Mpumalanga employs additional 4 000 civil servants
17 July 2008
The Mpumalanga Provincial Government has welcomed the progress made to fill all funded vacant post in the public sector by end of June this year. This emerged from a cabinet meeting held in Nelspruit this morning.
The deadline was announced by the state President Thabo Mbeki, early this year during the State of the Nation Address. Mpumalanga Premier Thabang Makwetla echoed Mbeki's sentiments when he opened the provincial legislature in February by stating that his provincial and municipal administrations would follow suit by ensuring that all funded vacant posts will be filled.
Over the last three months (March till June) this year, the province has recruited 4 054 new employees and thus reducing the vacancy rate of 10 115 by more than 40%. The departments have on average filled 70% of their vacant posts, with about seven departments, out of a total of ten, filling within the range of 80 to 100 %. The department of Safety and Security civilian secretariat is already on a 100% compliment. The challenge, however, still remains in the bigger and specialised departments such as Education, Health and Social Development, where scare professional skills are required hence the provincial government has set itself a target of end of August to comply with the President's and the Premier's call.
High vacancy rates and inadequate skills in the public sector have often been sighted as one of the key reasons that delays service delivery. The filling of vacant posts in the province forms part of on going interventions aimed at improving service delivery and reducing unemployment, particularly amongst the youth.
In order to speed up the process, the provincial cabinet recently took a decision to employ the services of private sector recruitment agencies. To date more than five agencies have been appointed to assist all provincial departments to recruit staff.
Mpumalanga Provincial Administration, with a civil service of more than 40 000 employees, is one of South Africa 's regions with an unemployment rate standing 26%.
87 Million For Water
A R537 million project to implement part of the roll out of clean running water in the Nkomazi Region of Mpumalanga got a major boost this morning when the Mpumalanga Provincial Government agreed to fund the budget shortfall of R87 million.
The area has been experiencing a dire shortage of water with an estimated figure of 49% households without access to clean running water but the amount is expected to increase the population with access to clean running water in the municipality up to 68%.
The amount will be utilised to improve reticulation, install meters at reservoirs, upgrading of boreholes and enhance water quality tests.
The project forms an integral part of the ‘Water for All' flagship, that is aimed at providing access to clean running water throughout the province by 2010, as announced by Premier Thabang Makwetla as part of the provincial governments' big five projects that are aimed at building a legacy of economic growth and social development. The other four are the Moloto and Maputo development corridors, heritage, greening and tourism promotion and civil service capacity building program.
Nkomazi Municipality , one of the Mpumalanga 's most populous areas, with an estimated population of 338 095 comprises towns that include the targeted areas of Tonga , Mbuzini, Hectorspruit, and Driekoppies among others. The municipality is also home to one of South Africa 's largest producers of sugar, the TSB. Drinking quality water has been a concern for some time. There are only 18 water supply schemes which service 56 villages, 12 urban settlements, farming communities, government buildings and other industries.
Through these resources the province intends to enhance all other interventions in advancing the objectives of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals of halving poverty and underdevelopment by half.
Mpumalanga Youth Seize Opportunities
The Mpumalanga Youth Commission has announced plans to increase the intake of the National Youth Service by more than 1 000 participants for the next financial year.
This was revealed by the Chief Executive Officer of the Provincial Youth Commission, Mr A Mahlangu, when he was presenting a progress report on the implementation of the flagship youth program to Mpumalanga Premier Thabang Makwetla and his cabinet in Nelspruit this morning.
“Working in collaboration with the Umsobomvu Youth Fund and local municipalities, we aim to aggressively expand opportunities to increase the number of participants in the youth service program for the financial year ahead” explained Mahlangu.
The National Youth Service is a government wide initiative, launched in August last year, that aims to engage young South Africans to do community service that accords them an opportunity to participate in skills development and income generating assignments.
The 2007 projects focused on tourism, housing, e-literacy and the Expanded Public Workers construction. Newly identified areas of expansion for the year 2008 will include building maintenance, waste management, and sports facilities rehabilitation.
Mpumalangahas a population of more than three million inhabitants and half of which is comprised of youth.
Enquiries:
Ntime Skhosana
Tel: 013 766 2055
Cell: 082 496 6875
Issued by: Office of the Premier