Day: February 20, 2024

Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister, Thoko Didiza, says a total of 83 067 land claims have been settled since the inception of the Land Restitution Programme in 1995 to 2023.

Didiza said the number equates to 94% of the old-order claims that have been successfully settled, with about 2.3 million people having benefitted from the restitution.

Presenting the research findings on the evaluation of South Africa’s Land Restitution Programme on Monday, Didiza said a total of R25 billion was spent on the purchase and transfer of 3.9 million hectares.

‘An additional R22.5 billion has been spent on financial compensation for those beneficiaries who elected for financial compensation. Between 2019 and 2023, a total of 1 494 claims were settled, largely fuelled by the department’s interventions in fast-tracking the settlement of claims,’ Didiza said.

The study, which started in 2018 and included 2 664 households and 3 378 people, who were sampled and interviewed, found that the economic power of
the restitution beneficiaries increased by 16%, measured in per capita per month, relative to the control sample.

The Restitution of Land Rights Act of 1994 is among the first laws passed by the democratically elected government.

This was done with the conscious acknowledgement that land justice is paramount, and restoration of Black people’s dignity and freedom is central to a democratic dividend, said the Minister.

The Restitution of Land Rights Act made provisions for the restitution of rights in land to people or communities dispossessed of such rights after 1913.

The constitutionality of land restitution is preserved in Section 25(7) of the Constitution of South Africa which states that ‘a person or community dispossessed of property after 19 June 1913 as a result of past racially discriminatory laws or practices is entitled, to the extent provided by an Act of Parliament, either to restitution of that property or to equitable redress’.

Didiza said families of forced removal victims were fragmented
for decades, and conflicts that arose at post-settlement claims were a function of a lack of social cohesion and trust created during a lengthy period of disintegration.

The Minister said investments in communication and social cohesion programmes would assist in mitigating the information gap and building trust among beneficiaries.

She said from the study findings, the department can draw some policy insights.

‘Firstly, the study findings are enlightening us to understand that land restitution is not only about financial and economic justice but also psychological and social restoration, a lesson we should bear in mind when we evaluate the success or failures of land restitution projects.

‘Secondly, over and above the post-settlement support and skill training, which we are already providing to beneficiaries as the government, there is an additional need to formulate community integration programmes,’ Didiza said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

No corner of the Gauteng province will be left unpoliced with government determined to intensify its crackdown on criminality.

To this end, the Department of Community Safety’s budget, which was increased from more than R750 million to R2.7 billion over a year, will be increased over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework.

This was announced by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi who delivered the State of the Province Address on Monday.

‘No corner of our townships, informal settlements, CBDs or hostels will go unpoliced. Our war on crime knows no bounds; it is real and it is uncompromising.

‘Our comprehensive integrated crime prevention plan is anchored on improved access to policing service, improved partnership policing, reduction in identified priority crimes, implementation of E-policing, increasing the human resource capacity and professionalism of law enforcement, deployment of intelligence capacity, improved support and strengthening our fight against gender-based violence,’ Lesufi said.

The Premier sa
id the weekly Okae Molao and Shanela operations were bearing fruit with thousands of arrests made.

‘We are continuously breaking the back of Zama Zamas [illegal miners] in Gauteng. Since the decisive response by the President to our request to address the challenges of illegal mining in derelict mines, there has been a marked decrease in this abhorrent activity in the province.

‘Between April and December 2023, 439 persons were arrested for illicit mining activities. We are dealing decisively with notorious crime syndicates, especially those involving bank robberies, illegal mining, drug and child trafficking and cash-in-transit heists.

‘To date, 79 749 joint operations have been conducted at provincial and district levels in the TISH [townships, informal settlements and hostel] areas. These operations resulted in 9244 arrests and the recovery of 1532 stolen or hijacked vehicles,’ he said.

Under surveillance

Lesufi told the gathering that some 7000 CCTV cameras are now working to monitor crime.

