Day: June 29, 2022

Employment and Labour Deputy Minister, Moloi launches an Employment Centre as a one-stop shop to reduce the burden on the job seekers as well as improve service delivery

Employment and Labour Deputy Minister, Boitumelo Moloi said the first draft of the Employment Policy will soon be made available for further comment and enrichment, this follows the completion of a situational analysis.

“Our analysis of the South African labour market suggests that unemployment is a structural phenomenon rather than a frictional outcome of the vagaries of the business cycle. As such policy needs to consider a combination of market and non-market approaches to employment and work-seeker support and activation mechanisms that follow areas of growing labour demand,” Moloi said.

The Deputy Minister was speaking during the official launch of the Youth Employment Centre (YEC) in Mdantsane, Eastern Cape.

Moloi said the key to combating high unemployment among young people was forging stronger connections among employers, education providers, and youth themselves to build skills that lead to entry-level jobs in growth sectors.

“The aim is to get everyone working towards a solution. The problem of unemployment cannot be solved by the Department alone; it is everyone’s responsibility. The district development model and the call for joined up government, is being heeded. A number of government departments and municipalities are now working together to find solutions,” she said.

The concept of Employment Centres was introduced by the Department’s Public Employment Services (PES) branch to improve service to the public. The Employment Centres promote the provision of integrated services by all sections within the Department. Public Employment Services branch – which provides, work seeker registration; counselling services; job-placement and re-integration services.

The new Youth Employment Centre is located at NU1, Mfaxa Street, Mdantsane. It will share the same premises with the Department’s Labour Centre. The Mdantsane launch is the Department’s first Youth Employment Centre located in a township.

Employment Centres are specially designated spaces within Labour Centres, which offer services to members of the public, including employers. Within the Employment Centre, there are self-help kiosks, which are online self-help service platform that provide access to the entire Department of Employment and Labour online applications and services.

The online services include: Employment Services of South Africa (ESSA) – a job seeker match-making platform, employment equity online reporting, Unemployment Insurance online declaration and U-Filing application system, Compensation Fund claims submission, link to the Department’s (Productivity SA, Department of Higher Education) website(s), the Gmail, Hotmail and Yahoo among a host of services.

Another additional value that the Employment Centres aimed to bring is a sustained effort to deal with the ravaging psychosocial effects of unemployment. The Department uses its network of psychologists within the PES branch to provide assistance to work seekers that require psychosocial support. This can take the form of psychometric screening to identify potential that employers are looking for, and also life-skills advice and mentoring.

The Department plans to establish YEC in all provinces through the PES branch. The Mdantsane YEC is the seventh to be launched by the Department.

The first two Youth Employment Centres were opened in Cape Town and Atlantis respectively. This was followed by openings in Durban, Newcastle, De Aar and Johannesburg.

Youth in the Eastern Cape represent 56,7 percent of the working age group.

Department of Employment and Labour Chief Director: Provincial Operation in the Eastern Cape, Nomfundo Douw-Jack said the opening of the Mdantsane Youth Employment Centre was a joint effort with other stakeholders including government departments, the local authorities, academic institutions, and non-governmental organisations.

“We do not want the centre to be a white elephant. Hence we have formed partnerships with a number of stakeholders. Unemployment is very high in the area, and this facility will go a long way to meet the unemployed halfway,” she said.

Deputy Minister Moloi said with the country’s jobless rate having risen to 34.5%, and the expanded unemployment rate at 45.5% – graduate unemployment is 21,9% and 39.8% of the unemployed have less than a matric, whilst 36.5% have matric.

“A worrisome picture is presented by the Not in Education and Not in Employment or Training (NEETs), youth aged 15-24 who recorded an unemployment rate of 63.9% whilst those between 25-34 years recoded an unemployment rate of 42.1%. I am sure that all of us in the room today cannot accept this situation which threatens to destroy our future. As noted in the National Planning Commission’s Diagnostic Report of 2011, the high youth unemployment represents the ‘greatest risk to social stability in South Africa’. The opening of this Centre in Mdantsane, is significant as the official unemployment rate for the province is 44% and the expanded definition is 52.6%.

“We need to jointly own and make the youth centre successful, we need to put aside our differences and work for the common good,” Moloi said.

