TUESDAY, 23 AUGUST 2005 __

          PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF PROVINCES

                                ____

The Council met at 14:00.

The Chairperson took the Chair and requested members to observe a moment of silence for prayers or meditation.

ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS – see col 000.

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you very much and welcome back to this sitting after the long time that you have been in your constituencies. I hope you had a wonderful time there, particularly the past week in two provinces, North West and KwaZulu-Natal. I think the work went very well in those two provinces.

We shall now proceed to questions as printed on the Question Paper. I have been informed that the Whippery have agreed that there will be no notices of motion or motions without notice today. Therefore we will move directly to questions.

QUESTIONS FOR ORAL REPLY

  Prevention and Monitoring of Terrorist Activities in South Africa

1. Mr M A Mzizi asked the Minister of Safety and Security:

   (1) Whether there are any measures in place to prevent terrorist organisations from using South Africa as a place to recruit new members; if not, why not; if so, what measures;

   (2) whether, in light of the recent spate of terror attacks around the world, there are any systems in place to monitor the levels of terrorist activities in South Africa and to prevent their increase; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? C213E

The MINISTER FOR SAFETY AND SECURITY: Chairperson, firstly, let me just say that there are indeed measures in place that are designed to deal with issues relating to terrorism. The first one, of course, is our Protection of Constitutional Democracy Against Terrorist and Related Activities Act, which was signed into law on 20 May this year. It deals therefore with all issues that relate to terrorism.

The second measure is the fact that the SA Police Service and our National Intelligence Agency and other members of the intelligence community in our country have in place systems that deal with matters relating to terrorism. Of course, we also co-operate with international agencies that deal specifically with these matters. I therefore would want to say that we have the necessary wherewithal to deal with terrorism. Thank you.

Mnu M A MZIZI: Sihlalo, angibonge kuNgqongqoshe ohloniphekileyo ngempendulo yakhe eqonde ngqo embuzweni. Kodwa-ke okuqhamukayo kuvuka empendulweni yakhe kuthi: Ngabe empeleni sizimisele ngawo wonke amandla ethu ukubuvimba ubushokobezi? Ngingakusho nje kuNgqongqoshe ukuthi kuyethusa empeleni ukucabanga ukuthi ngabe simi ngomumo yini.

Maduzane nje, ngemuva kwalesi sigameko esenzeke laphaya eNgilandi, kwelamaNgisi, kukhona umuntu bude buduze nje kwesifundazwe engihlala kuso okutholakale ukuthi indlu yakhe iyasetshenziswa kwamanye amazwe le, kodwa yena elapha. Yilokho-ke esithanda ukuzwa kukho ukuthi izinto ezinjalo zivimbeka kanjani ukuze labo bantu abanjalo bangcothulwe nezimpande – labo abashokobeza bengaphakathi, beshokobeza amanye amazwe. Wena wakomkhulu! (Translation of isiZulu paragraphs follows.)

[Mr M A MZIZI: Chairperson, let me thank the hon Minister for his direct answer to the question. However, what arises from his answer is the following: Are we really prepared to prevent terrorism by all means? I can say to the Minister that it is frightening to think about whether we are ready for action or not.

Recently we saw what happened in England. In the province where I stay it was also discovered recently that there is a person whose house in another country is being utilised, while he is here. What we would like to hear is how are we going to prevent such things from happening so that we can get rid of these terrorists – those who are terrorising people in our country as well as in other countries.

The MINISTER FOR SAFETY AND SECURITY: Chairperson, there are certain things that have happened globally as a consequence of globalisation, because globalisation does not just relate to economic activities only. Globalisation relates to a number of things, including mobility of people.

Therefore some of the people who have been moving around, not just in our country but in other countries as well, are people who have been participating in terrorist activities. They are able to move around. For instance, you will find them in England, America and you will find them in a number of countries. The key question is: Are we then able to detect them? Are we then able to keep them under surveillance? Are we then able to expose them? I do want to say that, in South Africa, we have been able to do this.

It should be borne in mind, relevant to the initial answer to this question, that I said we are also working with international intelligence agencies. Through that interaction, we have been able to find a number of people. We have been providing useful information to many countries. We have been participating therefore in programmes that are indeed designed to put paid to this nefarious intent on the part of terrorists to cause mayhem in our country and in other countries. Thank you.

Dr F J VAN HEERDEN: Mr Chairperson, in October last year, during the debate of the hon Minister’s department in this Chamber, I asked the Minister whether he was aware of the open recruitment at places of worship for recruits for the Al Qaeda and Hamas intifada movements. That was about 10 months ago. The Minister also indicated that they keep strict surveillance and expose people who indulge in any kind of terrorism.

My question to the hon Minister is: Did they also, in this particular case – and that was October last year – investigate the issues that were brought to their attention; and if so, what were the results? Thank you, Chairperson.

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: I am not sure whether this is a follow-up question to your previous question or whether it is a follow-up to this question that we are now discussing.

Dr F J VAN HEERDEN: No, Mr Chairperson, it is actually a follow-up to the reply given by the hon Minister regarding surveillance and exposure. That’s actually a follow-up question. The MINISTER OF SAFETY AND SECURITY: I am sure you will agree with me, hon members, that I will obviously be circumspect in responding to some of the questions because they also relate to some investigations that are ongoing. I won’t therefore be able to give details relevant to this matter, except to reassure you that, indeed, we do investigations.

Indeed, we have been able to conduct ourselves in the best ways possible. In terms of that, we have exposed certain people. I can’t go beyond that, unfortunately, because it would jeopardise ongoing investigations. Thank you.

                   Access to Fingerprint Database

1. Mr M A Mzizi asked the Minister for Safety and Security:

   Whether his department has access to the Department of Home Affairs database of fingerprints in order to increase his department’s database of fingerprints; if not; why not; if so, what are the relevant details? C214E

The MINISTER FOR SAFETY AND SECURITY: Hon Mzizi, you see, there are two systems here. One system is looking at civilian questions relating to the general population of our country. Therefore the fingerprints you have, with respect to that, relate to services, including population registration relevant to your citizens. The second system is about fingerprints that relate to criminal activity. So we can’t merge the two. It wouldn’t work. I am sure you also wouldn’t want us to place your data and details into our databank regarding criminal activity. You wouldn’t want us to do that. [Laughter.] So we can’t extend into the databank of the Department of Home Affairs. We can’t do that. We can’t mix the two. Thank you.

Mnu M A MZIZI: Sihlalo, ngiyabonga ukuzwa uNgqongqoshe ephendula. Khona kuyiqiniso ukuthi akekho umuntu ofuna ukuphenywa izinqe. Kodwa umbuzo wami ovuka lapha empendulweni yakhe uthi: Ngenxa yesimo, umthetho wamaphoyisa uthi bathumela lawo ma-fingerprints abawathatha lapho kusuke kube khona umonakalo, bawathumele eziteshini zamaphoyisa lapho becabangela ukuthi lowo muntu mhlawumbe wake waboshwa khona.

Uzongivumela-ke uNgqongqoshe uma ngithi ezinkantolo, selokhu ngaba khona lapha, umuntu uvela ngamagama amaningi. Umuntu uba nguMzizi eboshwe kuphi kuphi, aphinde abe uMaduna kwenye indawo, angalivezi ipasi. Kodwa lokho kuboshwa kwakhe kusuke kuyinto ekhomba umuntu oyedwa. Kusho ukuthi ukuba besisebenzisana naboMnyango wezaseKhaya ngabe izinto ezinjalo zisheshe zitholakale masinyane.

Okokugcina kuvuka kuwo umbuzo wakho Ngqongqoshe. Zolo lokhu, umuntu ubevakashele umuntu wakubo ejele, laphaya lapho kulungiswa izimilo khona. Ngenxa yesiboshwa esaseqile ejele, lowo muntu bamfanisa naleso siboshwa base bemfaka phakathi ejele. Lowo muntu uqede iminyaka emibili esejele. Emuva kweminyaka emibili bamkhulula.

Ukuba ama-fingerprints ayethathiwe, ngabe babona ngalo usuku lokuqala ukuthi lo muntu akasona lesi siboshwa eseqile esisifunayo. Nakulabo abaqalayo, uzomthola kanjani lowo muntu osanda kwemukela ipasi ngoba usuke engakagangi? Yilapho engithanda ukuthi sizwe kahle khona. Ngiyabonga. (Translation of isiZulu paragraphs follows.)

[Mr M A MZIZI: Chairperson, I thank the Minister for responding. It is true that nobody would like to be investigated. My follow up question is: You are saying the police are forwarding fingerprints taken from the scene of a crime to other police stations where they believe such a person once committed a crime.

You will agree with me, Minister, that for as long as I can remember some people tend to use different names when they appear in court. A person would be Mzizi when arrested in one place, and Maduna in another without showing an identity document. But this still points to one and the same person. If we were working together with Home Affairs, things of this nature would have been noticed quickly.

Lastly, comes the follow-up question, Minister. A few days ago a person visited a relative in prison. A prisoner escaped from prison and this person was mistaken for that escapee and as a result he was imprisoned. This person spent two years in jail. He was only released after two years.

If fingerprints were taken they would have noticed that he was not the prisoner who escaped. But how are you going to identify a person who has recently acquired an identity document but who has not yet committed any offence? This is where I would like some clarity. Thank you.]

The MINISTER FOR SAFETY AND SECURITY: The hon member is correct. There have been instances like that and this arises as a result of human weaknesses at one level, but negligence on the other level. Because we have the necessary technology for us to be able to pick up anybody whose fingerprints are available to us, it ought not to be a problem.

There is a case that is similar to the one that the member is talking about where we were sued. In that case, as well, a person was picked up, fingerprints were taken and it became obvious that the person who had been detained was not responsible for the crime that had happened. But that person was kept in detention for a long time. So you will find those sorts of things. But it ought not to happen. Where it happens, we need to find a way to deal with those who are responsible.

Indeed, we are doing this because we took a decision in May that, as from the beginning of June, senior management in the police will go to all police stations in order to help people with respect to the systems in place and in regard to the utilisation of resources, both material and human. They have gone back after the initial deployment to assist further in regard to these things. Hopefully through that system this will be corrected.

Ordinarily, therefore – which is what we do in some instances when we mount roadblocks - we are able to take fingerprints on the spot using what we refer to as the MorphoTouch, which is a particular machine. When you check fingerprints there, it immediately reflects whether there is any outstanding issue that we have with the particular person. We have, in these circumstances, detained quite a number of people through that process.

We have also gone to the correctional detention centres in the country and done the same thing there. We discovered that some of the people whom we were looking for were actually serving sentences. But where there are weaknesses; it’s either because of ordinary human problems or it has to do with negligence. But such matters are receiving continual attention. Thank you.

                    Tea Industry in South Africa

1. Mr D J Botha asked the Minister of Trade and Industry:

   1. Whether his department has done any comprehensive analysis of the tea industry in South Africa, if not, why not, if so, what are the relevant details;

   2. Whether the Competition Commission will investigate the competition issues within the tea industry, if not, why not, if so, what are the relevant details;

   3. Whether there are any new stakeholders within the industry, if not, what is the position in this regard, if so, what are the relevant details? C215E

The MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY: Chairperson, hon members, yes, the department does regularly monitor the tea industry as part of the services delivered by the agriprocessing business unit of the department.

In response to stakeholders’ requests, a black tea forum was established in December 2004 to consider developments within the industry. After wide- ranging consultations the forum agreed that the key challenge was the lack of competitiveness of the industry as a result of increasing international competition.

The forum also suggested that the impact of this competition would be reduced significantly if the local packers would agree to reduce their own margins in favour of a higher price to growers. Discussions with the packers are continuing, and once an outcome has been determined the report of the Black Tea Forum will be submitted to Cabinet for consideration.

Regarding part two of the question, yes, the Competition Commission has confirmed that a complaint was received against Rooibos Ltd. Complaints relate to allegations of a dominant position and exclusive, anticompetitive practice abuses. The matter was lodged in early August, and we’ll follow the normal screening process and an announcement will be made immediately thereafter.

Regarding the third part of the question, as the DTI we are not aware of any new stakeholders in the black tea industry. Thank you, Chairperson.

Mnu D G MKONO: Ndiyabulela, Mhlalingaphambili. Bendiza kuthi apha kuMphathiswa, phaya emaMpondweni ndandifudula ndisazi ukuba kukho amasimi eti phaya, aziwa njengeMagwa. Kwavela iingxaki, de waphinda wasuka uMongameli waya kuwavuselela, batsho abantu baphila phaya.

Bendirhalela ukuva ukuba ngaba umsebenzi usaqhuba na owawenziwe nguMongameli wokuba amaxhegokazi akwazi ukuphunga phaya? Yayimnandi kakhulu iti yaphaya eMagwa, kangangokuba aye sakuthi amaxhegokazi kusasa, ukwahlukana komfana nentombi, abe sele ephunga iti wona. Ndicela ukuqonda, Mhlekazi. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraphs follows.) [Mr D G MKONO: Thank you, Chairperson. I was going to say to the hon Minister that I know that there used to be tea farms in eMaMpondweni in an area called Magwa, and they used to be called the Magwa farms. Problems cropped up, but the hon President however initiated a programme to revive them and thereafter people started making a living from them.

I would like to know whether what the hon President initiated in the area, where old women could also go and have tea, is still functioning? The Magwa farms used to produce very nice tea so that early in the morning when a young lady and a gentleman parted ways after spending the night together, the old women would be there already having their tea. Could you tell us, please, sir?]

UMPHATHISWA WEZORHWEBO NOSHISHINO: Mhlalingaphambili, ewe kunjalo. Siyawenza amalinge nakwamanye amasimi eti akwamanye amaphondo. Umzekelo, amasimi eti kwaZulu-Natala, aseMpumalanga naseLimpopo asengxakini. Siyazenza iinzame, endingakwaziyo ukuthetha gca ngazo nezimalunga nokuba senza ntoni nantoni.

Ndizamile ukubonisa ukuba enye yeengxaki ezikhoyo kulo mcimbi kukuba aba bantu balima iti abafumani mvuzo waneleyo kwaba bantu bayipakishayo. Ngoko ke siyaxoxa. Kambe bakhona nabanye abatyali-zimali esithetha nabo abazimisele ukutyala iimali zabo ukuvuselela la masimi eti, njengoko kwakwenzekile eMagwa ukuze ibe imi ngeenyawo namhlanje. Ngamalinge esiwenzayo lawo. Ndiyathemba ukuba ndiza kukwazi ukubuya, kungekudala emva kokuba siziqukumbele ezi ngxoxo sizibambileyo. Ndiyabulela. (Translation of Xhosa paragraphs follows.)

[Chairperson, that is correct. Initiatives are being made to revive tea farms in other provinces too. In KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga, and Limpopo provinces also experience problems with their tea farms. Plans are underway, however, I cannot deliberate on them.

I tried to highlight the fact that one of the problems on this issue is that the producers are paid insufficient wages by merchants. However, the matter is under discussion. We are engaged in discussions with some prospective investors who have indicated an interest to revive these tea farms, as was the case in Magwa which today is in full operation. Such are some of the initiatives we have made. I hope that I would be able to bring back positive news soon after we have concluded our discussions. I thank you.]

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Thank you, hon Minister. Are there any further follow-up questions? No. Who keeps on saying no? How do you know that other people don’t have questions? [Laughter.] If you don’t have a question, just keep quiet. I’d like to find out if other people have follow-up questions.

1. Ms N D Ntwanambi – Provincial and Local Government. [Question standing over.]

                Regional Electricity Regulator
   

2. Ms N D Ntwanambi asked the Minister of Minerals and Energy:

   (1) Whether, in the light of the fact that the first regional electricity distributor (RED) is in place, any progress has been made in respect of the REDs; if not, why not, if so, what are the relevant details?

   (2) Whether the new director is meeting the challenges of co- ordinating three provinces; if not what is the position in this regard; C21

The MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY (for the Minister of Minerals and Energy): Chair, overall positive progress has been made in respect of regional electricity distributors. The deadline was to have the first RED established by June 2005, according to government’s programme of action. This deadline was met by the first RED 1 Pty Ltd coming into operation on 1 July 2005. It is our intention to launch the rest of the REDs by January 2007.

The RED will initially operate within the area of jurisdiction of the City of Cape Town. It is, however, important to note that the envisaged future state of the RED is to operate within the defined RED boundaries. It is expected that the incorporation of the approximately 40 municipalities, including the portion of the Eskom distribution business, will take approximately 18 to 24 months.

All regulatory and legislative processes, for instance licensing, incorporation agreements, registration and municipal legislative processes, such as the Municipal Systems Act, section 78 and the Municipal Finance Management Act, section 84, were fulfilled in achieving this first regional electricity distributor.

The members of the initial independent board, consisting of six members, including the chief executive officer and the chief operations officer, were also appointed. From a readiness perspective it is envisaged that the next RED will be rolled out during February 2006. Preparations are being made to officially announce the second RED to be launched. At this stage the readiness of RED 5, which is anchored by Ethekwini, is the highest, followed by RED 2, which is anchored by Ekurhuleni.

It is expected that a rapid roll-out process will be followed during 2006. It is important to note that this is a dynamic process and that the roll- out of the REDs will be influenced by their state of readiness.

To achieve the envisaged roll-out, electricity distribution industry restructuring legislation will be introduced. This will provide the legislative framework for the formation of REDs and will remove the risk of the currently open-ended process. Such legislation will finalise questions related to governance, valuation, shareholding, compensation, asset and staff transfers in a way that addresses current or potential risks related to restructuring to the end-state boundaries.

Substantial preparations are being made at different municipalities for incorporation in the REDs. Different municipalities are at different stages of preparation, including signing the co-operative agreements, obtaining relevant council resolutions, ring-fencing and completing relevant municipal legislative processes.

Regarding the second part of the question, the chief executive officer is indeed managing to co-ordinate all provinces affected as part of RED 1. The CEO has an engagement plan involving all 39 municipalities in the RED 1 area to ensure the incorporation of the municipalities into the RED.

This plan will be executed in conjunction with Salga Western Cape and Northern Cape, to ensure consistency and standardisation. Initial engagement meetings have taken place with different stakeholders in the RED 1 area.

With regard to the third part of the question, while over 800 jobs will be lost as a result of the closure of the underground operations at the Kimberley mine, the impact on the economy of the Northern Cape will be minimised as the company will provide training and reskilling support to workers in order to move them to other parts of their operations, move them to other areas of the local economy and, where possible, assist workers to establish their own small businesses.

The details of these proposals are currently under negotiation between the company and the Department of Minerals and Energy, in line with the social and labour plan requirements. A study has been commissioned by the company to determine the projected growth of the domestic economy so that workers are equipped with relevant skills.

The company has informed the department that they have committed substantial resources to developing the tourism sector, which will assist in diversifying the domestic economy away from reliance on mining activity. Tourism companies, in partnership with the provincial government, have identified several projects to grow the tourism industry.

The section of the mine being closed, that of the underground operations of the company, represents 10% of the company’s current operations in Kimberley. Thank you, hon Chair.

Mr D A WORTH: Chair, I’d like to ask the hon Minister a question. The first RED, as far as I know, encompasses the Cape Town metropole. There are other municipalities that are supposed to be joining that RED. Has the Minister got the assurance from the other municipalities that they will be participating in that, and what do they say about the interruption in their cash flow, vis-à-vis that they will only be getting money on the shares at the end of that financial year? What do the municipalities feel with regard to that matter? Thank you, Chair.

The MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY: Chair, even though this is not my line function, it is my understanding that this is going to be a phased process that will begin operating within the jurisdiction of the City of Cape Town and which will, over time, expand to include all the other municipalities. Therefore, in working towards that objective there are lots of interactions that are taking place in order to realise that outcome.