‘As part
of our programme to revitalise our CBDs and rid them of crime, lawlessness and vandalism, we have identified Small Street in Johannesburg, as the first of many that require our immediate intervention.

‘From now on, Small Street will be under 24-hour surveillance with CCTV strategically deployed along the area. We are putting up a permanent deployment of 350 law enforcement officers. When we get it right in Small Street we will surely succeed in other CBDs in the province,’ he said.

Other crime hotspots which are also under surveillance include the George Goch, Jeppe, Denver, MBA hostel, Murray and Roberts, and Rethabile LTA hostels and selected high-risk schools identified by the Department of Education.

Other crime fighting interventions include:

From April 1, Gauteng residents will be able to use an e-Panic button to send an alert for crime or medical challenges.

Also from April 1, new number plates that include a track and trace system will be piloted.

Two new helicopters and drones have been acquire
d that have allowed for the establishment of the Gauteng Air Wing unit.

Strides have been made to establish the Provincial Integrated Command Centre with interim command centres set up to monitor high-crime areas.

Some 34 sexual offence unit cars have been dedicated to respond to gendered-based cases speedily.

Crime Prevention Wardens will be increased from some 7000 to more than 12 000.

‘Whether the criminal world likes it or not, a safer Gauteng shall rise! We are all about less talk and more work,’ Lesufi said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi says government has made progress in changing the province’s socio-economic landscape from the ‘racialised spatial nightmare’ that it was in 1994.

The Premier was delivering the State of the Province Address (SOPA) at Nasrec in Johannesburg, on Monday evening.

Lesufi reflected that when Gauteng’s first SOPA was delivered in 1994, ‘there was no Gauteng Legislature, or Gauteng Departments to speak of’.

‘At the time, the Mandela Bridge was not even a figment of the imagination; nor was the Blue IQ multibillion investment in economic infrastructure development. At the time, there was no soccer stadium called ‘Soccer City’ – the host venue for the historic 2010 FIFA world cup show piece. At the time, there was no low-cost housing, or what is known as RDP houses, to speak of.

‘Today 30 years later, I am proud to stand before you to report back to this august House and the people of our province on all the milestones which have transfigured the face of our province over the last th
ree decades due to the interventions of this government.

‘The province of Gauteng has changed beyond recognition from the racialised spatial nightmare of our past,’ he said.

He explained that government’s vision of society is driven by the goal of ‘creating a united, democratic, non-racial, non-sexist and just society’.

‘Our vision have been translated by successive ANC-led administrations through the Gauteng Trade and Investment Strategy, the Blue IQ Mega Infrastructure projects, the Ten-pillar Programme of Transformation, Modernisation and Reindustrialisation (TMR), the Growing Gauteng Together (GGT2030) Plan, and now our elevated priorities anchored on Township, Informal Settlements and Hosital (TISH) as we conclude the sixth administration,’ he said.

Strengthened economy

Lesufi said despite the crunching effect that the COVID-19 pandemic had on employment, the province’s economy ‘remained resilient’ and bounced back with some 449 000 jobs.

‘During this past year, Gauteng, as the country’s economic h
ub, experienced an increase of 96 300 jobs, with 31 300 jobs in the last 90 days. We are proud to declare that since the COVID-19 pandemic, our economy is now firmly back on track and we are ready to pump our economy further,’ he said.

The Premier said billions of rands have been attracted to the province which have also led to thousands of jobs.

‘Our province has attracted more than R68 Billion in investments from 261 foreign companies and created about 23 000 direct jobs in our economy. These investments cut across the ten high-growth sectors of our economy.

‘Our province proudly hosted the 5th South African Investment Conference in April last year. In total, this conference realised R1.14 trillion worth of investment commitments across a range of economic sectors, of which R22 Billion is destined for Gauteng,’ he said.

The township economy

Lesufi said the Gauteng government has made concerted efforts to prioritise the ‘economic landscape of our townships’.

He revealed that over the past five years, g
overnment has spent some R15 billion on goods and services sourced from township based businesses.

