Source: KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government

Title: Ndebele: KwaZulu?Natal Office of the Premier Prov Budget Vote 2007/08

Budget vote of the Office of the Premier delivered by the honourable Sibusiso Ndebele, Premier of KwaZulu-Natal

Speaker
Deputy Speaker
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Mayors and councillors of local government
Amakhosi
Present Director-General and heads of departments
Excellencies, members of the diplomatic corps
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen

Introduction

It gives me pleasure to stand in front of this House and present the 2007/08 budget vote for the Office of the Premier.

As we are all aware, the budget is one of the most important vehicles for the realisation of our mandate to improve the lives of our people as it links the developmental needs of our people to the resources of government as allocated.

As a centrally placed Department, the Office of the Premier has the responsibility to provide strategic leadership and direction and also to co-ordinate programmes, legislation and transversal issues in the provincial administration. It is therefore the duty of this Department to harness the activities of all the provincial departments and to link these activities with national and provincial goals and to connect them with local government.

Admittedly therefore, the function of the Premier's office is not to usurp line function responsibilities of departments but to co-ordinate the functioning of the entire provincial government.

In a nutshell the office plays a leading role in bringing government closer to the people. This is one of the objectives of good governance.

The success of the provincial government programmes hinges very much on us adhering to the principles of good governance which are inter alia, service delivery the Batho Pele way, responsiveness, citizen empowerment, public participation, communication and accountability. Indeed one cannot doubt the nexus between good governance and achievement of the paramount goal of improving the lives of the people of KwaZulu-Natal. This paramount goal is achievable within specific programmes which are defined below.

Programmes

It is important to state that the programme structure of the Premier's office has been re-configured in line with National Treasury directive to all offices of the Premiers in all provinces. The new structure has three programmes which are:
* administration
* institutional development
* policy and governance

Accordingly, the Department has amended its budget structure to conform to the generic structures.

In presenting the budget of the Premier's office it is vital that I make reference to the following flagship projects:

* We commemorated the 1906 Bhambatha/Poll Tax uprisings, through a programme that stretched through the whole year. We also commemorated 130 years of martyrdom of Maqhamusela Khanyile, who was killed for his religious convictions. We also successfully repatriated the remains of Moses Mabhida from Mozambique to his final resting place in Slangspruit.

* On 27 February 2007 we launched in honour of his legacy the commemoration programme of Inkosi Albert Luthuli a deeply religious man and committed Christian. He was a farmer, a peacemaker, a human rights activist, a teacher and a committed family man. The programme is unfolding and is aligned with the specific milestones in his life.

* Three provincial and one presidential izimbizo were held, making it possible for the majority of our people to engage government and enquire about services. Through izimbizo we have been able to understand the needs of the people on the ground. The interaction with the various communities has indeed influenced positively our response to service delivery, hence from this year onwards we will be accelerating the implementation of service delivery programmes.

* The African Renaissance and African Intellectuality Summit in May 2006 served as a platform to promote our partnerships with the intellectual and academic community of KwaZulu-Natal in particular, even extending to the African Diaspora. Another summit is scheduled for May 2007.

* In 2006 we participated in the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) as part of New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD). This related well to the African Renaissance initiative and our desire to establish linkages with the continent of Africa and the African Diaspora.

* The Older Persons Summit, held in November 2006, provided an opportunity to meet with and bring the older persons and their daily challenges to the mainstream. This was the first for the province and is set to continue. The KwaZulu-Natal Senior Citizens Forum was officially launched at the summit.

* We continue to play a leading role in the co-ordination of the 2010 FIFA World Cup and beyond. In this regard we are pursuing a province wide soccer development programme premised on the following pillars, Schools League, Premier's Cup, a Soccer Talent Search and Improvement Programme as well as the Soccer School of Excellence.

* Traditional Horse Racing (umtelebhelo) initiated in Dundee in 2005, has now become an annual event and is growing.

* The construction of the Dube Trade Port and the King Shaka Airport is now on track.

* The Moral Regeneration Movement (MRM) is also co-ordinated by the Premier' office. We have launched the MRM in six districts in the province. Also as part of the MRM we have commenced with the preparations for the launch of the Scouting and Girl Guiding Movements. In conjunction with the Department of Education a target is set at 200 000 members shared by both movements.

* The KwaZulu-Natal in dialogue programme has commenced. It consists of three legs, Premier's Schools Debate, Opinion Makers Forum and the State of the Village programme. The objective of this programme is to bring back the culture of incisive debate.

