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On 29 May, South Africa faces one of its most important General Elections since 1994. At stake is not only the Presidency but the economic future of South Africa, as there is a desperate need to develop policies that will encourage entrepreneurship and the participation of strong entrepreneurs in economic development. At the recently held …
A strong determination to succeed, a mentoring nature and her grounding in humility are the attributes that have contributed to Nozipho Ngobese’s rise from junior clerk to Head of Operations during three decades at Ithala SOC Limited. Despite a passion to become a chartered accountant after matriculating at Bhekuzulu College in Nongoma, Ngobese’s parents could …
The impact of creative learnerships on rapid skills development As South Africa continues to grapple with its massive youth (15-34 years) unemployment rate of 4.7 million individuals (Q4 2023), there is a critical need for innovative approaches to skills development and employability. Rajan Naidoo, Managing Director of EduPower Skills Academy views learnerships as an excellent …
South African music producer/engineer, Ciaran De Chaud (27) enters 1416 North La Brea Ave Hollywood for work each day. It’s the historic location of Charlie Chaplins’ 1917 studio and today it operates as Henson, one of the music industry’s top recording facilities collaborating with artists like Taylor Swift, John Mayer and The Rolling Stones. De …
Fund launched to empower young tech entrepreneurs
A transformative fund to empower innovators and tech entrepreneurs from higher education institutions was officially launched by the Department of Science and Innovation (DSI) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) on Monday.
The Higher Education Innovation Fund is aimed at students aspiring to become innovators and tech entrepreneurs emerging from Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges and universities.
“This will be done through programmes that support general entrepreneurship, ideation, and design thinking,” said Higher Education, Science and Innovation Minister, Dr Blade Nzimande, speaking at the launch in Pretoria.
He informed the audience that the stakeholders aim to fill the gaps in the current set of tools and programmes available to support innovation and technology entrepreneurship nationwide.
“This will be done through, among others, supporting business model development, validation and development of tech-entrepreneurship, support commercialisation, market access and IP [intellectual property] protection, and supporting scale-up and investor readiness.”
According to Nzimande, there is a need for a well-coordinated, integrated and responsive innovation-entrepreneurship ecosystem to support student innovators and tech-entrepreneurship in higher education.
The parties are also looking at sufficiently funding an innovation-entrepreneurship ecosystem and for all partners to back the “ecosystem”.
In addition, the fund also aims to train and up-skill student tech entrepreneurs, who are capable of developing and commercialising competitive innovative products, and to support the establishment and management of sustainable tech-enterprises.
Unemployment
The department said the fund represents a beacon of hope in addressing youth unemployment, inequality, and poverty by fostering the growth of the knowledge economy.
While South Africa grapples with youth unemployment, Nzimande noted a concerning trend of increasing unemployment among graduates, as reported by Statistics South Africa (Stats SA).
He highlighted a few challenges that characterise innovation and entrepreneurship in the post-school education and training (PSET) sector, including poor coordination across the ecosystem, a weak culture of entrepreneurship and innovation, and a lack of support and networks at institutions of higher learning.
He raised concern about students’ limited exposure to entrepreneurial opportunities, mentoring and coaching, and a small number of innovation leaders in TVET colleges.
Another stumbling block, he added, was the lack of early seed funding and incentives.
“These challenges are more acute in TVET colleges and historically disadvantaged universities,” Nzimande said.
Background
The fund’s establishment process began with a Memorandum of Understanding signed between Nzimande's department and UNDP in 2021.
The Higher Education Innovation Fund is provided by the 2019 White Paper on Science, Technology, and Innovation (STI), which according to Nzimande, acknowledges the challenge of high youth unemployment in the country.
“Further to this, our Decadal Plan commits my department to transformation and inclusion of the marginalised, in terms of demographic, institutional and geographical transformation of the National System of Innovation.
“This is why innovation for inclusion is a theme that runs across all chapters of our Decadal Plan and overlaps with many of the Policy Intents of the White Paper on STI,” the Minister explained.
