22 May 2006
At its meeting held on Wednesday, 17 May 2006, Cabinet announced that the
2010 Federation International Football Association (FIFA) World Cup South
Africa (SA) Special Measures Bill was approved for submission to
Parliament.
South Africa provided FIFA with certain guarantees as part of its bid for
hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup. In order to facilitate these guarantees, South
Africa is expected to introduce legislation that will remove any obstacles that
may hinder their implementation. Two pieces of legislation have been
identified, one a Money Bill that will be sponsored by National Treasury and
the other a Special Measures Bill that will deal with non-money matters; and
the latter is sponsored by Sport and Recreation.
According to Mr Joel Netshitenzhe, Government Communication and Information
Systems (GCIS) Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Cabinet also noted preparations
for the United Nations (UN) General Assembly Special Session on HIV and AIDS,
and it welcomed the progress that has been made in South Africa, in
implementing a comprehensive programme to combat the pandemic. âWhile much more
needs to be done in this regard, the advances in promoting awareness and
behaviour change including use of condoms, expansion of accredited health
facilities providing AIDS-related services, recruitment and training of health
professionals, provision of nutritional supplements as well as home and
community based care all these are cause for hope.â
Mr Netshitenzhe said Government will be scaling up communication and social
mobilisation on this issue, and the budget for the campaign over a two year
period has been increased from R160million to R200million. Further, with 134
473 people initiated on antiretroviral (ARV) treatment by the end of March, and
an estimated additional 80 000 initiated in the private and non-governmental
organisation (NGO) sector, South Africa today has the largest antiretroviral
treatment (ART) programme in the world.
The meeting further agreed that South Africa should become an official
member of the Commonwealth Foundation. The Foundation was established in 1965
as a charitable Trust promoting professional co-operation among Commonwealth
countries, including support for NGOs, professional associations and cultural
activities.
Enquiries: Zweli Mnisi
Tel: (012) 334 3120
Cell: 082 464 4659
Issued by: Sport and Recreation South Africa
22 May 2006
Source: Sport and Recreation South Africa (www.srsa.gov.za)
