Budget Vote speech to the National Council of Provinces
30 May 2006
Chairperson, honourable members, my colleagues from the industry in the
gallery, ladies and gentlemen.
Uthe uMphathiswa wam mandithi: gooi gooi okanye rham rham kancinci.
As I present my first and last Budget Vote speech as the Deputy Minister of
Minerals and Energy to this House, I would like to acknowledge the support of
all stakeholders that I have had the privilege and opportunity to work with.
The last two years were a very special time for me.
Kodwa ke ndivile qabane uMani, ukuba kukho abojayo, bebhiyoza njengokuba
sihamba nje noqabane uLindiwe, kodwa ke ze bose, basimeme nathi apho emosweni
ngoba kaloku baseza kuza kuthi. Le migodi bayomba emhlabeni, ngoko
bazakuwaswela amanzi phaya emigodini. Ndifuna ke ukongeza ndithi, asibashiyi
bodwa,- sele ndivela eziplasini ngoku ndithetha nesibhulu, - koko sibashiya
ne-skop se doner Director-General (DG). Xa usithi nantsi i-target uthi yena
kubo, xa usithi skop naye uthi, skop. Xa usithi left uthi, left ukanti naxa
usithi right uthi, right. Abaselanga bodwa, abazi kuba nesithukuthezi, tu ke.
Ndiza kuqala ke nge-mine health and safety [impilo nokhuseleko emigodini].
I will start then with mine health and safety. The mining industryâs safety
performance continues to improve. In the 10 years of the existence of the Mine
Health and Safety Act, we are starting to see the positive impact of the
implementation of the Act. The department has recorded a significant decrease
in terms of fatalities in all mines. In 1995, the fatalityâs rate stood at 533
with injuries standing at 7 717. I am pleased to announce that by the end of
2005, our fatality rate had decreased to 202 and the injuryâs rate to 3 961.
The mine health and safety inspectorate has also embarked on a national
strategy to eliminate silicoses and noise hearing loss or occupational deafness
by 2013. These efforts will help reduce the social course of diseases and
injuries particularly to vulnerable communities. Overall, the 2005 rate was the
lowest recorded in the history of South African mining. Every one concerned
would agree with me that there is room for improvement; one death is one too
many. A lot more work needs to be done for us to reach parity with
international rates by 2013 as agreed at the mine health and safety summit held
in 2003.
Small-scale mining is one of the vehicles for stimulating rural economies
and job creation for poverty alleviation. My department has committed itself to
seeing to it that the small-scale mining sector receives the necessary
attention in order to become sustainable. One of the major challenges facing my
department in the area of small-scale mining is that of illegal mining
operations and the dangers associated with them. A number of smallâscale mining
projects have been assisted either technically to enable them to comply with
mining legislation, or financially to help them get off the ground. Last year,
we established a small-scale mining board with the mandate to find and
implement solutions to overcome the identified limitations within the
small-scale mining sector. This board will give priority to good quality
projects that will serve the poor as well as contribute towards economic
development.
We also assisted the small-scale mining community with the launch of the
South African small-scale mining chamber. Its mandate is to create one
representative for the small-scale mine operators under one umbrella body that
will represent their interests in various forums where representation is
required.
Since the promulgation of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development
Act in 2002, we have received over 7 500 applications for all types of rights.
This is unprecedented in the history of South African minerals and mining
sector. Over 80 percent of these applications are for new prospecting rights. I
am informed that under the old dispensation the department used to receive
around 400 applications per year. This means that since the promulgation of the
Act, applications have increased ten-fold. This is a sign that the mining
industry is growing and that there are a lot of investors coming and interested
in the country contrary to the belief of the prophets of doom who were fighting
against transformation and we had to pull them, kicking and screaming, to come
to the table.
We have increased our capacity with the mineral regulation branch to cope
with the workload, improved on our turnaround time and continued to assist
first-time entrants in the industry. More attention will be given to ensuring
the quality and broad based nature of the deal supporting black economic
empowerment (BEE) within these applications.
A major thrust of the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act, is
transformation. Since the promulgation of the Act, we have read and heard about
the biggest ever and the best ever BEE deals.
Andizi kubiza magama abantu.
Notwithstanding these big deals, we still have a long way to go. These two
years have taught us to be aware of the optics of transformation. This a
concept where transactions are structured in such a way that they seem to be
BEE compliant whilst in reality they are not. This is why we have resolved to
look at each and every deal microscopically.
The direct beneficiaries of the empowerment policies of government are also
becoming a problem. We have experienced instances where BEE companies are
granted licences and the next thing we hear is that they have sold their rights
to the highest bidder. This is sad and unacceptable. We did not pass this law
to create opportunistic licence traders. We want to have the historically
disadvantaged South African companies operating in the mining sector and we are
not going to allow the beneficiaries of government policy to undermine our
policies.
As we commemorate the 50 fighting years of the womenâs march, it is actually
sad that our women, especially those in the mining areas where mining
operations are located, continue to be ignored and abused. We will be working
on changing this in the industry. We are going to facilitate the creation of
women-led and women-controlled operating companies. We want companies that want
to be operationally involved, not to be mere shareholders or participants in
management committees, but companies that want to dirty their hands in the
mines.
We have also experienced a lot of fronting and delusions. Last year in the
department, we conducted a high level audit to establish what happened to women
companies that were granted contracts or tenders within the department. I must
indicate to members in the House that the results were shocking. The small
medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) that were granted contracts have
disappeared and we could not trace any one of them, which is both sad and
unfortunate.
