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NDPW: EPWP Kamoso Awards – honouring excellence in the creation of work opportunities for South Africans

Thulas Nxesi
Photo by Duane Daws
Thulas Nxesi

30th November 2015

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/ MEDIA STATEMENT / The content on this page is not written by Polity.org.za, but is supplied by third parties. This content does not constitute news reporting by Polity.org.za.

Public bodies across South Africa are the centrepiece in the government’s initiative to move South African out of poverty through the creation of more than 6 million work opportunities by 2019. This message reverberated loudly at the prestigious 2015 Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Kamoso Awards ceremony held on 26 November 2015 at the Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria.


Public bodies – including government and state owned entities – were honoured for their excellence in the creation of EPWP work and training opportunities during the 2014/15 financial year.

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Between April 2014 and March 2015 the government reached and surpassed the EPWP targets for the first year of Phase 3 by creating a total of 1,24 million work opportunities against the target of 1,04 million work opportunities. The government’s good performance in the creation of these opportunities was mostly driven by public bodies.

Delivering the keynote on behalf of the Minister of Public Works, The MEC for Infrastructure Development in Gauteng Ms Nandi Mayathula-Khoza congratulated all the award winners and encouraged other EPWP implementers to emulate these winners in the work to create over 6 million work opportunities by 2019.


“By recognising excellence in the work of individuals, organisations and implementing bodies, we also raise the bar and inspired others to emulate their example,”” she stated.
Ms Mayathula-Khoza said that “as we strive for excellence – as individuals and organisations – we contribute to the broader socio-economic development of society and we improve the conditions of the people as a whole.”

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She said that the 2015 Awards had been refined and adjusted to reflect the principles which underpin phase 3 of the EPWP, including creation of community assets, creation of sustainable livelihoods, transparency in recruitment and selection, and promoting training alongside income support.


“For the first time we have introduced a category for the Best Innovative Project across all four EPWP sectors. This category was evaluated using the following criteria and guidelines - the degree of convergence between sectors , partnerships established - partnerships between departments, Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs) and the private sector, the impact of the project in the community, compliance with Ministerial determination in relation to the minimum wage, Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA), transparent recruitment and selection procedures of EPWP participants, contribution of the project to sustainable livelihoods, duration of work opportunities, as well as the accredited training provided.”


Ms Mayathula-Khoza highlighted some of the key EPWP programmes and projects that were  improving the lives of South Africans daily, including a range of EPWP training programmes such as the EPWP Artisan Development Programme, the Social Sector programmes that were alleviating poverty and hunger in communities across South Africa such as the North West Food and Empowerment Project as well as community centres across the country that were at the heart of the government’s work to move South Africans out of poverty, inequality and joblessness.


The 2015 EPWP Kamoso Awards consisted of 21 categories/awards in the four Sectors of EPWP, namely Infrastructure, Social, Environment and Culture as well as Non-State.  The Gauteng Province walk away with six of the 21 awards including the Best Maintenance Programme in the Infrastructure Sector, the Best Province in the Social Sector, Best Province in the Environment and Culture Sector as well as the Best Innovation Project in all sectors.
Both the KwaZulu- Natal and the Mpumalanga provinces received three awards each. KwaZulu Natal won the Best Province under the EPWP Infrastructure Sector, while the Ethekwini Metropolitan Municipality won the Best Municipality in Infrastructure Sector. The Mpumalanga Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport bagged the award for Best Public Body Implementing the National Youth Service Programme while the Sakh’abakhi Contractor Development Programme in Mpumalanga Province was awarded the Best Public Body Supporting Contractor Development award.

One of the projects that won 2015 Kamoso awards is the Ramatlabama Food Security Project in North West. This project started in 2013 - and currently operating on a farm in the Ramatlabama Village in the Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality. The project – which employs 18 community members - is producing a variety of vegetables, including spinach, cabbage, onions, carrots, beetroot, pumpkin and potatoes.
Currently, the project is selling its produce to businesses such as Spur Restaurant in
Mahikeng, Pick n Pay store in Mahikeng, Boxer Superstore as well as to the hawkers in Mahikeng and Zeerust. Any surplus produce is then donated to charity for the public good.
One of the participants from this successful EPWP Social Sector projects, Ms Alina Khalane – had this to say about the project: “The project has afforded me an opportunity not only to learn about food production, but also to contribute to the improvement of the lives of the vulnerable and needy in our neighbourhood. We are also able to provide food to our local centre for people with disabilities. Being part of this project has been life changing.”

Below is the list of the 2015 EPWP Kamoso Awards Winners
Award Category
Winner
Best Construction Project in the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
Thaba Nchu Route Project in the Free State Province
Best Maintenance Programme in the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
Soweto Infrastructure Upgrade Project in Gauteng Province
Best Province under the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
KwaZulu Natal Province
Best Municipality in the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
Ethekwini Metropolitan Municipality in KwaZulu Natal Province
Best Public Body Supporting Contractor Development in the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
Sakh’abakhi Contractor Development Programme in Mpumalanga Province
Best Public Body Implementing the National Youth Service Programme in the EPWP Infrastructure Sector
Department of Public Works, Roads and Transport in Mpumalanga Province
Contribution of the State Owned Enterprises in the creation of work opportunities
ESKOM
Best Province in the EPWP Social Sector
Gauteng Province
Best EPWP Social Sector Programme
Home Based Care Programme
Best EPWP Social Sector Project
North West Food Security and Empowerment Project in the North West Province
Best EPWP Social Sector Municipality
City of Cape Town in the Western Cape Province
Best Sector Implementing Department in the EPWP Social Sector
Department of Education in Gauteng Province
Best Province in the EPWP Environment and Culture Sector
Gauteng Province
Best Local Municipal Project within the EPWP Environment and Culture Sector
Msunduzi Ward Based Integrated Maintenance Programme in KwaZulu Natal Province
Best District/Metropolitan Municipal Project in the EPWP Environment and Culture Sector
City of Tshwane Youth and Greening Project
Best National Sub-Programme in the EPWP Environment and Culture Sector
Working for Water
Best EPWP Environment and Culture Project
Creative Industries, My Village – My art in Mpumalanga
Best Province: Non-Profit Organization Programme in the EPWP Non-State Sector
North West Province
Best Non-Profit Organization Programme in the EPWP Non-State Sector
Itekeng Clean and Green Centre in the Free State
Best Community Work Programme in the EPWP Non-State Sector
Siyakholwa Development Foundation in the Eastern Cape
Best Innovative Project in all EPWP Sectors
Zivuseni Reloaded Poverty Alleviation Programme in  Gauteng Province



Issued by the National Department of Public Works

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