Minister in the Presidency (DPME) Budget Speech, responses by DA & IFP

Watch: Mini-Plenary (Debate on Vote 9)

MS. MAROPENE RAMOKGOPA ADDRESS BY MINISTER IN THE PRESIDENCY
2023/24 BUDGET VOTE FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING, MONITORING AND EVALUATION, PARLIAMENT, CAPE TOWN
18 MAY 2023

Honourable Chairperson of the Session,
Deputy Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Ms Pinky Kekana,
Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration, Mr T.H. James,
Members of the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration,
Honourable Members of the House,
Director General of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr. Robert Nkuna and his team,
Secretary of the National Planning Commission, Dr. Kefiwe Masiteng
Distinguished Guests, Members of the media  Fellow South Africans,
It is an honor to table the Budget Policy Statement of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME) for the 2023/2024 financial year.

We use this opportunity to outline the Department’s plans for the current financial year and to reflect on the government's performance in the implementation of developmental goals.

These goals are embedded in the National Development Plan, and in the seven priority areas for the 6th administration as outlined in the Medium-Term Strategic Framework 2019 to 2024.

During the 2023 State of the Nation Address, His Excellency President Cyril Matamela Ramaphosa acknowledged our collective hope and resilience as one of the defining attributes of our Nation.

It is through hope that we have been able to navigate and conquer the most challenging times as a country including the recent COVID-19 pandemic, the 2021 July unrests, and the natural disasters that have affected parts of our country.

Despite the compounding challenges, we remain resilient and forward looking in our pursuit to rebuild our economy, restore social cohesion, and strengthen social compacts in advancing socio-economic development.
We reflect on almost 30 years of South Africa’s democracy, and recognize the significant milestones achieved during this period including the expansion of our social protection systems, the increased access to basic education and healthcare services, the improved responsiveness of the criminal justice system and strengthening of diplomatic relations across Africa and the world.

House Chairperson,
Equally, we remain critical of the persistent barriers that hinder our country’s development. These include high rates of unemployment especially among the youth, increase in crime particularly gender based violence and femicide, the rising cost of living, and the stark inequalities that exist in our society.

Through it all, we must hold onto our hope and resilience as a nation in order to protect and advance our democratic gains.

We have less than seven years to work together towards the realization of the National Development Plan Vision 2030.

Honourable Chairperson,
Priority One of the seven priorities under the 6th administration is to build a Capable, Ethical and Developmental State.

A developmental state is anchored on strong strategic leadership, the effective use of resources, people-centred approaches, a robust long term plan, institutional capacity, service processes and technological platforms to function and deliver on the country’s imperatives through a social contract with the people.

As DPME our contributions to this priority lie in strengthening the coordination of all spheres of government, the legislature and judiciary to operate in alignment.

In 2021 we introduced the National Framework towards the Professionalisation of the Public Service. The framework is among several interventions introduced to ensure a capable, qualified and competent workforce in the public sector that will provide strategic leadership at the political and administrative interface.

The Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation continues to support the President in the assessment of Annual Performance Plans of the executive to ensure that service delivery is an integral aspect of their priorities as we approach the end of the Medium-Term Strategic Framework for this cycle.

As DPME our role is to assess the alignment of APPs with the broader NDP, and MTSF priorities and the State of the Nation Address. The APPs must also be embedded in the budgetary processes of government and institutionalized across all spheres to ensure better coordination on the provision of services to our people.

The cross cutting focus of all Annual Performance Plans must include the rights of women, youth and persons with disabilities.

As the DPME, we will continue to work with all sectors to promote a results-based approach and improve alignment with the NDP and MTSF through the standardisation of indicators for sectors with concurrent functions. To date, there have been standardised indicators for eight (8) sectors that were approved for implementation in the 2023/24 financial year.

Furthermore, we are facilitating a series of engagements during the current financial year with different stakeholders including civil society, businesses, multilateral organizations, developmental partners and citizens aimed at enhancing the capacity of the state.