‘In the last year alone, we spent R2.2 billion on township businesses which demonstrates our substantial investment to empowering township communities, leading to increased economic activities, job creation, and a positive impact on the unemployment rate.

‘As we continue to increase government’s spending in townships, we are equally strengthening the capacity and infrastructure of the township enterprises. In the past year, over 4 000 township retailers have been trained in enterprise development and are now capacitated to operate successful businesses,’ he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Despite regularly receiving some tongue-lashing in the court of public opinion, many public servants have made an indelible mark in moving the country forward.

They do this with the recognition that an effective public service is a key cog in delivering services that improve the lives of citizens.

The Principal of the National School of Government (NSG), Professor Busani Ngcaweni said despite the many challenges facing the Public Service, public administration ‘is on an upward trajectory’.

As the country moves towards 30 years of democracy, Ngcaweni noted that despite some negative public sentiment on its efficacy, the Public Service has evolved a lot over the past 29-years. In the early years of democracy, government had a mammoth task of putting in place an inclusive public service to serve all South Africans, including setting up democratic institutions.

The journey

Ngcaweni described the first public service, under former President Nelson Mandela, as ‘characterised by phenomenal growth and achievemen
t,’ adding that it was an intense period with rapid transformation. ‘We had to transform the character of the Public Service, to serve more citizens. We had to transform and create one administration.’ He said the second generation (from 2008 to 2004) in public administration was that of both elected and appointed officials who worked to consolidate the gains of the first administration.

Government, through public servants, worked hard to come up with programmes that continue to benefit South Africans. ‘So, for example, during that first 10 years of democracy, you see the consolidation and expansion of the social security system. They did not hire consulting firms to create that system, it was created by public administrators,’ he added.

It was during this time that the country hosted major conferences, including like the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) conference that led to the transformation of the then OAU into the African Union, and the World Racism Conf
erence.

‘This redefined South Africa in the eyes of the global community and of course there were laws that were legislated and implemented such as the Employment Equity Act, [1998 (Act 55 of 1998)] and the BEE [Black Economic Empowerment] and we were beginning to see a major growth as well in terms of black people who were working formally in the labour market,’ he said.

Highlights from the third administration, led by former President Thabo Mbeki, include preparations for the country to host the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup – backed by a growing economy. Public servants continued to offer innovative ways of delivering service to South Africans.

‘We even launched the indigent project where those who were residing in municipalities [and] could not pay could be placed on the indigent register,’ explained Ngcaweni.

The fourth administration, under former President Jacob Zuma’s leadership, saw the world cup being hosted on African soil for the first time.

‘This world cup was prepared for by public servants. T
hey worked on it, set up new institutions like the [National] Planning Commission, set up departments like [The Department of Performance] Monitoring and Evaluation’.

In 2009, government introduced a new approach to the treatment and management of HIV and AIDS, saving lives of many South Africans and paving way for better approaches in fighting the scourge.

Today, HIV positive South Africans have access to anti-retroviral drugs irrespective of their CD4 count.

Stumbling block

The global financial crisis in 2008 had a negative impact on the country’s economy. Ngcaweni noted that the country has still not fully recovered from the crisis.

‘There was a major reversal we entered the period of care and maintenance for most of the problems of government,’ said the head of the NSG.

The fifth administration continued with care and maintenance and there ‘was a kind of turmoil in public administration during that period’.

‘We ended up having state capture and we had instability in many institutions of state and t
hat took away the ability of public administrators to perform diligently.’

‘But there was still some good things that were happening, like Operation Phakisa during that period but the focus just changed, there was major disruption in terms of people being focused and we didn’t do as much to recover the lost ground in terms of the economy,’ he said.

An initiative of government, Operation Phakisa was designed to fast-track the implementation of solutions on critical development issues highlighted in the country’s National Development Plan (NDP).

The NDP is the country’s long-term plan for national development. It provides guidance for all Government policy formulation and implementation.