The establishment of specialised Youth Centres, she said was a further enhancement to labour centres, where youth can have a platform to access free of charge, tools to assist them to find job opportunities.

Moloi said youth unemployment was very high and the damage caused by Covid-19 is wreaking havoc with the economy and its ability to create jobs.

“We know that Covid has disrupted the education patterns of our youth and the unemployed face even greater difficulty in searching for work. We must act to keep young people from falling further into poverty because they cannot access the labour market,” she said the Labour Centres and Youth Centres will act as avenues in the fight against poverty and unemployment.

Source: Government of South Africa

Minister Mchunu engages Mpumalanga and Limpopo communities on the Loskop Water Supply project

The Minister of Water and Sanitation Senzo Mchunu together with his deputy David Mahlobo met with key stakeholders from Mpumalanga and Limpopo provinces to map a way forward in relation to the Loskop Water Supply project on 28 June 2022.

The delegation from Mpumalanga was led by Premier Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane and included the MEC for COGTA Mandla Ndlovu and the Executive Mayors of Nkangala District and Thembisile Hani Local municipalities. The Limpopo delegation was led by MEC for COGHSTA Bioskopo Makamu and included the executive mayors of Sekhukhune District and Elias Motswaledi Local municipalities.

The Loskop Bulk Water Supply project includes a bulk pipeline from Loskop Dam in Mpumalanga to Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in the Nkangala District of Mpumalanga for domestic water supply. It also includes an abstraction works, water treatment works, pump stations and storage reservoir. It is aimed at providing water to about 130 000 people in Thembisile Hani Local Municipality. This bulk pipeline passes through the Moutse-East area in Sekhukhune District Municipality in Limpopo and is also to supply treated water to eight villages in Moutse through a water treatment works and distribution network.

In his address to the stakeholders, the Minister emphasised the importance of the speedy completion of the project to ensure that people have access to water as they have been waiting for too long for this precious source of life.

“This is the first time the Ministry has presided over such a meeting which involves two provinces. We are here today. What is bringing us here is a project which is centred around Loskop Dam. I was told that the dam was built in 1938. We are here today to make sure that the people residing close to the dam reap the benefits of the dam that they always see. This is a historic meeting. The purpose of this meeting is to actually deliver water. When we leave here, we must be in one mind about the project”, said Minister Mchunu.

The Minister also called on the stakeholders to guard and monitor the project to ensure that it is not riddled with corruption. “Let me make it clear as I chair this meeting, that will never happen under my watch. This project will succeed. Let us move on with the project. There is only one temptation that must prevail and that is providing people with water”, he said.

In her remarks, the Premier of Mpumalanga Refilwe Mtsweni-Tsipane emphasised the importance of monitoring of the project. “We must guard against shoddy workmanship by contractors. We must come up with a coordination structure from the political and technocrat levels to look at the project till the end. Sitting where I am, I am comforted that we will be able to respond to the Human Rights Commission in relation to the violation of the rights of our people. We welcome the integration of the project with Limpopo”, she said.

In his closing remarks, Minister Mchunu emphasised the completion of projects. “I am talking about the completion of projects, this one we must complete, and we must complete in time. To speed up the project, the work packages will be done in parallel to ensure that the project is speedily completed to provide people with water. We will have a political steering committee led by Ministry and a technical steering committee led by the Director-General”, he stated.

As part of inclusive engagements, the Ministerial delegation with the Mpumalanga and Limpopo delegations met with community stakeholders in Moutse in Elias Motswaledi Local Municipality in Limpopo and Verena in Thembisile Hani Local Municipality in Mpumalanga.

Source: Government of South Africa

NORTHERN CAPE – Three SAPS members from Kakamas who rescued an elderly bedridden man and three children from a burning house have been praised for their heroic actions.

On the evening of Saturday, 18 June 2022, Sergeant Neville Mouton, Constable Melvin De Wee and Reservist Constable Ricardo Van Wyk were patrolling in Witrand Kakamas when they noticed a house that was burning.

The members immediately reacted and gathered water in buckets in an attempt to extinguish the fire.

