Month: April 2024

Home Affairs Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, has moved to clarify a misunderstanding on the gazetted regulations recommendations on the Critical Skills and General Work Visas.

This comes after some media reports had stated that the department had done away with the Critical Skills Visa in favour of a point-based system.

Briefing the media on the Second Amendment of the Immigration Regulation 2014 on Tuesday, Motsoaledi pointed out that section 19(4) of the Immigration Act states that a Critical Skills Work Visa may be issued by the Director-General to an individual possessing such skills or qualifications determined to be critical for the Republic from time to time by the Minister by notice in the gazette.

However, section 19(2) of the Act states that a General Work Visa may be issued by the Director-General to a foreigner not falling within the category contemplated in sub-section 4 and who complies with prescribed requirements.

‘Sub-section 4 is the one dealing with critical skills [and] this means gene
ral work is anything that is not covered in the critical skills list. The prescribed requirements mentioned in the Act are found in regulation 18 (3) of the previous regulation before the amendments.’ Motsoaledi said.

He emphasised that the department has not cancelled the Critical Skills Work Visa but has changed the manner in which the visa was previously operating.

‘In the past, a critical skills list visa was issued every four years, and the Minister of Home Affairs is supposed to gazette skills that are critical to the economy of the country. But Home Affairs does not have the capacity, nor the knowledge, nor the skills to know what is required.

‘What Home Affairs does is go to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). The DHET usually asks the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), and the council will work with other institutions, including labour market surveys, to put up a list of skills which they think are critical for the economy of the country,’ Motsoaledi explained.

The Minist
er also noted that critical skills are not necessarily referring to important skills or prestigious skills like some people believe.

‘A critical skill is that which is critical for the functioning of the economy but there are few South Africans who can do that work, and so we are forced to go beyond the borders of this country to look for those people with such skills.

‘Once the profession we have got appears on that critical skills list, which would have been gazetted by the Minister of Home Affairs, you get a letter of employment, then Home Affairs is forced to give you a Critical Skills Work Visa,’ Motsoaledi explained, adding that the visa is one of the easiest to give, as it only requires a profession.

On the General Work Visa amendment, Motsoaledi said employers are no longer required to go to the Department of Employment and Labour, but the visa would be approved through a point-based system.

‘We are going to give you points, and on the basis of that point you have to reach a particular mark, then
you get your visa,’ the Minister said.

The Minister said the point-based system will consider at least six criteria, including age; qualifications; language skills, work experience; offer of employment; and the ability to adapt within the Republic.

However, Motsoaledi said the department is considering replacing the ability to adapt within the Republic with income or salary being offered to an individual.

New work visa regulations withdrawn

Meanwhile, Motsoaledi announced the withdrawal of the new work visa regulations, which were gazetted on 28 March 2024 for public comments, a day before the closing date for public comments on the draft policy.

This follows the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) meeting held last week, where the process was questioned and NEDLAC demanded the withdrawal of the regulations.

‘These regulations are being withdrawn in the government gazette, simply to rectify this small error, not that we are going to change them. In the process we will change other
smaller issues which we have picked up which may not [have] been understood,” he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

Home Affairs Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, has moved to clarify a misunderstanding on the gazetted regulations recommendations on the Critical Skills and General Work Visas.

This comes after some media reports had stated that the department had done away with the Critical Skills Visa in favour of a point-based system.

Briefing the media on the Second Amendment of the Immigration Regulation 2014 on Tuesday, Motsoaledi pointed out that section 19(4) of the Immigration Act states that a Critical Skills Work Visa may be issued by the Director-General to an individual possessing such skills or qualifications determined to be critical for the Republic from time to time by the Minister by notice in the gazette.

However, section 19(2) of the Act states that a General Work Visa may be issued by the Director-General to a foreigner not falling within the category contemplated in sub-section 4 and who complies with prescribed requirements.

‘Sub-section 4 is the one dealing with critical skills [and] this means gene
ral work is anything that is not covered in the critical skills list. The prescribed requirements mentioned in the Act are found in regulation 18 (3) of the previous regulation before the amendments.’ Motsoaledi said.