We need to activate active citizenry as a tool for promoting socio economic development. The stakeholder engagements will inform our contributions as the DPME in the reconfiguration of the state through informed recommendations based on research, consultation and innovation.

The process towards the modernisation and automation of planning is underway. It forms part of the government-wide Electronic Quarterly Performance System that aims to improve the efficiency of the national planning system through alignment across different planning instruments, and effectively utilising new technology, including Artificial Intelligence.

In addition, our collaboration with spheres of governments is improving through the National Steering Committee for Integrated Planning. The committee is a high-level platform for engagement, consultation, sharing of best practice and unblocking development obstacles across government.

As part of building state accountability and reinforcing ethical values, the government has developed the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS). The NACS sets out a comprehensive programme of action to address both the preventative and reactive measures in the fight against corruption.

The process of implementing the NACS has led to the appointment of the independent National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council (NACAC) by President Ramaphosa in 2022. The council brings together representatives from civil society and business to work alongside the government to prevent and eliminate corruption.

In addition, the council will provide advisory inputs on matters related to the government's comprehensive response to the recommendations of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Allegations of State Capture.
To date, the government has developed an action plan which was tabled in parliament by the President in 2022 to respond to the recommendations of the Commission.

As the Department, we aim to strengthen integrated planning and coordination of programmes within and between the spheres of government to curb the persistence of corruption.

House Chairperson,
One of the key interventions of this priority is to enhance the coordination between national, provincial and local government to improve service delivery through the District Development Model (DDM).

The implementation of the DDM is able to put policy and legislative systems into action to promote localization and improve service delivery.

The DDM is making significant progress in almost all districts across the country. It is reported that districts have developed their One Plans to outline areas of socio-economic development in their respective localities.

The plans are being evaluated to coordinate participation of all spheres of government in the implementation processes. This is a key intervention of the National Steering Committee for Integrated Planning.

The mandate of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation is one of the strategic pillars of a capable, ethical and developmental state. We must unlock the catalytic potential of the country’s planning system to advance developmental goals.

In this regard, the department has made significant gains in strengthening integration and harmonisation of planning across the state machinery. This includes conducting an extensive assessment study on the state of planning, followed by consultation with stakeholders that led to the development of the Policy Framework for Integrated Planning. The framework was adopted by the Cabinet for implementation in 2022.

The Policy Framework and its implementation plan, builds on progress made in institutionalizing planning and seeks to address gaps such as the fragmentation of planning, inadequate capabilities, and the need to improve coordination and modernise the planning system towards the achievement of better results.

The Policy Framework has further informed the production of the Development Planning Framework Bill. The Bill provides a legislative framework for the national development planning system involving the three spheres of government and organs of state, informed by the Constitutional powers and functions.

It further sets out the planning functions of the DPME and the National Planning Commission. We aim to table this Bill to Cabinet and Parliament in the current financial year.

Honourable members,
To improve the impact of the planning system in advancing the development agenda, we must ensure adequate resource allocations.

The DPME has developed the Budget Prioritisation Framework (BPF) to facilitate the alignment of planning priorities and the national budget process on an annual basis.

The BPF is a key input in the budget deliberations and the Medium-Term Expenditure Committee, which makes the recommendations on funding allocations for the country.

Therefore, the department will continue to undertake an annual assessment of the alignment of the Budget Prioritisation Framework, the Medium-Term Budget Policy Statement and the National Budget.

In 2022/23, a research report was commissioned to assess the alignment between the national planning system and the budgeting process.

This research revealed that there is relatively good alignment between interventions, plans and budgets. However, these interventions are not translated into results-based targets within institutional plans.

Therefore, as DPME we have recommended further reforms to improve alignment of the planning and budgeting systems. The process to Institutionalize and professionalize development planning must be supported with resources and be guided by a long term robust plan such as the NDP.