According to Ngcaweni the sixth administration is ‘more about rebuilding’.

Professionalisation of the public service

Ngcaweni’s assessment of the Public Service comes on the heels of the NSG having celebrated a decade of existence in October 2023. The milestone comes after the approval of the National Framework towards th
e Professionalisation of the Public Service.

The institution is an essential part of the professionalisation of the Public Service.

‘In 2020/21, the NSG was training 12 000 people, today we are training 85 000 people and that change is because there is a national movement to build state capacity and everyone in the Public Service must return to school,’ said Ngcaweni.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NSG built an e-learning platform to allow public servants to access training remotely.

Political principals are also benefiting from programmes offered by the NSG and according to Ngcaweni, Ministers are the school’s ‘big clients’ while the President and Deputy President attend their courses virtually.

Training also extends across political parties and traditional leaders.

He reiterated the importance of continuous learning among public servants.

‘Public servants must see themselves as pilots and cabin crew. For you to retain your license as a crew member or to be in the cockpit, you must constantly retur
n to the simulator because flight conditions are changing all the time,’ he added.

Another project that the school is focusing on in order to strengthen the Public Service is the the Nyukela Public Service SMS Pre-entry Programme. Ngcaweni revealed that plans are underway to extend the programme to Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors.

He noted that there were some aspects of the National Framework towards the Professionalisation of the Public Service that required the amendment of legislation.

‘Three pieces of legislation are currently in Parliament for amendment to give effect to the framework – the Public Service Commission Bill, the Public Administration Management Amendment Bill and the Public Service Amendment Bill.’

Ethics and good governance

On what constitutes good governance, Ngcaweni said ‘It is about doing the right thing that serves the public even when no one is watching you. It must have an impact on those you are serving’.

He added that it is unethical for public servants to fail to
deliver services when they have the means and resources. He is of the view that ethics can be taught and has emphasised the need for a national campaign.

‘What teaching ethics means is that you make people aware of what is unethical. You give them the tools and the confidence of making decisions that are correct’.

Time at the NSG

Appointed to the top position in March 2020, Ngcaweni said his time in office has been a ‘roller-coaster with designing new programmes and implementing them’.

He is a hands-on leader.

‘I made a decision that I am not going to demand from my colleagues what I am not going to be doing. I spend a lot of time in classrooms, boardrooms and in workshops leading from the front’.

The future of the public service

Almost 30 years into democracy, what does the future hold for the public service? Ngcaweni believes the future is bright. He urged public servants to use available information like the Census 2022 results to reflect on what has been achieved since 1994 and what needs to be don
e.

‘The bigger question is whether we will be able to sustain the momentum as public servants. ‘We cannot continue to bask in the glory of those who have achieved what is contained in the Census [2022 report] and not think about what will we, as a generation of public administrators, achieve. ‘If we mess up institutions and if we squander public administration, 30 years later we will be in a different shape,’ he concluded.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Despite regularly receiving some tongue-lashing in the court of public opinion, many public servants have made an indelible mark in moving the country forward.

They do this with the recognition that an effective public service is a key cog in delivering services that improve the lives of citizens.

The Principal of the National School of Government (NSG), Professor Busani Ngcaweni said despite the many challenges facing the Public Service, public administration ‘is on an upward trajectory’.

As the country moves towards 30 years of democracy, Ngcaweni noted that despite some negative public sentiment on its efficacy, the Public Service has evolved a lot over the past 29-years. In the early years of democracy, government had a mammoth task of putting in place an inclusive public service to serve all South Africans, including setting up democratic institutions.

The journey

Ngcaweni described the first public service, under former President Nelson Mandela, as ‘characterised by phenomenal growth and achievemen
t,’ adding that it was an intense period with rapid transformation. ‘We had to transform the character of the Public Service, to serve more citizens. We had to transform and create one administration.’ He said the second generation (from 2008 to 2004) in public administration was that of both elected and appointed officials who worked to consolidate the gains of the first administration.

