1976
2 June 2006
In 2006, South Africa remembers and celebrates the 30th anniversary of the
Soweto youth uprisings in 1976, and the 50th anniversary of the 1956 march by
women on the Union Building where they made known their intention that women
shall not carry passes.
In his State of the Province Address on 10 February 2006, Western Cape
Premier Ebrahim Rasool says that in 2006 "we call to mind those who led us in
the uprisings of 1976 and opened the path for the most heroic youth struggles
against apartheid. These are people we have to thank for our freedom and the
democracy we enjoy. Leading up to June 16th, this government, together with the
Western Cape Youth Commission will work with youth structures to ensure that
the lessons of selfless, courageous, patriotic, and attemptable youth will
forever be enshrined in the hearts of emerging generations in the Western Cape.
We call to mind the 1956 march by women on the Union Building in the lead up to
9 August this year we shall honour them by commemorating 50 years of women's
courage, leadership and equality in the struggle for a better life."
The Premier also says that the best way to celebrate and commemorate the
struggles of women and youth, and to thank them, is to prioritise delivery to
them this year. Similar to its 100-Day campaign, Easter deliveries, and
Krismisbox campaign, the Provincial Government of the Western Cape has
undertaken the following Siyabulela (thank you) deliveries by August 2006:
1. Community safety
* increase closures of Tik factories by at least 15%
* establish a further five Victim Support Rooms at police stations and deploy
400 women counsellors to support women who have suffered abuse, violence and
rape.
2. Finance and Tourism
* double the number of youth entrepreneurs in the tourism industry from 350
to 700
* ensure that the proportion of women procuring from government will increase
significantly across departments.
3. Transport and Public Works
* recruit, train and employ 1000 unemployed youth for trade and
entrepreneurial learnerships, and ring-fence projects and contracts for the
most successful amongst them
* reserve 60% of road maintenance Expanded Public Works and Projects (EPWP)
jobs for women
* upgrade Mowbray Maternity Hospital to the value of R20 million
4. Health
* recruit, train and deploy 4 876 HIV and AIDS peer educators, working with
non-governmental organisations (NGOs) in communities and classrooms, guiding
and counselling young people on the prevention of disease and the adoption of
healthy lifestyles
* want 24 508 women between the ages of 30 and 59 to report to their nearest
primary health facility for a pap smear as the key action in preventing
cervical cancer.
5. Social Development
* recruit 1 000 community-based fieldworkers to support substance abusers after
their first phase of rehabilitation to prevent as much as possible the chances
of relapse
* increase the substance abuse budget by 40% to a total of R32 million
* recruit 500 women from Langa, Nyanga, Athlone, Gugulethu and Mitchell's Plain
into the Afro-chic garment industry an action for which R2 million has been
budgeted.
6. Economic Development, Environment and Planning
* set aside R2 million to support 60 sustainable youth enterprises, R4
million for women's enterprises, and R3 million for natural resource management
and sustainable livelihood programmes aimed at both youth and women
* ensure the co-ordination of Apex, Mafiso, Umsobomvu and Khula in the Western
Cape to support youth and women entrepreneurs better.
7. Agriculture
* convene 50 camps for 10 500 youth for training in climate change,
pollution, bio-diversity and soil erosion.
* make available 25 bursaries and 40 learnerships for scarce skills in the
agricultural sector for both youth and women.
8. Education
* implement the No-Fee Schools system at deserving schools to ensure greater
access to education and to provide R25 m as bursary loans for access to
vocational training in Further Education and Training (FET) colleges
* train 900 Early Childhood Development (ECD) practitioners, mostly women, to
drive the Provincial Government's campaign to get children learning from an
earlier age.
9. Local Government and Housing
* roll out local Youth Units in each of the five District Councils and
Metro
* recruit 200 youth for learnerships in Disaster Management
* within the general councillor training programmes, strengthen the 50% entry
of women into local government with special leadership development training
programmes and the recruitment of women in senior management in councils.
10. Cultural Affairs and Sport
* co-ordinate the celebrations and commemorations of the 50th Anniversary of
the Women's March and the 30th Anniversary of June 16th
* prepare for the first time a Sports School for the Western Cape in Kuils
River.
These deliverables are more signs of commitment from the Provincial
Government to create a better life for all in the Western Cape. It is an
invitation to all PGWC partners, civil society, labour and business to help
move the Western Cape and South Africa from the threshold of prosperity to the
Age of Prosperity.
Issued by: Office of the Premier, Western Cape Provincial Government
2 June 2006
Source: Western Cape Provincial Government (http://www.capegateway.gov.za)
