Day: October 5, 2022

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President Cyril Ramaphosa opens the Little Flower ECD Centre, 5 Oct

President Cyril Ramaphosa will later today, Wednesday, 05 October 2022, officially open the newly constructed Little Flower Early Childhood Development Centre (ECD) in Nkantolo within the Winnie Madikizela-Mandela Local Municipality in the Eastern Cape Province. The centre had been operating for several years from a shack structure. 

The construction of the centre is part of the Vangasali campaign which is a partnership between the Nelson Mandela Foundation and the Department of Basic Education to enhance ECD service delivery in the country. Phase 2 of the Vangasali campaign, which is on-going, is aimed at standardising ECD registration across the country through the introduction of streamlined processes and a pathway to registration. Phase 3 of the Vangasali campaign is aimed at assisting those ECD services who in the absence of intervention will not be able to meet even the basic registration requirements.

The partnership was born out of the need to focus on ECD in order to overcome the country’s development challenges.  It was realised that lack of ECD provisioning is a major determinant of intergenerational poverty; and that this issue was cast as a soft issue rather than treated as urgent and fundamental to achieving a just and equitable society.

President Cyril Ramaphosa hannounced in 2018 during his SONA addresss that he would contribute half of his Presidential Salary to the Nelson Mandela Foundation. This money was utilised for work on Early Childhood Development which demonstrates its importance.

A media pool arrangement is in place and the event will be broadcast and streamed live on Presidency and the Nelson Mandela Foundation digital platforms.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Minister Lindiwe Zulu briefs media on child support top-up and R350 COVID-19 social relief of distress grants, 6 Oct

Minister Zulu to brief media on child support top-up and R350 COVID-19 social relief of distress grants

October is set aside as Social Development Month and the department aims to reach out to poor and vulnerable communities who depend on social development services to survive and improve their lives.

The Minister of Social Development, Ms Lindiwe Zulu, will on Thursday – 06 October, update the country on the Child Support Grant (CSG) Top-Up and the R350 COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant as well as the plans the department has to ensure that the country is aware of the available services it offers.

This year, Social Development Month, is being commemorated under the theme, “United in the Fight Against Poverty and Other Social ills,” and the Minister will use this opportunity to highlight the eligibility and criteria for South Africans to access the CSG, which is not necessarily a new grant – but an additional amount to the basic Child Support Grant for orphans in the care of relatives. She will also provide an update on the R350 COVID-19 Social Relief of Distress grant.

On the same day, the Department of Social Development, will host a Sexual and Reproductive Health Justice (SRJ) Seminar which seeks to ensure that the marginalised and vulnerable have the power, and resources, to make healthy decisions about their bodies, sexuality and reproduction.

The seminar will, amongst other issues – reflect on the highlights from the Nairobi Summit as fully explained in the ICPD25 Report (2021) titled: ‘No Exceptions, No Exclusions: Realising Sexual and Reproductive Health, Rights and Justice for All.’

Source: Government of South Africa

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MEC Madoda Sambatha calls on Eskom to exempt North West hospitals from loadshedding

Provinces can’t be treated differently in a crisis – MEC Sambatha calls on Eskom to exempt North West hospitals from load- shedding

The North West Health MEC Madoda Sambatha has reacted with dismay at failure by ESKOM to include the North West Province hospitals in the list of facilities that are excluded from load-shedding. The National Department of Health has at the end of September engaged ESKOM to consider exempting key hospitals in the country from load-shedding as part of mitigating against the impact of the energy crisis. The request from the National Department was for provinces to submit the lists of hospitals to be considered for exemption which the North West Province submitted.

However, the lists of hospitals that has just been released has not even a single hospital from the North West Province. When reacting to the list, MEC Madoda Sambatha has raised a concern that there seems to be no appreciation of health as an essential service.

“Provinces can’t be treated differently in a crisis. Just like other provinces, the North West Province did submit a list of hospitals to be exempted from load-shedding. We raised a concern when we saw an Mpumalanga hospital listed under North West when the first list was published, we asked that it be corrected and the list of hospitals we have submitted be included but now on the new list of 37 only North West does not

appear. It is not true that North West did not submit”, said MEC Madoda Sambatha

The MEC has made a follow up requesting the Minister to immediately intervene as the North West Province can’t be treated as if it is not part of South Africa. The North West Province hospitals will be severely affected should the load-shedding persist. At the moment some services get interrupted and patients are beginning to complain due to the number of times they have to wait for electricity to return.

“If the North West Province is not included by next week based on its submission we will be left with no other option but to organize a provincial march targeting Eskom and demand that the Province be included in the lists of hospitals that are exempt from load-shedding”, said MEC Sambatha.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Employment and Labour hosts Open Day for all employers in Gauteng Province, 11 to 13 Oct

Compensation Fund to host an Open Day for All Employers in Gauteng Province

In an effort to continuously assist employers in adhering to the Compensation for Occupational Injuries and Diseases Act (COIDA), the Compensation Fund (CF) will be hosting an open day for employers operating in Gauteng Province at Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre from the 11th to 13th October 2022.

The Open Day is aimed at proactively assisting employers to prepare and submit their claims with ease, submit outstanding documentation, update contact details, check their compliance status, register on the CompEasy system and other related technical queries.

On the day, the following services will be provided, COID services, Employer Services, Employer Assessment, Employer Compliance, Customer Care as well as Information and Communication Technology Services to deal with online registration errors. The three day’s open day will help eradicate challenges employers are currently experiencing with regards to their COIDA compliance status and help ease their current frustrations with claims challenges and other related issues.

The Compensation Fund exists to administer the COID Act, it’s main objective is to provide compensation for disability, illness and death resulting from occupational injuries and diseases. The open day will therefore create a more open, transparent and informative opportunity for the CF to engage with employers in all sectors.

In terms of the COID Act, employers are required to register with the Compensation Fund and pay an annual assessment fee based on their workers’ earnings and the risks associated with the type of work done.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Employment and Labour on National Labour Migration Policy

Department of Employment and Labour’s National Labour Migration Policy aims to provide a national regulatory framework in line with the international labour standards and regional labour migration frameworks

The Department of Employment and Labour Deputy Minister, Boitumelo Moloi, yesterday (04 October 2022) said the main objective of the National Labour Migration Policy (NLMP) will be to ensure that labour migration to and from South Africa is undertaken in the interests of both migrant workers and the South African economy and society.

Moloi was yesterday delivering a keynote address at Birchwood Hotel OR Tambo, Johannesburg, during South Africa’s Dialogue on Labour and Mixed Migration Governance – involving work actors (Ministries of Labour, workers and employers’ organisations).

“The Labour laws in South Africa cover all workers irrespective of race, gender, religious belief or origin. However, what is disturbing, is tendencies by some employers who take advantage of vulnerable workers, given the current high unemployment levels, to exploit them and subject them to unacceptable conditions or undermine the current labour laws and standards,” said Moloi.

In addition, Moloi said: “These kind of practices have led to sporadic incidents of conflicts and unnecessary frictions between locals and foreign nationals”.

Deputy Minister Moloi said wherever you go in the SADC region, you will find South African natives moving freely and even other neighbouring foreign nationals enjoying the same freedom as well in South Africa.

“I am raising these because there are people who continue to propagate falls legends and beliefs that South Africans are Xenophobic.

“We continue to support initiatives at SADC and the African Union levels aimed at ensuring cooperation in easing the movement of people as a key element of economic and political integration,” said the Deputy Minister.

With the support from the International Labour Organization (ILO), the Department of Employment and Labour has adopted an inclusive and participatory policy development strategy which started in 2015 with a high-level seminar on labour migration management and policy development, the establishment of a road map in 2016 and a task team whose responsibility is to supervise the development of the Labour Migration policy.

“South Africa’s first National Labour Migration Policy mission is to provide a national regulatory framework aligned to international labour standards and regional labour migration frameworks whose main objective will be to ensure that labour migration to and from South Africa is undertaken in the interests of both migrant workers and the South African economy and society,” said Moloi.

ILO Director in the Decent Work Team for Eastern and Southern Africa office in Pretoria, Dr Joni Musabayana, said the Tripartite Dialogue on Labour Migration Governance’s objectives in South Africa are:

•             To take stock and learn about ongoing finalisation and implementation of South Africa’s labour migration policy;

•             Identify together 2022-2023 challenges and opportunities in implementing the policy as well as further priorities that the SAMM (Southern Africa Migration Management) project could support to fast track its implementation; and lastly,

•             Identify national focal points responsible for each of the thematic areas covered by the SAMM project in order to facilitate follow-up.

The country-level dialogues on Labour and Mixed Migration Governance are organised within the framework of the Southern Africa Migration Management (SAMM) project that is financed by the European Union and led by the International Labour Organization. This four-year project (2020-2023) is designed to improve migration management in the Southern Africa and Indian Ocean region.

Due to the sensitive nature of migration management subject, President Cyril Ramaphosa established an Inter-Ministerial Task Team on Migration and Employment in 2020, led by 12 Ministers and senior Public Servants from various departments led by the Ministers of Employment and Labour and Home Affairs.

The tripartite dialogue – which started yesterday – will continue until tomorrow, 06 October 2022, in Gauteng.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Minister Thoko Didiza hosts a symposium and exhibition for women in Agriculture, 7 Oct

Minister Didiza to hold a symposium and exhibition for women in Agriculture

The minister of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Ms Thoko Didiza will on Friday 07 October 2022 hold a Symposium and Exhibition for Women in Agriculture and Agro-processing, Africa Free Trade Agreement: Market Access in Birchwood, Boksburg.

Minister Didiza will also officiate and deliver the keynote address during this engagement. Additionally, the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development in collaboration with Total Energies will host a Gala Dinner in recognition of the women farmers with disabilities and those involved in agriculture and Agro –processing. This is in light of the recently signed Agriculture and Agro – Processing Master Plan.  The purpose of the Minster’s engagement is to increase active participation of women in agriculture, Agro-processing and agribusinesses for the sustainable social and economic wellbeing of households.

The Symposium and Exhibition will take place under the theme:  Women’s socio-economic rights and empowerment: Building back better for women’s resilience.

Women’s participation in agriculture, land reform and rural development is generally unequal to that of men in many ways such as access to land, commercial farming, finance, technology, training, infrastructure, water, production inputs, extension support, markets, etc.  African women tend to be at the bottom of the socio-economic ladder because of these obstacles.

Source: Government of South Africa

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Deputy Minister Dikeledi Magadzi joins anti-vandalism awareness campaign in Kraaifontein, 6 Oct

Deputy Minister Magadzi to join anti-vandalism awareness campaign in Kraaifontein

In a bid to curb vandalism of infrastructure, earlier this year the National Department of Water and Sanitation and the City of Cape Town launched anti-vandalism awareness campaign to raise public awareness about the impact that the theft and vandalism of water and sanitation infrastructure have on essential services to communities.  The campaign also aims to highlight the valuable role all stakeholders, including spheres of government and the public, have to help protect this critical infrastructure.

To further intensify efforts to fight the scourge of vandalism, Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation Dikeledi Magadzi will lead the educational campaign at Bloekombos in Kraaifontein on Thursday 06 October 2022. The door campaign will be preceded by the formal programme at the Bloekombos Primary School.

The Department of Water and Sanitation is deeply concerned about the vandalism of basic services which deprived communities of service delivery.

Source: Government of South Africa