Government, through public servants, worked hard to come up with programmes that continue to benefit South Africans. ‘So, for example, during that first 10 years of democracy, you see the consolidation and expansion of the social security system. They did not hire consulting firms to create that system, it was created by public administrators,’ he added.

It was during this time that the country hosted major conferences, including like the World Summit on Sustainable Development, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) conference that led to the transformation of the then OAU into the African Union, and the World Racism Conf
erence.

‘This redefined South Africa in the eyes of the global community and of course there were laws that were legislated and implemented such as the Employment Equity Act, [1998 (Act 55 of 1998)] and the BEE [Black Economic Empowerment] and we were beginning to see a major growth as well in terms of black people who were working formally in the labour market,’ he said.

Highlights from the third administration, led by former President Thabo Mbeki, include preparations for the country to host the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup – backed by a growing economy. Public servants continued to offer innovative ways of delivering service to South Africans.

‘We even launched the indigent project where those who were residing in municipalities [and] could not pay could be placed on the indigent register,’ explained Ngcaweni.

The fourth administration, under former President Jacob Zuma’s leadership, saw the world cup being hosted on African soil for the first time.

‘This world cup was prepared for by public servants. T
hey worked on it, set up new institutions like the [National] Planning Commission, set up departments like [The Department of Performance] Monitoring and Evaluation’.

In 2009, government introduced a new approach to the treatment and management of HIV and AIDS, saving lives of many South Africans and paving way for better approaches in fighting the scourge.

Today, HIV positive South Africans have access to anti-retroviral drugs irrespective of their CD4 count.

Stumbling block

The global financial crisis in 2008 had a negative impact on the country’s economy. Ngcaweni noted that the country has still not fully recovered from the crisis.

‘There was a major reversal we entered the period of care and maintenance for most of the problems of government,’ said the head of the NSG.

The fifth administration continued with care and maintenance and there ‘was a kind of turmoil in public administration during that period’.

‘We ended up having state capture and we had instability in many institutions of state and t
hat took away the ability of public administrators to perform diligently.’

‘But there was still some good things that were happening, like Operation Phakisa during that period but the focus just changed, there was major disruption in terms of people being focused and we didn’t do as much to recover the lost ground in terms of the economy,’ he said.

An initiative of government, Operation Phakisa was designed to fast-track the implementation of solutions on critical development issues highlighted in the country’s National Development Plan (NDP).

The NDP is the country’s long-term plan for national development. It provides guidance for all Government policy formulation and implementation.

According to Ngcaweni the sixth administration is ‘more about rebuilding’.

Professionalisation of the public service

Ngcaweni’s assessment of the Public Service comes on the heels of the NSG having celebrated a decade of existence in October 2023. The milestone comes after the approval of the National Framework towards th
e Professionalisation of the Public Service.

The institution is an essential part of the professionalisation of the Public Service.

‘In 2020/21, the NSG was training 12 000 people, today we are training 85 000 people and that change is because there is a national movement to build state capacity and everyone in the Public Service must return to school,’ said Ngcaweni.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the NSG built an e-learning platform to allow public servants to access training remotely.

Political principals are also benefiting from programmes offered by the NSG and according to Ngcaweni, Ministers are the school’s ‘big clients’ while the President and Deputy President attend their courses virtually.

Training also extends across political parties and traditional leaders.

He reiterated the importance of continuous learning among public servants.

‘Public servants must see themselves as pilots and cabin crew. For you to retain your license as a crew member or to be in the cockpit, you must constantly retur
n to the simulator because flight conditions are changing all the time,’ he added.

Another project that the school is focusing on in order to strengthen the Public Service is the the Nyukela Public Service SMS Pre-entry Programme. Ngcaweni revealed that plans are underway to extend the programme to Deputy Directors and Assistant Directors.

He noted that there were some aspects of the National Framework towards the Professionalisation of the Public Service that required the amendment of legislation.