He emphasised that the department has not cancelled the Critical Skills Work Visa but has changed the manner in which the visa was previously operating.

‘In the past, a critical skills list visa was issued every four years, and the Minister of Home Affairs is supposed to gazette skills that are critical to the economy of the country. But Home Affairs does not have the capacity, nor the knowledge, nor the skills to know what is required.

‘What Home Affairs does is go to the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET). The DHET usually asks the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), and the council will work with other institutions, including labour market surveys, to put up a list of skills which they think are critical for the economy of the country,’ Motsoaledi explained.

The Minist
er also noted that critical skills are not necessarily referring to important skills or prestigious skills like some people believe.

‘A critical skill is that which is critical for the functioning of the economy but there are few South Africans who can do that work, and so we are forced to go beyond the borders of this country to look for those people with such skills.

‘Once the profession we have got appears on that critical skills list, which would have been gazetted by the Minister of Home Affairs, you get a letter of employment, then Home Affairs is forced to give you a Critical Skills Work Visa,’ Motsoaledi explained, adding that the visa is one of the easiest to give, as it only requires a profession.

On the General Work Visa amendment, Motsoaledi said employers are no longer required to go to the Department of Employment and Labour, but the visa would be approved through a point-based system.

‘We are going to give you points, and on the basis of that point you have to reach a particular mark, then
you get your visa,’ the Minister said.

The Minister said the point-based system will consider at least six criteria, including age; qualifications; language skills, work experience; offer of employment; and the ability to adapt within the Republic.

However, Motsoaledi said the department is considering replacing the ability to adapt within the Republic with income or salary being offered to an individual.

New work visa regulations withdrawn

Meanwhile, Motsoaledi announced the withdrawal of the new work visa regulations, which were gazetted on 28 March 2024 for public comments, a day before the closing date for public comments on the draft policy.

This follows the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC) meeting held last week, where the process was questioned and NEDLAC demanded the withdrawal of the regulations.

‘These regulations are being withdrawn in the government gazette, simply to rectify this small error, not that we are going to change them. In the process we will change other
smaller issues which we have picked up which may not [have] been understood,” he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Department of Correctional Services’ National Commissioner, Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale, has approved the permanent appointment of 1 003 learners as correctional officials for the 2024/25 financial year.

According to the department, the move is a demonstration of government’s foremost priority of creating opportunities for young people and supporting them to access work opportunities.

This means the youngsters, who took part in the 12-month Correctional Services Learnership NQF Level 4 programme in 2022 and were subsequently hired as auxiliary support officials on a contractual basis, have now been offered permanent positions starting from 1 April 2024.

The learnership programme also includes practical training at correctional centres.

As per the statement, 466 correctional officials were appointed in the Western Cape, 214 in KwaZulu-Natal, 107 in the Eastern Cape, 75 each in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and North West, 69 in both Free State and the Northern Cape, 64 in Gauteng and eight at head office.

Thob
akgale believes the appointments will strengthen security at correctional facilities.

‘These appointments will go a long way to strengthen security in correctional centres and ensure more boots on the ground. This serves as a direct response to contributing to a just, peaceful and safer South Africa through effective and humane incarceration, and the rehabilitation and social reintegration of inmates,’ he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Department of Correctional Services’ National Commissioner, Makgothi Samuel Thobakgale, has approved the permanent appointment of 1 003 learners as correctional officials for the 2024/25 financial year.

According to the department, the move is a demonstration of government’s foremost priority of creating opportunities for young people and supporting them to access work opportunities.

This means the youngsters, who took part in the 12-month Correctional Services Learnership NQF Level 4 programme in 2022 and were subsequently hired as auxiliary support officials on a contractual basis, have now been offered permanent positions starting from 1 April 2024.

The learnership programme also includes practical training at correctional centres.

As per the statement, 466 correctional officials were appointed in the Western Cape, 214 in KwaZulu-Natal, 107 in the Eastern Cape, 75 each in Limpopo, Mpumalanga, and North West, 69 in both Free State and the Northern Cape, 64 in Gauteng and eight at head office.

Thob
akgale believes the appointments will strengthen security at correctional facilities.

