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Honourable Speaker
Honourable Premier
Members of the Executive Council
Members of the Provincial Legislature
Ladies and Gentlemen

Allow me to start at the point of acknowledging the good work that is being done by the respective committees linked to this Legislature, in ensuring that the Northern Cape Province remains a shining example of effective and efficient governance. Let me also extend a hand of appreciation to the team of the Executive Council for the informative outreach programmes. The community meetings will indeed continue to fulfil our notion of participative governance.

In the same vein, this presentation will confirm the fact that the department of Social Services and Population Development has over the past year rigorously unfolded community-involving programmes that have benefited the residents of this province.

Honourable Speaker, we are approaching the second decade of democracy and appropriate governance in this country. Over a short space of time, we have made considerable achievements, especially when we take note of the mammoth task we had of undoing the legacy of a regime that was bent on keeping resources of the state away from the majority.

The policies of the former apartheid state resulted in the degeneration of the moral fibre of our society. Due to the repressive laws and alienation from the organs of state, women could not voice their suffering at home, at the workplace, and in society in general. The inferior quality of education was intended to teach our children to neither question nor disagree.

The past decade has, however, been characterised by the identification and implementation of appropriate options to address the plight of our people. The closing decade has indeed been a decade of delivery. We have laid a sound policy base and launched thousands of programmes to implement these policies. We can safely say that the transformation process has carried the mandate of our people. South Africa has indeed been a nation at work.

Honourable Speaker, the changes we have already made are visible. We are sure that we are closing a decade of unprecedented transformation. The tide has turned and the people's contract for a better tomorrow has taken shape.

We acknowledge that a lot still has to be done. We are aware that more jobs need to be created and the state of poverty needs to be addressed.

It is, however, our contention, given the limited resources, that this government still has the capacity to deal with these challenges.

Honourable Speaker, we pass our hand of gratitude to the relentless support that this department is getting from the large corps of volunteers who on a day to day basis assist this department with the provision of services to our people. We are content that the partnership with members in our communities will take this government to heights that we might never have reached had we chosen to go it alone.

May we mention here the pay-point volunteers, the caregivers, the HIV/AIDS activists, local municipal councillors and every individual that chose to join our transformation agenda. Their work will remain part of the history of rebuilding this nation.

Honourable Speaker, the battle to eradicate poverty remains a priority of this government. We welcome the generous gesture of the President of our country and the Minister of Finance, to increase social grants significantly. All over the country any announcement of an increase in the social grant is received with pulsating drums and joy.

Over and above the normal cost of living related increases, a further increase of R10.00 per grant type was given in October 2002. This intervention was intended to provide relief to the poor due to the escalation of food prices. A further increase was given in April 2003 for the second year in succession and not in June, as had recently been the standard practice.

During this financial year our senior citizens will receive a monthly grant of R 700.00, a R60.00 increase. The amount of R 700.00 will also be received by our disabled persons and people receiving the Care Dependency Grant.

Recipients of the War Veteran Grant, which is the only grant decreasing in relation to the number of qualifying people, has been increased by R60.00 to R718.00. The Foster Child Grant has increased by R40.00 to R500.00. The Grant-In-Aid, which is received by people giving care to beneficiaries, has been increased by R20.00 to R150.00 per month.

The Child Support Grant, which is intended for the provision of basic needs of children, has been increased from R 140.00 to R 160.00. Moreover this grant, which was only accessible to children under the age of seven, will now include children up to the age of fourteen. The Child Support Grant extension campaign was launched successfully in Upington on 1 April 2003.

The extension will be phased in over a period of three years. This year, the grant will include children under the age of nine years. The next financial year will include children under the age of eleven and the 2005/2006 financial year will include children under the age of fourteen.

Honourable Speaker, the number of grant recipients in this Province has increased considerably over the past year. 20 694 new cases have been captured on the system and 60 % of these is apportioned to the Child Support Grant.

This is as a result of a robust outreach programme throughout the province that involved volunteers from other departments.

This year an additional 28 000 children have been targeted for the Child Support Grant. This means that 2 334 cases of this grant will be captured per month.

Honourable Speaker, the quest by the department to continue to search for mechanisms that will improve service delivery remains high on our list of priorities. It is anticipated that this financial year will see the ratification of the establishment of the National Social Security Agency. This agency will solely focus its activities on the payment of social grants.

The process of establishing the agency is welcomed by the province as the department will then be able to focus more on other important social service functions, such as provision of services to children, the elderly, women and the disabled.