‘Three pieces of legislation are currently in Parliament for amendment to give effect to the framework – the Public Service Commission Bill, the Public Administration Management Amendment Bill and the Public Service Amendment Bill.’

Ethics and good governance

On what constitutes good governance, Ngcaweni said ‘It is about doing the right thing that serves the public even when no one is watching you. It must have an impact on those you are serving’.

He added that it is unethical for public servants to fail to
deliver services when they have the means and resources. He is of the view that ethics can be taught and has emphasised the need for a national campaign.

‘What teaching ethics means is that you make people aware of what is unethical. You give them the tools and the confidence of making decisions that are correct’.

Time at the NSG

Appointed to the top position in March 2020, Ngcaweni said his time in office has been a ‘roller-coaster with designing new programmes and implementing them’.

He is a hands-on leader.

‘I made a decision that I am not going to demand from my colleagues what I am not going to be doing. I spend a lot of time in classrooms, boardrooms and in workshops leading from the front’.

The future of the public service

Almost 30 years into democracy, what does the future hold for the public service? Ngcaweni believes the future is bright. He urged public servants to use available information like the Census 2022 results to reflect on what has been achieved since 1994 and what needs to be don
e.

‘The bigger question is whether we will be able to sustain the momentum as public servants. ‘We cannot continue to bask in the glory of those who have achieved what is contained in the Census [2022 report] and not think about what will we, as a generation of public administrators, achieve. ‘If we mess up institutions and if we squander public administration, 30 years later we will be in a different shape,’ he concluded.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) will go ahead with plans to establish a solar farm park which is expected to harvest at least ‘800 megawatts of solar power and supply it to the electricity grid’.

This was revealed by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi during the State of the Province Address delivered in Johannesburg on Monday.

‘We are pleased to announce that the long term plan with Sibanye-Stillwater Board, has approved the land leases of the appointed six independent power producers who will develop a photovoltaic power station, also known as a solar farm cluster, in the Merafong Local Municipality.

‘This is designed to harvest at least 800 megawatts of solar power and supply it to the electricity grid, which will be a game changer for our province,’ he said.

Furthermore, the province is expected to add at least 100MW to the grid from April.

‘This is an initiative of the GPG implemented by City Power on our behalf using the Open Cycle Gas Turbine technology facilities in Johnware and Durban Street
. This will be available from the 1st of April 2024.

‘We will continue to expand to 300 megawatts in the new financial year. This investment combined with smart metres can generate the megawatts needed to cushion our residents against two stages of load shedding, a critical step toward energy stability for the nation’s economic hub,’ he said.

Other interventions

In the immediate term, the province has moved to protect some 21 healthcare facilities from load shedding with the installation of Solar photovoltaic (PV) and battery storage systems.

A pilot project for a microgrid in Alexandra township is also being rolled out which, the Premier said, will ‘provide a stand alone solution to meet basic power needs for low-income households within townships and informal settlements’.

The project is expected to expand to 13 other communities.

‘Having identified the hardship of many of our communities languishing in the dark, some for up to three years due to illegal connections, cable theft, vandalism, and chroni
c non-payment, we intervened to address the situation,’ Lesufi said.

The Premier added that the provincial government, together with Eskom and City Power, partnered to deliver some 429 transformers to communities.

‘To date, 333 have already been installed and switched on, benefitting no less than 32 000 township households. We have impacted the communities of Kagiso, Boiphelong, Doornkop, Orange Farm and others.

‘We will intensify this programme until every township and household has been legally switched on, especially Evaton, Ivory Park, Winterveld and many other communities,’ he said.

Lesufi reflected on the effects that load shedding has on residents and the economy.

‘The protracted electricity crisis has caused significant hardship for people in our province and has had a detrimental effect on the growth of Gauteng’s economy. Power shortages have a negative impact on the availability of healthcare services, food and water, the level of crime, and unemployment rates, amongst others.

‘Although energy
is not a competency of the province, load shedding’s crippling effect on the functionality of the state and its impact on broader society compelled us to intervene,’ he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency