Deputy President David Mabuza, in his capacity as the Chairperson of the Presidential Task Team on Military Veterans will on Saturday, 14 May 2022, visit Mafikeng in the North West Province to engage with the Provincial Government and representatives of various military veterans associations.

The meeting will provide the necessary platform for the Presidential Task Team on Military Veterans led by Deputy President Mabuza, to assess progress achieved by both National and Provincial Governments in particular, in addressing the challenges faced by Military veterans.

In pursuit of mechanisms to address the number of challenges raised by Military Veterans, President Cyril Ramaphosa appointed the Presidential Task Team, chaired by the Deputy President Mabuza and includes Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation as well as the Minister and Deputy Minister of Defence and Military Veterans, to coordinate efforts and accelerate the pace of finding lasting solutions to the challenges identified by Military Veterans.

The Task Team has since developed a comprehensive approach to address the challenges through various interactions with the Military Veterans Associations, and also initiated strategic institutional capacities to provide adequate services on a sustainable basis.

Furthermore, in execution of this critical mandate, the Task Team has already held successful consultations with the provinces of Limpopo, Gauteng and the Eastern Cape, with the aim of assessing the existence, roles and structures of military veterans coordinating mechanisms.

Through these direct consultations with Military Veterans Associations, Government is able to assess the support and services received by the sector and their immediate families, such as the provision of educational assistance, decent housing, and access to land, job opportunities as well as entrepreneurial opportunities, amongst other things.

The Task Team has committed to and is already working with all spheres of Government in accelerating the much needed services to Military Veterans, and addressing other critical issues such as the legislative review of specific provisions in the current Military Veterans Act 18 of 2011; Socio-economic support; pensions and benefits; Verification, database cleansing and enhancement to ensure that bona fide Military Veterans are registered on the Department of Military Veterans database.

Source: Government of South Africa