Proper social security can save 15 million children from becoming child labour statistics in 2022 – UNICEF If most countries put proper social protection measures in place, child labour can decline by 15 million by the end of 2022, thus allowing a significant improvement in sustainable development goals (SDG) 8.7. – so said Mohamed Fall, the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) Regional Director for Eastern and Southern Africa. Fall however, warned that the outlook for children trapped or at risk of being dragged into child labour does not look rosy. “Children continue to suffer from income and employment losses, and also suffer from health shocks,” he said. Fall was speaking during the plenary of the 5th Global Conference on the Elimination of Child Labour on the official launch of the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report titled: “Child Labour: Global estimates 2020, trends and the road forward”. The report by the two co-custodians of target 8.7 of the Sustainable Development Goals, describes the scale and key characteristics of child labour today, and changes over time. SGD Target 8.7 calls on all to take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labour, end modern slavery and human trafficking and secure the prohibition and elimination of all forms of child labour as an essential step to achieving decent work for all, full and productive employment and inclusive and sustained economic growth. The report comes on the back of child labour being identified as a persistent problem in the world today. The report estimates that 160 million children – 63 million girls and 97 million boys – were in child labour globally at the beginning of 2020, accounting for almost 1 in 10 of all children worldwide. Seventy-nine million children – nearly half of all those in child labour – were in hazardous work that directly endangers their health, safety and moral development. Key findings of the report were that: ” Child labour is higher for boys than girls at all ages – Among all boys, 11.2 percent are in child labour compared to 7.8 per cent of all girls. In absolute numbers, boys in child labour outnumber girls by 34 million. ” Child labour is much more common in rural areas – There are 122.7 million rural children in child labour compared to 37.3 million urban children. The prevalence of child labour in rural areas (13.9 per cent) is close to three times higher than in urban areas (4.7 per cent). ” Most child labour – for boys and girls alike – continues to occur in agriculture – Seventy percent of all children in child labour, 112 million children in total, are in agriculture. ” The largest share of child labour takes place within families – Seventy-two per cent of all child labour and 83 per cent of child labour among children aged 5 to 11 occurs within families, primarily on family farms or in family microenterprises. Family-based child labour is frequently hazardous despite common perceptions of the family as offering a safer work environment. “Global progress against child labour has stalled for the first time since we began producing global estimates two decades ago. In addition, without urgent mitigation measures, the COVID-19 crisis is likely to push millions more children into child labour. “The school closures – experienced through the Covid-19 is going to increase the risk. To reverse this trend a multi-sectoral approach is critical and that approach means a strong social protection regime. Evidence is clear, social protection including child benefits have a potential to mitigate this risk of children sliding into child labour,” Fall said. He was at pains that only 26,6 percent of children worldwide were receiving social protection. According to the ILO-UNICEF report, child labour is more common in rural than in urban areas in almost all regions. It said Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest share of young children in child labour, while Latin America and the Caribbean has the largest share of older children The report cited the worst forms of child labour as comprising practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom, and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict; the use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances; the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs as defined in the relevant international treaties; and work that, by its nature or circumstances, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children. The 2020 ILO-UNICEF global estimates indicate a critical juncture in the worldwide effort against child labour. “Global progress has ground to a halt over the last four years after having already slowed considerably in the four years before that. The ongoing COVID-19 crisis threatens to further erode past gains. In this United Nations International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour, we must act with renewed urgency to put progress back on track,” the ILO-UNICEF report said. Immediate steps are needed to avoid falling further behind during the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. The pandemic has clearly heightened the risk of child labour, above all through a sharp rise in poverty that may increase families’ reliance on child labour, and through school closures that deny families the logical alternative to sending children to work. The report said to reduce these risks, there was a need for implementation of expanded income support measures for families in situations of vulnerability, child benefits and other means, will be critical. So too will back-to-school campaigns and stepped-up remedial learning to get children back in the classroom. “We are at a critical juncture in the worldwide drive to stop child labour. COVID-19 threatens to further erode past gains. While nearly 86 million fewer children are in child labour now than when we began measuring the phenomenon globally in 2000, recent trends affirm we have fallen far behind on our collective commitment to ending all forms by 2025. The report calls for: special attention to address the heightened risk of child labour in growing crises, conflicts and disasters; addressing child labour risks in domestic and global supply chains; Sound policy choices and resource allocation; Governments will need to adopt creative resource mobilization strategies to expand their fiscal space; extending debt relief and debt restructuring in already heavily indebted countries so that social spending is not crowded out by increasing debt service payments. The conference will end on Friday with the adoption of a Durban Call to Action programme. Source: Government of South Africa Deputy Minister Makhotso Sotyu: Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment 2022/23 Dept Budget Vote

