National Sector Coordinating Committee to meet in Mpumalanga
1 October 2012
Commentating on the unacceptably high levels of unemployment in South Africa, many analysts who find space in the mainstream media seem to believe that as around 70% of the unemployed are young people, the country is sitting on a ticking time bomb which if detonated could lead into a disaster of biblical proportions.
Being aware of the above observation, government is pulling all stops to ensure that the summations about this supposed state of affairs do not materialise. On 5 to 6 September 2012, the National Sector Coordinating Committee (NSCC), convened at Green Way
Woods Resort in White River to among other things afford sector departments from all nine provinces including metros, an opportunity to report on how their projects are faring in as far as job creation is concerned.
The NSCC meeting is organised by the National Department of Environmental Affairs. It meets quarterly to share information, address any bottlenecks in the execution and reporting of their Environment and Culture projects with respect to the set targets, including sector specific policies. It is constituted of members from national and all nine provincial Environmental and Culture Sector
Departments and Municipalities; generating outputs in the field of environment, tourism, heritage, biodiversity and land care.
Addressing the gathering, Ms NL Sithole who is HOD of the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Administration (DARDLA), which leads the Environment and Culture sector in Mpumalanga, reassured delegates about DARDLA ‘s commitment in fulfilling its mandate as the coordinating sector department.
Ms Sithole asserted that DARDLA is better positioned to lead the Environment and Culture Sector in Mpumalanga as it is also mandated with leading the Comprehensive Rural Development Programme in the province which among other things focuses on creating jobs and developing skills.
The HOD particularly emphasised the importance of skills development stating that socio-economic dynamics in the province points to high levels of illiteracy making it difficult to implement programmes however good their intentions are. “To this end, the department has partnered with the Mpumalanga Regional Training Trust to develop the requisite skills for meaningful and sustainable development. This would further enhance investor confidence in our province as our people would be empowered with basic skills that meet the expectations of potential investors,” Ms Sithole said.
Ms Sithole encouraged delegates to start behaving as activists because if one were to successfully coordinate a programme one would also rely on support from other people. “Let us invest our full potential in order to turn around South Africa making the country a better place for all,” Ms Sithole concluded.
Issued by: Mpumalanga Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Administration
