09 MARCH 2007

SUBJECT: BREAKFAST MEETING OF EXECUTIVE COUNCIL WITH MINISTER TREVOR MANUEL

The Minister of Finance Trevor Manuel met with members of the Executive Council to interact on budget related issues. The minister has already been to the Eastern Cape. In his introductory remarks, he commended the province for the massive improvement in its financial management. Eleven of the twelve departments in the province have received unqualified reports, with the exception of the department of education. This, according to the minister puts the province as the highest achiever in the country in terms of managing government budgets.

What did not miss the minister's eye also is the significant improvement in infrastructure spending in the province compared to the previous years. He therefore implored the province to attack the backlogs in the education infrastructure with the same verve the Premier and the Department of Local and Housing did with the eradication of the bucket system in the province.

The minister requested the province to share with him ideas on how agricultural development can be enhanced, given that there seems not to be a synergy between the grants and Land reform. He was also concerned that there seems to be a general challenge in the country with regard to spending on conditional grants, such as the Comprehensive Agriculture Grant and Land Care.

The province raised a matter regarding housing subsidy protocols, which caters only for the top structure, without taking into account the other related costs such as land and Environmental specific costs. The minister assured the province that it was a matter which he was going to look at with the minister of housing.

Similarly he commended the province for the successful distribution of books at schools. The only region with challenges is Bushbuckridge where the problem is currently being addressed by the department of education. The Minister was quite impressed by the fact that the feeding scheme for learners is functioning very well compared to other provinces where there are serious problems

The minister raised other matters that he felt the province must look at. They included: the need to improve on the provincial pass rate in mathematics for matric, which is at 21% compared to the national average pass rate of 36%; Building an inward capacity of the province to monitor quality of infrastructure delivery in the province and the distribution of learning materials.

The Minister then left to interact with grade 11 and grade 12 in the province, as part of an attempt to develop interest to study on public finance and management.

Issued by the Communication Chief Directorate

Office of the Premier NELSPRUIT

Contact Lebona Mosia at 082 5616465/+27 13 7662244 lmosia@mpg.gov.za