Address by Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Hon. Ms Makhotso Sotyu (MP), during the 2022/23 Budget Vote plenary in the National Assembly

Chairperson of the House,

Honourable Minister, Mme Barbara Creecy,

Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee, Ms Faith Muthambi,

Honourable Members of Parliament,

The Management of Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment,

All the CEOs of the Department’s entities,

Ladies and gentlemen,

I would like to take the opportunity today to thank all the first responders, community members, businesses and NGOs who have come together in the spirit of ubuntu and worked tirelessly to help the people of KwaZulu-Natal who were affected by the recent floods.

The extensive damage caused by the masses of water cemented our need to accept the reality of climate change, and the critical importance of warnings of possible extreme weather events, which are expected to become more and more frequent as the climate continues to change.

Early warnings by the South African Weather Service are important for communities and structures of government because these ensure that there is liaison with disaster management authorities.

This in turn ensures that public and disaster response units are mobilised on time, and influences government action all the way down to municipal and individual level.

Honourable Chair,

A key aspect of climate change is the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and a resulting improvement in our air quality.

As we deal with the effects of climate change, the importance of equipping our country’s early warning and weather prediction systems and air quality monitoring stations is key.

Weather forecasting and air quality monitoring are, but two of the exciting environment-related sectors in which we can encourage youth following science-related study paths, to consider as future career choices.

Honourable Members,

The second report published as part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s 6th assessment pointed out that, Africa is already experiencing widespread loss and damage as a result of human-induced climate change.

We have seen the impacts of Covid-19 on the South African and global economy these past few years, especially job losses and impacts on households.

Unemployment, poverty, inequality and addressing gender-based violence remain our most pressing issues as we fight climate change.

In addressing climate change, we must not forget the important role of women and youth, be it within communities or in leadership roles.

In this instance, Honourable Chair, in February this year, I had an honour to be the guest speaker at the preparatory event organised by Ilitha Labantu in partnership with the Cape Peninsula University of Technology to flesh out women’s needs and priorities going into the 66th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (UNCSW66), which took place in New York, in March.

The UN meeting took place under the theme “Achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls in the context of climate change, environmental risk reduction policies and programmes”.

While South Africa continues to show global leadership in our inclusive approach to a just transition, the invaluable perspectives offered by women and the youth on how to address climate change at the level of policy, in both its development and implementation, cannot be ignored.

Women and girls are effective and powerful leaders and change-makers for climate adaptation and mitigation actions. They are involved in sustainability initiatives around the world and in their communities, while their leadership results in more effective climate action.

It is therefore important that inclusive economic growth is key to addressing unemployment, gender equality, health and other poverty related issues.

We are also promoting integration of gender issues in disaster resilience-related programmes.

This is over and above, the national, provincial and municipal Disaster Management Centres which, primarily support the Government’s national climate change response policy to effectively manage inevitable climate impacts. This is done through interventions that build and sustain South Africa’s social, economic and environmental resilience and emergency response capacity.

Honourable Members,

Maintaining intact ecosystems and species populations, and, ensuring connectivity across landscapes and seascapes, is vital for preserving adaptive capacity of nature to climate change. This in turn, will enhance human adaptive capacity and resilience.

The importance of the role of healthy ecosystems and well-functioning ecological infrastructure in assisting us to adapt to climate change cannot be over-emphasised.

This is because healthy ecosystems are better able to cope with climate change impacts and in turn help people to adapt, while healthy ecological infrastructure like inland wetlands, estuaries and coastal dunes are better able to protect built infrastructure and people from impacts of extreme weather events.

South Africa has already established itself as a leader in promoting nature-based responses, such as ecosystem-based adaptation and ecosystem-based disaster risk reduction, as part of our National Climate Change response.

Through the SA National Biodiversity Institute, we are committed to continuing these efforts. This includes our efforts to mobilise international climate finance for ecosystem-based adaptation through a range of collaborations and multisectoral approaches.