The matter around cash flows and revenues is one of the central issues that are of concern in terms of ensuring that, whatever restructuring is done in the distribution of electricity, it does not impact negatively on the revenue flows of the various municipalities. These are matters that in my understanding are part of the ongoing discussions and work. Thank you very much, Chair.

The CHAIRPERSON OF THE NCOP: Deputy Minister, my high blood pressure rose by two, because I didn’t see you. I was surprised, until the Chief Whip wrote me a note that you are just next to me, on my right-hand side. Next time, I think, if you sit here I will be able to see you and my high blood pressure will not rise.

Questions transferred from written to oral reply upon request of the relevant member (Rule 239)

    Nursing Conditions, Equipment and Training in State Hospitals

1. Ms H Lamoela asked the Minister of Health: [Written Question No 74]

   Whether any strategy has been introduced to (a) prevent poor working conditions, particularly in state hospitals, from forcing competent nursing staff to leave the country, (b) expedite the acquisition of essential and effective equipment, particularly in state hospitals, in order to improve service delivery standards and (c) review the duties of nursing staff and ensure that their training corresponds with changing medical trends; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details? C161E

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH: Chairperson, I apologise for that. As the Deputy Minister of Health, I shouldn’t be causing you to have your high blood pressure rise! Concerning this question, the Minister of Health humbly requests that it be held over for the next round. She is out of the country at the moment. Thank you.

[Question standing over.]

 Vacancies of nurses and doctors in Free State hospitals and clinics

1. Mr D A Worth asked the Minister of Health: [Written Question No 85]

   (1) Whether there are any vacant posts in the Free State in respect of (a) nursing personnel and (b) doctors; if so, how many vacancies are there in each specified hospital or clinic;

   (2) whether any steps are being taken to fill these posts; if not, why not; if so, what steps? C195E

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH: Chairperson, hon members, the reply to this question is that the following information was received from the Free State province:

The Free State provincial department of health is faced with a shortage of health professionals, in particular medical and nursing personnel, as well as those health professionals with scarce skills. Vacant posts are advertised on a regular basis, but it is difficult to attract professionals with the required skills to the Public Service and particularly to the rural areas. Rural and scarce skills allowances are being paid to certain health professionals and the head of department has granted approval to head-hunt as a means to filling critical posts.

The Free State has also developed a draft human resources plan, which will be made available for comment. The draft document will have to ensure alignment and compliance with the national human resources plan. It is envisaged that the document will be ready for implementation before the end of 2005.

The provincial department’s organisational structure is also under review since more posts were created than are needed. The province is in the process of abolishing all posts that have been vacant for the past three years. The structure will reflect the true picture once the process has been completed. I thank you.

Mr D A WORTH: Mr Chair, I just ask if I could possibly get that in writing as well. Thank you.

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH: That will be done.

Ms D ROBINSON: Chair, it is of great concern that there are so many vacancies and while I accept that there are going to be investigations and structural changes to determine exactly where the needs are, I think we must accept that health and that people are adequately cared for, is absolutely vital.

My question is: Apart from extra money – you know, a scarce-skill bonus or whatever can be offered - what is being done to make the working conditions better? We do know that doctors and nurses very often leave because they don’t have adequate, proper working conditions.

There is a shortage of supplies; there is shortage of equipment. Very often young doctors aren’t adequately supervised and safety is also something that is very important in some of the rural areas and metropolitan ones too. Could we perhaps have some information about those conditions to improve and encourage people to work?

The DEPUTY MINISTER OF HEALTH: That sounds like a new question to me, but I will attempt to answer it and say that, as we have heard from this reply, the Department of Health in the Free State is concerned about the situation and they are doing something about it.

What I have said in my reply is that we have already supplied rural and scarce-skill allowances to provide an incentive for people to go to work in this area; but the department is also preparing a human resources plan.

Of course, as you know, if you prepare a human resources plan you also include working conditions; you include a whole number of other issues. When this comes out, I am sure the hon member will have an opportunity to interrogate the plan and make a contribution to make it, maybe, more positive. Indeed, this is an issue that the Department of Health as a whole is concerned with and is looking at very seriously.

              Decline and Job Losses in Mining Industry

1. Mr D A Worth to ask the Minister of Minerals and Energy:

   Whether any measures are contemplated to prevent the

   (a) further decline of the mining industry; and

   (b) loss of jobs in the Goldfields mining area in the Free State, if not, why not; if so, what measures? C197E

The MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY (on behalf of the Minister of Minerals and Energy): Chairperson, presently there is a task team of stakeholders. These stakeholders are the Department of Minerals and Energy, mining companies and the labour movement. That task team has been formed to find ways and means of easing the effect of the declining mining industry, mainly in the gold mining sector where there is a high percentage of retrenchments. It is important to note that mineral resources are nonrenewable.

According to the Labour Relations Act of 1995, organisations have the prerogative to dismiss workers on the basis of operational requirements. Large-scale retrenchments fall under this category of dismissals. In this regard the department cannot take part in preventing any company from taking such decision. However, measures to ameliorate the impact of such retrenchments on the workers have been put in place.

The social and labour plan legislated in the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act of 2002 calls for companies to proactively train workers in skills utilisable outside and beyond mining. In the Free State goldfields, the department has ensured that Harmony has a social plan that addresses the above issues. The department has engaged Harmony to extend the social and labour plan and to include those workers retrenched in the past 18 months. Thank you.

Mr D A WORTH: Chair, yes, I would like to ask the Minister, in view of the fact of the declining gold reserves in the goldfields in the Free State, there is reputedly large-scale deposits of coal; probably very low grade coal. Bearing in mind the close proximity or relatively close proximity of Sasol, does the Minister know anything about this coal deposits and is there any chance that the department will look into and investigate whether there are any other further minerals that could be exploited in the area? Thank you.

The MINISTER OF TRADE AND INDUSTRY: Well, Chair, I don’t know of coal deposits that may be in the vicinity, but clearly the issue that really confronts us is that we need to think of a long-term basis when we are dealing with mineral deposits.

This is happening, I think, across the world. If we were to look at the Middle East, I think there is a rising consciousness that those resources that they currently have in abundance may not be there forever and therefore you have to begin to look at how to diversify and broaden the base of the economy.

My own sense would be that the way to go is to both look for opportunities where we can diversify and broaden the base of the economy and, at the same time, try to find other deposits that we could be able to exploit much more quickly in order to ameliorate the impact of the loss of jobs because of closure of certain operations. Thank you.

The Council adjourned at 14:36. ____

            ANNOUNCEMENTS, TABLINGS AND COMMITTEE REPORTS



                        FRIDAY, 5 AUGUST 2005

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

The Speaker and the Chairperson:

1. Draft Bills submitted in terms of Joint Rule 159

   (1) Nursing Bill, 2005, submitted by the Minister of Health on 26 July 2005. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Health and the Select Committee on Social Services.

   (2) Repeal of the Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain Laws Bill, 2005, submitted by the Minister for Justice and Constitutitonal Development on 29 July 2005. Referred to the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development and the Select Committee on Security and Constitutional Affairs.

2. Fast-tracking of Bills

   (1) The Joint Subcommittee of the Joint Programme Committee on 4 August 2005 took a decision, in accordance with Joint Rule 216(2), that the Constitutional Matters Amendment Bill [B 22 - 2005] (National Assembly - sec 75) be fast-tracked by, where necessary, dispensing with any relevant House Rule or Joint Rule and shortening any period within which any step in the legislative process relating to the Bill has to be completed, including the submission of the translated version of the Bill as introduced before the debate in the National Assembly takes place. This process must be completed in order for the Bill to be enacted and for the Act to be published in the Government Gazette by 31 August 2005.

     In terms of Joint Rule 216(4) this decision must be tabled in
     both Houses for ratification.
   
   
                     MONDAY, 8 AUGUST 2005
   

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

The Speaker and the Chairperson:

1. Introduction of Bills

   (1) The Minister of Water Affairs and Forestry

     i) Forestry Laws Amendment Bill [B 24 – 2005] (National Assembly
        – sec 75) [Bill and prior notice of its introduction
        published in Government Gazette No 27877 of 5 August 2005.]
   

   Introduction and referral to the Portfolio Committee on Water Affairs and Forestry of the National Assembly, as well as referral to the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) for classification in terms of Joint Rule 160, on 10 August 2005.

   In terms of Joint Rule 154 written views on the classification of the Bill may be submitted to the JTM within three parliamentary working days.

                    FRIDAY, 12 AUGUST 2005
   

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. Assent by President in respect of Bills 1) South African Sports Commission Act Repeal Bill [B 13B – 2005] – Act No 8 of 2005 (assented to and signed by President on 20 July 2005); 2) Minerals and Energy Laws Amendment Bill [B 1 – 2005] – Act No 11 of 2005 (assented to and signed by President on 10 August 2005). 3) National Ports Bill [B 5F - 2003] – Act No 12 of 2005 (assented to and signed by President on 31 July 2005); and 4) Intergovernmental Relations Framework Bill [B 3B - 2005] – Act No 13 of 2005 (assented to and signed by President on 10 August 2005).

2. Introduction of Bills

 (1)    The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development


       ii) Repeal of Black Administration Act and Amendment of Certain
           Laws Bill [B 25 – 2005] (National Assembly – sec 76) [Bill
           and prior notice of its introduction published in Government
           Gazette No 27845 of 28 July 2005]
           Introduction and referral to the Portfolio Committee on
           Justice and Constitutional Development of the National
           Assembly, as well as referral to the Joint Tagging Mechanism
           (JTM) for classification in terms of Joint Rule 160, on 12
           August 2005.
           In terms of Joint Rule 154 written views on the
           classification of the Bill may be submitted to the Joint
           Tagging Mechanism (JTM) within three parliamentary working
           days.

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. The Minister for Agriculture and Land Affairs

   a) International Plant Protection Convention, tabled in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution, 1996 (Act No 108 of 1996).

   b) Explanatory Memorandum to the International Plant Protection Convention.

2. The Minister of Labour

   a) Recommendation of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) – Recommendation No 195 concerning Human Resource Development: Education, Training and Lifelong Learning, adopted by the Conference at its 92nd Session – Geneva, 17 June 2004.

3. The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development

(a)    Proclamation No R.26 published in Government Gazette No 27719
     dated 27 June 2005: Referral of matters to existing Special
     Investigating Unit and Special Tribunal in terms of the Special
     Investigating Units and Special Tribunals Act, 1996 (Act No 74 of
     1996).


(b)    Proclamation No R.27 published in Government Gazette No 27719
     dated 27 June 2005: Referral of matters to existing Special
     Investigating Unit and Special Tribunal in terms of the Special
     Investigating Units and Special Tribunals Act, 1996 (Act No 74 of
     1996),

(c)    Government Notice No R.614 published in Government Gazette No
     27719 dated 27 June 2005: Amendment of Regulations in terms of the
     Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (Act No 3 of 2000).

1. The Minister of Education (a) Report and Financial Statements of Umalusi – Council for Quality Assurance in General and Further Education and Training for 2004- 2005, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2004-2005.
2. The Minister of Environmental Affairs and Tourism

(a)    Report and Financial Statements of the Johannesburg World Summit
     Company for 2002-2003, including the Report of the Independent
     Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2002-2003.


(b)    Report and Financial Statements of the Johannesburg World Summit
     Company for 2003-2004, including the Report of the Independent
     Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2003-2004.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

1. Report of the Joint Budget Committee, dated 22 June 2005:

(INCORPORATING REPORT ENVISAGED IN ITEM 9 OF THE COMMITTEE’S TERMS OF REFERENCE)

Strategic Plan for Joint Budget Committee

Table of Contents

Strategic Plan for the Joint Budget Committee 35

1. Vision, mission and core goals for the strategic plan period 36

2. Background 37 2.1 Terms of Reference 37 2.2 Underlying principles 39 2.3 Strategic Plan process 41

3. Activities 41 3.1 Conceptualising the JBC’s role in budget preparation 42 3.2 Conceptualising the JBCs role in the Legislative phase 45 Diagramme 1: JBC Role and Activities in Budget Preparation and Approval Phases 49 3.3 Principles for JBC activities during Budget Execution 50

4. Committee structure and work method 53

5 Operationalising the Strategic Plan 56 5.1 Planning and budgeting 56 5.2 Monitoring and Evaluation 57

Annex 1. Draft Operational Plan 57

            Strategic Plan for the Joint Budget Committee

The Joint Budget Committee (JBC) was constituted by a resolution of Parliament in 2003 to give effect to several aspects of Parliament’s oversight responsibilities regarding the public finances. The current JBC was convened in 2004 and its co-chairpersons elected later on that year. This document is the result of a 4 month long process in the first half of 2005 to map out a way forward for the duration of the current parliament in the form of a rolling strategic plan. The document, which will be updated in 2006, sets out the JBC’s strategy for developing its role in the budget process in practice, and for engagement in the current MTEF and budget cycle.

In compiling the document the JBC set itself the task of being brief, activity-focused and transparent. While a conceptual framework and the necessary background information is provided therefore, the JBC endeavoured to be concise and clear in setting out a work plan for 2005 and 2006. The document is set out in four main sections. Section one provides the conceptual framework for the JBC’s strategic decisions by formulating its vision, mission and core goals for the strategic plan period (2005 to 2007), the second frames the strategy by providing information on background factors such as the JBCs Terms of Reference (TORs) and parallel processes elsewhere in Parliament affecting the JBCs work, the third sets out the activities the Committee will undertake to achieve its objectives and the fourth discusses how it will organize itself to undertake the activities.

1 Vision, mission and core goals for the strategic plan period

The JBC’s vision is to have an effective role in budget management, facilitating improved spending outcomes in terms of (i) aligning spending with government priorities, and (ii) ensuring value for money.

JBC’s mission is to practise effective oversight over state spending on the consolidated budget (ie national and provincial spending).

The JBCs goals to reach this mission are • To review and provide meaningful recommendations aimed at improving spending effectiveness and efficiency to parliament on budget allocations in Appropriation Bill and the MTBPS • To review actual expenditure reports on a monthly and quarterly basis for spending effectiveness and efficiency • To engage the executive effectively in a dialogue on spending effectiveness through the above two tasks • To engage with, coordinate and guide portfolio and select committees work on the budget in order to streamline parliament’s role in budget management • To put in place a structure and work method that will effectively make use of committee capacity • To build its own resources in order to fulfill its mandate.

2 Background

2.1 Terms of Reference

The TORs of the JBC for 2005 – as passed by the NA in concurrence with the NCOP – specify the structure of the Committee (in terms of political party shares and number of members from the two Houses respectively) and mandates it to undertake specific tasks. These tasks are

1. Consider the proposed allocations in the Medium-term Expenditure Framework and Appropriation Bill (and whether these are in keeping with Government policy directions)
2. Consider the Medium-term Budget Policy Statement (MTBPS), with the exception of those sections dealing with the macro-economic situation and revenue
3. Conduct hearings on the MTEF and the Budget Policy Review document, with the exception of those sections dealing with the macro-economic situation and revenue
4. Monitor published actual revenue and expenditure per department (to ascertain whether they are in line with budget projections)
5. Report on the MTBPS (regarding the matters referred to under 2 above) and quarterly on actual revenue and expenditure per department (as in 4 above)
6. Make proposals regarding a. The processes Parliament should follow with regards to its role in the development of budgets in accordance with the Constitution b. The nature of its functions relative to those of other committees in respect of the budget process and conducting oversight
7. Report on its functions from time to time as necessary, but submit a final report not later than the end of the next budget cycle in Parliament. The TORs, as they currently stand, therefore mandate the JBC • to engage with the distribution of expenditure (in relation to spending effectiveness and efficiency) rather than with the aggregate level of expenditure or how the expenditure is to be financed (revenue and borrowing); • to interact with three important sets of executive budgetary documentation, the MTBPS, the budget documentation and the monthly and quarterly National Treasury (NT) reports on actual expenditure; • to make recommendations as to the nature of its functions relative to those of other committees

This strategic plan addresses when and how the JBC will engage with the budget process in order to fulfill these mandates.

The TORs also mandate the JBC to make recommendations regarding its role in the development of budgets in accordance with the Constitution. This strategic plan does not address this mandate directly, on account of a separate process in Parliament that is developing proposals in this regard under the auspices of the Task Force on Accountability and Oversight. The JBC will however stay abreast of developments in this process, and will share how it intends shaping its role in practice with the Task Force.

2.2 Underlying principles

The JBC has formulated and accepted a set of principles that guide this Strategic Plan. These are i. Parliament’s intervention should strengthen accountability and the incentives for public managers and office holders to be fiscally responsible, to allocate resources to priorities and to minimise wastage. ii. The role Parliament defines for itself in the budget should balance influencing policy, with the right to make amendments with the obligation to hold the executive to account. iii. Parliament should engage with the outer years of the MTEF. iv. Parliament deliberations on the budget should focus on the financing of existing legislation and policy objectives (the link between policy and spending), and on the quality of spending and service delivery (on what is achieved with spending). v. Parliament should intervene if there is a mismatch between policy and budget, and between budget and spending (when budgets do not result in service delivery), when spending and financial management is poor and when there is wastage. vi. The JBCs role should be formulated in line with the Constitutional framework regarding the respective roles of the executive and the legislature on the one hand, and to the rights and obligations of Parliament on the other. This means that Parliament will not duplicate or take over the executive’s role of drafting and implementing the budget. Parliament’s role in the budget is primarily one of oversight over executive action, not of action itself. vii. Parliament’s role in the budget should not disrupt the integrity of the budget, or the integrity of the expenditure management system. The executive has superior information to draft the budget – amendments by parliament should not result in poorer budget decisions. viii. If spending departments’ new policy proposals have already been rejected by the executive, the parliamentary budget process should not allow an easy backdoor to fund new proposals. ix. Parliament should speak with a unified voice. Notwithstanding the right of each of the Houses to differ, the process in Parliament should allow the Houses to reach some consensus on reactions to the budget. x. The JBC’s role should not overtake that of portfolio and select committees. These committees are the engine of engagement with vote level budgets. The JBC’s role is that of coordination. It also has a substantive role in considering the distribution of available funds between votes. xi. The JBC’s process should make full use of other parallel processes, within Parliament and in relevant institutions outside of Parliament, such as the Financial and Fiscal Commission (FFC) and the Office of the Auditor-General (OAG). The JBC should endeavour to liaise with these institutions, and ensure that it receives the full benefit of on- going work in these institutions. xii. The JBC process should respect the NCOP’s unique role in terms of presenting provincial interests. The NCOP’s role does not need to mirror or duplicate that of the NA, but should be complementary.

2.3 Strategic Plan process

This document is the result of a two-day workshop held on 20 and 21 May 2005 in Gordonsbay. At the workshop the JBC received briefings from the National Treasury, the FFC and the Office of the Auditor General. The workshop was the culmination of a process started in February 2005 with a first working session regarding the TORs of the JBC.

1. Activities

The JBC is facing the challenge of developing its role and work methods from the current state of affairs to its vision: playing a substantive and meaningful role in a fully developed parliamentary budget process. The activities set out below are therefore undertaken with the strategic intent of expanding its role while paying due attention to capacity constraints. For convenience its activities are arranged against the budget cycle – budget preparation, budget approval, budget execution, and audit. In deliberating its activities for each phase, the JBC developed a set of guiding decisions that demarcated its scope of work. For each phase these decisions are recorded first, followed by the resulting activities, which are set out in numbered format in a table.

3.1 Conceptualising the JBC’s role in budget preparation

Guiding JBC decisions for activities Budget preparation refers to the prioritization and allocation phases of the budget process (as set out in the diagram below) that lasts from April in previous year until the budget is tabled in Parliament. • The JBC will not actively participate (ie have a decision-making role) in the budget preparation process: that is the prerogative of the executive. • In order to prepare thoroughly for its role in reviewing the MTBPS, the MTEF and the Appropriation Bill, the JBC will request briefings from the Executive at key points in the process. • Also, the JBC will attempt to influence in the preparation process. For this the JBC will submit a pre-budget report to Parliament, which will set out issues of concern on account of Parliament’s oversight over spending and spending departments, e.g. under spending in votes, poor implementation of policies, poor service delivery, unauthorized spending etc. JBCs work on quarterly reports and its engagement with Portfolio and Select Committees’ oversight work, will determine content of pre-budget report • It is important for JBC to slot into earliest feasible slot on 2006/7 process which is already underway.

Activities in the Budget Preparation Phase |Objective | |Input into and early view on policy priorities, new spending | |policies and outstanding issues | |Activities | |2006/7 – 2008/9 drafting cycle | |1. The JBC will be briefed by National Treasury at earliest possible| |point on | |Budget process and Treasury Guidelines | |Cabinet’s guidelines regarding budget priorities | |Outstanding issues on spending departments’ budgets | |The JBC will receive further briefings on outcomes of executive | |processes as cycle unfolds | |2. The JBC will receive briefings by Finance and Fiscal Commission | |on its recommendations on the Division of Revenue Bill; and the | |outcome of FFC research in other areas | |3. The JBC will continue to work with the NT to maintain and develop| |observation status in key executive events | |4. The Portfolio and Select Committees will be briefed by spending | |departments on new spending policies submitted to Treasury in terms | |of the budget process guidelines. | |5. The Portfolio and Select Committees will channel comments / | |concerns to JBC for inclusion in pre-budget report to executive | |6. The JBC will provide a pre-budget report to executive in time for| |meeting of Ministers’ Committee on Budget in October. The JBC will | |design a process for this report, including whether it will be | |tabled in the main House, and whether a response will be requested | |from the executive and when. | |7. The JBC will meet on the MTBPS, consider whether its concerns | |have been addressed and report to Parliament. The JBC will decide | |closer to the time whether to conduct hearings. | |2007/8 – 2009/10 preparation cycle | |8. The JBC will review the effectiveness of its activities in the | |2006/7—2008/9 cycle early in 2006 and develop a programme for 2007/8| |to 2009/10 along similar lines. | |9. In addition the JBC will identify key issues for in depth | |research (Public Expenditure Review style) in the 2007/8 to 2009/10 | |cycle in October 2005 in order to inform its engagement in this | |cycle | |10. The JBC will highlight areas of concern for drafting 2007/8 to | |2009/10 in its report after the first reading of 2006/7 Budget |

3.2 Conceptualising the JBC’s role in the Legislative phase

Guiding decisions

1. The legislative phase starts when the Budget is tabled and ends when the relevant Acts are passed. • Parliament has the strongest constitutional mandate in the legislative phase of the budget process. • The JBC will review allocations in line with government’s spending priorities and existing legislation. • The JBC will however not attempt in depth engagement with all spending. Given current capacity constraints, the JBC will rather focus on specific, substantive spending areas or departments. These areas will be identified in advance of the budget being tabled, on account of its oversight over actual expenditure and its interaction with Portfolio and Select Committees. The JBC will also use its interaction with the executive in the budget preparation phase to identify priority focus areas. These might be in line with the executive’s spending priorities. • In the legislative phase the JBC will utilize the budget documentation to o Relate past performance to spending plans o Ascertain whether concerns in drafting phase have received attention • The JBC will coordinate its investigation into specific spending areas with relevant portfolio and select committees • In engaging with the budget as tabled in the immediate future, the JBC would pay particular attention to o Funding of new spending policies o Changes over baseline o Capital projects funding and implementation o Intergovernmental issues (FFC report) o Financial management issues

Activities in the Legislative Phase |Objective | |Meaningful engagement with budget in approval phase, facilitation of | |public debate and budget transparency on budgeting issues | |Activities | |For Budget 2006/7 | |1. The JBC will develop a process and discuss it with stakeholders in | |Parliament at the end of 2005 to include Portfolio Committee and | |Select Committee input into its activities for Budget 2006/7. | |2. The JBC will hold hearings on selected issues after budget day. | |3. The JBC will compile a report for Parliament | |The Report will present findings and make recommendations on the | |effectiveness and efficiency of spending in specific areas as | |investigated over the course of the budget cycle. | |If relevant, the report will also make recommendations on new issues | |arising from the Committee’s deliberations | |If relevant, the report will make recommendations on budget | |allocations more broadly (in other words on the distribution of | |expenditure between spending areas) relating to the executive’s | |overall policy priorities and relating to existing legislation. | |The report will include recommendations not only on budget policy | |issues, but also on issues of financial management where relevant | |These recommendations will be aimed at | |Addressing progress on concerns highlighted in pre-budget report | |Highlighting areas of concern for upcoming budget (for which | |preparation in executive is just starting), in other words, engage | |with forward treatment in budget preparation of allocations in outer | |years | |Highlighting areas of concern for engagement with actual expenditure | |reports | |Highlighting areas of concern for Portfolio and Select Committee | |follow-up | |For Budget 2007/8 | |4. The JBC will review its set of post-budget activities in the course| |of 2006 for Budget 2007/8, taking into account the outcome of the | |Taskforce on Oversight and Accountability. |

The diagram below sets out role and activities up to point of budget approval.

Diagram 1: JBC Role and Activities in Budget Preparation and Approval Phases

  [pic]

3.3 Principles for JBC activities during Budget Execution

Guiding Decisions

1. The JBC has a mandate to monitor the actual revenue and expenditure reports published by the National Treasury. In fulfilling this task the JBC will • Link up its monitoring with its pre-budget work. In other words, it will track spending areas and issues it highlighted in the pre-budget and budget report. • Coordinate with Portfolio and Select Committees by o Alerting these committees to issues that should be tracked or that arise from the actual revenue and expenditure reports o Coordinating oversight on actual revenue and expenditure with oversight of Annual Reports and Strategic Plans • Target specific spending areas and departments on account of o Experience with quarterly reports (year-on-year) o Scopa and OAG o From government policy priorities (eg DTI re job creation)

2. In order to practise effective oversight the monthly and quarterly reports on their own are not enough. They need to be complemented by additional information from departments (through sector committees) • the JBC would need monthly cash flow projections and the operational plans of spending departments. • It would also need additional information on the strategic plan linkages to budget and the quarterly reports. Given current capacity, it is clear that the JBC will not be able to engage in depth with all spending areas. It will therefore focus on specific spending areas to investigate beyond the numbers.

3. The JBC will utilise monthly and quarterly cash flow reports to • Watch for implementation of new spending policies (request additional information from identified departments) • Underspending / savings • Pull through issues identified into implementation • Identify areas for closer focus • Personnel spending (vacancies and filled posts; particularly where personnel sizable portion of budget)

Activities in the Execution Phase |Objective | |Effective parliamentary oversight over the implementation of the | |budget, service delivery in line with plans | |Activities (2005/6) | |1. The JBC will request aggregate monthly cash flow projections for | |all spending departments as soon as possible, plus updates during | |the year where relevant | |2. JBC will request more detailed cash flow projections and | |operational plans from specific spending departments, in | |coordination with the relevant Portfolio and Select Committees | |3. The JBC will request briefings from specific departments, in | |coordination with the relevant Portfolio and Select Committees, on | |Strategic Plan linkages to budget and operational plans and to the | |cashflow projections. | |4. The JBC will request follow-up briefings, in coordination with | |the relevant Portfolio and Select Committees, on implementation in | |line with Strategic Plan and Budgets, and on the achievement of | |spending undertaken for specific spending departments. | |5. The JBC will commission research on budget implementation in | |specific spending areas and departments (in coordination with the | |relevant Portfolio and Select Committees), piloting in 2005 – if | |funds can be raised – and extending the programme in 2006. | |6. The JBC will compile quarterly reports for Parliament that | |relates the actual revenue and spending reports to budget | |implementation and service delivery. The reports will comment on | |progress with budget implementation overall. The reports will draw | |on investigations into specific spending areas by commenting on | |The timeliness of activities of the spending department | |The efficiency of spending and the speediness and quality of service| |delivery (JBC not only to investigate whether spending is taking | |place, but to which effect) | |7. At end of fiscal year the JBC will compile a briefing report to | |SCOPA highlighting areas of high concern on account of its | |engagement with budget implementation. |

The JBC expects to make slow progress in moving from commenting on spending to coordinate work on and commenting on the timeliness, quality and efficiency of service delivery on back of the actual revenue and expenditure reports. However, it will endeavour to shift its practice in this direction from the 2005/6 spending year.

Committee structure and work method

The following principles were formulated for how the committee will work to fulfill the tasks set out above.

1. There will be specialization within the committee. Specific members will be assigned to specific sub-committees charged with engaging with specific spending areas, Portfolio and Select Committees and spending departments.
2. The Committee will deliberate further as to whether this specialization in the current cycle will be in line with the identified areas of investigation, or whether it will organize itself immediately in broad functional sub-committees, to which specific spending area issues will be assigned. The latter carries the benefit of being permanent for this Parliament, and of more in-depth engagement over time.
3. The sub-committees will be the engines of the JBCs work. In other words, the committee will meet mainly as a full committee a. In September/October to agree and compile the pre-budget report b. At the time of the MTBPS c. After the Budget has been tabled d. On a quarterly basis (see point 6 below) However, the JBC Chair may call a full committee meeting at any point.
4. Portfolio and Select committees will be invited to delegate a ‘budget specialist’ who will a. act as ‘floating’ members of the JBC, that is join the JBC and relevant JBC sub-committees b. be the liaison with the JBC c. facilitate joint sittings of the Portfolio and Select Committees and the JBC sub-committee to undertake the activities as set out above. The JBC will work through the Chairs of the relevant committees to agree and operationalise the system. Part of this process would be to agree what level of representation the “budget specialist” will enjoy on the JBC: whether as observers or full members.
5. The JBC will undertake in full committee and as sub-committees joint sittings – albeit in the budget preparation and approval or implementation phases – with Portfolio and Select Committees to a. Deliberate on areas highlighted and formulate report findings and recommendations b. Receive briefings from spending departments and National Treasury on specific spending areas and issues The JBC may at times formulate findings and recommendations not in a joint sitting, but with the participation of the ‘budget specialist’ only.
6. On a quarterly basis the JBC will have extended meetings to a. Agree on forward work of sub-committees b. Report back on on-going work in sub-committees c. Agree on Quarterly report to Parliament.
7. The JBC may create ad-hoc sub-committees to look at cross-cutting areas. Members of Portfolio and Select Committees may be invited onto these committees.
8. When the cluster system is in place, the JBC will align its operations to make use of the system.
9. The JBC will commission research into specific spending areas that it targets for engagement.
10. The JBC may undertake oversight visits to spending departments or to service delivery sites as part of its oversight work.
11. The JBC will draft a proposal before end 2005 to establish a Parliamentary Budget Office. To this end it will delegate a sub- committee.

12. The JBC will formulate a strategy to increase financial resources of the committee in the meantime, to undertake research and further development work.

13. Operationalising the Strategic Plan

This strategic plan is at a fairly high level. The JBC needs to undertake further development, as well as monitoring activities in support of strategic plan implementation. This section briefly discusses the further planning and budgeting; and monitoring and evaluation activities that are required.

5.1 Planning and budgeting

The JBC needs to programme steps in specific activity areas – for example getting agreement from parliamentary structures on coordination between the committee and other committees and developing a methodology for undertaking public expenditure reviews. It also needs to develop a guideline financial requirement for undertaking the identified activities, and prioritise its activities against its existing and potential financial resources. These activities will be undertaken in the 3rd quarter of 2005, resulting in an operational plan for 2005/6. A draft implementation plan is provided in Annex 1. This plan will be finalized in the 3rd quarter of 2005/6.

5.2 Monitoring and Evaluation

The JBC will monitor the effectiveness of its Strategy by holding a quarterly review meeting – in September 2005, November 2005, February 2006 and May 2006 – to monitor progress with strategy implementation, do a scan for changes in the national budget environment, identify obstacles to strategy implementation and formulate mitigation strategies. The JBC will adjust the strategy in year if required. The meeting in May 2006 will be more extensive, and will be utilized to roll over the Strategy Document for 2007/8 – 2009/10 budget cycle.

         Annex 1. Draft Operational Plan Outline and Budget



                          Operational Plan

1. INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS

   • The Committee considered and approved the Southern African Customs Union Agreement on 4 February 2004. • The Committee considered and approved the Protocol on the Amendments to the Constitutive Act of the African Union and the Explanatory Memorandum to the Protocol on 4 February 2004. • The Committee considered and approved the Protocol Relating to the Madrid Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Trade Marks, tabled in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution, 1996 and the Explanatory Memorandum on the Ratification of the Madrid and Hague Systems on the Registration of Trade Marks and Designs on 13 October 2004. • The Committee considered and approved the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs on 13 October 2004.

2. SCHEDULE OF MEETINGS (BRIEFINGS, HEARINGS, ETC)

1. OVERSIGHT

   Subject Matter	Date(s)	Names of	Venue	No of
   		attendants		hrs
   				spent
   International	01-04 June	Ms N Ndalane	International	4 days
   Conference for	2004	(ANC)	Congress Centre
   Renewable			in Bonn Germany
   Energies
   Induction	03 / 05	Ms N Ntwanambi	New DTI Campus	3 days
   Programme on	October 2004	(ANC)	(Pretoria)
   DTI’s New		Ms S Mabe (ANC)
   Campus		Mr J Sibiya
   		(ANC)
   		Ms P Themba
   		(ANC)
   		Mr D G Mkono
   		(ANC)
   		Ms JF Terblanche
   		(DA)
   		Ms S Chen (DA)
   		Mr K Sinclair
   		(NNP)
   		Ms P Mpoyiya
   		(staff)
   		Mr M Erasmus
   		(staff)

2. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS Budget allocated to Committee R 345, 861 Catering R 6, 207 Oversight visits R 68, 022

3. FORMAL ADOPTION OF ANNUAL REPORT BY THE COMMITTEE

   The Committee adopted its Annual Report for 2004 on 31 May 2005. ……………………………………………. ………………………………………

COMMITTEE SECRETARY DATE

……………………………………………. ………………………………………

CONTROL COMMITTEE SECRETARY DATE

……………………………………………. ………………………………………

COMMITTEE CHAIRPERSON DATE

1. APPENDICES

   Composition of Committee

    Membership
   

(alt) = alternate member

  b.    Committee Support Staff

  Control Committee Secretary:      Mr Khaya Lala
       Period:                           2004 to date


              Committee Secretary:        Ms Gadija Abdullatief
       Period:                           May 2003 to date


                                   Stand-in: Ms Koliswa Pasiya
                                    April to June 2004


                                    Stand-in: Mr Martiens Erasmus
                                    July to September 2004


       Committee Assistant (Acting):     Ms Nobesuthu Sihawu
       Period:                           May 2003 to date


        Secretary to Chairperson:   Ms Rosalind Molloy-Titus
       Period:                           August 2004 to date


              Researcher (Research Unit): None


       Legal Support:                    No dedicated legal support


                       FRIDAY, 19 AUGUST 2005

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. Assent by President in respect of Bills

(1)    Co-operatives Bill [B 4B – 2005] – Act No 14 of 2005 (assented
     to and signed by President on 14 August 2005).

1. Classification of Bills by Joint Tagging Mechanism

 (1)    The Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) on 17 August 2005 in terms of
     Joint Rule 160(3), classified the following Bill as a section 75
     Bill:


     (i)     Constitutional Matters Amendment Bill [B 22 – 2005]
          (National Assembly – sec 75).


 (2)    The Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) on 17 August 2005 in terms of
     Joint Rule 160(4), classified the following Bill as a section 76
     Bill:


     (i)     Education Laws Amendment Bill [B 23 – 2005] (National
     Assembly – sec 76).

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces:

1. The Speaker and the Chairperson

   a) General Report of the Auditor-General on the Audit Outcomes of Local Government for the financial year ended 30 June 2004 [RP 73-2005].

   b) Report of the South African Delegation to the Third Ordinary Session of the Pan-African Parliament, 29 March – 11 April 2005, held at Gallagher Estates, Midrand:

                          Executive Summary
   

Section A

1. Background

The report outlines the proceedings of the third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament, which took place between 29 March 2005 and 11 April 2005.

The third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) was marked by the opening address by President Gertrude Mongella, and solidarity speeches by Speakers of various National Parliaments including the Hon Ms B Mbete, Speaker of the Parliament of South Africa.

The Hon. Speaker of the National Assembly of Uganda spoke for all Speakers on the continent, while the Speaker of the Parliament of South Africa spoke in her capacity as the leader of the delegation of the host country. Both Speakers noted the successes of both the Pan-African Parliament as an institution, and the importance of the institution in uniting Africa’s people. While the Speaker of Uganda highlighted the strengths of the President of the Pan-African Parliament, whom he commended for honouring all women of Africa and the world. The Speaker of South Africa highlighted the importance of the Pan-African Parliament in reclaiming Africa’s land, and leading the continent in creating its own destiny.

The President of the Pan-African Parliament, Hon. Gertrude Mongella paid tribute to the late 4th Vice President, Hon Jerome Sacca Kina Guezere of the Pan-African Parliament. The President also noted the important role that South Africa had played in housing the Pan-African Parliament and providing structures for this purpose. The President further referred to the important role of the commission of the African Union, National Governments and the need for a budget for the Pan-African Parliament. The President further highlighted important achievements of the Pan-African Parliament, including the peacekeeping mission to Darfur.

1. Plenary Debates and Committee Meetings

The agenda of the third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament was conducted both in meetings of committees, as well as in the Plenary. The purpose of the committee meetings was to work through committee work programmes and for each committee to come up with at least three priorities. Committees that are covered in the report include:

• The Committee on Rules, Privileges  and  Discipline  –  the  Committee
  prioritised the  Code  of  Conduct  for  members  of  the  Pan-African
  Parliament and the Draft Proposal  on  guidelines  for  oversight  and
  accountability for the Pan-African Parliament.
• The Committee on Co-operation, International  Relations  and  Conflict
  Resolution – the Committee has  identified  a  number  of  events  and
  resource  mobilisation  in  order  to   coordinate   cooperation   and
  peacekeeping efforts within and outside the continent.
• Committee on Trade, Customs and Immigration Matters  –  the  Committee
  prioritised a fact finding mission to the Commissioners of  trade  and
  industry, and Social Affairs of the African Union  Commission  to  get
  status reports on their activities with particular reference to  trade
  regulations, tariff laws, immigration rules, regulations and laws.
• Committee on Transport, Industry, Communications, Energy, Science  and
  Technology  –  in  addition  to  intensive  committee  discussions  of
  transport problems in Africa, the Committee presented a report to  the
  House on the  important  aspects  of  the  industries  that  had  been
  identified.  The report was debated and adopted in the House.
• Committee on Justice and Human  Rights  –  the  Committee  prioritised
  capacity building for all members of the Committee on their roles  and
  functions in relation to the overall mandate of the Committee.