Nzimande’s department and the UNDP are the lead partners, while the Technology Innovation Agency (TIA) recently joined as a co-funder and potential implementer of some programmes and looking for more donors.
“Equally important, in a couple of months, two calls for proposals will be publicised for interested parties with suitable programmes and expertise to apply," said the Minister.
Nzimande said they were looking to grow the Higher Education Innovation Fund to R1 billion.
He also used his platform to invite private sector companies and other funding institutions to come on board and help achieve this objective.
“The Higher Education Innovation Fund is a first for our PSET system and country. Also, this fund has great potential to become a game changer in terms of the production of student innovators and tech entrepreneurs and by extension, helping us to address the interconnected challenges of skills development and youth unemployment.” – SAnews.gov.za
Gabisile
Mon, 03/25/2024 - 12:56
They’ve done it again! St Benedict’s College remains unbeaten, holding onto the coveted title of South Africa’s School Rowing Champions, for the 30th consecutive year. Despite fierce competition at the annual schools’ regatta (1-3 March 2024), the Johannesburg boys’ school placed first in the lion’s share of the events, out rowing teams from the best …
Progress made in reforming the public service
President Cyril Ramaphosa has in his weekly newsletter to the nation, touched on the recent progress that has been made in reforming and professionalising the public service.
“Several important milestones have been reached in the last week as part of the work underway to reform and professionalise the public service. These developments are vital both to advancing the goal of a capable developmental state and give effect to recommendations of the State Capture Commission,” he said.
In his weekly newsletter on Monday, the President said the National Assembly had passed two important pieces of legislation that will improve the functioning of the public service, strengthen accountability and increase efficiency.
These bills, the Public Administration Management Amendment Bill and the Public Service Amendment Bill will now go to the National Council of Provinces for consideration.
Also, the Department of Public Service and Administration published a new directive to guide departments in implementing the framework for the professionalisation of the public service.
“This directive, together with the draft legislation, will have a far-reaching impact on the functioning of the public service. They give effect to some of our most important tasks.
“Firstly, these reforms will help ensure that the best people are appointed to the public service and that they are given support to perform effectively,” the President said.
He highlighted that the directive, for example, requires that a person can only qualify to be appointed to senior management in the public service if they have successfully completed the pre-entry programme known as Nyukela.
The course, which is provided by the National School of Government and takes about 120 hours to complete, aims to ensure that all applicants to senior management positions have the knowledge and capabilities they need to succeed. The course aims to ensure that prospective senior managers are grounded in the values of good citizenship, ethical leadership, and developmental public administration.
All shortlisted candidates must undertake two pre-entry assessments – a practical exercise that tests their competencies, and an integrity assessment that establishes their grasp of ethical principles and ability to take ethical decisions.
All new employees must undergo a compulsory induction programme within six months of appointment, and all current public servants must attend a compulsory re-orientation programme once every five years.
“To ensure continuous learning and development throughout a public servant’s career, every department must spend at least 1% of their wage bill on training. To support this effort, the draft legislation currently in Parliament establishes the National School of Government as a national department to provide education and training to employees in all spheres of government, including municipalities and public entities,” he said.
National School of Government
During the State of the Nation Address last year, President Ramaphosa announced that the National School of Government will work with the Human Sciences Research Council to undertake a skills audit in selected infrastructure and frontline services departments.
The first phase of the project has now been completed, giving valuable insights into potential critical skills gaps in these departments.
In infrastructure departments, for example, the report highlighted the need to improve knowledge of modern engineering practices, sustainable construction methods and environmental impact assessment.
“The results from the frontline services departments will support the work being done to improve the administration of public services and the quality of services provided. These skills audits have been well received and will help us to get the best that each public servant can offer.”
Work experience
Another important part of the most recent directive is that the requirement of work experience has been waived for entry level posts in the public service.