Our day-to-day interaction with members of our communities has led us to establishing the fact that our people are unable to access social grants due to the fact that they do not have the required documentation. As a result, the department has forged a partnership with the Department of Home Affairs on a registration programme to enable the public, especially those in rural areas, to apply for identification documents.

The Province has also progressed well on the Northern Cape/North West cross border issue, which we pointed out during the previous budget speech. We managed to identify 393 cases and successfully transferred them to the North West Province from the original 409 cases identified. A further 544 new cases were identified and all records were transferred to North West Province.

Honourable Members, it is our view that the distribution of social grants remains the central tool of government to relieve poverty. The department has, however, rolled out other programmes that target households, which are not reached by the social, grant system due to qualifying criteria.

Of the many factors associated with poor communities and families, food insecurity is one of the major factors linked to poverty and vulnerability.

In response to this, the National Integrated Food Security and Nutrition Programme was successfully launched as an effective and vigorous strategy that will provide short term relief to the poorest of the poor and, in the longer term, increase their food production capacities and capabilities.

Our department's key focus is to build a safety net and emergency scheme to address hunger and starvation. The primary deliverable of this scheme is to provide a food parcel worth R 250.00 to the most vulnerable households. These include a household that has a joint income of less than R200.00 per month, children and child-headed households, orphaned children, people with disabilities, female-headed households and HIV/AIDS infected and affected households.

A total amount of R4.2 million was committed for the disbursement of 4 670-food parcels to poor households over a period of three months within the Sol Plaatje Municipal area and Campbell. This programme was launched in March and will end in May 2003.

It is expected that approximately 11 000 more poor households will benefit throughout the province from the R10 million allocated for this financial year.

In addition, three new food security initiatives in Upington, Kommagas and Noupoort have been funded to the value of R1.684 million.

Funds have been secured for the training of 77 project members in food production. The primary focus of the training will be on agriculture.

As part of the poverty relief agenda of the department, an interventionary social relief programme has been put in place. The programme is aimed at assisting destitute families, women and those infected and affected by HIV/AIDS, with temporary relief in the form of food parcels and blankets.

We are currently planning our winter relief programme where the vulnerable, especially street children and women, will be targeted. The Social Relief budget has been increased from R2 million in 2002/2003 to R3 million for the 2003/2004 financial year, in order to reach more destitute families.

An amount of R1 million has been allocated to drop-in centres that are points, which provide a full meal per day to targeted communities. 23 new drop-in centres will be opened this year. The targeted communities are largely in the Pixley Ka Seme region in towns like Phillipstown, Strydenburg, Noupoort, Richmond and other towns. The Namakwa and Siyanda regions will also see a number of these centres established in towns that fall within the poverty pocket designation.

We are convinced that, bit-by-bit, the department is achieving its objective of reaching out to the most vulnerable among our communities. The availability of food in each household will not only produce a healthy nation but will enable our country to have women, men and children with the necessary energy to meet the challenges of our country.

Honourable Speaker, our department has over the past years managed to allocate significant portions of the budget to programmes that are interventionary. May we, at this point congratulate the Office of the Premier for the successful opening of the Office on the Rights of the Child. We can never overstate the significance of care and protection to our children. Our department will co-operate and work with this important office.

This financial year will see a revitalised programme that aims to combat the abuse of our children. We note, with dismay, the statistics that reveal that the Northern Cape Province has the highest number of reported child-rape cases. We are also appalled by the incidences of child-on-child violence. We also note that while the Department of Labour in the province is doing a remarkable job in identifying cases of child labour, children are still used as labourers at farms and other commercial activities. We also object to the use of children in the taxi industries. It is for this reason that we have launched a variety of projects that will assist us to eradicate these wanton trends in our society.

Focus on child related programmes will remain a priority of the department. The Isolabantwana "Eye on the Child project" which was launched in Louisvale Weg last year has been rolled out to the rest of the province. This project aims to continuously provide training to identify volunteers in communities to assist in the detection of neglect and abuse of children.

Furthermore, training will be facilitated to strengthen child-care forums in all regions with the aim of implementing child-related projects and to prepare for the second Provincial Children's Conference, which will be held in Upington during October 2003.

Honourable Speaker, the department currently funds 151 day care centres throughout the province. This is an increase of 31 centres in the province. We also report that there has been a 100 % increase on the allocation given for each child at day care centres. As from the first of April, the allocation of providing care for children in day care centres increased from R 2.50 to R 5.00 per child per day. This amounts to R7 million increase on this item. We are currently constructing a crèche in Hartswater.