1. Recommendations

The House adopted the following recommendations:

1. Pan-African Parliament Peace Mission to Darfur (PAP-Rec. 001/05)
2. World Summit on Information Society (PAP – Rec. 002/05)
3. The African Land Title System (PAP-Rec. 003/05)
4. The Creation of an African Phytogenetic Resource Bank (PAP-Rec.004/05)
5. Communications and Information Infrastructure in Africa (PAP-Rec. 005/05)
6. The request directed to States who have not yet ratified the Constitutive Act of the Union and its Protocol (PAP-Rec.006/05)

7. Encouraging Pan-African Investment and Financing Institutions to Focus on Africa’s Rural Economy (PAP-Rec.007/05)

8. RESOLUTIONS

9. Signing of Adherence to the African Peer Review Mechanism (PAP-Res. 001/05)
10. Resolution on the Development of a Continental Code of Conduct (PAP- Res.002/05)
11. Appreciation of the Intervention of the President of the African Union in the Togo Crisis (003/05)
12. Appreciation of the Work of Mr. Kofi Annan, The Secretary General to the United Nations (PAP-Res.004/05)
13. Resolution Relating to the Presidential Elections in Togo on 24 April 2005 (PAP-Res. 005/05)
14. Establishment of Pan African Investment and Financing Institutions for African’s Rural Economy (PAP-Res. 002/05)
15. Designing Continental Policy Programmes for Environmental Protection and Efficient Utilisation of Natural Resource (PAP-Res. 004/05)
16. Appreciation to H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, Chairperson of the African Union, for his Actions on the Togo Crisis (PAP-Res.005/05)
17. Dispatch of a PAP Mission to Cote D’Ivoire at the Beginning of May 2005 (PAP-Res.009/05)
18. Dispatch of a PAP Peace Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo During the First Fortnight of May 2005 (PAP-Res.10/05)
19. Congratulating H.E. Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, on his Success in Achieving a Peace Agreement Between the Warring Parties in Cote D’Ivoire (PAP-Res.008/05)

Section B

1. INTRODUCTION

The Third Ordinary Session of the Pan-African Parliament took place from 29 March to 11 April 2005 at Gallagher Estate, Midrand, Johannesburg.

The South African Pan-African Parliamentarians were: Ms. B. Mbete (Leader of the delegation), Mr. M.J. Mahlangu (Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces), Mrs. F. Hajaig, Advocate Z.L. Madasa and Ms. S.C. Vos. The delegation was assisted by Mr. B. Nonyana (support to Mr. Mahlangu), Ms. A. Barnard (Support to Ms. Mbete), Ms. B. Diutlwileng (Researcher), Ms. B. Letompa (Researcher) and Mrs. J. P. Merckel (Administrator).

The Third Ordinary Session of the Pan-African Parliament was marked by the opening ceremony that took place on Tuesday, 29 March 2005 and included solidarity speeches by various Speakers of National Parliaments including South Africa’s Speaker, Hon Ms Baleka Mbete. From Wednesday, 30 March to Monday, 11 April 2005, committee work and plenaries took place in earnest. The volume of work covered by the 10 committees and the quality of the debates in plenary showed the level of dedication and will to succeed from all the Pan-African Parliamentarians, particularly the South African members who made salient contributions to both the committee work programme and the debates in the House. At least two South African members participated in each debate over the 14 days, with firm commitments from all South African members to provide ongoing support to the Pan-African Parliament during its infant stage. An example of this commitment was displayed by Hon Mr Mahlangu who made himself available to assist with the drafting of a Code of Conduct for the Pan-African Parliamentarians and defining the Oversight and Accountability role of the Pan-African Parliament as an effective organ of the African Union.

The third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament was graced by excellent presentations by in particular Ambassador Djinnit, New Economic Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) on HIV and Aids in Africa. On Friday, 08 April 2005, the third ordinary session was privileged to be in the presence of 8 previous Heads of State including the Prime Minister of Cote D’Ivoire, following the successful signing of the Pretoria Agreement on Cote D’Ivoire, a peace agreement brokered mainly by the H.E. President T M Mbeki.

1. ISSUES DEBATED IN THE HOUSE

The third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament focused on the following issues:

2.1 Solidarity Speeches.

2.2 Administrative issues, including: • The 2005 Budget. • Annual Report. • Work plan of the Pan-African Parliament. • Establishment of a trust fund. • Launching of the Pan-African Parliament website.

1. Procedural and process issues, including • Strengthening Committees • Consideration of Committee priorities • Consideration of Committee work plans.

2. Debates on issues of continental significance. Topics that were debated include: • The Millennium Development Goals. • United Nations Reform. • Combating HIV/AIDS in Africa. • Transportation and Communication problems in Africa. • Report on Peace Mission to Darfur • Agricultural problems in Africa.

The third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament was attended by 194 members from 39 member states.

1. Official Opening

Hon. Gertrude Mongella, M.P, President of the Pan-African Parliament, led the delegation in meditation and silent prayer and thereafter proceeded to invite various speakers to present messages of solidarity. Solidarity Speeches i) Speaker of Parliament: Uganda

The Hon.Speaker of the National Assembly of Uganda noted that the occasion of the Third ordinary session of the Pan-African Parliament marked the first anniversary of the Pan-African Parliament, which was inaugurated on the 1 of March 2004. The Speaker congratulated the first President of the Pan-African Parliament and indicated that Hon. Mongella honoured all women of the world, but particularly the women of Africa. He also saluted the founders of the Pan-African Parliament and highlighted the successes of the Pan-African Parliament and African Union (AU), particularly the peacekeeping successes, which are to promote peace, and security in areas like Darfur in Sudan. The Speaker also highlighted challenges that the Parliament faces, including funding. In conclusion, the Speaker extended gratitude to the South African Government for the support provided, including the building structure that houses the Pan-African Parliament.

        ii) Speaker of Parliament:  South Africa

Hon. Mbete noted that although the past year was a challenging one, the Pan- African Parliament has recorded many successes, which included achievements with regard to the Rules of Procedure. The Speaker indicated that the Constitutive Act of the African Union guided the rules and that the Pan- African Parliament did not have full legislative powers, but assumed an advisory role over Parliaments.

The Speaker indicated that it had been a challenge to set up clear oversight functions. One of the major challenges of the Pan-African Parliament is that it is not yet a fully legislative body, but only assumes an advisory role over Parliaments. It is important for the Pan-African Parliament to critically examine delivery by national Governments. In addition, although committees have been formed, there is still a need for clear programmes so as to provide positive feedback to member countries.

The Speaker noted that Africa was once regarded as part of Europe, and that Africa is now determined to reclaim its soil and create its own destiny. In conclusion, the Speaker stressed the need and importance of taking pride in the Pan-African Parliament, ensuring that it is not just a talk-shop and that it has substance. It was also important to ensure that at the end of the Third Ordinary Session, clear programmes for Committee work would be in place and positive feedback should be provided to member countries.

iii) Keynote Address: President of the Pan African Parliament (Hon. Ambassador Gertrude Ibengwe Mongella)

H.E. Ambassador Mongella made a formal announcement of the passing away of the 4th Vice-President of the Pan-African Parliament, Hon. Jerome Sacca Kina Guezere, who died on 11 January 2005 in his home country Benin after taking ill in Accra, Ghana. The President, as well as several other speakers, paid tribute to the late Vice President and requested a moment of silence in remembrance.

President Mongella highlighted the important role that South Africa has played in the establishment of the Pan-African Parliament and expressed appreciation to the host country and other national parliaments from across the continent for their support and contribution towards the development of the Parliament[1].

  Key players in the development of the Pan-African Parliament had been:

• The Commission of African Union: The Commission of African Union, in particular the Commission for Political Affairs, spearheaded the process of launching the Pan-African Parliament. The Commission continues to provide financial and human resources that facilitate the functioning of the Pan-African Parliament. • The Host Country: The South African Government, and particularly H.E President Thabo Mbeki, has demonstrated total commitment and support to the Pan-African Parliament. The host government has provided services and support according to the Host Country Agreement by ensuring the availability of the required buildings, staff, infrastructure and services for the smooth operation of the Pan-African Parliament. • National Parliaments: National Parliaments have taken the responsibility of covering travel and subsistence costs for their delegates to the Pan- African Parliament during the committees and plenary meetings. In addition, the Speakers of National Parliaments have contributed to and supported the Pan-African Parliament at its initial stage of development.

The Parliament has carried out its activities under the leadership of the Bureau composed of the President and the 4th Vice-Presidents. According to Article 12 (5) the President and the Vice Presidents shall be the Officers’ of the Pan African Parliament. In the discharge of their duties, the officers are assisted by the Clerk and the two Deputy Clerks. The Bureau appointed an Interim Clerk and two Deputy Clerks while the Parliament was waiting for the approval of its budget for the recruitment of permanent staff. The Pan-African Parliament had adopted its own rules and procedures and formed 10 Parliamentary Committees according to Article 12 (1) and 12 (13), during its Second Ordinary Session in September 2004.

Swahili was introduced as a working language during the second session, bringing to the number of working languages of the Parliament to 5. Some of the successes of the Parliament include:

    • The mission to Darfur – investigating issues of conflict in
      Darfur.  Africa is showing leadership in the resolution to address
      the numerous challenges.  The President congratulated the
      committee that visited Sudan under difficult circumstances and at
      a time of conflict.
    •  The  Pan-African  Parliament  has  established  an  agreement  of
      understanding with several continental  and  regional  structures.
      Cooperation is expected to strengthen technical capabilities.
    • The Bureau Committee meetings have developed 2005 work  plans  and
      the Pan-African Parliament’s strategic plan to be discussed during
      this third session.
    • The Bureau has carried out a number  of  advocacy  initiatives  to
      popularise the Parliament within and outside Africa with the  hope
      of establishing institutional relationships and partnerships  with
      institutions of a similar nature e.g. The  Parliamentary  Assembly
      of the Council of Europe;  the  European  Union  (EU)  Parliament,
      European  Parliamentarians  for  Africa  (AWEPA);  United  Nations
      Department  of  Economic  and  Social  Affairs  (UNDESA).     Such
      cooperation is expected to build strong technical capacity  within
      the Parliament.
    • The Pan-African Parliament  is  in  the  process  of  looking  for
      additional funding.  In this regard,  agreements  have  been  made
      with the United States of America, Europe and other countries.
    • The Bureau has examined the need to provide  the  Parliament  with
      the necessary resources.  At this third session there  will  be  a
      discussion on the establishment of the Trust Fund as an additional
      source of funding for Pan-African Parliament’s activities.

The ultimate goal is to make the Pan-African Parliament truly representative of the people of Africa in social, economic and political issues around the continent, as well as in international bodies so as to ensure that the agendas of Africa are considered by multilateral institutions. In addition, the Pan-African Parliament seeks to embrace programmes such as the NEPAD in addressing social and economic development of the continent, to protect the human rights of the African people, to manage the globalisation process by influencing the international agenda, as well as to enhance partnerships for effective resource sharing and advocacy.

1. Administration Process and Procedural Issues

The agenda for the Third Ordinary Session of the Pan-African Parliament, made allowance for various subjects to be debated in Plenary. The plenary sessions were robust and included inputs from all members of the South African Delegation.

Election of 4th Vice President

A new Vice-President was elected to replace the late 4th Vice-President of the Pan-African Parliament. Two candidates were nominated and Hon. Member Natra Keofile from Benin was elected.

Annual Report

The Annual Report was tabled in the House and was debated and adopted.

Work plan[2]

The House considered a comprehensive work plan for the Pan-African Parliament for 2005. The 2005 work plan focused on the following key issues:

          •  Formulation  of  a  strategic  plan  to  support   resource
            mobilisation efforts.  This includes  resource  mobilisation
            for  Pan-African  Parliament  activities  and  institutional
            capacity-building.   • The need for an image building campaign for the Pan-African Parliament.   • Preparation and consideration  of  the  Pan-African  Parliament’s  2006
budget.   • Consideration of the 2006 African Union budget, as well as  reports  of
other AU structures.   • Consideration of Committee reports and special missions reports.   • Consideration of the Pan-African Parliament’s Annual Report as well  as
the annual reports of other structures of the African Union.   •  Consideration  and  establishment  of  the  Pan-African   Parliament’s
website.

The work plan was widely accepted and adopted with the view that it could have been more specific and detailed in terms of activities, relationships with similar bodies and other organs of the African Union, the specific continental role of the Pan-African Parliament and expatiation on the Pan- African Parliament’s mandate.

Annual Budget[3]

The Annual Budget of the Pan-African Parliament was tabled in the House. After some robust and intense debating, the Annual budget was adopted.

The PAP submitted a budget proposal of $6.9 Million, out of which $5.6 Million was approved by the AU executive council. The council effected several amendments to the budget, including: • A reduction of $737 288 in common staff costs; the reduction was due to the elimination of the recruitment costs, installation allowances and group insurance; as well as the reduction of the education allowance. • A reduction of $534 000 in the supplies and services budget. The reduction in this budget was due to the elimination of the responsibility allowance for Members of Parliament. • A reduction of $36 611 in the meetings and seminars budget. The budget for translators was reduced to cover 10 instead of 15 translators per session.

In total, the original budget was reduced by $1 307 899. Members expressed concern over the reduction of the budget, as well as the delay in the transfer of funds and indicated that this could have a negative impact on the activities of the Pan-African Parliament.

Hon. Dr Faika El-Refaie, seconded by Hon. Saida Agrebi, presented a written motion in terms of rule 61 that the House urges the African Union Commission to transfer the funds of the Pan-African Parliament budget without further delay, in order to enable the Parliament to carry out its mandate in accordance with the Constitutive Act, the Protocol and the Rules of Procedure.

Trust Fund

The Committee on Monetary and Financial Affairs presented a motion for the Parliament to grant permission for the establishment of a trust fund as an additional means to mobilise resources to support the work of the Pan- African Parliament. The trust fund will be beneficial, not only in accelerating the implementation of the programmes of the Parliament, but also in multiplying the direct benefits of regional cooperation as well as contributing to peace building, democratic governance, gender equality and the harmonisation of regional laws.

The trust fund would further enable the continental Parliament to function effectively and mobilise funds worldwide in order to supplement the African Union financial support. Funders prefer trust funds because a trust fund would enable them to have input in the management of such a fund. The Committee thus recommended that a trust fund would go a long way in building capacity for the Pan-African Parliament, as well as enable the Pan- African Parliament to be financially independent and thereby reducing its dependence on national governments and enhancing its oversight role.

The House adopted the motion and the President indicated that as soon as the trust fund is established, the Bureau should immediately set up the rules and regulations in relation to it.

1. Topics for Discussion

Debate on Transport, Industry, Communication, Energy, Science and Technology

The Chairperson of the Permanent Committee on Transport, Industry, Communication, Energy, Science and Technology presented a report on resolving communication and transport problems in Africa. The report highlighted the fact that the absence of transport infrastructure and sectoral plans to ensure links within and between sectors has seriously impeded social and economic development in Africa. It is therefore important to equip the continent with appropriate infrastructure, and more particularly with transport and communications networks that will facilitate trade and circulation.

African rail networks have not yet put in place regional connections able to foster true economic cooperation and ensure complementarity in development efforts in Africa, and also to facilitate trade between African countries. The renovation and modernisation of railway networks in Africa is a priority: doubling of existing tracks, renewal of facilities, maintenance of railway tracks and electrification of lines. This will ensure more efficient facilitation of the transport of goods.

African countries are adversely affected by poor road, maritime and air travel infrastructure, which need to be reorganised and modernised. The evaluation of the transport sector: land, sea and air, and the prospect of their development, has been recorded as a priority activity in the NEPAD framework. The Committee called upon all political and economic roleplayers tasked with the implementation of NEPAD to commit all necessary resources and means at their disposal to activating the development of the road and rail infrastructure through the construction of a regional connection likely to attain regional integration in the field of land and rail transport.

The Committee recommended the launch of extension, modernisation, harmonisation and electrification of railway lines. The Committee further recommended the rehabilitation of African ports and the extension of their capacity to be able to cope with container transport through links between all maritime regions in Africa.

The Committee identified a need to introduce a prevention and security policy as well as for rigorous control against maritime pollution. There is also a need for cooperation between African maritime companies so that their personnel can benefit from training in the fields of navigation, naval and repair work, upkeep and maintenance.

The Pan-African Parliament should commit all its Members to work within their own Parliaments and countries in order to get closer to the experts responsible for NEPAD follow-up. This should be done in order to allow Members to acquaint themselves with the realities of the road, rail, sea and air networks and to ensure the wide dissemination of the recommendations of the Pan-African Parliament.

The report was debated and widely accepted by Members as highly informative and crucial. The house therefore adopted the report.

The Speaker of the Republic of South Africa raised an oral motion in terms of Rule 62 that the Committee on Communication and Transport must conduct a comprehensive research study of all Transport and Communication problems in Africa and come up with solutions in this regard. This report should then be debated and adopted in the House.

Debate on Rural Economy, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment

The Committee on Rural Economy, Agriculture, Natural Resources and Environment made a presentation on the actions that must be taken by the Pan-African Parliament to harmonise state and regional policies, legislation and actions which would enable the continent to emerge from its current poverty. The Committee looked into ways in which the PAP can assist member states to adopt the Pan-African doctrine to integrate the rural economy components into a productive zeal for the continent.

The Committee recommended that Parliament carry out a continental study of the current position of each member state with a view to identifying common problems and programmes. Such a study needed to identify the existing policies aimed at solving rural economy, agriculture, natural resources and environment problems as well as enhancing existing programmes, with a view to adopting common policies which will ensure collective development on the continent.

Such policies should be popularised through seminars, public meetings in each state and communication through the media, to make the public aware of their existence. Meanwhile, the Pan-African Parliament and all other organs of the African Union should promote peace, security and good governance as necessary conditions for development.

The predominance of agriculture in Africa’s rural economy should be recognised by governments and societies at large so as to accord this sector its due importance, in terms of financing, budgetary allocations, research and marketing of its products. The vital role of women in the development of Africa’s rural economy should be recognised and men and women should be treated more equally.

Africa’s environmental and natural resources are being carelessly depleted by the increase in human and animal populations. The Pan-African Parliament should, therefore, develop a continental policy to maintain the balance between the increasing populations and finite natural resources with a view to improving land fertility and agricultural production.

There is an urgent need for the African Union to establish a code of conduct for member states to abide by so as to ensure their fulfillment with the requirements of the code. Monitoring could be a big problem, hence the need for an enforcement mechanism such as the African Peer Review Mechanism. The Committee also presented a brief action programme for implementation.

Most Members expressed appreciation for the report and recommendations during the debate and the report was adopted.

Debate on the Pan-African Parliament Peace Mission to Darfur, Sudan

The Leader of the Fact-Finding Mission to Darfur, Hon. Abdul Katuntu, introduced the report of the Permanent Committee on Justice and Human Rights to the House, and the Rapporteur Hon. Halifa Sallah presented the report. The Committee recorded the following findings:

• The military aspect of the conflict in Darfur is that 80% of the tribesmen of Darfur carry weapons. This was a direct result of the conflict in the 70s and 80s between Libya and Chad, which did not leave Sudan unaffected by the proliferation of weapons. The acquisition of sophisticated weapons by tribesmen has led to their use in settling tribal conflicts. In addition, what started out as a tribal conflict between Nomads and farmers has taken on a political face and government and public property have been destroyed and 400 policemen killed. • A state of insecurity prevails among citizens and many people reported serious atrocities. Native administration has been torn apart and customary justice is in shambles. People were afraid to talk to the Committee for fear of reprisal. They complained about the continuous sound of gunfire, arrests without trial and pressure to go back to villages where there was no security. There was also a lot of distrust of the security forces, and the police, hence distrust and insecurity prevails. • One third of the population of Darfur had been displaced, between 1.5 to 2 million deaths reported and massive destruction of property has also been reported. There has also been recorded evidence of rape and violence against women. The Committee thus stated that the conflict in Darfur has resulted in a humanitarian disaster. The attempt to discuss HIV and AIDS in camps was unsuccessful.

Among others, the Mission strongly recommended the following:

• That the negotiation in governance on Darfur be speeded up and be time bound in order to provide the blueprint that would guarantee the political, economic and social rights of the population. • That the African Union facilitates the convening of a National Conference on peace, democratic governance and development in Sudan involving the government, the parties to all regional agreements and all stakeholders in general, to enable them to prepare a strategic document for the sharing of power and wealth among the regions. • That the mandate of the protectors in the cease-fire commission be enhanced to go beyond protecting military observers, to include protection of the population of Darfur. All necessary instruments, institutions and resources should be mobilised to ensure that the cease- fire agreement is respected. • That the Pan-African Parliament establishes a trust fund for humanitarian assistance to populations in conflict areas in Africa.