A week before last, at the departmentâs presentation of its strategic plan
to the portfolio committee, an appeal was made, which I am now repeating to you
honourable members, that public representatives must join in the fight against
fronting. The sad reality about fronting is the resultant effects of
compromising for the course of personal and self-enrichment. I would also like
to make a special plea to the women out there not to allow themselves to be
used as fronts.
Ndifuna ukuthi ngaphezulu, asinga bamhlophe bodwa kodwa bakhona nootata
abamnyama abanezisu ezikhulu, abafika phaya batyikitye, behamba noomama
bebaqhuba ngaphambili okweenkomo, bathi bakugqiba ukutykitya aba mama
babangqinibele ngaphandle kwezi nkampani. Nabo ke torho sibajongile. Ndithi,
izisu zabo zibenkulu kakhulu kuna kuqala ke ngoku.
In striving to achieve the objectives of the Accelerated and Shared Growth
Initiative for South Africa (AsgiSA), the department will forge ahead with its
plans to ensure that the mineral resources that are produced in this country
are beneficiated locally.
Le nto intle endiyinxibileyo apha yenziwe ngoomama nootata baseNtshona
yeAfrika. Nathi sinegolide apha eMzantsi Afrika. Akukho mfuneko yokuba le
golide siyihambise ngentengo ephantsi. Masiyisebenzi boomama, sizenzele into
esiyifunayo, sisebenzisa ubugcisa nobuchule bethu baseAfrica, ukuze sikwazi
ukuvelisa ezi zinto ukwenzela ukuba nathi sizithengisele iMelika,
ne-Switzerland neYurophu, ukuze bayeke ukuza apha no-American Swiss baze
kusithengisela igolide yethu sebelonyusa kakhulu kuna kuqala ixabiso layo.
Local and international players in the diamond cutting and polishing
industry as well as players in the gold and platinum metals processing industry
have shown serious interest in investing in South Africa, following the changes
that we have put in place.
Iinguqu enizaziyo ke, neMithetho esiyipasisileyo enje ngoMthetho
Olungisiweyo weZedayimane (Diamond Amendment Act), noMthetho Oyilwayo weZimbiwa
(Precious metals Bill).
The department in conjunction with local and provincial governments is
continuing with the jewellery manufacturing projects in Kimberly and at
Johannesburg International Airport, which have already been introduced to
Parliament. These will create a platform for the influx of investment, which
will bring with it new skills, technologies and funding mechanisms.
All investors that have held discussions with the department have indicated
their interest and commitment to transfer the knowledge and skills based on
their extensive expertise in this field and to come to South Africa and build
their factories and industries here.
In November 2005, we trained about five young South Africans in Belgium for
diamond jewellery management. We are planning to continue with this programme.
We have an agreement with the Belgian government that we will continue to send
South Africans every year to this programme. We also have, in the department,
continued to work on skills development. We have the Gabane project, which is
operating within Mintek and it is training rural women in jewellery
manufacturing. We are also continuing with this project in conjunction with our
Sector Education and Training Authority, the mining qualification
authority.
Last year we signed an agreement with a Chinese company where they are going
to train our young girls in diamond and jewellery manufacturing. Already, we
have sent 15 girls who started in February and will be coming back in July, for
six months. We are supposed to send another batch of girls in the next term and
there is a contract of five years in place. Every year we send two groups for
training in China. That will help us to be able to produce our own jewellery
and beneficiate and add value to our minerals, here, in South Africa.
We also have Petro SA that has been struggling to ensure that we get access
to oil and gas in Africa and other parts of the world. They are promising and
they are doing very well now. As the members have said we have, as part of our
work, established South African Women in Mining (SAWIMA) and Women in Oil and
Energy South Africa (WOESA) and other women formations. I wish to take this
opportunity to call on SAWIMA and WOESA to get their houses in order. We hope
that they will be able to address the concerns around their accessibility in
rural areas and create opportunities for other disadvantaged women. We also
salute Women in Nuclear South Africa (WINSA), which is concentrating on nuclear
and women and ensuring that there is representivity for women in the nuclear
centre and awareness and education for our young girls to come into this
important industry.
I would like to thank the Minister for her dedication and commitment over
the last few months that she has been with us in the department. I have learnt
a great deal from her and I wish her all the best in her new portfolio. A
special thank you to the Director-General, Sandile Nogxina, for being a pillar
of strength at the centre of all the many changes in the leadership of the
department. Thank you to the staff of the Department of Minerals and Energy for
your support during my stay in the department.
In conclusion, I would like to inform you that I have had already a good
meeting with the farmers on Monday. They have invited me to their next hunting
expedition at the end of June. Indeed, they love a woman who can shoot straight
and get her targets. As a rural and a country-girl, I expect my
Director-General for Land Affairs to make land available and my
Director-General for Agriculture to bring the seeds and tractors, including
seeds for energy crops to produce biofuels so that we can go out there in the
rural areas and begin to develop our country. I say to the directors-general
âyou were warned that I shoot from the hip and this is my first shot and a very
good oneâ.
I am sure the new Minister of Water Affairs will make water available while
the new Minister of Minerals and Energy will provide energy for irrigation and
dairy equipment so that we can go back and develop agriculture in the rural
areas.
Masiphumeni ematyotyombeni aseKapa naseGoli mawethu! Siyagodola apha, kwaye
siyalamba, ngoba akukho misebenzi. Masigodukeni siye kulima emakhaya, umhlaba
usekhona, nemvula inile. Masiyekeni ukutshipha eRhawutini naseKapa.
Ndiyabulela.
Issued by: Department of Minerals and Energy
30 May 2006
Source: Hansard