* We have identified the religious sector as a key stakeholder and partner in the moral regeneration campaign. As such we have assigned through religious forums, dedicated capacity to engage and interface with this sector more effectively than we have done before.

* The re-opening and reconnection of KwaZulu-Natal with the international community since 2004 has included the establishment of strategic alliances with Belgium, Brazil, China, France, India, Queensland (Australia) and Reunion. Indeed KwaZulu-Natal has become a preferred international partner for leading countries in the world as well as a leading international destination for world class events such as the Formula A1 Grand Prix.

* One of our very bold outreach and partnership building programmes is the KwaZulu-Natal Alumni through which we are engaging successful former KwaZulu-Natal Alumni to join us in our growth and development campaign. This province has produced some very talented and distinctive people of international stature and we want to partner with them to nourish and develop our province.

* Our government communication systems have been consolidated. As part of this we successfully launched EzaKwaZulu-Natali Magazine as a corporate communication magazine for provincial government.

* The Masifundisane Literacy Campaign has commenced. This project a collaborative effort between the Department of Education and the Office of the Premier will not only liberate a major portion of our citizens from illiteracy and innumeracy, it will also restore their dignity.

* The Premier's Co-ordinating Forum is now fully functional. This allows the Premier, the Provincial Executive Council (Cabinet), district mayors and the metro mayor to meet on a regular basis.

* We held an Awareness Campaign at Besters Farms, Ladysmith, on the national Human Rights Day (21 March 2007). This is an area where the farmers, farm workers and farm dwellers co-exist peacefully. This is a success story that we would like to spread throughout the province where such communities exist. Our focus in this financial year is on the farming community.

* The incorporation of Umzimkhulu into KwaZulu-Natal has been achieved.

Departmental budget

The total budget for the Premier's office for 2007/08 financial year is R342,659 million. I will now give an overview of the programme structure and thereafter discuss each programme incisively.

Programme 1: Administration

The purpose of this programme with a budget allocation of R60,243 million is to provide administrative support to the Premier, Provincial Executive Council and the Director-General (DG) in fulfilling their executive functions and promoting co-operative governance.

* Premier's Support sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R16,083 million to provide technical, administrative and advisory support to the Premier in executing the Premier's constitutional mandate.

* Executive Council support sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R6,064 million to render secretariat support services to the Executive Council, Cabinet izindaba, clusters and key provincial committees.

* DG Support sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R4,836 million to provide administrative support to the DG in his role as accounting officer.

* Financial Management and Corporate Services sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R33,260 million to provide financial management support, financial accounting advisory services and corporate services for the entire Department.

Programme 2: Institutional Development

As mentioned earlier due to the reconfiguration of the sub-programmes in the office of the Premier, Programme 2 now comprises the following sub-programmes: strategic human resources, State law advisory services, information communications technology (ICT) and government communication services.

This programme has been allocated an amount of R88,146 million. Its purpose is to transform the public service through institutional capacity building and transformation management. Its objectives are:
* to provide strategic direction on human resource management and service delivery,
* to provide strategic information technology management, leadership and support,
* to provide legal and advisory support services,
* to provide strategic communication leadership and support.

The Strategic Human Resources sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R41,661 million to co-ordinate and monitor the customisation, development and implementation of human resources policies, systems, programmes and plans for the province.

This sub-programme provides transversal strategic direction, co-ordination and advisory services on human resource matters (as indicated above) in the province. These include human resource development, service delivery improvement, Persal management, labour relations, human resource policy and practice as well as organisational efficiency.

With regard to human resource development, the training of the public servants will now be housed in the erstwhile Durban's Teachers College which is in Durban's Nicholson Road. This facility will be named the Provincial Public Service Training Academy and will be launched during the second week of May 2007. These premises are presently undergoing refurbishing in four phases by the time the launch takes place only phase one of the refurbishment would have been completed, phases two to four will continue after the launch.

The statements just made are by no means suggesting that training of public servants is at a standstill. Programmes such as the Khaedu leadership and management development programmes as well as learning networks continue.

The further strategic objective informing the priorities of the sub-programme is "to monitor and co-ordinate service delivery" by the provincial government as a whole.

The service delivery improvement sub-programme has since been included with the strategic human resources sub-programme. This sub-programme is tasked with promoting the transformation and improvement of service delivery in the province, guided by the Provincial Citizens' Charter as well as departmental service commitment Charters:

* Phase one of the cascade of Batho Pele, the Citizens' Charter and change engagement programme to all districts has been completed.

* During the 2006/07 financial year, the training of the trainers on cascading the Batho Pele belief set was undertaken in 44 local municipalities. This is an on-going process, the next phase of which will include impact studies.