This must be accompanied by in-service training and support such as coaching and mentoring. Departments are also instructed to establish graduate recruitment schemes to attract young people leaving higher education institutions into the public service.
Political interference and delineation of powers
“Secondly, the reforms contained in the draft legislation will significantly reduce the potential for undue political interference in the administration of government,” President Ramaphosa said.
He further highlighted that the Public Service Amendment Bill makes a clear distinction between the powers of elected officials, such as Ministers, and professional public servants, such as Directors-General or Heads of Department.
The elected officials, legally defined as the Executive Authority, provides strategic and political direction, while heads of department are granted full administrative powers to run their departments.
“This clear delineation of powers will make for a more professional and efficient public service. It will also help to prevent the kind of undue political interference in the administration of the state that the State Capture Commission found sometimes enabled corruption. Another important change proposed in the legislation is to prohibit a head of department or an employee directly reporting to them from holding political office. This is to strengthen the distinction between political and administrative roles.”
Thirdly, the President said these reforms will improve coordination and accountability.
Among other things, the draft legislation will enable the transfer of public servants between national and provincial governments and municipalities.
This will help to ensure that people with technical and scarce skills and capabilities can be moved to where they will have the greatest impact. This is important for supporting municipalities, which often suffer from a shortage of skilled employees.
The draft legislation also assigns additional functions to the Director-General in the Presidency, in line with the National Development Plan, to create an administrative head of the public service to whom Directors-General would report on operational, organisational and administrative matters.
Corruption
Fourthly, the President emphasised that these reforms will strengthen the fight against corruption.
As part of the draft legislation, public servants who leave government may not, within 12 months of leaving, accept employment or appointment to the board of a service provider to which they were involved in awarding a contract.
They may not perform any paid work or receive any other payment. Service providers or employees who contravene this provision would have committed a crime and could be fined up to R1 million.
To improve accountability and tackle corruption, an inter-departmental task team has developed a central register to track all dismissals and resignations with disciplinary cases pending in national and provincial government. This register currently has over 12,000 records.
“Work is underway to include information from local government and public entities. This will prevent public servants with disciplinary records being appointed in another part of the State.
“All of these reforms will contribute to building a more effective and efficient state that is responsive and accountability. They will enable public servants to do their work without interference and with the necessary support. And they will provide impetus to our collective efforts to build a capable state that is better equipped to fundamentally transform and develop our society,” the President said. – SAnews.gov.za
DikelediM
Mon, 03/04/2024 - 14:30
President welcomes training for traditional leaders to act as change agents
President Cyril Ramaphosa has welcomed the partnership between the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and the National School of Government (NSG) to provide training on, among other things, facilitating socio-economic development for traditional communities.
“The programme is aimed at empowering traditional leaders to act as change agents in their communities, and to transfer new knowledge and skills so we can initiate sustainable economic interventions in our rural areas,” said the President.
The President was delivering the keynote address at the annual official opening of the National House of Traditional and Khoi-San Leaders (NHTKL) at the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) Chamber in Cape Town, on Thursday.
“We know that capacity building is essential if we are to enhance the role traditional leaders play in development,” said the President.
He said the goal was an active rural citizenry with traditional leaders at the helm.
The Art of Facilitating Socio-Economic Development for Traditional Leaders Programme is part of the suite of funded programmes offered by the NSG for public servants to attend free.
These courses are delivered by the NSG as part of interventions to professionalise the public sector and to improve performance in all spheres of government.
The programme seeks to support and empower Traditional Leaders to act as economic change agents in their communities and be able to create sustainable jobs and create wealth while also building an active rural citizenry who participate in and support economic development.
"It will provide the Traditional Leaders with knowledge and skills to identify and utilize local natural resources in an environmentally sustainable way.
"It is aimed at capacitating Traditional Leaders with knowledge, skills, attitudes, and practical capabilities to engage and empower communities to use the available opportunities for their own socio-economic development. The programme supports a range of role-players who work closely with communities, that are, volunteers from the community, Community Development Workers, government officials and Traditional Leaders," the NSG had said in an earlier statement.