We plan for change.

We plan for impact.

We plan for development.

Honourable members,
The second priority of the 6th administration is on Economic Transformation and Job Creation.

In 2022, we released the mid-term monitoring report which indicated that the government continues to make strides in promoting inclusive economic growth aimed at addressing the triple challenge of poverty, unemployment and inequality.

These strides are made in the context of economic shocks including the COVID-19 pandemic, energy crisis and other structural constraints.

One of the notable interventions led by President Ramaphosa is the South African Investment Conference which has been able to raise R1.5 trillion worth of investment pledges over the past five years which exceeded the initial target by 26%. These pledges are aimed at increasing investments and implementation of economic reforms.

As DPME, we are consolidating a framework to assess the impact of the investments, pledges and agreements on the development of the country and its citizens. This entails consultations and deliberations with captains of industries, the private sector, multilateral companies and other critical stakeholders at a domestic and international level to engage on trade relations and social impact.

During 2022 there has been significant progress in implementing the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan aimed at unleashing South Africa’s economic potential, alongside infrastructure reforms.

This includes the establishment of the National Energy Crisis Committee (NECOM) in 2022 aimed at coordinating a response to the electricity crisis with a clear mandate to bring an end to loadshedding and accelerate new energy generation.

To date, the licensing requirement for embedded generation projects has been lifted and the pipeline has grown to over 100 private sector projects with more than 9 000 megawatts (MW) of capacity anticipated.

Government has also announced an Eskom debt relief of R254 billion which is approximately R168 billion in capital and R86 billion in interest over the next three years.

The government is also pursuing greater competition in transport and logistics through third-party access to the freight rail sector in line with the 2022 White Paper on Rail Policy.

The White Paper presents a multi-decade vision of how South Africa's railway sector should evolve over time. In addition, a Freight Road to Rail Migration Base Document was developed in the first quarter of the 2022/23 financial year.

The Road to Rail performance between 2016 and 2022 indicates that 724 117 (seven hundred and twenty-four thousand, one hundred and seventeen) truckloads have been moved off roads to rails. This translates to a total of approximately 24.62 million tonnes of volumes that have been transported through rail networks in the same period.

We are aware that this progress is insufficient to meet the economic needs and expectations from various stakeholders, but it is signalling a positive trajectory for movement of goods from our roads to rail.

In addition, the DPME will monitor the performance of State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) within the transport sector and government departments in facilitating this process.

We must leverage on the instrumental role of SOEs in driving forward structural and economic reforms. This requires we invest in stability, effectiveness, and the financial sustainability of SOEs to improve responsiveness in delivering their mandates.

The rollout of critical infrastructure is underway in water, sanitation, energy and transport. Projects worth R134.2 billion are in procurement, an additional R232.3 billion worth of projects are in construction, and R3.9 billion worth of projects have been completed.

Above all, we are making a clarion call on citizens to protect critical economic infrastructure and report any criminal activity including cable theft and vandalism as these actions threaten economic growth and performance.

In my capacity as Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation and the Chair of the Public-Private Growth Initiative, I will elevate the call for the private sector to make sustained contributions in developing, maintaining and expanding economic infrastructure.

The PPGI will be central in facilitating engagement and collaboration between government and the private sector.

Through partnership, the initiative aims to promote rapid growth in the South African economy, to rebuild and strengthen a relationship of trust and cooperation between the public and private sector, and implement joint interventions.

Honourable Chairperson,

The third priority of the 6th administration is on Education, Skills and Health.

A people-centred approach to a developmental state requires that we invest and build the capabilities of the citizens through the provision of quality education and health services.

Since the dawn of democracy in 1994 we have made great strides to move towards universal access to education. The National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) is steadily increasing access to Post School Education and Training
(PSET) making it possible for students from poor backgrounds to attend TVET colleges and public Universities.