* The service delivery improvement sub-programme has both co-ordinated for the entire provincial government as well as conducted several unannounced visits on its own. Pictures have been taken in some areas showing both substandard and commendable work. During this financial year this team is intent on intensifying unannounced visits as well as Public Service Weeks.

* Working in collaboration with the human resource development sub-programme, the output includes development, maintenance and co-ordination of good governance and human resources best practices in the province. This requires re-orientation of the public servants in the province towards optimal customer care. The establishment of the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Public Service Training Academy bears testimony to this determination.

* As will be observed this year the Service Excellence Awards event has been moved to the end of the financial year, if only to monitor for and avoid rewarding such bad practices as fiscal dumping, among others, that normally occur in the latter part of the financial year.

* The second equally important task is to ensure integration of service delivery which translates into increasing access to service delivery. In this financial year this team will be co-ordinating the establishment of "one stop" shops, variously referred to as citizens' assistance centres in the municipalities. This is aimed at bringing government services closer to the people.

* This service delivery improvement team will be coordinating the fraud and corruption management campaign in the province. The goal is to revitalise the work ethic in the Province by entrenching the provincial fraud and corruption management campaign in all departments and public entities of KwaZulu-Natal.

The State Law Advisory Services sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R7,930 million to provide transversal legal advisory services to capacitate Cabinet, Cabinet Clusters, Ministries and departments in legal and policy formulation and implementation. During 20006/07, ten pieces of legislation were certified notably:

Bills

* KwaZulu-Natal uMsekeli Municipal Support Services Ordinance Repeal Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Gaming and Betting Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Commissions Amendment Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Rationalisation of Planning and Development Laws Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Town Planning Ordinance Amendment Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Town Planning Ordinance Amendment Bill, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Elimination and Prevention of Re-emergence of Slums Bill, 2006

Regulations

* KwaZulu-Natal Cemeteries and Crematoria Amendment Regulations, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Roads Regulations, 2006
* KwaZulu-Natal Gambling Third Amendment Regulations, 2006
* Horse Racing and Betting Control Amendment Regulations, 2006

It is envisaged that the Heritage Bill will be effective by the month of October 2007. The Gaming and Betting Bill which is also expected to be effective by the month of October 2007 will replace the existing Gambling Act, thus effectively merging the regulation of the horseracing and casino industries. Then only shall this functional area be moved to the relevant department.

Other legislation promoted by the office of the Premier which will soon be enacted by the Provincial Legislature in 2007, are the KwaZulu-Natal Royal Household Trust Bill, 2007 and the KwaZulu-Natal Public Protector Act Repeal Bill, 2007. Legislation in the pipeline from the office of the Premier for 2007/08 are amongst others the KwaZulu-Natal Heritage Bill, 2007 and the KwaZulu-Natal Museums Bill, 2007. The KwaZulu-Natal Delegation of Powers Bill, 2007 and the KwaZulu-Natal Transversal Appeals and Reviews Bill, 2007, are also in the process of formulation.

The formal Rationalisation of Laws Project is co-ordinated through the KwaZulu-Natal Public Sector Lawyers' Forum progressed well and ran to a close at the end of March 2007. Over 40 pieces of provincial legislation were identified for possible enactment. The Final Project Report will be released in May 2007.

Provincial government communication and izimbizo sub-programme/s have been allocated a budget of R14,134 million to co-ordinate government communication services and provide strategic direction. This sub-programme will focus on improving and sustaining a positive provincial image as well as implementing a provincial communication strategy. In respect of izimbizo, the sub-programme will focus on enhancing community participation in matters that affect them.

ICT sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R24,421 million to facilitate and promote the acquisition and application of scientific knowledge and to co-ordinate government information technology in the province. Particular objectives will be:
* co-ordinating and promoting ICT for the acceleration of economic growth and poverty eradication in the province,
* developing the business intelligence system,
* establishing a Provincial Geographic Information System (GIS) database (Nerve Centre).

Programme 3: Policy and Governance

The purpose of this programme with a budget allocation of R194,270 million is to initiate, develop and monitor implementation of strategies and policy, to achieve a co-ordinated approach towards sustainable provincial growth and development (PGD). Its objectives are:
* to facilitate the implementation of Premier's priority programmes
* to co-ordinate and promote a human rights culture
* to promote and manage intergovernmental relations
* to monitor and evaluate policy development and implementation.