The Programme assists Traditional Leaders, amongst others, to:
Elections
Meanwhile, the President urged traditional leaders to continue to encourage all eligible voters to participate in the National and Provincial Elections on 29 May 2024.
“As we have done before, we call on traditional leaders to actively promote free and fair campaigning, and to ensure that all voters can exercise their democratic right,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
Janine
Thu, 02/22/2024 - 16:14
S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition 2024-25 will turn the spotlight on the best culinary talents who hold the future of gastronomy in their hands: applications open 21st February. Cape Town, South Africa, 21st February 2024 – S.Pellegrino announces a new edition of the S.Pellegrino Young Chef Academy Competition, the global initiative to discover and mentor …
JOHANNESBURG: Cricket South Africa (CSA) mourns the passing of Mike Procter, one of the game’s greatest all-rounders, who has died...
In the wake of the recent announcement of the Independent Examinations Board (IEB) National Senior Certificate (NSC) results, Reddam House Umhlanga proudly presents another Class of 2023 achiever, Samkelo Mdakane. Having secured an outstanding five distinctions, Sam’s journey is nothing short of inspiring. Discovered singing in a rural school by Georgie Carter, his benefactor, Sam’s …
Being a budget director, or the head of a macro-fiscal unit (MFU) of a ministry of finance, is a demanding job. So, it was an impressive combination of logistical ingenuity and good timing that brought together heads of budget and macro-fiscal functions from 11 Southern African countries for a regional workshop on ‘Strengthening the macro-fiscal function in ministries of finance'. The event was organized by the IMF's Regional Technical Assistance Center for Southern Africa (AFRITAC South). The countries participating were Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Seychelles, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
The objective of the workshop was to equip these senior officials with strategies for effectively managing macro-fiscal functions and integrating these strategies with the budgeting process. It aimed to build networks, share experiences, and identify good practices. Topics discussed included macro-fiscal forecasting and analysis, medium-term fiscal frameworks (MTFFs), efficient organizational arrangements that improve decision-making within finance ministries, nurturing effective working relationships with other stakeholders, and building teams of motivated and capable technical staff.
Whilst each of the 11 countries faces its own unique set of challenges, some common themes emerged:
On staff training, the most cited skills gaps relate to problem solving, quantitative analysis and report writing. A few participants shared positive experiences about partnering with local universities to help build skills, making use of free online training for staff and promoting staff development programs as a non-monetary incentive to retain them. The use of training needs questionnaires and staff training plans was also encouraged. Many countries included the need for more formalized staff training plans and including managerial and soft skills development in those plans.
High levels of staff turnover are a concern for many countries. Coping mechanisms include documenting processes and encouraging ‘twinning' arrangements to minimize situations where only one staff member understands a model or technical process that underlies macroeconomic forecasting and fiscal analysis. Specific induction training and mentoring processes can be useful. An alternative to writing lengthy user manuals (for which there is rarely the time) is to ask staff to record “how to” videos that describe how a forecasting model or other technical process works. These videos can be stored on a private YouTube channel for new staff to watch.
To help improve macro-fiscal and budgeting functions, participants prepared plausible action plans and presented them on the final day of the workshop. Suggestions included:
Participants committed to maintaining the network with counterparts to continuously exchange knowledge and the sharing of experiences.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of International Monetary Fund (IMF).
Johannesburg/New York 22 January 2024: Infinite Family (IF), South Africa’s primary video mentoring organisation, delivers a 90% Bachelors and Diploma pass rate to their 2023 Matrics. “Out of a total of 18 matric ‘Net Buddies’ across all three video lab sites, we have 14 who have achieved Batchelors qualifications, and two with Diploma status,” says …
Prof Ntobeko Ntusi to take over the reigns at the SAMRC
The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) says it is thrilled to announce the appointment of Professor Ntobeko Ntusi as its new president and chief executive officer, effective 1 July 2024.