These are expected to unlock significant investments that deliver direct benefits to vulnerable and unlock the role of the private sector and catalyse systemic and policy responses that support South Africa’s just transition to a climate resilient society.

Honourable Members,

Besides floods and other extreme weather events, drought is a new reality for many communities across our country.

During the recently concluded United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) COP 15 in Cote d’Ivoire, the Abidjan Declaration was adopted on achieving gender equality for successful land restoration.

I participated as a panelist in the Gender Caucus to showcase our national efforts to respond to the UNCCD’s Gender Action Plan and demonstrate the work being done to mainstream gender at all levels.

The Abidjan Declaration recognises that securing women’s access to land, control over land, and access to finance for land-based economic activities are central components of women’s economic empowerment and rights, and in generating opportunities for economic prosperity and independence.

We are well aware that women are disproportionately affected by extreme weather events like droughts as it threatens lives; livelihoods and food security.

South Africa is, thus, one of the countries that will implement projects and programmes in response to SADC Drought Resilience Strategy.

You will agree with me that, it is imperative that appropriate global attention and action be focused on drought. South Africa therefore aligns with the strong message of Africa to COP 15 which calls for the strengthening of policy frameworks and instruments to address drought under the Convention.

Honourable Members,

On 9 December 2002, the heads of state of South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe signed a Treaty establishing the Great Limpopo Transfrontier Conservation Area (GLTFCA).

The core cross-border conservation area comprises of the Limpopo National Park in Mozambique, the Kruger National Park in South Africa and Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe.

This year in April, our Ministry joined the Ministers of Environment from Mozambique and Zimbabwe to discuss various issues related to the collaborative management of this important cross-border conservation area.

To mark the 20 years ago signing, we agreed that it is fitting to celebrate this milestone with the continued rewilding and restoration of this globally important cross-border conservation landscape.

It is through this partnership that keystone species are being reintroduced to new and existing conservation areas.

Honourable Members,

To create a country free of litter and other waste – in which we all recycle, up-cycle, reuse or repurpose materials – requires a commitment by all citizens.

That is why the stakeholder engagement sessions that are being held countrywide continue to be of importance, in providing feedback on the progress we have made in implementing the District Development Model.

As a District Development Model co-champion, our Ministry and Department have spent time with communities in the Provinces of the North West and the Free State, to discuss service delivery challenges that exist, particularly waste services, as well as localised procurement and job creation that will promote and support local businesses and involve local communities.

Besides building awareness about, for example, waste collection and landfill management, the Department is also handing over waste collection compactor trucks, front end loaders, and other materials required by municipalities to improve service delivery across the nine Provinces.

Furthermore, through a number of interventions by the Department, we hope to address challenges through the provision of the equipment necessary to compact waste at landfill sites, deliver waste to these sites and to dispose of waste in the correct way.

We hope then, that through the projects being implemented this year, will not only improve municipal waste management, but also see communities working together to clean their environment.

Honourable Chair,

The Department is also spearheading the implementation on the Commercial Forestry Masterplan which was approved by Cabinet in November 2020.

The Masterplan promotes growth and investment within the sector to ensure that there is increased production in forestry areas and creation of jobs.

The Plan has already realised a significant investment from the private sector and employment creation. As we are in the second year of implementation, the partners will focus on addressing barriers to implementation so that implementation can be accelerated.

All key role-players and stakeholders strive to implement this plan successfully, as it will be a good example of how private sector and government can leverage each other strengths for the development of the sector.

In an effort to scale up the implementation of the Masterplan in the skills development front, the Department intends to establish formal relations with institutions of higher learning and there is already a planned engagement with Fort Cox Agriculture and Forestry Training Institute to take place in June 2022.

As part of the Presidential tree planting initiative of planting 10 million trees in five years, the Department in collaboration with other stakeholders have planted a total of 762 000 trees in year one of this initiative.

The Department intends to plant 120 000 trees across all nine provinces in the current financial year 2022/2023. This will be supported by collaboration with stakeholders in achieving the two million trees target.

Honourable Chairperson,

In conclusion,

I would like to thank the Honourable Minister for her leadership within the forestry, fisheries and environmental sectors in the past year, and to thank the Director-General, Ms Nomfundo Tshabalala, and the Department for their support.

I thank you Honourable Chair and Members of the Portfolio Committee in particular, for their robust engagement and guidance.

I thank you.

Source: Government of South Africa