To ensure financial accountability and compliance with financial regulations, a partnership will be developed with a non-profit organisation to provide training in financial and overall management of day care centres.

Honourable Members, the issue of children awaiting trial in prison has recently become a thorny issue and the Minister for Social Development has alluded to this fact. The department will this year roll out the home-based supervision programme which will make provision for awaiting trial youth to remain in the custody of families while preventative and supportive services are rendered to them. This approach will also enable the department to accommodate youth that have committed serious, or a range of crimes, in Secure Care centres and not to be held in prison.

To upgrade and transform services at the Lerato Place of Safety in Galeshewe and the two secure care centres in Galeshewe and Upington, the department has extended the twining agreement with the Swedish government. The focus of this agreement is on research, implementation of therapeutic programmes related to the sexual offences and substance abuse.

Honourable Speaker, the Executive Council recently identified us to serve as the lead department for women-related issues, as is the case with children. Vulnerable women are one of the primary groups that are being targeted for assistance through the poverty relief programme.

The department has funded fifteen poverty relief projects in which 400 women are participating. Intensive training, which includes organisational development and finance, has been conducted in these projects.

As part of a broad programme that intends to fight against the abuse of women, an amount of R2 million has been allocated for the Victim Empowerment Programme. This programme entails counselling and support services to victims of crime and violence.

A One Stop Victim Support Centre will be established in Upington to provide counselling, legal services, developmental programmes and overnight shelter for abused women. This project will be established in partnership with the United Nations who have committed R2.5 million for the establishment of the centre.

Honourable Members, our society remains with scourges that we must grapple with on a daily basis. The problem of substance abuse, particularly the abuse of alcohol, remains a major social challenge to all citizens.

This year, a non-profit organisation will be identified and contracted to manage the in-patient treatment facility for substance abuse, which will be located in Kimberley.

The previous financial year saw the revamping of our advocacy programme on substance abuse. Successful provincial regional advocacy campaigns took place. It is however with dismay to report that home brewed alcoholic drinks such as "ncapshushu" in the De Aar area, "mbamba" in Galeshewe, "salie-halie" in Colville and "killing me softly" in the Upington area, still continue to exacerbate the problem.

Honourable Members, the brewing of these drinks is a painful sight. Just two years back a similar alcoholic drink was tested and the results revealed that the drink could be equated to industrial acid. It is a challenge to this province to provide policy options that will see to it that the production of such harmful substances is dealt with. In September 2003 the department aims to hold a provincial summit on substance abuse.

Honourable Speaker, the scourge of HIV/AIDS remains a priority programme of the department. An amount of R2.5 million will be allocated to the existing 15 projects with the aim of creating job opportunities as well as to address issues of HIV/AIDS, youth development and food security.

A comprehensive funding model was applied in Bankara/Bodulong as part of the Integrated Rural Development Strategy, where three inter-linked projects were established in consultation with various stakeholders in the area.

This Dual Purpose Centre, which services children and the elderly, has benefited 479 persons, of whom 277 are preschool children, 158 women, 5 disabled persons and 10 older person. Five hectares of land were secured for the Food Garden and 23 persons are participating in the project. The HIV/AIDS project provides Community Home-Based Care by 11 trained care-givers receiving a monthly stipend.

An additional R2.6 million was allocated for relief services to individuals and households infected and affected by HIV/AIDS. We assisted more than 350 families with burials and more than 900 households were in receipt of food hampers.

The project of providing community and home-based care to people infected with HIV/AIDS has received satisfactory attention. An additional 490 care givers will be contracted during this financial year. The department provides a stipend to each of the care givers.

Honourable Members, our human resources remain the most valuable asset. All the daunting tasks that are ahead of us will need a well-oiled machinery that will not give in when pressure mounts. It is for this reason that a carefully crafted human resource plan has been developed to meet these challenges.

To improve the quality of service to our clients, several Batho Pele programmes will be undertaken this year. The following are some of the training projects undergone by staff:

* Social Security officials are currently undergoing training through highly acclaimed institutions such as the Randse Afrikaanse Universiteit and University of Cape Town.
* The training of caregivers participating in Community Based Care for HIV/AIDS victims is receiving attention.
* 35 Social Development officials at entry level have an advanced diploma qualification in social development and reconstruction through the University of Cape Town
* 20 managers successfully completed the capacity building training funded by the European Union
* Computer training in partnership with Unisa, funded by the Health and Welfare SETA will be conducted to the entire staff complement and NGO partners
* ABET training for lower ranking officials to empower them with basic literacy
* Sign language training for our field workers will be conducted by the Deaf People South Africa.