As part of the SA Connect programme, efforts are also being made to upscale connectivity in our schools and create a conducive environment for learners to embrace technological innovations.

The DPME has initiated engagements with the Department of Basic Education and Department of Communication and Digital Technologies for a discussion on the possibility of increasing the allocated bandwidth for teaching and learning.

We call on Telecommunications companies to participate and contribute to ensuring that our children are not excluded from the digital revolution. This includes infrastructure support, training and education and access to connectivity.

During the current MTSF, a lot of emphasis has been placed on improving the overall healthcare system of the country. The government has developed the National Health Insurance Bill in 2020 for the implementation of National Health Insurance (NHI). The Bill aims to improve the total life expectancy of South Africans through programmes that are aimed at curbing the impact of both communicable and non-communicable diseases.

Subsequent to the completion of public hearings on the NHI Bill 2020 and its classifications as a desirable Bill by the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Health, we are pleased that the Bill is receiving attention at the National Assembly. We welcome the robust engagements in parliament and believe that the process will lead to legislation that advances universal quality healthcare for the citizenry.

Notwithstanding, we have identified with concern the increasing bill of medico-claims, especially in Gauteng and Eastern Cape Provinces. This challenge strains the already limited financial resources of the government and has the potential to undermine efforts to build an accessible and quality healthcare system.

The Department is in consultation with both provinces to develop a multi-pronged strategy aimed at curbing the claims. We will also be exploring the role of the Road Accident Fund in increasing the prevalence of medical claims.

Above all, we are pleased about the improvement in the life expectancy of both men and women in South Africa. The life expectancy in the country has steadily improved over the past three years between 64.38 years in 2021 to 64.88 years in 2023.

The improved life expectancy is a product of health interventions, and social social determinants of health, including alleviating poverty and severe acute malnutrition, as well as provision of clean water and proper sanitation, and access to decent housing and basic education. This speaks directly to the Sustainable Development Goal Three on Good Health and Well Being.

Honorable members,
The fourth priority of the 6th administration is focused on Consolidating the Social Wage.

Government is investing significantly to improve social wage and protection to deal with poverty and inequality.

Over the medium term, the government has dedicated 59.2% of the consolidated non-interest spending to health, education, housing, social protection, transport, employment and local amenities.

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Social Relief of Distress Grant (SRD) of R350 has reached around 7.8 million people. The intervention forms part of an ongoing process aimed at introducing the basic income support for the most vulnerable.

However, we cannot ignore the current fiscal constraints and therefore call on more social compacts between government and the private sector to finance the social wage and overall social protection system. This is critical for the stimulation of economic participation by the vast majority.
While we have made strides in the provision of social protection interventions, we must place more emphasis on achieving sustainable economic growth in order to address issues like the crisis of youth unemployment.

As the department, we are tracking the impact of the Youth Employment Service (YES) program in alleviating youth unemployment through training and educational opportunities, exposure to working environments across sectors and employment opportunities.

DPME will facilitate a coordination strategy session between the National Youth Development Agency, the Department of Basic Education, Department of Higher Education and Training, and the Department of Labour to help better coordinate inter-departmental processes relating to youth unemployment.

The answers to many of our social challenges lay in economic growth and development.

Ladies and gentlemen,
The fifth priority focuses on Social Cohesion and Safe Communities.
Safety and security are directly related to socio-economic development and equality. A safe and secure country encourages economic growth and transformation and is an important contributor to addressing historical and structural limitations.

Our government wants citizens to be and feel safe. A safe environment allows citizens to participate in the socio-economic activities of the country.

In this case, we welcome the enlistment of 10 358 new SAPS recruits during 2022/23 against a target of 10 000 and the allocation of funding for recruitment of more police. The new recruits improve capacity in key specialised areas, including, inter alia, the Detective Service, Crime Intelligence and Public Order Policing.