The report was debated and the recommendations were adopted. The report is attached as Annexure 5. Debates on Peace on Security Issues in Africa

• In accordance with Rule 38 (1) and 73 (2) of the Rules of Procedure, the Commissioner on Peace and Security of the African Union, Ambassador Said Djinnit made a statement on Peace and Security Issues in Africa. • Debate ensued on Peace and Security Issues in Africa in accordance with Rule 73(2) of the Rules of Procedure.

Debate on the Millennium Development Goals in Africa

The Chairperson of the Permanent Committee on Co-operation, International Relations and Conflict Resolution, Hon Elhadji Diao Kante, presented a report on achieving the Millennium Development Goals in Africa. The goals aim to:

1. Eliminate extreme poverty and hunger; as well as ensure education for all.
2. Promote sexual equality and the empowerment of women.
3. Reduce infantile mortality and improve maternal health.
4. Combat HIV and AIDS, malaria and other diseases.
5. Ensure a sustainable environment.
6. Set up a world partnership for development.

In order to reach these goals, each developing country is primarily responsible for its own development, which it must assume by: • Reinforcing governance and fighting corruption. • Adopting policies and making investments that will promote growth driven by the private sector. • Mobilising fully the available resources to finance national development strategies.

Developed countries committed themselves to ensuring that developing countries that adopt transparent, credible and accurately costed development strategies receive all the support they need in the form of increased development aid, a commercial system more firmly aligned with development and broader intensified debt relief.

A debate ensued wherein members called for a review of the Millenium Development Goals (MDGs) and the restructuring of the African socio- ecomonic policies in order to meet the MDGs. Furthermore it was stated that, there is a need for reform of multilateral institutions such as the United Nations and the World Trade Organisation (WTO) to ensure trade fairness. The report was subsequently adopted.

Debate on HIV and Aids

The debate on HIV and Aids was preceded by an audiovisual presentation by members of European Parliamentarians for Africa (AWEPA). The presentation highlighted the Cape Town Declaration, which was established in 2004. However, AWEPA indicated that making declarations is not enough and that these should be implemented.

Child-headed households and children orphaned by AIDS are increasing, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa. The Pan-African Parliament should assume a leading role in the combating of HIVand AIDS. Sensitisation, education and the introduction of HIV and AIDS in the educational system is important. Further, since war increases the incidence of HIV and AIDS peace in Africa would reduce the incidence of the disease.

It is important to consider the different dimensions of HIV and AIDS - the health, social, human resources, developmental, human security and political aspects. HIV/AIDS should therefore be approached from a multi- sectoral point of view. It is also important to avoid fragmentation when dealing with AIDS orphans.

It is important to focus on behavioral change and to develop a continental plan to fight HIV and AIDS.

The President of the Pan-African Parliament informed European Parliamentarians for Africa (AWEPA) that the Pan-African Parliament has set up a trust fund specifically to mobilise funds to deal with such important continental issues. The House moved that the recommendations be adopted.

Debate on Reform of the United Nations

The debate on the Reform of the United Nations focused mostly on the reform of the United Nations Security Council as this is the most far-reaching reform owing to the important role that it has on international peacekeeping and security.

The Committee recommended that:

      • Africa demands two permanent seats with veto rights and four non-
        permanent seats on the Security Council.
     •  The  Pan-African  Parliament   to   lobby   the   international
       parliamentary institutions with a view to securing  support  for
       Africa's demands.
      •  The  Pan-African  Parliament,  in  consultation  with   similar
        institutions, take the necessary action to ensure  that  balance
        is restored in  the  voting  procedures  of  the  Bretton  Woods
        institutions where eighty percent  of  the  members  carry  only
        thirty percent of the votes.

The report was adopted.

1. Committee Work Plans and Priorities

6.1 The Committee on Rules, Privileges and Discipline

SA Representative: Hon. M.J. Mahlangu

Priorities:

1. Code of Conduct for Members of the Pan-African Parliament.
2. Consideration of the Draft Proposal on Guidelines for Oversight and accountability for the Pan-African Parliament

Both agenda items were presented by the Hon. M.J. Mahlangu (South Africa). The following issues were considered in respect of the draft proposal on Guidelines for Oversight and Accountability for the Pan-African Parliament:

• The Pan-African Parliament must hold a workshop to discuss its oversight powers. • The Pan-African Parliament must provide oversight over the African Union Commission. • Scrutiny of the Treaty Establishing the African Union, the Protocol and the Rules of the Pan-African Parliament, to unpack the oversight powers of the Pan-African Parliament. • Separation of the Executive Authority from the Legislative Authority is necessary to enable meaningful oversight. • An in depth study on how similar continental parliamentary organisations conduct oversight. • Establishment of a Committee dealing specifically with oversight matters. • Analyses of Rule 73(3) and Rule 74(1) as the starting points for oversight functions of the Pan-African Parliament. • Determining the oversight role of the Pan-African Parliament vis-à-vis other organs of the African Union. • Establishing how oversight on New Economic Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) could be conducted. • The committee resolved that the Hon. M.J. Mahlangu would table a follow- up report on Oversight and Accountability, which takes into account issues raised above.

Code of Conduct for Members of the Pan-African Parliament

After consideration of draft Code of Conduct for Members of the Pan-African Parliament, the committee resolved that the Code would be presented to the House during the fourth Session of the Pan-African Parliament for adoption.

6.2 Committee on Co-operation, International Relations and Conflict Resolution

SA Representative: Hon. B. Mbete

Priorities: • Organisation of a seminar with the aim of keeping the Committees’ members up to date. Resource mobilisation on going – Period starting from February until March 2005. • Ten days visit for 2 or 3 committee members to the African Union Headquarters to collect information on conflicts in Africa and their resolution as well as information on co- operation. Period starting from May 2005 until June 2005. • Assigning 2 or 3 members to: 1. Cote d’Ivoire – 15 days 2. Democratic Republic of Congo – 15 days 3. Togo – 15 days Aim: Information gathering with the view to making recommendations on the conflicts in these countries. Period starting from April until May 2005. • Participation of 1 or 2 members in high-level research on issues of conflict resolutions • Observation of elections on the continent by 1 or 2 members who will be appointed according to the area and in collaboration with the Regional Parliamentary Caucuses.

6.3 The Committee on Trade, Customs and Immigration Matters

SA Representative: Hon. F. Hajaig

Priorities:

1. Fact finding visit to the commissioners of Trade and  Industry,  and
   Social Affairs of the African Union commission to get status reports
   on their activities with particular reference to trade  regulations,
   tariff laws, immigration rules, regulations and laws.
2. Invite NEPAD secretariat two days prior to the plenary to brief  the
   committee on their programmes and Strategy  on  tariff  laws,  trade
   customs and immigration.
3. Visit different economic sub-groupings:  Southern Africa  Developing
   Communities  (SADC),  Economic  Community  of  West  African  States
   (ECOWAS), Common Market for Eastern and  Southern  Africa  (COMESA),
   etc. with a view to discussing sub-groupings interrelationships  and
   coordination in areas of the Technical Credit Insurance  Consultants
   (TCIC) mandate.
4. Workshop with representative of  the  World  Trade  Organisation  to
   discuss Doha round and agriculture subsidies and non-trade barriers.

6.4 The Committee on Transport, Industry, Communications, Energy, Science and Technology

SA Representative: Hon. S. Vos

Priorities: 1. Assessing, through meetings, the situation in each area of jurisdiction of the Committee. 2. Making an inventory of all Conventions, Agreements, Protocols and Treaties governing the various domains. 3. Study New Economic Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD’s) programmes and Projects Relevant to the Committee’s Activities.

6.5 The Committee on Justice and Human Rights

SA Representative: Hon. Adv. Z.L. Madasa

Priorities:

1. Regional workshops for members of the Committee and other stakeholders and the broad objectives of the workshops have been identified as follows:

   • Capacity-building for all members of the Committee on their roles and functions in relation to the overall mandate of the Committee. • The Committee, will at the same time, be studying and getting first hand information on human matters of various regions. • Workshop should be held outside the Republic of South to enable the Committee to market and advocate its activities to various member states. • The Committee further proposes that the first workshop should be held in West Africa and if possible, the Bureau should assist with funding in this regard.

2. Creation of a database for the Committee

The creation of a database for the Committee should be linked to the process of harmonising laws of member states. The gathering of information on Treaties, Protocols and Conventions relating to Human Rights issues. The Committee should look at the possibility of engaging consultants in the creation of a database and the database should take into account legislative information for each country with emphasis on democratic principles.

1. Establishment of a desk on Human Rights

The Committee proposes that the Bureau establishes a desk on human rights.

1. RECOMMENDATIONS

2. Pan African Parliament Peace Mission to Darfur (PAP-Rec. 001/05)

The Pan-African Parliament recommends that the African Union should ensure: I. The political negotiations in Abuja which are designed to establish a democratic culture in Darfur that can guarantee the population a fair share of power and resources. This task should be accelerated and time bound; II. The Naivasha Model is adopted to conclude the negotiation so as to ensure complementarity in implementation of the mechanism for sharing power and resources in the Sudan; III. That the terms of the agreement to incorporate periodic consultation with all stake holders in the Sudanese society to ensure that no group is excluded or marginalised in the sharing of power and resources; IV. That immediate steps are taken to influence the Sudanese government to find ways and means of quantifying and qualifying the losses caused by the war and launching a Trust Fund with the support of the African Union and the international community to finance a comprehensive resettlement programme for refugees and displaced persons; V. That the mandate of the African Union Mission is enhanced to include protection of the population in Darfur; VI. That AMIS administrative structures are developed in line with the proposals in the Pan-African Parliament Report on the fact-finding Mission to Darfur; VII. That the Joint Commission mentioned in the Humanitarian Cease Fire Agreement or a similar institution be established to receive reports and address queries of violations. VIII. That the Joint Commission establishes a close relationship with the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights to review the course of action that should be taken to address allegations of violations of human and people’s rights, war crimes, genocide or crimes against humanity; IX. That particular emphasis is given to the disarming of groups, which are not party to the Cease Fire Agreement, especially the JanJaweed, so as to bring the whole population of Darfur on board to negotiate for peace under a climate of democracy and human rights. X. That the Peace and Security Council of the Union begin urgent consultation with the UN Security Council to facilitate complementarity in the approaches to promoting a final settlement of the Darfur crisis. This should be done in order to foster dispensation of justice at the right time and under the right circumstances to avert any reversal of the gains made in resolving the crisis.

1. World Summit on Information Society (PAP – Rec. 002/05)

The Pan-African Parliament recommends that member Parliaments contribute to the success of the Summit by sending high-powered delegations to the Summit.

1. The African Land Title System (PAP-Rec. 003/05)

The Pan-African Parliament hereby recommends that the African Union investigate the viability of harmonising the establishment of an African Land Title System.

1. The Creation of an African Phytogenetic Resource Bank (PAP-Rec. 004/05)

• The Pan- African Parliament requests the African Union to create a bank for the storage of the phytogenetic resources of the continent with a view to preserving vegetable species and reconstituting the vegetation cover in the event of major ecological disasters.

• Urges the African Union to promote agronomic research for the improvement of vegetable species and to create seed banks based on improved species.

1. Communications and Information Infrastructure in Africa (PAP-Rec. 005/05)

The Pan-African Parliament recommends to the African Union that the establishment of a new database in the fields of telecommunications and transport be considered within the New Economic Partnership for Africa Development (NEPAD) framework and base on:

• Private and Public Partnerships
• Use of digital transmission technologies
• Support for planning and management of spectrum frequencies
• Qualitative support for selected projects such as the manufacture of
  computers and telecommunications facilities

Recommends further to the African Union that the important projects within the NEPAD medium term framework be brought forward in order to allow the creation of a reliable and efficient African telecommunications and transport system able to speed up the physical integration of Africa, eliminate problems relating to distance, facilitate mobility, promote exchange and legitimately support the lasting development of Africa.

1. The Request directed to States who have not yet ratified the Constitutive Act of the Union and its Protocol (PAP-Rec.006/05)

The Pan-African Parliament urgently appeals to all the African States that have not yet ratified the Constitutive Act of the African Union and above all to those who are members of the Pan-African Parliaments to do so as soon as possible.

1. Encouraging Pan-African Investment and Financing Institutions to Focus on Africa’s Rural Economy (PAP-Rec.007/05)

The Pan-African Parliament therefore recommends that the African Union, in conjunction with the Private Sector, Pan-African Investment and Financing institutions, encourages new and existing investment and financing institutions to focus on the continent’s rural economies.

1. RESOLUTIONS

2. Signing of Adherence to the African Peer Review Mechanism (PAP-Res. 001/05)

Resolve to reiterate its Recommendation REC 002/04 on the importance of signing of the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) by States and Governments as a demonstration of their commitment to development the principles of democracy and good governance, Rule of Law and respect for human rights.

1. Resolution on the Development of a Continental Code of Conduct (PAP- Res.002/05)

Resolves: 4. That the African Union develops a Continental Code of Conduct on the Use and Exploitation of the Natural Resources to be implemented, alongside instruments such as the Environment Benefit Index (EBI), by Member States through legislation in their respective national territories;

    5. That each Member State annually reports to the African Union its
       adherence to the said Code of Conduct; and

    6. That the African Union designs continental policy programmes for
       environmental  protection  and  efficient  utilisation  of   the
       natural resources for adoption by  Member  States  and  Regional
       Economic communities.

1. Appreciation of the Intervention of the President of the African Union in the Togo Crisis (PAP Res-003/05)

The Pan-African Parliament commends H.E. President Olusegun Obasanjo, the President of the African Union, for his courageous and principled action.

1. Appreciation of the Work of Mr. Kofi Annan, The Secretary General to the United Nations (PAP-Res.004/05)

The Pan-African Parliament expresses its support for Mr. Kofi Annan, as Secretary General of the UN, and wishes him success throughout his tenure of office at the United Nations.

1. Resolution Relating to the Presidential Elections in Togo on 24 April 2005 (PAP-Res. 005/05)

The Pan-African Parliament therefore calls upon the government and the Togolese people to ensure the calm and transparent organisation of the presidential elections on 24 April 2005.

1. Establishment of Pan African Investment and Financing Institutions for African’s Rural Economy (PAP-Res. 002/05)

Resolves that the African Union establishes, in conjunction with the Private Sector, Pan African Investment and Financing institutions for the continent’s Rural Economy.

1. Designing Continental Policy Programmes for Environmental Protection and Efficient Utilisation of Natural Resource (PAP-Res. 004/05)

The African Union should design Continental Policy Programmes for environmental protection and efficient utilisation of the natural resources for adoption by Member States and Regional Economic Communities.

1. Appreciation to H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, Chairperson of the African Union, for his Actions on the Togo Crisis (PAP-Res.005/05)

Commend, therefore, the African Union Chairperson for his courageous and principled actions.

1. Dispatch of a PAP Mission to Cote D’Ivoire at the Beginning of May 2005 (PAP-Res.009/05)

Expressing its satisfaction at the avant-garde role and the commitment of the African Union in establishing peace and security in Africa:

• Urgently calls upon the African Union to make every effort possible to
  resolve all the conflicts in Africa, especially in Cote d’Ivoire.
• Urgently calls upon all the  parties  involved  in  conflict  in  Cote
  d’Ivoire to cooperate with the African Union and the peace brokers  in
  Cote d’Ivoire.
• Exhorts the warring parties to strictly observe the peace agreement.
• Decides on the dispatch of a Pan-African Parliament Peace mission from
  the Pan-African Parliament to  Cote  d’Ivoire  in  order  to  make  an
  assessment on the ground and to submit a  report  to  the  Pan-African
  Parliament.

1. Dispatch of a PAP Peace Mission to the Democratic Republic of Congo During the First Fortnight of May 2005 (PAP-Res.10/05)

The Pan African Parliament, expressing its satisfaction at the avant-garde role and the commitment of the African Union in establishing peace and security in Africa:

    ▪ Urgently calls  upon  the  African  Union  to  make  every  effort
      possible to resolve all the conflicts in Africa, especially in the
      Democratic Republic of Congo.
    ▪ Urgently calls upon  all  the  parties  involved  in  conflict  to
      cooperate with the African Union and  the  peace  brokers  in  the
      Democratic Republic of Congo.
    ▪  Exhorts  the  warring  parties  to  strictly  observe  the  peace
      agreement.

Decides on the dispatch of a Pan-African Parliament peace mission from the Pan-African Parliament to the Democratic Republic of Congo in order to make an assessment and to submit a report to the Pan-African Parliament.

1. Congratulating H.E. Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, on His Success in Achieving a Peace Agreement Between the Warring Parties in Cote D’Ivoire (PAP-Res.008/05)

The Pan-African Parliament resolves to convey our heartiest congratulations to H.E President Thabo Mbeki of South Africa on his successful mediation of the conflict in Cote d’Ivoire and his personal commitment to peace in Africa. The Pan-African Parliament commends him for his distinguished career initiatives in the name of the people of the United Nations.

1. Conclusion / Way forward

The South African delegation was active in all sessions of the Pan-African Parliament and the delegation is fully supportive of all developments of the Parliament. In particular, the Speaker highlighted the importance of strengthening Committees in her solidarity speech. This has been a priority as Committees have developed their work plans and priorities. In addition, some Committees have been able to produce reports that were debated in the plenary and were extremely beneficial to the Pan-African Parliament.

The delegation also noted a need to highlight the major achievements and gains that were made during the Pan-African Parliament’s second session when it adopted the rules of procedure to regularise the internal functioning of the parliament. These rules of procedure were modelled along the lines of the institution’s Constitutive Act. At the end of the second session last year, 2004, the Pan-African Parliament passed a resolution to send a mission to Darfur to establish facts about the conflict in that region and also make recommendations, which will be sent to African Union (AU) head of state and governments in 2005. This was a major step, which showed Africa’s readiness to attend to its problems without relying on external powers to do so on its behalf. The report on the conflict in Darfur was tabled during the third Pan-African Parliament’s third session by the Committee which was tasked to do so which consists of Advocate Z. Madasa.

The Pan-African Parliament’s third sitting took another brave step towards addressing the issue of land redistribution in Africa, which traces its background to the wars of dispossession of the Africans by the colonialists. The Pan-African Parliament’s calls for the establishment of the African Land Title System that will go a long way towards addressing problems related to land dispossession on the continent. The institution also took cognisance of the fact that the continent has become a dumping ground for all sorts of foodstuffs by the West’s wealthy nations. In an attempt to alleviate this burden, it passed a resolution calling on the African Union to create a data bank for the storage of the continent’s phytogenetic resources. This aims to preserve plant species and reconstitute the vegetation cover in the event of major ecological disasters, and to promote agronomic research for the improvement of plant species as well as create seed data banks based on improved species.

The third session also paved the way for tackling one of the critical issues that prevents the continent from effectively becoming part of the global community and crossing the digital divide, the improvement of its telecommunications and information technology as well as its transport systems. To achieve this, the Pan-African Parliament has recommended the establishment of a new database in the telecommunications and transport fields within the NEPAD framework. This is to be based on private and public partnerships, with the use of digital transmission technologies, the support for planning and management of spectrum frequencies and the qualitative support for selected projects. This includes the manufacturing of computers and telecommunications facilities, which will make out the key components of NEPAD’s framework for the continent. It is also becoming clear that the Pan-African Parliament’s advisory role will finally transform into effective oversight powers when its current role is reviewed after the first five years of its existence. The House have agreed on the Fourth session to be held in September/October 2005 at Gallagher Estate, Midrand.

