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The Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety has condemned the recent attack on Tshwane Emergency Medical Services (EMS) workers while responding to an incident in Nellmapius on Saturday.

According to the Gauteng Health Department, the EMS crew was hijacked, kidnapped, assaulted and robbed of their personal cell phones, and other working tools while responding to what appeared to be a distress call in Nellmapius, near Mamelodi.

Committee chairperson Bandile Masuku expressed concern about the “unacceptable growing number of such incidents where EMS workers are attacked and robbed while responding to emergencies”.

“This is a worrying trend in Gauteng, as it puts the lives of EMS workers at risk and compromises their ability to respond and provide health care services to those in desperate need of them,” Masuku said.

The committee called on law enforcement to act with speed in apprehending the perpetrators of these crimes.

“There can never be a no-go area for EMS workers while carrying out their responsibilities, and to have them escorted by police or security officers in some areas paints a worrying picture of the level of crime and lawlessness in our province,” Masuku continued said.

Meanwhile, the committee commended the provincial government’s strides in introducing tracking surveillance devices on EMS vehicles to help EMS teams whenever they encounter dangerous situations.

The committee urged communities to work with law enforcement agencies to end attacks on EMS works, as these sabotage efficient emergency responses. – SAnews.gov.za
 

Deputy President Paul Mashatile will on Tuesday officiate the launch of the South Africa National Human Development (SANHDR) 2022 report, which has a strong focus on youth employment.

Mashatile is attending the launch at the invitation of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in South Africa and the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC).

The Deputy President’s attendance is in line with his delegated task as the chairperson of the Human Resource Development Council (HRDC).

The theme of the report is ‘Harnessing the Employability of South Africa's Youth’. 

"The report examines youth unemployment from a human development perspective, with an emphasis on the impact on their earning potential, business growth, social cohesion, and public resources,” the Deputy President's office said. 

The report further acknowledges that youth unemployment is a critical development challenge in South Africa and addressing it simultaneously targets poverty and income inequality.

“It is expected that the report launch will shed light on youth unemployment, highlight its consequences and present policy recommendations for fostering inclusive and sustainable growth in South Africa.”

Deputy President Mashatile will be accompanied by Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma. – SAnews.gov.za

President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to lead the South African delegation to the second Russia-Africa Summit to be held at St Petersburg in the Eastern European country on Thursday and Friday.

According to a statement by The Presidency, he will be accompanied by Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Dr Naledi Pandor and Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni.

“This second summit is expected to consider four declarations and a three-year Action Plan, which will be presented for consideration. These submissions will focus on strengthening cooperation between Russia and African States in politics, security, trade, science, IT, humanitarian support, education, culture, sports, youth and the environment.

“The declarations also seek to strengthen cooperation in the fight against terrorism, the prevention of an arms race in outer space, and in information security,” the President's office said in a statement.

The Presidency said talks about the upcoming BRICS summit will also be held.

“The summit background will also offer an opportunity to African Heads of State who are part of the African Leaders Peace Mission to continue talks with President Putin on the confidence-building measures that will create conducive conditions for a path to peace between Russia and Ukraine.

“South Africa will use the summit backdrop to further engage Russia at a bilateral level to finalise the contents and substance of the upcoming BRICS summit,” the Presidency said.

Side events, including an exhibition to showcase investment opportunities in Russia and Africa, an innovation space to demonstrate new technologies, and a Business Development and Social Partnership Zone for networking will also be held. – SAnews.gov.za

Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi and Members of the Executive Council (MINMEC) have agreed to allocate more resources for the prevention of disasters in informal settlements across the country.

The decision was taken during a meeting between the MINMEC of Human Settlements, Members of the Mayoral Councils (MMCs) of Human Settlements and Executive Mayors.

The meeting was held in Ermelo, Mpumalanga.

The MINMEC has agreed to reprioritise 5% of the Informal Settlements Upgrading Partnership Grant to specifically go towards a community-led process of repositioning densely built informal settlement into clusters, instead of the current improvised order of these ever-growing settlements. 

“These resources will help open pathways and roads for emergency vehicles and other services, including the provision of water, electricity and sewerage,” Kubayi said.

On emergency and disaster interventions in informal settlements, the meeting agreed that reblocking (reconfiguration) will help to proactively deal with disastrous fire emergencies in provinces and municipalities, which often lead to loss of lives and the complete destruction of property. 

The meeting also expressed a need for more stringent measures to deal with land invasion across the provinces, as it impacts on development efforts by all three spheres of government. 

“The meeting recommitted to finding ways to speed up more land acquisition to relocate people, including those affected by disasters, amidst government’s decision against the use of Temporary Residential Units for emergency interventions in favour of more permanent solutions, like Alternative Building Technology (ABT).

“In addition to informal settlements upgrading as one of the priorities for the Human Settlements sector, the meeting reemphasised the rapid rollout of the title deeds programme as a priority to ensure that South Africans become the rightful owners of their own homes - as part of reforms by government to significantly unlock economic benefits,” Kubayi said. 

The MINMEC also reflected on other sector priorities, including the expansion of First Home Finance; the provision of service sites, elimination of mud houses or informal dwellings in rural areas, as well as the removal of asbestos from homes.

It further undertook to find urgent solutions to address housing needs of communities, collaborating with other sister departments, like Co-Operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA), to provide support packages for metros to resolve challenges related to bulk infrastructure and procurement delays affecting service delivery and delays in the proclamation of township. 

The MINMEC received input from the COGTA Minister, Thembi Nkadimeng, and her team on the work done on secondary cities and metros.

“A joint submission is expected to be made to Treasury with a view of initiating a process to address funding needs of secondary cities, which often act as catalysts for development in their regions, alleviating demographic pressure from a country’s metropolitan areas,” Kubayi said.

The alignment and improvement of business plans of Metros came into sharp focus to resolve existing housing delivery, as well as delays in proclamation of townships. 

The MINMEC recommitment to combine efforts to strengthen internal controls, project planning, management, and implementation - which are key elements to ensure that projects are completed timeously, with achievable set targets and improved performance on the Medium-Term Strategic Framework (MTSF).

Challenges in grants performance 

Meanwhile, Kubayi said an analysis of the Human Settlements Grants Performance, for the period ending 30 June 2023, has flagged challenges in procurement, skills capacity and contract management. 

The Minister said due to this, a team from the department will at the end of this month embark on consultations with various provinces and municipalities to discuss noncompliance and performance improvement strategies to ensure that funds are utilised for the intended purposes. 

She said the team will conduct assessments of projects to close gaps early and avoid under-expenditure, which leads to loss of money from the sector. 

“In that regard, MINMEC resolved there must be transparency before any considerations to withhold or reallocate unspent funds for noncompliant provinces found to have substantially underspent during the end of the second quarter, in accordance with the Division of Revenue Act. In instances of overspending, a process will be undertaken to determine value for money,” the Minister said. – SAnews.gov.za