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Date : 20/11/2006
Source: Department of Social Development
Title: Skweyiya: Social Cluster media briefing, November 2006


  Social Cluster media briefing by Dr Zola Skweyiya, Minister of Social Development, Union Buildings, Pretoria

Welcome to the fourth quarter briefing of the Social Sector Cluster.

The Cluster's priorities are progressing well and some targets have been exceeded.

Comprehensive Social Security

The total number of children under 14 years of age receiving the child support grant now exceeds 7,6 million as at the end of October 2006. The age breakdown is 4 million children under 7 years, and over 3,6 million children 7 to 14 years of age. As you are aware, four years ago, government extended the Child Support Grant to children 7 to 14 years of age, with a target of 3,2 million. This has now been exceeded by 400 000.

The Department's of Social Development and Home Affairs are working on ensuring that all eligible children have the requisite documents to ensure that they access the Child Support Grant.

The establishment of the South African Social Security Agency is proceeding well and the Agency continues to recruit staff in both National and Regional offices.

Provision of Free Basic Services

Seventy four thousand households have been provided with sanitation since April 2006. This has reduced the backlog to 3,6 million households, from the previous figure of 3.7 million households.

The Department of Minerals and Energy is amending the Electricity Regulations Act to improve provision of free basic electricity, which is currently taking place on an ad hoc basis. The amendments will, amongst other things, clarify arrangements between Eskom and Municipalities in areas where Eskom is the service provider.

The number of people with access to free basic water has increased from 35,7 million (74,3% of the population) in June to 36,6 million (75,4%).

Comprehensive Healthcare

Ahead of the December vacation, departments have developed a multi-pronged campaign to reduce non-natural deaths. It will focus on decreasing deaths from road accidents, suicides and drowning. Issues of responsible substance use and safe sex practices will be highlighted. The campaign envisages a critical contribution by the media in helping to ensure that non-natural deaths are reduced, compared with the last few years.

Progress has been made in developing the 2007 to 2011 National Multi-sectoral strategy for HIV and AIDS in a process co-ordinated by the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC). A draft National Strategic Plan is being discussed with stakeholders and has served before SANAC. It is hoped that the new National Strategic Plan will be launched on World Aids Day in Mpumalanga. In addition, SANAC is being restructured with a view to strengthening its functionality and its capacity to lead the national partnership against HIV and AIDS.

Steady progress is being made in implementing the Comprehensive Plan to combat HIV and AIDS. More than 270 sites have been accredited in all districts with sites in 75% of all sub-districts. Correctional facilities are also being accredited. By the end of September 2006, 213 828 patients had been enrolled for Antiretroviral Treatment in the public health sector.

With respect to tuberculosis (TB), the Health Department has been working with stakeholders, including the World Health Organisation and local scientists to strengthen the current intervention strategy and implement a revised plan to deal with drug resistant and extremely drug resistant TB. Special attention is being given to ensuring that patients with TB present themselves to health facilities early and that treatment is followed to completion to avoid the development of drug resistance.

Food Security and Nutrition

Notable achievements are being made in the implementation of the Agricultural Starter Pack Programme, designed to move people out of the Food Parcel Scheme by growing their own food. A total of 66 364 food insecure households have been reached in all nine provinces, ahead of the initial target of 62 000.

Meeting the increasing challenge of Housing and Human Settlement

About 60 municipal councils have adopted a moratorium on the sale of municipal land, in order to make land available close to economic centres for middle and lower income people. This is in terms of the agreement between the Ministry of Housing and the South African Local Government Association. Another 80 Councils are in the process of adopting resolutions in respect of placing a moratorium on the sale of municipal land.

The Presidential Job Summit Programme, which seeks to deliver medium-to-high density low income rental housing projects, has delivered about 2 000 units to date. These are the following:

* 1 131 units in Mpumalanga
* 778 Units in Gauteng
* 300 Units in KwaZulu-Natal.

A new Community Rental Programme has been developed and is currently being finalised for implementation.

Promotion of National Identity and Social Cohesion

As part of symbolic reparations, the process of renaming continues, significant among which is the renaming of the Johannesburg International Airport to OR Tambo International Airport. Involvement of the private sector is being assessed.

Second Economy interventions: Social aspects of the Expanded Public Works Programme

The target of deploying 3 000 Community Development Workers in Municipalities has been exceeded. To date, 3 459 community development workers are deployed in over 2 000 wards across all municipalities.

The Community Care Worker Youth Project is being implemented in partnership with the European Union's Partnership for the Delivery of Primary Health Care, and provincial departments of Limpopo and Free State. Preparations and plans are advanced to implement it in the Western Cape and KwaZulu-Natal. The programme involves appointing young people to train as community care workers while they provide services related to their training in their own communities.

Improving the provision of General Education

As part of the targeting of over 500 schools to double the Maths and Science higher grade graduate output to 50 000 by 2008, 80 Master Teachers for maths and physical science Higher Grade were trained in September.

A total 5 233 schools have been provided with reading books for their foundation phase classes and a further 6 000 identified to benefit at the beginning of 2007. Approximately 1 000 teachers from these schools are receiving training to improve their Maths, Science and Technology teaching, and to improve their qualifications through the National Professional Diploma in Education.

Cross-cutting priorities: Youth development

About 800 graduates have been placed in jobs since the inception of the graduates' database in April.

To date, 8 160 young people have been registered in 16 different National Youth Service registered projects. On Enterprise Finance, R300 million has been invested in 8 000 Small, Medium and Micro Enterprises (SMMEs). Over 60% of SMME loans have gone to women.

In terms of Business Development Support, 11 971 vouchers were issued to young entrepreneurs, resulting in the establishment of 5 442 youth-owned enterprises, and the creation and/or sustainability of 15 924 jobs.

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Social Development
20 November 2006

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