List of Abbreviations

AU African Union HE His/Her Excellency NEPAD New Economic Partnership for Africa’s Development PAP Pan-African Parliament SADC Southern African Development Community CPA Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UNICEF United Nations Children’s Fund PACE The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe ECOWAS Economic Community of West African States AWEPA European Parliamentarians for Africa UNDESA United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs COMESA Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa TCIC Technical Credit Insurance Consultants

COMMITTEE REPORTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. Report of the Joint Monitoring Committee on Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons on their Strategic Planning Workshop, dated 24 June 2005:

The Joint Monitoring Committee on Improvement of Quality of Life and
Status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons having held a Strategic
Planning Workshop from 4-5 March 2005 in Gordons Bay, reports as
follows:





                                Index


  BACKGOUND
  OBJECTIVE
  2.1   The Mandate of the Committee
  3.    SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS
  Context
  Presentation by Key Partners
  Presentation by Dr E Kornegay, Chief Director – Programmes: Office of
       the Rights of a Child (ORC)
  The roles and Responsibilities of the Chief Directorate: Programmes
  The Roles and Responsibilities of the National Framework for the
       Advancement and Coordination of Children’s Rights Delivery in
       South Africa and the Restructuring Process
  Pillars of restructuring
  Key Function of the ORC, Accounting Mechanisms and Beneficiaries of
       the Revised Children” Framework
  Proposed Solutions
  Presentation by Ms S Matsepula, Director: Office of the Status of
       Disabled Persons (OSDP)
  Achievements to Date, Definition of Disability, OSDP Budget
  Challenges
  Issues for Consideration
  Presentation by Mr J Mbalula, Chairperson: National Youth Commission
       (NYC)
  Key Focus Areas
  Key Current Issue
  Challenges and Improvements
  Issues for Consideration
  Presentation by Hon Mr GQM Doidge, M P, House Chairperson: Committees
       National Assembly
  Possible Areas of Intervention
  The Strategic Planning Process
  Break Away Group Discussion
  Core Competencies for the Committee
  Developing the Vision
  The Committee’s Mission
  The Strategic Objective of the Committee
  Youth
  Children
  Disabled Persons
  Key Issues highlighted by Groups
  Operating Principles
  Support
  Method of Work
  Meetings and Scheduling of Meetings
  Committee Views
  RECOMMENDATIONS
  CONCLUSION
  APPENDAGES

1. BACKGROUND

The Joint Monitoring Committee on the Improvement of Quality of Life and Status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons (hereinafter referred to as the Committee) agreed in its meeting that was held on 10 November 2004 to hold a workshop to strategize and discuss issues that pertain to the smooth running of the Committee, to revisit its mandate, to discuss outstanding matters of concern and clarity and to draw a comprehensive programme for 2005 – 2006.

The Committee comprises mainly new members and the aim of this workshop was to familiarize members with the functions and responsibilities of the three sectors that the Committee oversees namely the offices in the Presidency of the Rights of a Child (ORC), the National Youth Commission (NYC) and the Status of Disabled Persons (OSDP). It is the view of the Committee that it cannot function efficiently and effectively if it does not align its programme with the above-mentioned sectors.

As a Joint Committee it consists of members of both Houses i.e. the National Assembly (NA) and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) which have different programmes. Consequently, the Committee has difficulty obtaining a quorum and meetings have had to be postponed due to few members attending because of clashes with other Committees.

The cycle of the NCOP has to be taken into cognizance when scheduling meetings of the Committee, if one meeting of the Committee is rescheduled for any reason the Committee has to wait a week or two for it to be able to meet again and this has been very problematic. This is one of the main issues that the Committee wishes to address, as the inability of the Committee to meet and discuss matters of national importance pertaining to its work impacts negatively on the Committee and the sectors over which it must exercise oversight.

1. OBJECTIVE

The main objective of the Committee is to develop a programme that will help it to organise and coordinate its work in a manner that will enable it to function to the best of its ability in carrying out its oversight and monitoring role. The programme will lead to a Committee Business Plan that will ensure that expenditure of the Committee supports the key policy priorities and that mechanisms are in place to monitor the achievements of targets and reporting to Parliament.

The workshop was also aimed at assisting the Committee to understand the work of the three sectors and to align its programme accordingly. Members of the Committee also discussed the issue of stakeholders within and outside government with the view of having a database that would help them to do a follow up on all issues affecting Children, Youth and Disabled Persons.

2.1 The Mandate of the Committee

The Committee is required to monitor and evaluate progress with regard to the improvement in the quality of life and status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons in South Africa. This is to be done with specific reference to the Government‘s commitments in respect of any applicable international instruments and to duties and responsibilities in respect of any legislation.

The Committee is empowered to make recommendations to both or either of the Houses, or any joint or House Committee on any matter within its functions as described in the Joint Rule 132 (d). The Committee may also be required to perform any other related task assigned to it by resolution of both Houses such as making recommendations for appointments to the National Youth Commission. The Committee as a forum of national Parliament is expected to focus its role on the national sphere of government in accordance with the principles of cooperative governance and intergovernmental relations as outlined in Chapter 3 of the Constitution. The Committee can on its own initiative also scan departmental reports and other papers tabled.

In monitoring progress, it will also engage with departments on the implementation of relevant provisions when bills are enacted. In exercising its functions, the Committee could be expected to engage on a regular basis with the relevant office in the Presidency, ORC, NYC and OSDP which are tasked with the improvement of quality of life and status of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons and also specifically at national level.

1. SUMMARY OF PROCEEDINGS

The delegation comprised the following members and staff:

National Assembly:

ANC: Ms P Bhengu, Mr I D Mogase, Mr M I Moss, Ms W Newhoudt- Druchen (Chairperson), Mr L P M Nzimande, Ms T V Tobias; DA: Ms H Weber; IFP: Mr B W Dhlamini; UDM: Ms N Mdaka.

National Council of Provinces:

ANC: Mr D D Gamede (Deputy Chairperson), Mr T S Setona.

House Chairperson: Committees (NA)

Mr G Q M Doidge

Staff members:

Ms L S Matshikiza (Committee Secretary); Ms E May (Parliamentary Researcher); Mr F Holliday (Committee Assistant).

Apologies

ANC: Mr M S Sibiya

The following officials were also in attendance:

Dr E Kornegay, Chief Director: Office of the Rights of a Child (ORC) Mr L Mboyi, Chief Executive Officer: National Youth Commission (NYC) Mr J Mbalula, Chairperson: NYC Ms S Matsepula, Director: Office of the Status of Disabled Persons

3.1 Context

The Committee consists of 13 Assembly Members and 9 NCOP Members. There is joint chairing by a Chair elected from the National Assembly (Ms. W. Newhoudt-Druchen) and the Deputy Chair from the National Council of Provinces (Mr D. D. Gamede). Even though the NCOP has 9 Members on this Committee, they do not represent Provinces, and they are not appointed as party representatives either.

As mentioned on page 1 of this report, the Committee has experienced a number of problems in setting itself up as a committee and in enabling itself to implement its mandate. The fact that it is a committee covering three more or less separate categories of persons in society, suggest a sub group structure to assist the Committee in dealing with these three categories adequately. The nature of its work is crosscutting and this means that issues relating to youth, children and disabled persons are often neglected in lieu of clearly defined operationally linked areas.

There is a weakness in scale as the scope of the work to be addressed is complex and large. For instance, the Committee has to ensure that all legislation, with an emphasis on, or lack of emphasis on Youth, Children and the Disabled, requires scrutiny. Policy on Youth, Children and Disabled Persons, is often emerging and thus there is a lack of a consolidated framework within which to couch policy. There is a clear lack of prioritization, where budget allocation and programme focus is concerned. For instance, a line department such as Housing should have an integrated housing plan, which takes into account quality of life and equality of life issues for Youth, Children and Disabled Persons.

At the same time, the Committee itself has been unable to leverage key partners such as the NYC, ORC and the OSD. The strategic placement of these Offices should enable the Committee to ensure effective change with regard to its target groups.

The main challenges facing the Committee at present are:

  • Understanding the mandate and functioning of the Committee;
  • Scheduling of Committee meetings: It is difficult to ensure a
    quorum at Committee meetings as a result of clashing memberships of
    Committees;
  • Developing a clear programme to guide the work of the Committee;
  • Developing a clear functioning structure for the Committee;
  • Utilising appropriate tools to exercise the  oversight  mandate  of
    the Committee; and
  • Developing effective support mechanisms to facilitate the  work  of
    the Committee.

In view of these challenges, the Committee identified the need for Members of the Committee to receive training and to define the needs, role and vision of the Committee that would enable it to compile a comprehensive programme for 2005 and beyond. The Committee considered it important to engage with representatives from the children, youth and disability sectors to gain insight into the needs of these agencies and to align its programme with theirs. Thus, the stated objectives of the workshop were to:

  • Review the Mission and Vision of the Committee;
  • Define the needs of the Committee  to  enable  it  to  execute  its
    mandate effectively;
  • Gain insight into the  challenges  and  priority  areas  of  the  3
    agencies (namely, the ORC, NYC,  OSDP),  with  a  view  to  forming
    strategic partnerships; and
  • Develop the Committee’s Programme for 2005 and beyond
  • The Programme will lead to a  Committee  Business  Plan  that  will
    ensure  that  expenditure  of  the  Committee  supports   its   key
    priorities  and  that  mechanisms  are  in  place  to  monitor  the
    achievements of targets and reporting to Parliament.

3.2 Presentation by Partners

The workshop was conducted by way of presentations by representatives from the 3 Programmes relating to children, youth and disabled persons in the Presidency, as well as the House Chairperson of Committees in the National Assembly. These were followed by breakaway commissions to discuss the following issues relating to the mission of the Committee:

  • The areas of work to be prioritised in its programme.
  • Its structure.
  • The tools that will be applied.
                 • Stakeholders to be partnered in the execution of  its
                   mandate, and specific Departments to be  targeted  in
                   its oversight work.

3.3 Presentation by Dr E Kornegay, Chief Director: Office of the Rights of a Child

The presentation focused on two broad aspects, i.e. the roles and responsibilities of the Chief Directorate: Programmes in the Presidency and the National Framework for the Advancement and Coordination of Children’s Rights Delivery in South Africa.

3.4 The Roles and Responsibilities of the Chief Directorate: Programmes

The Chief Directorate: Programmes oversees the work of the ORC, Office of the Status of Women (OSW) and OSDP in the Presidency. Its mission is to provide effective leadership and support to these Programmes. In turn, the Programmes are required to provide effective coordination to advance Government’s strategies with regard to children, women, and people with disabilities.

Although the individual Programmes perform their own specific functions, there are some general functions that have to be performed by all three Programmes. These are:

  Providing a coordination framework;
  Analyzing and developing policy;
  Mainstreaming  Government  policy  to  infuse  women,  children’s  and
    disability perspective into the  work  of  the  5  Director-General
    Clusters. The responsibility for  mainstreaming  women,  children’s
    and disabled considerations into the work of the 5 Director-General
    Clusters  has  been  divided  between  the  Programmes,  with  each
    Programme targeting a particular cluster/s;
  Capacity building;
  Advocacy;
  Liaising   and   networking   with   civil   society,    international
    organisations and Government; and
  Monitoring and evaluation.

The Chief Directorate: Programmes reported that it is in the process of finalising the “10 Year Review”, which examines Government’s performance with regard to gender, children and people with disability. This report will cover the ORC’s achievements, challenges and the way forward. It will be made available to the Committee soon after its launch. It was also reported that the mainstreaming of children’s rights is had been achieved and the equality of access to opportunities is ongoing.

3.5 The Roles and Responsibilities of the National Framework for the Advancement and Coordination of Children’s Rights Delivery in South Africa and the Restructuring Process

This part of the presentation focused on the restructuring of the National Framework for the Advancement and Coordination of Children’s Rights Delivery in South Africa. In terms of the current Framework, the Programmes responsible for the advancement and coordination of children’s rights delivery by Government are the ORC and the National Programme of Action Steering Committee (NPASC). A number of challenges faced by these Programmes necessitated the restructuring of the Framework to establish a holistic and coherent one to advance and coordinate children’s rights delivery. These challenges include structural tension between the ORC and the NPASC.

The NPASC has a broad coordination mandate, but has no power of enforcement. It thus cannot compel Departments to act. The ORC derives its mandate from International Instruments instead of the Constitution. Its focus was thus on the implementation of international instruments (externally), instead of focusing internally on the implementation of national policy in compliance with international instruments. The ORC was not sufficiently empowered to monitor children’s issues, as this was primarily done by the NPASC. The work of the ORC was limited to the Social and Criminal Justice Clusters, with the emphasis on welfare and protection. There was thus a need to expand its mandate to include the Economic Cluster. It was difficult for the ORC and the NPASC to provide substantive leadership in a transforming society; and civil society participation was inadequate to make sufficient input.

The basic assumptions underlying the restructuring process are that the new Framework will:

  • Be a high  level  system  that  will  drive  the  mainstreaming  of
    children’s rights into policies, programmes and funding;
  • Clarify the roles and responsibilities of component parts;
  • Address and facilitate the implementation of national priorities;
  • Provide clear guidelines of communication with Government; and
  • Provide substantive leadership on children’s rights.

3.6 The Pillars of Restructuring

Whereas the current Framework was based on 3 pillars (i.e. Government, Parliament and Civil Society, the restructuring model is based on 4 pillars, namely:

  • Government: This includes the Presidency, National Advisory Council
    on Child’s Rights; Provincial Advisory Councils on  the  Rights  of
    the Child,  Children’s  Rights  focal  points  in  Departments  and
    Provincial Offices on the  Rights  of  the  Child  located  in  the
    Premiers’ Offices and Local Government  Focal  points  and  Child‘s
    Rights Advisory Committees.



  •  Parliament:  This  includes  the   Joint   Monitoring   Committee,
    Parliamentary Committees, Cabinet Clusters and Ministers.



  •  Civil  Society:   This   includes   national   NGOs,   Faith-based
    organisations, Academic institutions; Student Bodies;  Professional
    Associations; Advisory Coalition of Traditional Leaders;  CBOs  and
    the South African Local Government Association (SALGA).



  • Independent bodies: This includes the Constitutional  Court;  other
    Courts; Public Services Commission, Youth Commission; South African
    Human Rights Commission (SAHRC); South African Law  Commission  and
    Public Protector

However, it is important to note that the Programmes only provide frameworks for the advancement and coordination of children’s rights, while it is the responsibility of specific Director-General Clusters to develop programmes to give effect to the frameworks.

3.7 Key functions of the ORC; Accounting Mechanisms and beneficiaries of the Revised Children’s Rights Framework (CRF)

The main function of the ORC is the mainstreaming of Children” s rights to ensure that all matters pertaining to children to the needs of children are adequately addressed, capacity building for children is crucial to enable them to partake fully in the economy of the country, advocacy in government structures to create awareness about children, delivery; policy work; performance coordination by the various role-players to ensure all of the above and monitoring and evaluation to ensure compliance to Government strategy and policies.

The ORC nationally is the administrative body providing support and reports to the Minister, the ORC in the Province reports to the Premier. The beneficiaries of the revised CRF are children, families and communities; all spheres of Government, all component parts of the National Framework; the National Advisory Council on Child‘s Rights; Specialists in Child‘s Rights field and ORC.

3.8 Proposed Solutions

The following issues were raised for consideration during the discussion following the presentation:

It is important that the restructuring of the ORC filters down to provincial level to ensure synergy between national and Provincial Programmes. It is imperative to align the work of the ORC with the National Priorities as enunciated by the President. In evaluating the performance of Departments, the Constitution (section 28) provides the basis against which performance can be assessed. At the very least, Departments’ policies and plans of action should be in line with the Constitution. There is a need to devise a Technical Working Committee to speed up delivery. The Committee has to confer with different Chief Directorates in the Presidency to get a better understanding of their work and priorities. There is a collective document that is written by government departments and the NGO which provides an analysis of the current situation in these sectors. A report on the National Plan of Action will be forwarded to the secretariat for circulation to all Members of the Committee. The United Nation’s Child Report will also be made available to the Committee. The working relationship between the provincial office local government and the national office should be strengthened in accordance with the restructuring process.

3.9 Presentation by Ms. S. Matsepula, Director: Office on the Status of Disabled Persons (OSDP)

Ms Matsepula explained that the vision of the OSDP is the belief that people with disabilities are people first and then disability follows thereafter. South Africa is a democratic country, which embraces the concept of inclusion and integration to enable disabled people to have equal and full participation at all levels of society

The mission of the OSDP is to advance the equality of disabled persons in South African society by coordinating the tasks of mainstreaming disability issues in all sectors of society, and facilitating the process of government departments meeting their constitutional responsibility towards disabled persons. It is the office’s responsibility to ensure that in each line function concrete steps are taken to ensure that people with disabilities are able to access the same fundamental rights and responsibilities as any other people. The issues of disability must be included and integrated in all government development strategies, plans, programmes and projects. To this end, the functions of the OSDP are to:

  • Mainstream disability through the Cluster process;
  • Facilitate,  coordinate  and  monitor  the  implementation  of  the
    Integrated National Disability Strategy;
  • Provide  an  advisory  service  to  national  and  provincial  line
    functions for the inclusion and integration of disability into  all
    policies and programmes; and
  • Ensure wide public education, as well as capacity building for both
    the disability movement and Departments.

The OSDP has identified key priority areas on which it will focus in line with Government’s priorities as identified at the Government Lekgotla. These are:

  • Developing policy, to enable  Departments  to  develop  disability-
    inclusive policies;
  •  Mainstreaming  disability  issues  through  the   Director-General
    Cluster process;
  • Developing a monitoring and evaluation  framework  with  disability
    specific indicators;
  • Coordinating the effective implementation of Government’s work with
    regard to disability; and
  • Advocating Government’s strategic agenda through awareness raising.

3.10 Achievements to Date, Definition of Disability, OSDP Budget

The South African Government adopted the White Paper on INDS in November 1997, which is premised on the social model of disability. The model, which is a human rights approach to disability, places emphasis on the shortcomings of society and its inability to accommodate diversity instead of viewing disability a welfare concern only. The INDS provides government and society with guidelines that promote non-discrimatory development, planning, programme implementation and service delivery. The implementation of the African Decade Programme for Disabled People led to the establishment of a secretariat to run the Africa Decade programme. The office actively participated in and on behalf of Southern African countries in the development of a proposed Comprehensive and Integral International Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities.

Government officials were trained to understand the rights of disabled persons and the implementation of the INDS. The objective of this exercise was to create a skilled, equipped, motivated and empowered critical mass of people to ensure delivery to disabled persons in all departments. The training of trainees programme is an inclusion of the implementation of the INDS in the curriculum of SAMDI. The office has successfully designed and completed a training manual that will assist councillors with disabilities at local government level to function optimally. A book on the history of the Disability Rights Movement in SA has been developed. The office convened consultations with tertiary institutions to ensure the inclusion of skills to implement INDS in all universities curricula and this resulted in the establishment of a disability study course at the University of Cape Town. The course focuses on the promotion of human rights of disabled persons.

The office also facilitated the establishment of Disability Units within all provincial governments and municipalities. Presently there are nine Provincial Disability Units that are established in the offices of the Premiers and 28 local Government Disability Units in Municipalities. The largest number of 17 is in Limpopo. A training manual, which will assist councillors with disabilities, has been designed and completed to help them to carry out their duties in an efficient and effective ways. The education awareness campaign that was developed and conducted by the office has led to the development of a media toolkit that disabled persons will use to engage media. Most departments have awareness programmes and activities in support of National and International Days for persons with disabilities. The promotion of awareness for all employees with disabilities is one of the fundamental prerequisites of creating empowerment and supportive environment.