‘These appointments will go a long way to strengthen security in correctional centres and ensure more boots on the ground. This serves as a direct response to contributing to a just, peaceful and safer South Africa through effective and humane incarceration, and the rehabilitation and social reintegration of inmates,’ he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) has welcomed the heavy fine imposed on Govan Mbeki Local Municipality for polluting water resources and contravening environmental legislation.

Govan Mbeki Local Municipality in Mpumalanga province was fined R150 million for five counts relating to contravening the National Environmental Waste Management Act and National Water Act.

The Bethal Regional Court in Secunda found the municipality guilty of causing significant pollution to the environment, interfering with waterworks, pollution of water resources, an act that detrimentally affects a water course, and failure to comply with compliance notices.

This comes after a series of intervention measures undertaken by the department against the municipality since 2019, in line with the Constitution and the Intergovernmental Framework.

Water and Sanitation Director-General, Dr Sean Phillips, said in December 2019 and March 2020, the department issued the municipality with directives to make representations addres
sing the risk assessment, intervention and potential rehabilitation plan, and to implement all the recommendations in respect of the underlying problem in their area of jurisdiction.

However, the municipality failed to respond and adhere to the conditions of the directives issued to them within the stipulated timeframes.

‘In November 2020, the municipality compiled an assessment report and intervention plan with an approved budget for the commencement of a rehabilitation project in the area, however, no rehabilitation was implemented,’ Phillips said.

Phillips commended the enforcement team, saying the judgement has asserted the department’s role as a regulator of the water and sanitation sector.

‘It has been our resolve to take all transgressors of the National Water Act to task and send a strong message that if people and institutions do not comply, we will not hesitate to act, without fear or favour. We want to strengthen our role as a regulator of the sector in line with all the prescripts,’ Phillips s
aid.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) has denied allegations of strained relations between South Africa and the European Union (EU).

This follows certain media reports that alleged that South Africa did not respond to the EU’s requests for a high-level summit, leading to speculation about tensions between the two sides.

There were also allegations in some media that South Africa reportedly ignored the request for an EU summit for a year.

However, DIRCO and the delegation of the EU to South Africa said they ‘regret the misrepresentation’ made by the media outlets.

‘We would like to reject the claim made by these media outlets that the Republic of South Africa has not responded to several requests by the European Union to hold a bilateral South Africa-European Union Summit during 2023,’ the statement read.

On the contrary, the department said South Africa and the EU have maintained a regular exchange throughout 2023 to prepare for their bilateral summit.

This includes a Minist
erial Forum in South Africa in January 2023, bilateral contacts at the Heads of State level, and ministerial visits to both Pretoria and Brussels.

The department believes that those contacts have been intensified and strengthened since the beginning of 2024 through a Bilateral Meeting between Minister Naledi Pandor and High Representative Josep Borrell Fontelles on the margins of the G20 Meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs in Brazil.

According to the department, the relations have also been reinforced by Deputy Minister Alvin Botes’s visit to Brussels to participate in the Indo-Pacific Forum and the visit of EU Ambassadors from the Political and Security Committee to Pretoria.

The Director-General of the DIRCO, Zane Dangor, hosted the Bilateral Political and Security Dialogue Forum and the Human Rights Dialogue, along with his counterparts from the European Union (EU) in Pretoria.

He also participated in the Minister’s meeting with EU Ambassadors in Cape Town.

The department said that it was in this
context that they reject the claim made by the media outlets that the delays to the summit are sending a negative signal about future relations between the EU and South Africa.

‘The above-mentioned regular high-level visits and engagements illustrate the strength, depth and wide-range scope of the strategic partnership between the European Union and South Africa.

‘Against this backdrop of partnership and dialogue, and in a decisive year for democracy and multilateralism across the world, South Africa and the European Union continue to work closely together and, as part of it, to identify a suitable date for their bilateral summit,’ the department explained.

Ambassador of the EU to South Africa, Sandra Kramer, also took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to dismiss the allegations.

‘This is false and misleading indeed. South Africa and the EU are working closely towards holding a summit. A quick check-in with me or @Zwandid [Zane Dangor] would have confirmed that for you,’ she added.

Source: South African
Government News Agency