The DPME is in consultation with the Department of Police to address the challenges that affect the optimal functioning of the 10111-call centre. The call centre remains an accessible solution to millions of South Africans and can help prevent crime. We aim to work together with other stakeholders to capacitate crime prevention with government, law enforcement agencies and communities.

Honorable Chairperson,
The 6th priority of the 6th Administration is on Spatial Integration, Human Settlements and Local Government.

The DPME in collaboration with the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), and other stakeholders, are working to develop planning interventions aimed at strengthening integrated planning and development through the DDM.

We have developed guidelines for the localisation of government plans in the context of the DDM, which have been piloted and integrated as part of the National School of Government training on the DDM.

Integrated planning at a district level requires government institutions and sectors to be more effective in their spatial planning. This is important considering the diverse district profiles and needs as well as ensuring greater synergies and impact in local communities, towns, districts and metropolitan areas.

Spatial Transformation remains a critical priority of the government.

Through our participation in the Presidency Steering Committee on the DDM, the DPME has initiated work with the National Treasury on the One Budget concept, focusing on spatial disaggregation of budgets and improving the efficiency of spending for greater impact of government investment.

The DPME together with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development, and other stakeholders co-created the National Spatial Development Framework (NSDF) for South Africa.

The framework seeks to make bold and decisive contributions to provide direction for spatial development and spatial transformation in the country which is articulated in the Freedom Charter, the Reconstruction and Development Programme and the National Development Plan.

The DPME aims to embed the NSDF within the overall planning system which falls under one of the priorities linked to the spatialisation of government planning. As DPME, we anticipate that this will facilitate the transfer of the NSDF coordination functions to the DPME.

To further enable improved spatialization of planning, the DPME developed the Geospatial Referencing Guidelines to ensure national and provincial Departments are able to provide basic spatial information in relation to their projects and programmes, in support of the NSDF and the DDM.

The Department will continue to provide support on geographic information systems, in partnership with the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development as the custodians for the Spatial Data Infrastructure of the country.

Honourable members,
The seventh and final priority of the 6th administration is Building A better Africa and World.

South Africa will continue to prioritise regional integration and multilateralism in the context of constantly changing geo-politics and economics. In this regard, we welcome the African Union’s decision to place the spotlight on the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement during Africa Month.

This year, Africa Day will be celebrated under the theme “Accelerating the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area to bring greater prosperity to the continent”. It is anticipated that when fully implemented, the AfCFTA will be the world’s biggest free trade area, with a combined gross domestic product of around $3.4 trillion.

The AfCFTA enjoys the full support of almost all African states including South Africa. Our government is paying attention to regional economic developments as a way to ensure shared benefits and security. In this regard, we will continue to assess the extent to which the current SADC Plans enable growth and development across the region.

Our country continues to contribute to the rapid infrastructure development of Africa. President Ramaphosa is the Coordinating Champion and currently leads the Presidential Infrastructure Champion Initiative (PICI) in which I support the President in my capacity as Minister. PICI aims to accelerate regional infrastructure development through the political championing of projects.

South Africa is leading four projects namely the Beitbridge Border Post, the Grand Inga III Hydropower Project, Lesotho Highlands Water Project, and making South Africa the hub for the manufacture and supply of Rail Stock for Africa in accordance with the AU Resolution.

It is pleasing to note that all projects are progressing in the implementation stages.

On multilateralism, South Africa will continue to call and work for a just and equitable global order where conflicts are resolved through persuasion and negotiations.

We must work together to ensure South Africa is positioned as the hub of development in Africa and claims its space as a global contributor on trade and investment. As DPME we seek to track the progress on bilaterals, MOUs signed and commitments made at a diplomatic level to assess their impact on local development.

As we conclude on the 6th administration and effectively the MTSF 2019 – 2024, the DPME continues to monitor and conduct targeted evaluations on critical government programmes with the intention to inform improved policy implementation and development impact.

I have been tasked to chair the National Planning Commission, as an advisory body to the Presidency and country on planning and development.