The policy reference groups between the government departments and representatives of the disabled persons head been convened and the purpose thereof was to develop disability sensitive policies in the departments. The office succeeded in negotiating job creation targets for disable people in various economic development sectors. The departments have been provided with advice on the employment of disabled persons in the public service, equity plans have been developed through the employment equity units in the departments with the view of including disabled person in the staff complements and similar guidance have been given to parastatal and private organisations. The development of capacity in organisations of disabled persons equipped them to undertake advocacy, organisational development and project management programmes and to establish relations with organisation of disabled persons in Sweden to promote the understanding of rights through a twinning programme.

The office successfully imitated a process on disability specific indicator for use in the Monitoring and Evaluation Frameworks of government. A cohesive disability sector in civil society with the transformation of the other African Federal Council on Disability has been developed and enables all various disability groupings to coordinate their activities in a unified way with role players within government and in the private sector.

There is no definition on disability; the compromise is that a working draft definition was drawn. It is an operational definition used presently, however a decision will be taken in a Cabinet meeting due to take place in two weeks to see if it is an appropriate definition. The office was allocated R1 million for the current financial year and this has not met all the requirements of the office. The OSDP is looking forward to the help of the Committee for redress in this issue.

3.11 Challenges

Despite extensive work in fulfilling its mandate through its work with all spheres of Government, parastatal and the general public, the OSDP faces a number of challenges that impact negatively on service delivery. These include reliance on donor-support: much of the work undertaken by the OSDP is funded by donor support. The work is thus to a large extent influenced by donor specifications, thereby distracting from implementing Government objectives; lack of capacity in terms of human resources: at present, the OSDP has only 5 persons on its permanent staff establishment, 2 at Director level and 3 at administrative level. In addition, 2 more people have been appointed through donor support. This has resulted in work overload and staff burnout; lack of support from supervisors-internally (Presidency); and lack of support from National and Provincial Departments and Local Government structures.

The OSDP proposed the following solutions to address these challenges:

• Financial support to the OSDP should be expanded  through  the  Medium
  Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) to reduce its  dependency  on  donor
  support;
• Support from supervisors should be improved. A  process  is  currently
  underway to develop clear roles and guidelines to ensure that approved
  systems are functional as they relate to the Public Finance Management
  Act (PFMA);
• Supervisors in the line function National and  Provincial  Departments
  and Local Government structures must give practitioners the  necessary
  support to enable them to perform their duties effectively;
• The process of  recruiting  staff  in  the  National  OSDP  should  be
  expedited, as undue delays in the process impact negatively on service
  delivery in terms of the Programme’s annual programme.

3.12 Issues for consideration

The following issues were raised for consideration raised during the discussion following the presentation:

  • There is a lack of systems to monitor  the  appointment  of  people
    with disabilities in the public service;
  • No standard definition of ‘disability’ exists. However, there is  a
    working definition that is used by the Departments  of  Health  and
    Social Development as an operational tool. A  Memorandum  has  been
    submitted to Cabinet to establish whether  the  working  definition
    constitutes and appropriate definition;
  • Disability issues are not integrated into the work of departments;
  • It is important that the Committee is  informed  of  the  budgetary
    constraints faced by the OSDP timeously to  enable  it  to  provide
    input to the Minister of Finance when drawing up the MTEF; and
  • The Committee should call on different departments to account to it
    with regard to budgetary allocations for expenditure on  disability
    issues.

3.13 Presentation by Mr. J. Mbalula, Chairperson: National Youth Commission (NYC):

The NYC was established in 1996 through the National Youth Commission Act, Act 19 of 1996. It is a statutory body of Government responsible for youth development within government and for providing ongoing advice to government on matters of youth development.

The mandate of the NYC is to:

• Set up appropriate youth policy instruments for the country;
•  Develop  a  comprehensive  National  Youth  Action   Plan   for   the
  implementation of the Policy. The Policy covers 3 areas,  namely,  the
  role of the youth, the role  of  Government  and  the  role  of  civil
  society structures;
• Develop mechanisms to redress the imbalances of the past;
• Promote a uniform approach by all agencies of Government in  terms  of
  youth development;
• Investigate  appropriate  programmatic  responses  to  the  challenges
  facing young people;
• Prioritise resource allocation to youth  affairs  through  Government;
  and
• Maintain close relations with similar bodies.

The NYC has identified key result areas for the implementation of the National Youth Policy, which are:

  Advocacy;
  Lobbying;
  Monitoring and evaluation;
  Policy formulation and analysis;
  Communication and outreach programmes; and
  Research development on youth issues.

3.14 Key Focus Areas

The Commission’s work focuses on 4 key areas, namely:

  • Policy implementation and Influence
  • Profiling the Commission
  • Stakeholder Engagement and
  • International Relations

The office has to implement policy and influence stakeholders to ensure that all spheres of government incorporate an approach to youth development envisaged in the national Youth Development Policy Framework (NYDPF) and appropriate programmes. The coordination of state organs is aimed at ensuring an integrated and inter-sectoral approach to youth development and to strengthen policy research, development and analytic function thus integrating the participation of young people into the mainstream economy of the country.

The profiling of the Commission is aimed at encouraging the participation of the youth in decisions that affect their lives. The office engages stakeholders in order consolidate strategies in society and at repositioning itself through leadership enhancement. It is also part of the Commission‘s agenda to include youth development in international relations.

3.15 Key Current Issue

The key current issue that the Commission is engaged in is the restructuring of the Commission to create one national organisation that will ensure a unified approach by all youth development agencies. This will include incorporating the Umsobomvu Youth Fund into the Commission.

3.16 Challenges and Improvements

The Commission reported that despite the existence of the National Youth Policy Framework, the challenge remains to integrate youth development comprehensively into Government policies, resources allocated to youth development are limited. There is also a need to explore how civil society organisations working in the field of youth can be resourced. There is insufficient support for youth development work; and it is critical for the Commission to devise a mechanism through which Government Departments can be held accountable and to provide recourse to the Commission if Departments do not deliver.

3.17 Issues for Consideration

The following issues were raised for consideration:

It is important that youth development work filters down to reach the youth in deep rural areas as well. A proposal was made that the Commission produce Compact Discs (CD’s) of its programmes for distribution to those youth who do not have access to its programmes. At present, the work of the Commission targets youth in higher education, youth in trouble with the law, youth in rural areas and youth with disabilities. However, there is a need to include illiterate youth in the work of the Commission to make them employable. For example, consideration could be given to taking such youth into voluntary service in the police or military to develop and expose them to opportunities; and the role of the Commission is always misunderstood, with the result that role-players undermine its monitoring and evaluation role.

A National Youth Convention will be convened around September to evaluate policy. The Young Farmers Programme is functioning and this has been made possible by the Department of Trade and Industry Strategy on economic participation. The Land Bank contributed by injecting funds to the programme. These programmes are running in the Free State, North West and Northern Cape. The one in the Western Cape is on hold because of lack of funds. Mr Mbalula expressed the Commission’s appreciation of the Hon. President, Mr T M Mbeki‘s visit to one of these programmes and that they are functioning well.

The Commission will be hosting the National Youth Month in June and a guide with all these programmes will be produced, it will also include access to matric results. Even though there is an existing NYPF, the commission has to do an investigation on how best it can integrate youth development. There is a need to inject funds to youth development; the NYPF support has to be strengthened as it is currently under resourced. The reference point for this development will be the youth policy, departments will have to be told hold accountable and to this end the Commission requests the assistance of the Committee to intervene.

3.18 Presentation by the Hon. Mr. GQM. Doidge, MP: House Chairperson: Committees, National Assembly

The presenter made some general remarks with regard to the mandate of the Committee and the challenges faced by it, and proposed certain solutions to address the challenges.

General remarks with regard to the mandate of and challenges for the JMC include:

Structure of the Committee

In terms of the Joint Rules, the Committee comprises Members of both Houses NA and NCOP, which have different and separate programmes. Furthermore, the role and structure of the NA differs from that of the NCOP. Consequently, scheduling of Committee meetings poses a challenge, as it is not always easy to secure a quorum at such meetings. Although the Rules provide the framework of what the Committee must do, the onus remains on the Committee to find creative ways in which to execute its mandate.

The Rules of Parliament and the Public Accounts Committee (PA Committee) as a case study

The Rules of Parliament are not static. The JMC is at liberty to propose amendments to the Rules to facilitate its work by submitting a proposal to the Joint Rules Committee. The Committee can seek authorization from the Joint Rules Committee or by way of House Resolutions as per Joint Rule 16 (1a) and (1b i and ii) which stipulates that a joint Committee has such sub committees as are established by the Joint Rules; and may appoint a sub committee when there is provision for such appointment in the Joint Rules; or authorised by the Joint Rules Committee or by resolutions adopted in the Assembly and the Council. This will help the Committee to alter its modus operandi, adjust the rules through the office of the speaker and to form sub committees and this will help it to function optimally. The Committee will meet less frequently e.g. when it has to consider reports from established sub committees. An example was given whereby the Public Accounts Committee developed itself a working method. They had workshops on methodology and their report was tabled in the House and it became a document of the House.

Scheduling of Committee meetings and reporting Mechanisms The parent Committee might meet once a month or once a term. It can look at dynamic reporting mechanism. It can report on its findings, on written instruments, it can respond to papers referred to it, it can report on the work that it is doing and follow up on recommendations. The Committee needs to establish a network for itself in the Presidency and identify its key partners. It is also important for the Committee to have right venues for meetings. The issue of mainstreaming needs to be brought to the Committee‘s Plan of Action.

Budget Cycle and relevant reports for the Committee

The Committee has to evaluate what it has achieved in the present budget cycle. The 10 year Report and the Situational Analysis Report had been completed and are waiting permission for publication. These documents will be available to the Committee soon after publication.

Legal Capacity for the Committee

The Committee on Commissioning research can be guided e.g. by the office of the Right of a Child to establish whether the Children’s Bill does address all that has to be there. On monitoring and evaluating the international instruments the Committee can once they are ratified, monitor them as to how our country complies with these instruments and follow up on them. The Committee will be given legal advice to help with the monitoring and evaluation of these instruments.

International Conferences, International and Provincial Study Tours

The Committee can go on international exposure visits twice in a five-year term according to the new policy of Parliament. There is no limit to provincial fact - finding missions, except that these can only take place when Parliament is not in session. The executive has to pay if the Committee is invited to participate in the UN and a delegate can be sent to those conferences.

Departmental Strategic Plans and Annual Reports

The Committee was advised to look at the strategic plans of the departments, their annual reports and to work closely with the Presidency e.g. the PA Committee set up Wednesdays for hearings with the Director – Generals. The departmental strategic plans sets out performance measures and targets and annual reports show how appropriated funds have been used to implement plans, this then gives an indication on whether performance has been acceptable and whether funds were used for the intended purpose.

Specialised support for the Committee (Subject Specialist)

Apart from procedural and general administrative support, the Committee requires a full – time subject specialist who would maintain a register of relevant international commitments, advise on the substance and nature of such commitments, scan bills and tabled papers to alert the Committee to issues requiring consideration, maintain a data base of academics, Non Governmental Organisations and other interested groups which could provide a resource base and draft reports and recommendations. The services of the researchers could still be used to undertake specific research projects as may be required from time to time.

Relationship with Chapter 9 Institutions - Chapter 9 (section 181(1)) of the Constitution establishes various institutions to aid and complement the work of Parliament in overseeing the work of the Executive. These institutions are called State Institutions Supporting Constitutional Democracy. They are independent and impartial, able to exercise their powers and perform their functions without fear or prejudice and are subject to the Constitution and the law only. They have the following two roles in relation to Parliament: (i) they should be seen as complementary to Parliament’s oversight role as they, together with Parliament, act as watchdog bodies over the Government and Organs of State; (ii) the Constitution renders them accountable to the NA. Section 181(5) of the Constitution imposes a duty upon them to report on their activities to the Assembly at least once a year. They therefore serve as a support and aid to Parliament in its oversight function by providing it with information that is not derived from the Executive. The Committee should thus develop cooperative relations with these institutions.

Oversight Tools

There are many tools that can be applied by the Committee to exercise its oversight function. These include the following:

    i) Briefings,  Hearings and Presentations
   ii) Holding hearings with specific departments
  iii) State of the Nation Address (SONA) as a reference
   iv) The Estimates of National Expenditure (ENE)
    v) The Budget Speech
   vi) Interrogate Departmental Budget Reports
  vii) Writing letters where necessary
 viii) Visits to the Presidency
   ix) Be familiar with the Strategic Plans of Departments  and  Annual
       Reports
    x) Peruse all reports from the three sectors e.g. the State of  the
       National Youth Report
   xi) Interaction with relevant Departments, Parliamentary  Committees
       and Chapter 9 institutions
  xii)  Interrogate  Parliamentary  Process  Report  e.g.   Situational
       Analysis Report and the 10 Year Review Report among others.
 xiii) Utilising the Constituency period fruitfully
  xiv) Provincial fact finding missions and International study tours

However, the challenge that exists for the JMC is to devise a way in which to utilise the existing tools effectively.

Committee Reports

Committees are not autonomous of the House, but must report to the House on its activities. Such reports can stem from the referral system, or from Committees’ proactive work. However, Committees do not report regularly enough

The presenter proposed the following solutions to address the challenges faced by the Committee:

  • Focus groups - It was suggested that  the  Committee  organise  its
    work into smaller working groups to focus on  the  different  areas
    covered in its mandate. The work of the smaller groups  could  feed
    into the work of the full Committee. For example, if  a  Department
    is summoned, it  could  be  done  under  the  banner  of  the  full
    Committee. The focus groups should find creative  ways  of  dealing
    with the subject matter assigned to it by:


        o Developing a critical understanding  of  issues  relevant  to
          their subject area;
        o Keeping track of debates in their subject area;
        o Commissioning research, monitoring, engaging and reporting on
          target areas identified for their subject area; and
        o Tabling progress reports and reporting  to  Parliament  on  a
          regular basis on progress made.

The development of smaller focus groups could assist in alleviating the problem of establishing a quorum at the meetings of the Committee.

  • Revision of meeting times
    It was suggested that the Committee review  its  meeting  times  so
    that it meets less frequently, thereby avoiding the problems caused
    by clashing memberships of Committees.


  • Networking
    The Committee was encouraged to establish a network of partnerships
    to facilitate its work, by developing  dynamic  relationships  with
    institutions or organisations involved in  the  area  of  children,
    youth and persons with disabilities.

  • Building capacity
    Once  the  Committee’s  strategic  plan  is  developed,  it  should
    identify the resources that will be required to meet the objectives
    outlined in the plan.

  • Mainstreaming
    The Committee should find ways to input  into  the  work  of  other
    Committees to ensure that issues relating to  children,  youth  and
    persons  with  disabilities  are  mainstreamed  into  the  work  of
    Committees.

1. Possible Areas of Intervention

The purpose of this section is to provide an overview of the functions and main challenges highlighted by the respective presenters, as well as issues for consideration emanating from the discussions that followed the presentations. A number of possible areas for intervention by the Committee emerged from the presentations.

These include:

•  The  Committee  was  challenged  to  encourage  other   Parliamentary
  Committees to  mainstream  issues  relating  to  children,  youth  and
  disabled persons into their work by requesting departments to  include
  information on such issues in their  briefings.  This  will  stimulate
  Departments to report holistically on these areas, as it is impossible
  for the Committee to target all Departments single-handedly;
• A proposal was made that, as part of its oversight work, the Committee
  should follow up with the relevant departments on  the  implementation
  of recommendations contained in the report of the Task  Group  on  the
  Sexual Abuse of Children;
• The Committee should interrogate departmental budgets with a  view  to
  monitoring the allocation of funds for issues  relating  to  children,
  youth and disabled persons;
• The Committee was called upon to  assist  the  Programmes  in  calling
  Departments to account, as they  do  not  have  the  power  to  summon
  Departments;
• The NYC requested the assistance of the  Committee  regarding  funding
  for youth development. The Committee is called upon to find  out  from
  departments whether funding for youth development  is  part  of  their
  agenda, a similar request came from the OSDP and
• The Committee should monitor and, where possible, provide  input  into
  processes currently being undertaken by the 3 Programmes.

3.20 The Strategic Planning Process

The Committee agreed to be more strategically focused in order to fulfil its mandate. The sessions for the second day went into more detail regarding the 3 areas, namely, Youth, Children and Disabled Persons.

3.21 Break-Away Group Discussions

In an attempt to facilitate the process of developing a programme for the Committee, the workshop undertook 2 breakaway sessions. Deliberations during the breakaway sessions were aimed at developing more specific direction for the Committee programme in terms of Children, Youth and Disabled Persons.

The aim of the first breakaway session was to brainstorm ideas around the development of a Mission Statement for the Committee. In developing the Mission Statement, groups were tasked with addressing questions relating to:

  Who the Committee is;
  The purpose for the existence of the Committee;
  How the Committee fulfils its role; and
  Who the Committee serves in fulfilling its role.

During the second breakaway session, groups were tasked with generating ideas around the following aspects of the Committee’s work:

  • Identify 5 priority areas per sector;
  • Identify the Departments to be targeted;
  • Create a structure for the execution of the tasks of the Committee;
  • Identify the key partners that will assist  the  Committee  in  the
    execution of its mandate; and
  • Identify tools and support systems that the Committee will  use  in
    the execution of its mandate.

3.22 Core Competences for the Committee

The following core competences were proposed for the Committee:

  • The ability to exploit existing partnerships;
  • The ability to learn lessons from other committees;
  • The ability to translate these lessons into working  solutions  for
    the Committee;
  • The ability to actively track and monitor key focus areas within  a
    determined timeframe; and
  • The ability to impact  on  key  focus  areas  in  partnership  with
    Offices in the Presidency.

3.23 Developing the Vision

The Committee members were divided into 3 groups and were asked to assess and comment on the current vision of Parliament. Hereafter each group crafted a Mission statement for the Committee. The Committee felt that the Vision of Parliament should be scrutinised.

The current vision of Parliament is:

  “To build an effective peoples’ Parliament that is responsive to the
  needs of the people and that is driven by the ideal of realising a
  better quality of life for all the people of South Africa.”

Responses ranged from acceptance of the Parliamentary Vision as is, to amendment of the vision in the following ways:

  (i)   “We the elected representatives of the people, who  through  the
       Peoples Parliament, the JMC in particular, monitor and  evaluate
       the  responsiveness  of  the  government  and   relevant   state
       institutions supporting democracy to the needs  and  aspirations
       of the sectors in realizing a better quality of life and  status
       of youth children and disabled persons.”

  (ii)  “We exist for the protection, development and integration of
       Youth Children and Disabled Peoples’ issues”.

3.24 The Committee’s Mission

The Committee felt that the crafting of a Mission Statement was crucial, as it would ensure clarity of purpose. The following drafts of a Mission Statement read as follows:

  (i)   “(We are a) Joint Committee assigned to  highlight  and  monitor
       the issues of Youth, Children and People  with  Disabilities  by
       ensuring  that   all   Departments,   Commissions,   and   other
       stakeholders deliver on their mandate with specific reference to
       Youth, Children and people living with disabilities  by  forming
       mutually beneficial partnerships with the above entities”.



  (ii)  “(We will achieve our objectives) By effectively monitoring  and
       evaluating government programmes on  an  ongoing  basis  and  by
       regularly reporting to the Peoples Parliament on the  compliance
       and progress of the implementation  of  instruments,  programmes
       and service delivery to each of the sectors.”


  (iii)“Through diligence, partnership and  continuous  engagement,  the
       JMC on Youth, Children and Disabled Persons will:


        • Monitor the implementation of policy, strategy and programmes
        • Identify and ensure that corrective recommendations are acted
          upon
        • Report regularly
        • Compel state organs to deliver on their mandate and build a
          culture of accountable co-operation

3.25 The Strategic Objectives for the Committee

The Committee recognizes that if it is to be effective, it would have to highlight and address each issue relating to Youth Children and Disabled People in each piece of legislation, in each Departmental Programme and in each Departmental Budget. It would also have to incorporate issues emanating from participative processes in communities, and from organised associations for Youth Children and Disabled People. Given the size and capacity of the Committee, it is impossible to monitor all these aspects of its mandate comprehensively and adequately.