Premier's priority programmes have been allocated a budget of R160,062 million, the bulk of which constitutes transfer funds to the following institutions:
* Amafa aKwaZulu Natali (R66,326 million)
* KwaZulu-Natal Gambling Board (R23,293 million)
* Zululand District Municipality for Air Transport Services (R4,331 million)
* Museum services (R6,819 million).

In reclaiming our heritage this government has taken a commemorative route. In 2006 KwaZulu-Natal held events to commemorate the 1906 Bhambatha Uprising and Mahatma Gandhi's Satyagraha. This year we will commemorate Inkosi Albert Luthuli and Izintombi Zengcugce.

A sum of R6,819 million has been allocated to museum services sub-programme to enable it to manage the conservation, research, documentation and exhibition of our multi-cultural heritage.

We have commenced with research to identify the various clans such as abakwaMthethwa played in the shaping of Zulu society during the pre-colonial era. Further research is conducted to establish the roles played by some of the most powerful women in the pre-colonial era, namely Queens Mthaniya and Nandi and Princess Mkabayi ka Jama.

The Amafa AkwaZulu-Natali Council has hitherto not been functioning effectively. In order to address this challenge, two additional members will in due course be appointed to the council. As a statutory body functioning under the office of the Premier, the priority for this council is the transformation of Amafa to be in alignment with national imperatives as well as respond to the heritage needs of a democratic society. Careful thought and consultation had to be undertaken to make this body truly representative. This process is now close to completion. In the interim period two members are being added to make it functional until the passing of the new legislation later this year.

In 2006, we moved boldly to give proper recognition and integration of those veterans involved in the liberation struggle during the apartheid era. We therefore established the Monument of Peace Project. These war veterans are from former non-statutory military formations. They are currently involved in a R20 million ablution blocks at schools around the province.

Other projects are on the pipeline.

Since the inception of the project, 100 veterans have been trained in Edendale in the trade of building and construction. A hundred more have started undergoing training.

The Premier's other specific initiatives include the Provincial Soccer Development Programme with an allocation of R59,293 million.

Special projects has been allocated a budget of R19,735 million for the promotion of a human rights culture encompassing gender, youth, children, women, older persons and HIV and AIDS co-ordination.

In our drive to inculcate a culture of human rights in KwaZulu-Natal, the office of the Premier working with Provincial Human Rights Forum, has developed the KwaZulu-Natal Human Rights Framework. This framework will assist in monitoring the realisation of human rights for the people of KwaZulu-Natal. All relevant departments will submit status quo reports to the Provincial Human Rights Forum based on the indicators identified in the framework. Monitoring would be the responsibility of the Provincial Human Rights Forum. We shall continue with human rights education and awareness campaigns until such time that our people are in a position to claim their rights and report human rights violations to relevant authorities.

The office on the rights of the child has established the advisory council on children's rights. This has led to the establishment of the inter-sectoral technical teams which are assisting in the fast tracking of service delivery of the children's rights issues.

The office on the Status of Disabled Persons (OSDP) and the provincial disability forum has embarked on the accessibility and awareness campaign with district municipalities. The following are the oncoming activities to be undertaken:
* Reviewing the integrated national disability strategy in collaboration with the national office within the Presidency.
* OSDP and human resource policy development sub-programme in the office of the Premier is developing a provincial framework on the management of the employment, development and career progression of people with disabilities. This will include an audit of compliance with the Employment Equity Act in the province.
* OSDP in partnership with national OSDP will embark on the session of economic empowerment, which will be held on 18 to 20 April 2007. The purpose of this session is to come up with a KwaZulu-Natal strategy on economic empowerment for people with disabilities.

The KwaZulu-Natal senior citizens forum held its first strategic planning session on 25 to 27 March 2007 at San Lameer in the South Coast. This strategic planning session came up with a plan of action to be implemented by all government departments and municipalities. It is based on the following critical areas:
* creating an enabling and supportive environment
* community based care and support services
* residential care facilities
* protection for older persons

The office on the status of women continues to intervene in cases of women abuse and refer those cases to relevant authorities and organisations. We will be embarking on a 365 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence Bus Campaign that will travel throughout the province. KwaZulu-Natal is proud to host the fourth World Congress of Rural Women on 23 to 26 April 2007 at the Chief Albert Luthuli International Convention Centre. The main aim of the congress is to discuss the wide-ranging issues that are currently confronting rural women.

In recognition of the transversal and over-arching nature of government effort in combating HIV and AIDS, in 2005 we announced the housing of the Chief Directorate: HIV and AIDS in ice of the Premier which became operational in 2006.

The province has to date established 636 public health facilities and 60 non-public health facilities for voluntary counselling and testing. The Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission programme has now been expanded to 495 facilities. A total of 300 clinics are involved in the provision of antiretroviral treatment (ART).