The Commission is currently conducting an assessment of the ten years of implementation of the NDP from 2012 to the end of 2022. The report is scheduled to be published in the current financial year and it will inform the next administration, MTST and our journey towards Vision 2030.

Moreover, in the financial year 2022/23, the Department completed four evaluations on Operations Phakisa, Land Restitution Evaluation Study, Government Flood Disaster Interventions and on the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (ERRP).

In the current financial year, the Department aims to conduct evaluations related to Youth Employment Creation Programmes and National Food and Nutrition Security Plan.

Additionally, the Department continues to conduct rapid evaluations alongside the approved National Evaluation Plan which is anchored on the seven priorities of the MTSF 2019 – 2024.

Research on the Covid-19 pandemic and its impact continued in 2022. A 2nd Edition of the Covid-19 Country Report is being finalised in collaboration with the National Research Foundation (NRF) and the Government Technical Advisory Centre (GTAC), which has mobilised the contribution of many researchers across South Africa. The reports are intended to inform intervention and management of similar health disasters in future.

We want to build sufficient evidence to inform planning and monitoring and assist the government to develop result driven policies for the 7th administration and beyond.

Chairperson,
April 2024 marks exactly three decades of a democratic government. The DPME has commenced with the 30-Year review evidence report to reflect, evaluate and document the three decades of the democratic government of South Africa.

We anticipate this process to be critical in providing the necessary insights as we plan for the next administration of our government towards the realization of developmental goals.

We are mindful when planning in the context of increased volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity which requires that our planning systems and instruments have the agility to advance the achievement of the sustained development agenda.

Is it for this reason that the process of developing the five-year plan for the 7th administration will be informed by a review of the current planning methodology and integrate new approaches such as scenario planning, modelling and others.

We have also partnered with the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) and Indlulamithi on Scenario Planning, which we believe will make important inputs for the next medium-term plan.

Honourable Chairperson,
The Department has over time proved its commitment to clean governance. For ten years in succession, the Department achieved a clean audit and registered an average performance of 80%.

This is a testament of the strength of the department’s governance system and commitment to build a capable, developmental and ethical state as envisaged in the NDP Vision 2030 and MTSF 2019 – 2024.

We are confident that this year’s allocation of R475, 85 Million will be deployed effectively to build a functional and synergized planning, monitoring and evaluations systems that helps the government to deliver on its mandate.

As I conclude, I want to thank the Deputy Minister in the Presidency Ms. Pinky Kekana who relentlessly supports the work of the Department.

I also want to extend gratitude to the Director General of the DPME and his team for their commitment in working towards the attainment of the developmental goals and playing their part in reducing poverty, inequality and unemployment.

We have a collective responsibility to build a capable, ethical and developmental state that understands economic development as a catalyst in fostering social and human development in the interest of the “public good”

Re swanetše go rulaganya go fetoša maphelo a batho ba rena gore e be a mabotse. Se se tla nyaka botee go ya go nepo ye e swanago, kgato ya kopanelo le botee go ralala le mehuta ya rena ya go fapafapana. Ke dumela gore mmogo re ka dira gore Afrika Borwa e be ye kgolo.

I thank you!

 

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Deputy Minister Pinky Kekana: Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation Dept Budget Vote 2023/24

18 May 2023

Madam Speaker, Hon. Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula/ Honourable House Chair
Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee
Members of the Portfolio Committee
Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation, Ms Maropene Ramokgopa
Ministers, Deputy Ministers and Director-Generals
Members of Parliament,
Distinguished Guests,
Members of the media
Fellow South Africans,

Honourable Chairperson, we thank you for this opportunity, to present the Budget Vote of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), together with the Minister in the Presidency.