For the purposes of impacting on key portfolios, the Committee Members were divided into 3 sub groups, namely, Youth, Children, and Disabled Persons. These subgroups were asked to identify 5 strategic objectives per group and to link the strategic objectives to actions for the Committee. The following strategic objectives and actions were identified by sub groups focusing on Youth, Children, and Disabled Persons.

3.26 Youth

3.27 Children

As protection of the vulnerable includes children, the Committee identified the media and its impact on the young as a key area to be monitored.

3.28 Disabled Persons

The principle of “Nothing About Us, Without Us” is the principle that needs to be reflected in all aspects of Departments’ strategies and policies.

 3.29  The following key issues were highlighted by all the groups:


  • Unnecessary delays in the development of programme  policy  in  the
    Office of the Presidency;
  • An input has been made to the MTEF to assist with the needs of  the
    OSDP. A suggestion was made that tax should be directed to the OSDP
    and contribute to disabled persons in the economy;
  • Inter-Departmental collaboration is weak;
  • Line Department  responses  with  regard  to  Youth,  Children  and
    Disabled Persons are not forthcoming. In 2001, only  3  Departments
    responded to Disability alignment;
  • Staff who advocate for Youth, Children and Disabled Persons  issues
    are normally at a low  level  in  the  organisation.  This  is  not
    aligned to the national  priority  provided  by  the  placement  of
    Youth, Children and Disabled Persons in the Presidency;
  • The monitoring of Provincial Departments was raised as a problem as
    there is currently no link with the Provinces;
  • A lack of an overall communication strategy was highlighted by all
    three groups;
  • The lack of a link between the  work  of  the  JMC  QLS  of  Youth,
    Children and  Disabled  Persons  was  raised  with  regard  to  how
    Committee work is taken to the Constituencies;
  • The need was raised for identifying national priorities; and
  • The National Plan of Action is being updated. The issue raised here
    related to the need for a Provincial Plan of Action to enable
    holistic oversight of issues relating to Youth, Children and
    Disabled Persons.

3.30 Operating Principles

It was suggested the following principles be adopted to ensure effective delivery on the mandate of the Committee:

• Dedicated membership of the Committee
• Scheduling of meetings to avoid clashes and provide adequate resources
  for the Committee to do its work; and
• Scheduling to facilitate Committee sub-group effectiveness

3.31 Support

The Committee requires a much more comprehensive and focused support system to fulfil its mandate. Therefore, it must be very clear on its deliverables so that the appropriate support is provided to it. The existing support structure is able to provide this support to a limited degree. However, this is set to change as an investigation is currently being commissioned to propose a robust support structure for Committees in Parliament.

A proposal was forwarded for a Committee Support Coordinator to oversee Secretarial support, Research support and Administrative support.

In terms of systems and procedures, Members felt that current support provision is not adequate with regard to document management, the production process, prioritisation, research, meeting and hearing preparation, follow-through and staff management.

The proposals regarding more effective support for this Committee included:

  • A shared support structure in which legal, research and information
    services work as a technical support team.

Integral to the success of this support team, the Committee has to:

  • Have regular briefings with the team
  • Assist with the scrutiny of issues
  • Track issues with the team
  • Assist in developing tools for use by the team
  • Identify emerging issues for the benefit of the Team and the
    Committee

3.32 Method of Work

The Committee has to decide on a range of tools to use to manage its oversight function. Amongst these are:

  • Tools used in plenary (questions, motions, statements, debates);
  • Tools used as part of the oversight function (public hearings, site
    visits); and
  • Tools  used  in  ensuring  the  legislative  process  (tracking  of
    legislative process, briefings).

The Committee needs to redefine its operating structure and systems to enable it to fulfil its mandate with regard to its role of oversight and monitoring. According to a discussion document on the Mandates and Functioning of Joint Monitoring Committees, it was found that the Committee’s monitoring role is specifically related to “Government’s commitments”. Further, the Committee as a Forum of Parliament would be expected to focus its role on the national sphere of government (in accordance with the principles of co-operative and intergovernmental relations in the Constitution, Chapter 3) [4]

What this means for the Committee is that it has to monitor and track national policy, programmes and budgets. The Committee’s mandate is specific and multi-sectoral covering all national Departments and Organs of State.

However, practical issues relating to the quality of life and status of Youth, Children and Disabled Persons are often experienced directly at community or provincial level. It has been suggested that the provincial legislatures establish similar committees to monitor compliance on a provincial level. This would allow for meaningful interaction with the Committee and would result in the Committee having a comprehensive “window” on national and provincial competences concerning Youth, Children and Disabled Persons.

Bills that are brought before Parliament may respond to particular policy directives affecting Youth, Children and Disabled Persons directly or indirectly. The Committee should therefore scan all Bills for impact on the Quality of Life and Status of Youth, Children and Disabled Persons. The Committee would have to engage with relevant Committees on any issues of concern in a Bill.

In monitoring progress it would also engage with specific Departments on the implementation of relevant provisions (affecting Youth, Children and Disabled Persons) when Bills are enacted.

The Committee can on its own initiative also scan departmental reports and other papers that are tabled.

As a basis for carrying out its role, the Committee should compile a register of international commitments entered into by government.

In exercising its functions, the Committee has agreed, together with the Office of the Presidency, in particular with the (ORC), (YC), and the (OSDP), to engage in a more constructive manner so that the Committee might fulfill its mandate more effectively.

3.33 Meetings and Scheduling of Meetings

One of the difficulties experienced by the Committee was the effective scheduling of meetings and the availability of Members for these meetings.

By virtue of being joint structures, the Committee has difficulty in scheduling meetings to accommodate the activities and programming of both Houses. A schedule was developed by the previous Chairperson of Committees in the NA, in which it was agreed to set aside Fridays for Joint Monitoring Committees. This was not successful as Committee members still experienced clashes with NCOP meetings scheduled for Fridays and Members were also unavailable due to other commitments.

The current situation requires creative planning and scheduling to deal with this problem. It was suggested that meetings be planned in advance and placed on the Order Paper and that Members prioritise Committee meetings.

In addition, the Committee should make use of an integrated electronic scheduling system to facilitate easy access and information sharing. The Committee could then schedule meetings at short notice to scan Bills, for instance, as it would have an overall view of all meetings scheduled.

3.34 Committee Views

The Committee resolved that it should strengthen its ties with all relevant departments by working closely with Director-Generals and all relevant Committees in Parliament, tracking all legislation that has a direct bearing on the Committee. This will be done by deploying one or two representatives in these meetings, ensuring that matters affecting children, youth and disabled persons are properly addressed and attended to prior the finalization of such legislation.

The Committee acknowledged that unemployment is global problem and advised that youth can do voluntary services e.g. in police or military service for them to learn. The Committee has to hold briefings, hearing of evidence and write letters where necessary and to solicit research capacity form the office of Dr Gabriel and in the office of legal advisors within Parliament. The Committee can also write letters to SALGA and to Provinces to establish on how issues are mainstreamed. The Committee acknowledged that the NCOP would have a more dynamic interaction with Provinces. Furthermore in future engagements, the Umsobomvu Youth Fund should appear before the Committee to brief it on its functions and progress and problems if there are any. It should have a similar working relationship with the other three sectors.

The Committee has to improve on communication, there is a need to take these matters beyond Parliament and the society needs to be informed in a manner that would make them really understand issues. The Committee needs to have a database e.g. on all the reports that come to it by liaising with the Minister Pahad’s office, source out information on Budget Vote1 e.g. establish the role of the Committee in the budget process. It is the view of the Committee that the creation of subcommittees would curtail absenteeism in meetings, which is caused mainly by the clashes of meetings among other reasons.

1. RECOMMENDATIONS

The Committee made the following recommendations:

  • Subcommittees should be formulated and the Committee has  to  elect
    conveners and agree on the functional areas  of  those  committees,
    targeting  priority  areas  that  they  have   to   cover.    These
    subcommittees  have  to  find  creative  and  effective   ways   of
    researching areas of interest that are relevant to their  theme  by
    using the right tools e.g. strategic plans of relevant departments,
    budget speeches and by referring to the State of the Nation Address
    content.
  • The Committee can propose amendments through available channels  to
    the Rules Committee.
  • The parent Committee should meet once a month or  once  a  term  to
    deliberate and finalise the business of  the  subcommittees  or  to
    consider reports of the work of its subcommittees.
  • The subcommittees would meet at times convenient for all members of
    that particular subcommittee.  The  convener  will  work  with  the
    Chairperson, the Deputy Chairperson and the Committee Secretary  to
    ensure  the  smooth  running  of  the  process.   The  subcommittee
    meetings should be advertised in the order paper.
  • Both the Chairperson and the Deputy Chairperson should  be  present
    in all the subcommittees whenever they convene.
  • There should be a standard format of reporting (a Dynamic Reporting
    Mechanism)
  • The Committee should get reports of the Employment Equity  Act  and
    Skills  Development  Act  among  other  relevant   legislation   to
    establish the extent to which the Department of Labour  managed  to
    address matters affecting the development of  Children,  Youth  and
    Disabled Persons.
  • The Committee requires a Subject  Specialist  that  will  help  the
    Committee to fulfil its mandate
  • Reciprocal communication – inter-sectoral,  inter-departmental  and
    inter-governmental  collaboration  has  to  be  strengthened,   the
    Committee should invite relevant departments, relevant  sectors  to
    give an account of their respective budgets  on  disability,  youth
    and  children.   It  can  also  invite  or  write  letters  to  the
    communities or local government to check on the  level  of  support
    given for the projects and programmes aimed at the  improvement  of
    quality of life and status of children, youth and disabled persons.
  • It is critical for  the  Committee  to  call  Disability  Units  to
    account  on  their  budget  so  that  the  Committee  can  make   a
    determination on whether the money allocated to them is  enough  or
    not enough for these units to function optimally.
  • The Committee has to look at  the  programme  of  the  Medium  Term
    Expenditure Framework (MTEF), hold discussions with  the  MTEF,  be
    aware of the its time frames and work according to the cycle of the
    MTEF so that it can be better positioned to raise issues  affecting
    its work timeously.
  • The Committee would report to both Houses on the work  that  it  is
    doing

1. CONCLUSION

The Committee could not formulate its programme for 2005 to 2006 due to the work that members had to cover within the two days of the strategic planning workshop. It was important for the Committee to first wait for the report that would emanate form the workshop in order to come up with a comprehensive programme. The Committee agreed to hold a follow up workshop for this purpose. The Committee took a resolution that it would report to both Houses on its work and follow up on its recommendations by checking the implementation thereof

1. APPENDAGES

WORKFLOW, OPERATING MODEL, STRUCTURE AND INTEGRATED

OVERSIGHT MODEL

The following diagrams present a workflow, an operating model, and a structure, and an integrated oversight model for the Committee.

JMC ON IMPROVEMENT OF LIFE AND STATUS OF CHILDREN, YOUTH, CHILDREN AND DISABLED PERSONS WORKFLOW

                                      Designed by Consultancy In Session

International Conventions inform the policy and strategy positions with regard to Youth, Children and Disabled Persons. The Presidency houses Offices representing Youth, Children and Disabled Persons. Oversight of the Executive is enabled through Departments, which are responsible for governance, management and implementation. Amongst others, the Committee monitors and tracks Legislation, Programmes and Budgets of Departments for compliance with the rights of Youth, Children and Disabled Persons.

JMC ON IMPROVEMENT OF LIFE AND STATUS OF CHILDREN, YOUTH, AND DISABLED PERSONS OPERATING MODEL

                                      Designed by Consultancy In Session

The strategic planning process for the Committee is based on the Constitutional mandate of the Committee. Its Vision and Mission are its strategic statements of intent.

The Operating Model, consisting of an appropriate organizational design structure, systems (Committee Programme and reporting systems) and Committee support, will ensure successful service delivery.

JMC ON IMPROVEMENT OF QUALITY OF LIFE AND STATUS OF CHILDREN, YOUTH AND DISABLED PERSONS STRUCTURE AND SUB GROUPS

                                      Designed by Consultancy In Session

The structure for the Committee is as follows:

  • A core committee consisting of 24 fulltime Members and 10
    alternates;
  • A convenor for each of the 3 sub-groups namely, Youth, Children and
    Disabled;
  • A Working group consisting of selected Members. The Chair or Deputy
    Chair rove within these groups;
  • Focal Points to streamline Committee delivery as mandated; and
  • Partnerships with relevant institutions to enhance strategic impact
    of the Committee.

JMC QUALITY OF LIFE AND STATUS OF YOUTH, CHILDREN AND DISABLED PERSONS INTEGRATED OVERSIGHT MODEL

There are various ways in which oversight takes place. Amongst these are:

  • Departmental Hearings;
  • Visits (National and International);
  • Committee initiatives; and
  • Referrals of reports from the House(s).

The information gathered during this process is evaluated, monitored and tracked by the Committee in partnership with the YC, ORC and OSDP, as well as other related role-players. The oversight function is active when challenges and gaps are identified and solutions are defined and channelled to the appropriate source.

The workshop resolved that:

  The  breakaway  sessions  were  useful  in  mapping  the   Committee’s
    direction with regard to children, youth and disabled persons,  but
    more work will be required to develop a comprehensive work plan for
    the Committee;


  The Committee will have a follow-up meeting (possibly in the form of a
    workshop) to develop its programme, based on information  assembled
    during this workshop; and


  The interaction between the Committee and  the  3  Programmes  in  the
    Presidency must be significantly enhanced.

1. Report of the Ad Hoc Joint Committee on Amendment Regulations to Public Funding of Represented Political Parties Act, dated 12 August 2005:

   The Ad Hoc Joint Committee on Amendment Regulations to Public Funding of Represented Political Parties Act, having considered draft amendment regulations tabled by the Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development on 22 July 2005, referred to it, recommends to the President, in terms of section 10(1) of the Public Funding of Represented Political Parties Act, 1997 (Act No. 103 of 1997), that the said regulations be amended to read as follows:

                           SCHEDULE
   

   Definitions

    1.  In this Schedule "the  Regulations"  means  the  regulations published under Government Notice No.  R 117 of 20 November 1998.
   

   Amendment of Regulation 5 of the Regulations

     2.   Regulation 5 of the Regulations is hereby amended— (a)   by the substitution  for  subregulation  (1)  of  the  following subregulation:
       "(1) Subject to subregulation (3), all allocations to which a
    political  party  is  entitled  as  determined   in   terms   of
    regulations 3 and 4, must be paid  to  the  political  party  in
    question in four equal instalments, each within three months  of
    the previous payment.  The first instalment must be paid  within
    four weeks of the beginning of the financial year in question.";
     and (b)   by the addition of the following subregulation:
      "(3) (a) The Commission must, within ten days after the date on
    which the Speaker of a  legislature  has  published  the  notice
    contemplated in item 5(3) of Schedule 6A to the Constitution, re-
    allocate in accordance with the provisions of regulations 3  and
    4, as the case may be, fifty (50) per cent of the  total  amount
    of funding determined  in  terms  of  regulation  2(1)  for  the
    financial year in question to the political parties that, at the
    expiry of the period referred to in item 5(3) of Schedule 6A  to
    the Constitution, qualify for the allocation of moneys from  the
    Fund in terms of section 5 of the Act.
      (b) All allocations to which a political party is  entitled  in
    terms of paragraph (a), must be paid to the political  party  in
    question in two equal instalments.  The first instalment must be
    paid within the first fifteen days of  October  and  the  second
    instalment must be paid within the first fifteen days of January
    of the financial year in question.".
   

   Amendment of Regulation 8 of the Regulations

    3.  Regulation 8 of the Regulations is  hereby  amended  by  the substitution for subregulation (2) of the following subregulation:
      "(2) The information required for the purposes of subregulation
    (1) must be furnished to the Commission—
    (a)   by the accounting officer referred to in section  6(1)  of
        the Act within three months after the end of  the  financial
        year in question;  or
    b) in the case of a  political  party  contemplated  in  section
       6A(3) of the Act, by the person who last held the  office  of
       accounting officer referred to in section 6(1) of the Act  of
       that party or, if he or she is not available, the  leader  of
       that party within two months after the date on which a  party
       is required to close its books  and  records  of  account  in
       terms of section 6A(4) of the Act.".
   
   
                    TUESDAY, 23 AUGUST 2005
   

ANNOUNCEMENTS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

The Speaker and the Chairperson

1. Classification of Bill by Joint Tagging Mechanism:

The Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) on 22 August 2005 in terms of Joint
Rule 160(4), classified the Repeal of Black Administration Act and
Amendment of Certain Laws Bill [B 25 – 2005], introduced in the
National Assembly, as a section 76 Bill and as a Bill falling within
the ambit of section 18(1)(a) of the Traditional Leadership and
Governance Framework Act, 2003 (Act No. 41 of 2003).

National Council of Provinces

The Chairperson

1. Message from National Assembly to National Council of Provinces in respect of Bill passed by Assembly and transmitted to Council

(1)    Bill passed by National Assembly on 23 August 2005 and
     transmitted for concurrence:


      i) Constitutional Matters Amendment Bill [B 22B – 2005] (National
         Assembly – sec 75).
      The Bill has been referred to the Select Committee on Security
      and Constitutional Affairs of the National Council of Provinces.

1. Referrals to committees of papers tabled

(1)     The following papers are referred to the Select Committee on
    Education and Recreation for consideration and report:

      a) Statute of the Centre for Science and Technology of the Non-
         Aligned Movement and Other Developing Countries, tabled in
         terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution, 1996.


      b) Explanatory Memorandum on the Statute of the Centre for
         Science and Technology of the Non-Aligned Movement and Other
         Developing Countries.

TABLINGS

National Assembly and National Council of Provinces

1. The Minister of Finance

   a) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Reserve Bank for 2004-2005, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2004-2005.

   b) Report and Financial Statements of the Development Bank of Southern Africa for 2004-2005, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2004-2005.

   c) Activities Report of the Development Bank of Southern Africa for 2004-2005.

   d) Development Bank of Southern Africa – Footprints of Development 2001-2005.

   e) Report and Financial Statements of the Financial Services Board for 2004-2005, including the Report of the Auditor-General on the Financial Statements for 2004-2005 [RP 51-2005].

   f) Government Notice No 1114 published in Government Gazette No 27773 dated 15 July 2005: Amendment of the list of public entities as contained in schedule 2 and 3 of the Public Finance Management Act, 1999.

2. The Minister of Communications

   a) Report and Financial Statements of the South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) for 2004-2005, including the Report of the Independent Auditors on the Financial Statements for 2004-2005.

3. The Minister for Justice and Constitutional Development

   a) Report on the provisional suspension from office with remuneration: Mr K Sulliman, an additional magistrate at the Durban Magistrate Court.

   b) Report on the provisional suspension from office with remuneration: Mr M S E Khumalo, magistrate and Head of office at the Amsterdam Magistrate Court.

   c) Report on the provisional suspension from office with remuneration: Mr M F Mathe, an additional magistrate at the Pine Town Magistrate Court.

[1] In the first year (2004) the Pan-African Parliament operated without a budget and therefore relied on voluntarism by National Governments. The Parliament was established in terms of Article 5 of the Constitutive Act of the Union as the representative body of the African people to enable full participation in the development of their continent, promotion of peace and human rights and development of culture of democracy in Africa.

[2] , The PAP work plan is attached as Annexure 1.

[3] The PAP budget is attached as Annexure 2. [4] Handiek, K. Mandates and Functioning of Joint Monitoring Committees, 2004