Quick thinking and heroic action by Reservist Constable Van Wyk in entering the burning house and rescuing the occupants have averted a potentially lethal situation. As the front door was already engulfed in flames the member without hesitation, broke the window to gain access to the elderly man. He carried him to the window where he managed to hand him over to police members outside who took him to safety.

At that stage, a young child was heard crying in the house and again Reservist Constable Van Wyk climbed back through the window into the burning house where he looked for and found three children aged 2, 4 and 11 on a bed. The children were grabbed and again handed over through the window to the other members who took all three children to safety.

The fire was later extinguished however, the house was badly damaged by the fire.

The cause of the fire is currently being investigated.

Relatives of the elderly man and the children expressed their gratitude towards the actions of the three members in saving their family members.

Colonel Dries Witbooi, the Station Commander at Kakamas SAPS thanked the members for putting their lives at stake to ensure the safety of the community members. This incident demonstrates the bravery shown by police officers as they go about serving our communities.

Source: South African Police Service

Joint Media Release: Premier Alan Winde and Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC Wenger urge SMMEs to utilise the Western Cape Government’s help to grow their businesses.

Last night, Premier Alan Winde and Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC Mireille Wenger helped open the inaugural Cape Town SMME summit.

The gathering offered an opportunity for budding entrepreneurs to network and share their experiences, as well as ideas, on how to build their businesses, in a post-Covid-19 environment.

As he took to the stage, Premier Winde remarked how fantastic is was to see a full conference hall, with no “Xs” on seats to ensure social-distancing.”

“It was a totally oversubscribed event,” he added at one-point last night, indicating more people wanted to attend, but there was just not enough seating available.

“Entrepreneurs look at challenges and turn them into solutions,” the Premier told the audience, adding “SMMEs are the engine rooms of job creation.”

He went on to say: “Nothing gives people dignity like a job; nothing gets you out of poverty like a job,” and urged the dozens of entrepreneurs to, “Create an ecosystem to create employment.”

The event took place amid heightened load shedding, with the country plunged into stage 6 rolling power cuts, and so the Premier lamented: “Load shedding is disastrous.”

“But I’m proud to live in Cape Town where the City can protect residents from heightened stages of load-shedding.”

Finance and Economic Opportunities MEC Mireille Wenger also vented when she addressed the summit: “I am furious! How can an economy go on if you cannot turn on the lights?”

In this regard, she outlined how the Western Cape government is working hard, through the Municipal Energy Resilience (MER) initiative, to build energy resilience in the Western Cape.

On the matter of how the Western Cape Government is further helping small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs) the MEC emphasised one of her key priorities is to back entrepreneurs and small businesses, to create an enabling environment to make it much easier to do business in the province.

“SMME owners are the heroes of our economy,” she lauded.

The MEC also highlighted other key initiatives the provincial government offers business owners.

These include maintaining our clean government record in the Western Cape, cutting red tape and reducing the regulatory burden placed on small businesses.

“We are also providing positive support to businesses so that they can grow and succeed through our SMME Booster fund, the Procurement Client Centre, which provides services to improve the ease of doing business with government, and investing in infrastructure that will stimulate growth and improve connectivity.”

She urged those attending the summit to apply for funding.

Since the first iteration of the fund in 2019, R59-million rand has so far been allocated to over 730 small businesses.

She also mentioned cutting “red tape” through the Red Tape Reduction Unit. “A key part of making it easier to do business in this province is removing barriers to growth.”

Source: Government of South Africa

Government is going all out to recoup monies misappropriated from municipalities back into the coffers of the State, says Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Deputy Minister, Thembi Nkadimeng.

She made the remarks during the South African Local Government Association’s launch of its nationwide civic responsibility campaign, “Asisho! Let’s Say It”. It seeks to reignite a renewed social contract between citizens and local government.

The campaign is aimed at educating local communities about their duties and obligations towards the social and economic upliftment of their local areas by paying for municipal services rendered.

Speaking to the SABC on the sidelines of the launch, Nkadimeng said: “Provinces themselves have taken the responsibility of making sure that they do away with disclaimers and adverse [findings], and… [improve] accountability.

“…Two weeks ago, we met with the NPA [National Prosecuting Authority] and handed over 47 municipal cases [connected] to maladministration, fraud and corruption… with the intention of [getting] the money back.”