South Africa reimagined as an equality-centric, prosperous nation, is the goal for the three spheres of government and its entities, requiring a resolute focus in implementing the electoral mandate for:

• the National Development Plan (NDP) 2030,
• the continent's blueprint – Agenda 2063,
• and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's)

The NDP is aligned to the SDG's and Agenda 2063, and therefore achieving the NDP goals also achieves the continental and global goals.

To this end, the NDP is being reviewed by the National Planning Commission (NPC), with a critical focus on 3 (three) Cross Cutting issues:

• the stubborn poverty levels of 40% of the population
• the increasing income-related inequality
• and the ragingly high unemployment levels

South Africa's Gini co-efficient of 0.69 puts us at the top of the “highly unequal" category – clearly indicating that our development trajectory is not on course.

For this reason, the National Planning Commission has called for improved coordination of the NDP's implementation, specifically better planning and collaboration optimising a partnership culture between government, private sector, and civil society. Our responsibility as the DPME is to ensure that government's developmental plans, implementation mechanisms, and most importantly, our performance, must be obligatory to all South Africans.

Last week I addressed the Presidential Hotline PLO Forum, and in the spur-of-the-moment I asked them to stand and pledge a commitment of delivery, with the first commitment being," I commit in thought, word and deed to SHOW our people that government is firmly committed to improving the quality of our people's lives."

The full pledge is on the DPME website, but the hugely emotional response with real tears wept by the PLO's, reaffirmed to me that the majority of people in this government, in this administration puts the lives and livelihoods of our people first!

Last year we spoke of the successes from the social compact approach, when faced with the flood disasters in parts of the country. This year, I am here to report on the gaps closed from a systems, planning and monitoring perspective, using this same model of social compact and partnership.

As an example, the DPME works closely with the Tswaing Local Municipality, North West Premier's office, relevant national departments and business community for the Deelpan Village.

The Task team, chaired by the DPME, has created significant impact, with access to schools restored; roads graded to facilitate movement; and land for the development of 104 residential sites, inclusive of four (4) supporting social sites – a crèche, businesses and a park.

The required relocation of the Deelpan Village is due to it being originally located on a wetland, which is unsafe for human settlement, and also compromising environmental sustainability.

Similarly, the Driftsands Informal Settlement is located around the Cape Nature Reserve's wetlands and dam walls, and there we are happy to report that the Intlungu YaseMatyotyombeni Movement, a group of community activists representing the dwellers, with the National and Provincial Departments of Human Settlements and the City of Cape Town have resulted in an in-principle agreement for relocation.

These are just 2 examples of the prevention of potential disasters with a huge loss of life, because of effective monitoring, evaluation and planning with a social compact lens applied. Competency is a core value of the DPME and as such we are identifying proficiency systems, towards implementing Cabinet's directive on disaster management, facilitated by United Nations-South Africa (UN-SA).

Honourable Chairperson,

We have also institutionalised this social compact model in our frontline monitoring efforts. In applying this proven methodology, we have established the undeniable dependency our frontline monitoring efforts have on partner participation.

This was evidenced in the activated operationalisation of the Atlantis Special Economic Zone, by getting the required approval of the 3D application by the Minister of Finance. With its Green Tech theme, ASEZCo is a unique SEZ that appeals to investors in green tech manufacturing and is positioned as a cutting-edge destination for manufacturers wanting to supply their technologies to Independent Power Producers bidding on the National Government renewable energy programme, the REIPPPP. It aims to create about 1 000 new jobs and estimated investment in the region of R3-billion.

Another SEZ first, is the Saldanha Bay Industrial Development Zone SOC Ltd (SBIDZ) which is the first to be located in a port, and is the only sector-specific IDZ in South Africa, and observes its 10th anniversary in October this year. A monitoring site visit this week, revealed that after all these years, there is still no operating model between SBIDZ and Transnet Port Authority, resulting in a lack of necessary upgraded port infrastructure needed for key investment return.

Our visit resulted in a meeting with National Treasury to unlock the tax incentives, and we are in the process of engaging Transnet for political and administrative buy-in.