The provincial HIV and AIDS strategy will be a tool to implement a comprehensive, co-ordinated and integrated response to HIV and AIDS in KwaZulu-Natal in line with recently announced national AIDS policy.

In the 2007/08 financial year, we will announce members of the provincial AIDS council. The provincial AIDS council shall ensure that the voice of civil society is heard and strengthen public and private partnerships in the area of HIV and AIDS.

We have also focused on the Provincial Employee Wellness Programme to address the health and wellness needs of employees, because healthy employees are valuable assets to the provincial administration.

Inter-governmental Relations (IGR) sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R7,113 million to achieve the following strategic objectives:
* to promote and strengthen IDR between spheres of government
* to promote integrated planning and implementation of strategic programmes across provincial departments and other spheres of government
* to strengthen inter-departmental co-ordination in the province through MexCo
* to co-ordinate provincial international relations.

The IGR therefore plays a supportive role to the Premier and DG in the execution of the intergovernmental relations function, for example, representation of the province in the President's Co-ordinating Council (PCC), Forum of the South African Director-General's (FOSAD) and national clusters. In line with the IGR Framework Act the Premier's Co-ordinating Forum (PCF) was established and is operational.

As the official liaison point for international relations, the IGR unit plays a fundamental role in co-ordinating international relations through the development of policies, interaction with foreign affairs, co-ordination of visits to and from the province, marketing the province in conjunction with key stakeholders such as trade and investment KwaZulu-Natal and Tourism KwaZulu-Natal and in facilitating Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with partnership countries. In 2007/08 the IGR unit will focus on the follow up exercise of these MoUs.

Provincial policy management sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R7,360 million for strengthening governance and service delivery through macro policy co-ordination, monitoring and evaluation.

An amount of R4,398 million has been allocated to finance activities that are aimed at improving public policy management in the KwaZulu-Natal province. The sub-programme shall continue with the finalisation of the Sustainable Development Framework 2014 plan ensuring the integration of the national spatial development perspective (NSDP), provincial growth and development strategy (PGDS) and integrated development plans (IDPs).

The fostering of partnership among business, labour and communities is integral to PGDS processes. Furthermore, this sub-programme has provided support to the districts and the metropolitan areas in their growth and development challenges.

The monitoring and evaluation sub-programme has been allocated a budget of R2,7 million. The main thrust of this programme is to measure the impact of performance and progress on provincial governments' objectives within the democratic order.

Revenue

The increase in the tax receipts in the 2006/07 adjusted budget is in line with actual trends in revenue collection from the gambling industry. The projected revenue for the 2007/08 medium term expenditure framework (MTEF) period is as follows, 2007/08 (R233,479 million), 2008/09 (R249,815 million) and 2009/10 (R268,551 million). The revenue estimates for the MTEF period relate to bookmakers and turf clubs' licence renewals and tempo receipts, in terms of the KwaZulu-Natal Gambling Act of 1996, as amended casino levies and taxes is revenue received. This revenue is collected on a monthly basis.

In 2005/06 a dedicated unit was established within the KwaZulu-Natal Gambling Board to address the issue of illegal gambling operators. This resulted in significant increase in revenue collection in respect of casino taxes. The projected average increase over the 2007/08 MTEF is slightly higher than inflation, indicative of anticipated growth in the industry.

Tax receipts: Horseracing and gaming revenue is collected in terms of the Racing and Betting Ordinance Act, 1957. An increasing trend in revenue estimates for the period 2006/07 to 2009/10 is anticipated, mainly due to the following initiatives which will potentially stimulate demand:
* consolidation of the national tote, resulting in larger pools and increasing the loyalty of local punters
* improved programming and scheduling of racing events
* inclusion of sports betting
* increased betting on overseas racing
* increased exporting of racing products.

Conclusion

Our transversal and transformational programmes which I have listed will give hope that as today is better than yesterday, tomorrow will be better than today.

We will leave no stone unturned to unlock our capacity to co-ordinate, monitor and evaluate the activities of government and strengthen our relationship with our partners in governance. The Office of the Premier will position all provincial government structures to effectively engage their partners these being business, labour, civil society and the villages to mention a few. Our partnerships, both locally and internationally, will yield tangible results to enable this government to deliver on our socio-economic goals.

I have no doubt that with unequivocal support and co-operation from all stakeholders and partners, KwaZulu-Natal will be able to translate the ideal of a better life for all into a tangible reality.

Masisukume sakhe!

Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
16 April 2007