Ntusi will succeed the esteemed Professor Glenda Gray, who has been the SAMRC president for the past 10 years. Her term concludes on 30 June 2024.
The medical research institute has described the incoming president as a distinguished and highly respected figure in the medical community and said he brings a wealth of expertise and leadership to his new role.
“His lifelong passion for evidence-based healthcare, health systems research, and universal health coverage has positioned him as a trailblazer in medical research,” said the SAMRC in a statement on Thursday.
“Prof Ntusi’s commitment to advancing medical research and his passion for improving healthcare outcomes align perfectly with the SAMRC’s mission to advance the nation’s health and quality of life and to address inequity by conducting and funding relevant and responsive health research, capacity development, innovation, and research translation.”
Ntusi’s leadership spans various national, regional, and international platforms, where he has played pivotal roles in shaping academic agendas and postgraduate medical education standards and advancing key strategic priorities.
His commitment to mentoring young professionals and supervising postgraduate students underscores his passion for nurturing the next generation of medical leaders.
The incoming President is currently a cardiologist, the Head of the Department of Medicine, and the Clinical Lead for cardiovascular magnetic resonance and cardiovascular computed tomography at Groote Schuur Hospital in the Western Cape.
He is also the Professorial Chair of the Department of Medicine, in the Faculty of Health Sciences at the University of Cape Town (UCT).
He serves as the Director of the SAMRC/UCT Extramural Unit on the Intersection of Noncommunicable Diseases and Infectious Diseases.
He holds numerous qualifications including a Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in Cardiovascular Medicine and a Doctor of Medicine (MD) in Cardiology from the University of Oxford, St Cross College and the University of Cape Town respectively, making him a prominent figure in the medical field.
His vision for the SAMRC aligns with its commitment to advancing medical research and improving health outcomes for all.
He said he was honoured and excited to lead the SAMRC.
“I look forward to collaborating with the talented team at SAMRC to further our impact on healthcare and research, driving positive change in South Africa and beyond.”
The institute said the Ntusi’s tenure promises to uphold and build upon the SAMRC’s legacy of excellence and dedication to advancing medical research and healthcare in South Africa. – SAnews.gov.za
Gabisile
Fri, 01/12/2024 - 09:52
Department to intensify efforts to pay service providers on time
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Sihle Zikalala has vowed to put an end to the failure to pay service providers in the construction industry within 30 days.
Minister Zikalala was speaking at the National Stakeholder Forum convened by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) which is an entity of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).
The National Stakeholder Forum is comprised of contractors in the built industry, government departments and municipalities involved in infrastructure development, built industry organisations and councils, institutions of higher learning and other key players in the built environment industry.
The forum was convened in order for the Minister to gain insight from players in the industry and go through emerging trends and developments, respond to threats and new opportunities emerging within the sector.
“We will commence engagements with all contractors not paid on time. It is time that we fight bribery and corruption where payments are delayed in order to force them to pay. We are alarmed at the allegations that outstanding invoices amount to billions. We will intensify the Re a Patala campaign in all provinces,” said the Minister.
Re Ya Patala (We Pay) was launched by the DPWI October 2009 as means to address payment backlogs to service providers.
Responding to challenges faced by small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs) and emerging contractors around access to finance, Zikalala noted the historic partnership between the CIDB and the Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA) for construction industry financing mechanisms to focus on financing small and medium contractors and cooperatives involved in the construction sector.
The partnership under consideration will see the CIDB contribute up to R150 million and SEFA matching that with R150 million over the medium term.
“The struggle faced by SMME’s in the construction sector requires innovation. Many collapse because they do not have access to finance and loans for building materials and other resources. We need to develop a finance institution led by the industry to support contractors,” said the Minister.
Stakeholders have implored the Minister to investigate and report on the escalating rate of the cancellation of tenders, especially big tenders by parastatals and institutions which is costing the construction industry billions of rands.