As Minister said, “We plan for change. We plan for impact. We plan for development."

We are proud to report that we have increased onsite monitoring visits to more than 400 in the past year, a significant increase year on year, prior to my administration.

But, what has the impact been?

In the interest of time I will give you just some of the highlights:

• A total of 157 schools were monitored under the Sanitation Appropriate for Education (SAFE) Initiative
• 146 clinics monitored under Ideal Clinic Programme
• 23 Informal settlements monitored for basic service provisioning in Khayelitsha (WC)
• 23 Executive Oversight Monitoring visits by Political Principals in the Presidency were undertaken which covered areas including:

Special Economic Zones

Gender-based Violence and Femicide Hotspots

and the close out report of the COVID-19 Vaccination roll-out programme

The results of these monitoring activities were communicated to the relevant provincial and national departments and the process of developing improvement plans with timelines facilitated and monitoring continues.

'IMPACT' is at the heart of our activities, so we have filtered our learnings into the development of the Khawuleza App, which was introduced to expand platforms for citizens to engage with government and improve case management efficiency.

The DPME has prioritised the follow-up on all queries that have been lodged through the Presidential Hotline for resolution. We have since written to all Departments with low-resolution ratings, and this is notification here and now to all those Departments, that we will be following this initial letter with another letter that will be escalated 1 level higher.

This escalation process will continue until it reaches Portfolio Committee level and Parliamentary enquiry - as per our mandated objectives.

Honourable Chairperson,

The DPME has recently launched the State-Owned Entity Monitoring Framework in February 2023, to improve the governance and performance of SOE's by strengthening the oversight role of shareholder departments.

The Department is also working with the Presidency to ensure the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy 2020-2023, seconding senior DPME officials to the Office of the Director General in the Presidency to establish and advance the national anti-corruption agenda, which includes the following priority projects:

The establishment of the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council, chaired by Prof. Firoz Cachalia

The development of a coordination and monitoring mechanism for referrals from the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) and implementation of the actions from the President's Response to the Recommendations of the State Capture Commission

Strengthening capacity for monitoring and evaluating the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy in 2023/24

In addition, the Transparency, Integrity and Accountability Programme (TIP) is a partnership programme funded by the Governments of Germany and Switzerland to contribute to the implementation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS) by taking a whole-of-government-societal approach. The DPME as the lead Department, concluded the Implementation Agreement for Technical Cooperation between the department and GIZ, co-signed by the DPME Director-General and the GIZ Country Director for South Africa, Lesotho and eSwatini on 18 January 2023.

Monitoring and evaluation feedback will be provided to the public in due course, as our role is to coordinate the implementation, monitoring and evaluation of the National Anti-Corruption Strategy (NACS).

While all the APPs and meeting the goals of the NDP 2030 is the overall objective, we recognise that some areas require a critical focus, as I have highlighted. And so, for the next fiscal year, we will be adding to our critical list, including but not limited to:

the NACS

The Energy Action Plan announced by President Ramaphosa on 25 July 2022, ensuring energy security in South Africa

The National Food and Nutrition Security Plan which was meant to have found success by 2023

The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) which South Africa ratified on the 10th of February 2019

The National Strategic Plan on Gender-based Violence & Femicide which had  an estimated R162 million pledged to the fund, with 75% of this amount already disbursed but the statistics tell a worsening tale

Honourable Chairperson,

It's probable that we could add to this list during the course of the year, but for now these are the ones which have emerged as critical areas to focus on in 2023-2024.

We are confident that our success in outcome-based impact, speaks for itself in voting for funds to enable the Department to continue our work for accelerated development, ensuring that corruption does not undermine the efforts made by the majority to rebuild our country and restore our economy.

The DPME was created to ensure that the voices of the citizens forms the biggest part of the continuum of evidence on government performance.

This country belongs to all of us, because after all we are in this together.​