This, she said, is a demonstration of government’s commitment to have those implicated in the fleecing of public finances prosecuted.

“[By so doing], we will then deliver the services of roads, proper cemeteries, sustainable water provision, clean potable water and collection of waste. Our townships and rural areas are dirty, we realise that, but we need the resources to enable municipalities to be able to render those important services,” she said.

Releasing the 2020/21 financial year consolidated municipal audit report last week, Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke said over R255 billion was owed to the country’s 257 municipalities. Of this amount, 64% was no longer retrievable.

In this regard, Nkadimeng said it was unfortunate that municipalities offer services first before invoicing.

“[This] means if they’re unable to collect, then they’re unable to pay the water boards. They’re unable to pay Eskom for electricity and for sustainable provision of water.

“…[This] means 80% of our municipalities are then living with huge debt [and] have already offered services…” she said.

Nkadimeng while some households could not afford to pay, others could. She said the campaign, ‘Asisho’ is about acknowledging that “yes, we know there are key areas municipalities need to improve on, but there are areas in which we need to be able to use and pay for the services for because we are receiving them”.

To address this, municipalities across the country have indigent programmes that offer free basic services to pensioners and poor households.

Nkadimeng said it is important to concede that the trust deficit between government and citizens “did not just emerge from nowhere”.

“If you do not as a municipality provide proper services or provide them in a sustainable manner, it creates the deficit in trust and it makes people – even those who are able to pay – think, ‘why am I paying because even the money is going to be misappropriated’.”

The campaign will open up conversations targeted at:

• Encouraging active citizenry in terms of paying for services to enable effective delivery by local government.

• Promoting a capable and agile local government, with citizens at the centre of service delivery.

• Local government and municipal employees, who are committed to their mandate and aware of their responsibility to pay their bills, as enshrined in the Municipal Employees Act.

Source: South African Government News Agency

The National Youth Development Agency (NYDA) has called for the effective policing of clubs and taverns after the tragic death of 21 teenagers at a local tavern in Scenery Park, East London.

“We will engage our counterparts at the South African Police Service (SAPS) to understand why clubs and taverns are not being policed effectively. This is not an isolated incident where taverns allow underage drinking. The might of the law needs to deal with these taverns and clubs that re carrying out illegal activity,” the NYDA said on Tuesday.

The agency has called on law enforcement to conduct a transparent and speedy investigation, and to hold to account those who are responsible for this tragedy.

“We cannot allow the deaths of young people to be in vain,” the NYDA said.

The NYDA will meet with the Departments of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities; Social Development and Communications to get an update on the proposed legislation on the banning of alcohol advertising.

“We welcome the decision of the Eastern Cape Liquor Board to suspend the licence of the tavern and we call for a full investigation into the licensing condition of the tavern. We also call on parents and communities to work together with law enforcement in reporting these types of activities.

“Ultimately, we need to accept that the longer we lock young people and households out of meaningful economic activity, the more they will suffer mental health consequences, and often turn to alcohol and substance abuse,” the NYDA said.

Although Youth Day 2022 reflected on the progress to address youth unemployment, the agency reiterated the call for government to address youth unemployment.

“We will continue engaging the core government departments responsible for employment in this regard,” the NYDA said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

EASTERN CAPE – Sibongiseni Mzayiya (31) was released on warning by the East London Magistrate’s court on 28 June 2022 after his arrest by the East London based Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team of the Hawks for allegations of Road Accident Fund fraud (RAF).

It is alleged during 2007, the accused was involved in a car accident. The mother of the accused is reported to have submitted a claim to RAF and it was processed as well as paid out to the claimant.

During 2019, the accused and his mother are reported to have submitted another claim with RAF. The claim was processed but RAF picked up that the claim was a duplicate. Before the money was paid out, RAF reported the matter to Serious Commercial Crime Investigation team of the Hawks for probing which culminated in the arrest of Mzayiya on 28 June 2022. The investigations revealed that Mzayiya nearly prejudiced RAF cash to the value of R750 000.

He made his first court appearance at Mdantsane Magistrate’s court where he was released on warning.

The matter is remanded to 08 July 2022 for legal representation.

Source: South African Police Service