The department, in conjunction with our national office, has developed a better strategic plan, which facilitates better monitoring and assessment. There has also been a re-alignment of financial functions such as the relocation of the procurement and asset management function under the finance unit. We have also compiled an operational plan of the department for which all managers will be held accountable. Remedial action will be taken where targets may be compromised.

Honourable Speaker, the department is currently engaged in several policy processes that will further deepen and define our mandate to the people of the province.

The Child Justice Bill seeks to provide a range of services to children in conflict with the law. An amount of R9 million has been allocated for the implementation of the Bill. This process will include the appointment of 20 probation and 25 assistant probation officers to implement crime prevention, intervention and statutory services related to youth justice.

Honourable Members, the department in the province is also participating in the process of the Social Assistance Bill. The Bill will introduce some critical amendments and will also lead to the formulation of a National Comprehensive Social Security system.

This process will create a window that enables us to look broader into options of addressing social services. It will not only focus on the provision of social grants but will also incorporate a comprehensive package of services to the most needy in our communities.

To that end, Honourable Members, R17 million has been allocated to trigger a process of finalising the norms and standards that will standardise the quality of service on national, provincial, district and precinct levels. Finalisation of this matter will imply that a common system for the delivery of services to our people will be in place.

Honourable Members, the Department has also established a research unit under the Population Development and Demographic Trends Programme that will mainly focus on sector related enquiries. The objective here is to ensure that developments and trends among communities should continuously inform the planning and interventions by the department.

The research unit recently made an enquiry into the trends in the disability grant type. The enquiry came as a result of the alarmingly high number of beneficiaries who were entering the system. The research looked into the types of ailments that led to people applying for the grant.

Recommendations from this exercise included a review on the definition of disability in relation to the accessing of the related grant. The province is in a process of sending our findings and recommendations to national office for further review.

Honourable Members, there is no dispute about the fact that some of our smaller towns in the province lack basic facilities which hamper the quality of service to be rendered. The department has over the years made generous contribution towards the building and refurbishing of community halls that are also used as social grant pay-points.

The programme to support communities to establish service points is continuing. The Department is currently busy with the improvement of Social Security services, specifically the development of pay points. The need for a building in Vredesvallei was identified and this building has now been completed and will be handed over to the community in the near future.

The department is also in the process of erecting a multi-purpose centre at a cost of R1.4 million in Carnavon. The process of rezoning has been finalised and the project will go on tender shortly. It is expected that the project will be completed by the end of October 2003.

Other infrastructural projects include the following areas:

* Upgrading of the Resthaven and Williston homes for older persons in Kimberley and Williston respectively. These facilities will be converted into multi-purpose centres that will make provision for a range of services to older persons, i.e. service centre, meals on wheels, laundry facilities, transport and home based care.
* Upgrading of the Colesberg Complex, Lowryvale and Huis Emmanuel in Williston for older and disabled persons to make provision for assisted living and a service centre.
* Facilitate the establishment of the One Stop Victim Support Centre in Upington that will provide counselling, legal services, developmental programme and overnight shelter for abused women.
* Facilitate the establishment of a One-Stop Child Justice Centre in De Aar. The centre will make provision for reception, assessment and referral service for youth in conflict with the law, a place of safety for twenty children and a secure care centre for ten youth who have committed serious crimes
* Through a partnership with the Transnet Foundation, the department secured a donation of containers for the establishment of three multi-purpose centres in Delportshoop, Brandvlei and Phuthanang in Galeshewe. This venture is valued at R3 million.

Honourable Members, we are pleased to present the budget allocation of the Department of Social Services and Population Development for the 2003/2004 financial year.

* Administration: 32.910 million
* Social Assistance Grants: 788.981 million
* Social Welfare Services: 92.245 million
* Development Implementation Support: 8.920 million
* Population Development and Demographic Trends: 2.322 million
* Statutory Amount: 0.678 million
* Total: R926.056 million

This amount represents an 11.6% increase over the 2002/2003 budget.

Honourable Speaker, we would, in conclusion, like to thank the entire staff complement of the Department for the unwavering commitment they have shown. We also thank churches, community based organizations, the business sector and the countless individuals who are going an extra mile to ensure that the lives of our people improve.

I thank you

Issued by Social Services & Population Development, Northern Cape

20 May 2003