include skills enhancement for all social service professionals, the
reviewing and revising of the salaries of social workers in the public service,
the awarding of more bursaries for further education, curriculum improvement,
and recruitment campaigns. We intend to revise the outdated Social Service
Professions Act and ensure that it addresses the challenges of today and
tomorrow.

Upcoming legislation

Chairperson, the work on the legislative front to address key policy and
legislative gaps continues. To this end, we will:
* Re-introduce the section 76 elements of the Children’s Bill which deal with
provincial competencies and services.

* Introduce the Social Relief Fund Bill, so as to consolidate all the relief
funds administered by the department. And finally,

* Introduce amendments to the Prevention and Treatment of Substance Abuse
Bill, to address the scourge of substance and drug abuse.

Conclusion

Honourable members, we all know that while appropriate policies and
legislation are vital to enable us realise the hopes and dreams of our people,
by themselves they are insufficient. The implementation of these policies and
legislation is also a critical success factor in achieving a better life for
all. We have therefore set aside R19.4 million over the MTEF period to monitor
and evaluate our implementation activities.

We must be able to ascertain that we are indeed fulfilling the aspirations,
hopes and dreams of the thousands of our people who marched on the Union
Buildings some 50 years ago. Chairperson, to mark and celebrate this particular
act of struggle we will host the World Summit for Rural Women in September this
year.

The aspirations, hopes and dreams of our people require that we are
exemplary in our struggle for human rights, democracy and social development. I
trust that, honourable members will support this Budget Vote.

I thank you.

Issued by: Department of Social Development
17 May 2006