Mpumalanga Cabinet Stament
16 April 2009
Mpumalanga Cabinet holds final meeting
In what may be regarded as the final Cabinet meeting of the current Executive that assumed its duties in 2004, Premier Thabang Makwetla commended and expressed his gratitude to the team for all the years that they have been in charge of the public affairs since they assumed duties following the 2004 elections.
“We have done our bit and there is no doubt that we could have done more. We have made a difference in the province and taken service delivery further in the realisation of a better life for all. I therefore wish to thank every Executive Member for an assignment well handled in the execution of our duties. More importantly, we express our heartfelt gratitude to the community, civil society, public servants , development finance institutions, media, political parties , business sectors and the international twinning partners of Mpumalanga for their support throughout the term,” concluded Makwetla.
A five year report was presented to Cabinet by the Macro Policy unit in the Office of the Premier, consisting of an overview of the provincial government's performance spanning its five year period in office. The report highlights successes and outstanding challenges that the current administration encountered during the period 2004 to 2009. It focuses mainly on the Provincial Growth and Development priorities that was adopted in the year 2005 in Badplaas and reviewed again in 2008 by social partners, that included civil society, business, organised labour and government. The priorities include economic development, sustainable development, infrastructure development and human resource development.
In addition, key development indicators will be on the big five flagship projects that were adopted by the provincial government as part of efforts to accelerate socio-economic development in the province. They include the Accelerated Capacity Building, Moloto Rail Development Corridor, Maputo Development Corridor, Water for All and the Heritage, Greening Mpumalanga and Tourism flagships.
Among others, the report also mentions the attainment of targets in relation to the creation of jobs through the Expanded Public Works Program (EPWP). The provincial government set a target of 100 000 and exceeded this by creating 106 000 labour intensive work opportunities over a five year period. The province also initiated a unique poverty eradication program, “Siyatentela”, wherein mostly rural women were employed to provide labour in road construction and surfacing projects. A total of more than 2 000 women benefited through this infrastructure program.
The province also broke new ground by being the first to completely eradicate the toilet bucket system in all formal areas before the stipulated national deadline of December 2007.
On matters of food security, the success of the high impact ‘Masibuyele Emasimini' project also contributed to efforts aimed at mitigating food insecurity and also assisted in stimulating small scale community farming. Through this intervention, individual rural households were given seed, tractors and other implements to start small scale backyard farming. Since the launch in 2005, a total of 15 021 rural households benefited from the project. However, the report also highlights the need for government to align land reform policy initiatives in order to complement each other on matters of rural development and agrarian reform.
In other social infrastructure investments, a sum total of 700 classrooms were built, however, there is still a backlog that remains a challenge. More toilets, administration blocks, laboratories, sports fields and libraries still have to be built, particularly in rural schools. Despite these challenges, the province has made strides in implementing the no-fee schools policy. The report reveals that the province is currently standing at 49% in realising the national target of 60% by 2009/2010 As part of efforts to grow the provincial economy and create sustainable jobs, the province has ensured that all FET Colleges provide courses comprising a range of skills that match the requirements of the economy. More importantly the province has build 14 health clinics during this term and thus reducing the traveling distance of various communities in order to access health services within a radius of five kilometers thus bringing service delivery closer to the people.
Other challenges highlighted by the report include the governance and management challenges with respect to planning, budget control, monitoring and evaluation.
The full text of the five year report will be made available as from 21 April 2009 on the provincial government website: http://www.mpumalanga.gov.za.
Cabinet mourns the passing on of Minister Matsepe-Casaburri
The Provincial Cabinet observed a moment of silence for the late Minister of Communications, Ms Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri, who was laid to rest on Monday in the Free State Province.
Cabinet received with shock the news of her passing on following a short illness in hospital. Speaking on behalf of the province, Makwetla described the Minister as having a unique experience of being an activist. “In a remarkable way, she has been involved in the pursuit of education throughout her life. Hers is a life of someone whose legacy of integrity and education in the performance of duties must be emulated by other generations. Her contribution in the struggle for gender mainstreaming has left a lasting legacy, particularly in the field of women leadership.” he said.
On behalf of the people and government of Mpumalanga, Cabinet expressed its word of sympathy and condolences to her next of kin, relatives, former and current colleagues in the national executive, community and the country at large.
Appointments
The following people were appointed to serve a three year term on the Council of the Mpumalanga Heritage Resources Agency (MHRA)
Mr John Ramokolo, Mr Mdumo Mnisi, Mrs Marlies Liebenberg, Ms Nomvula Motloung, Mr Steven Ngubane, Mrs Busisiwe Khubheka, Prof Roger Fisher and Mr Themba Makhweyane.
Enquiries:
Ntime Skhosana
Cell: 082 496 6875
Tel: 013 766 2055
Issued by: Office of the Premier