The forum noted that big state entities cancel tenders after contractors have spent money and time putting together infrastructure.
Career paths
Meanwhile, the Minister raised concern over the slow pace in which the built environment industry is advancing the career path of professionals.
“The DPWI is worried that there are suspicions of gatekeeping. At least over 30 000 professionals have been kept at the candidacy level for a longer period of time. There seems to be no appetite to graduate them and empower them with skills relevant to their qualifications,” said the DPWI.
The department, through one of its entities, the Council for the Built Environment (CBE), will establish a national logbook to track progress in this area.
The entity has also been tasked with standardising the process of how one obtains professional recognition within the industry.
The CBE will strengthen its relationship with tertiary institutions and councils to accelerate the preparation, mentoring and registration of students at lower academic levels. – SAnews.gov.za
Edwin
Thu, 12/14/2023 - 09:21
Public Works and Infrastructure Minister, Sihle Zikalala, has vowed to intensify operation pay-on-time and urgently put an end to failure to pay service providers in the construction industry within 30 days. Minister Zikalala was speaking at the National Stakeholder Forum convened by the Construction Industry Development Board (CIDB) which is an entity of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI).
The National Stakeholder Forum is comprised of contractors in the built industry, Government Departments and municipalities involved in infrastructure development, Built Industry organisations and Councils, Institutions of higher learning and other key players in the built environment industry.
The National Stakeholder Forum is convened for the Minister to gain insight from the players in the industry and go through emerging trends and developments, respond to threats and new opportunities emerging within the sector.
“We will commence engagements with all contractors not paid on time. It is time that we fight bribery and corruption where payments are delayed in order to force them to pay. We are alarmed at the allegations that outstanding invoices amount to billions. We will intensify the Re a Patala campaign to all provinces”, said Minister Zikalala.
CIDB-SEFA partnership
Responding to the challenge faced by SMMEs and emerging contractors around access to finance, Minister Zikalala has noted the historic partnership between CIDB and SEFA (Small Enterprise Finance Agency) for construction industry financing mechanisms to focus on financing small and medium contractors and cooperatives involved in the construction sector. The partnership under consideration will see CIDB contribute up to R150 million and SEFA matching that with R150 million over the medium term. The struggle faced by SMME's in the construction sector requires innovation. Many collapse because they do not have access to finance and loans for building materials and other resources. We need to develop a finance institution led by the industry to support contractors.
Increase in the cancellation of tenders in the construction industry
Stakeholders have implored Minister Zikalala to investigate and report on the escalating rate of the cancellation of tenders, especially big tenders by parastatals and institutions which is costing the construction industry billions of Rands. Big state entities cancel tenders after contractors have spent money and time putting together infrastructure. The Construction Industry Development Board will look at the practice whereby people charge low when tendering in order to rely on variation orders. Variation orders may need an independent process outside of the department.
Mentoring of built environment professionals
Minister Zikalala has raised concerns over the slow pace in which the built environment industry is advancing the career path of professionals. The DPWI is worried that there are suspicions of gate-keeping. At least over 30 000 professionals have been kept at the candidacy level for a longer period of time. There seems to be no appetite to graduate them and empower them with skills relevant to their qualifications. The Department, through one of its entities - the Council for the Built Environment (CBE), will establish a national logbook to track progress in this area. The entity has also been tasked with standardising the process of how one obtains professional recognition within the industry. CBE will strengthen its relationship with tertiary institutions and councils to accelerate the preparation, mentoring and registration of students at lower academic levels.
Social facilitation to mitigate construction site disruptions
In order to mitigate the disruption of construction sites, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure will intensify social facilitation and not make it a by-the-way activity, but will make it an integral part in all project implementations across all spheres of government. This will ensure community buy-in, involvement and beneficiation which would isolate criminal elements. All projects that are large should have empowerment elements which support up and coming professionals and subcontracting and localisation is compulsory. The Department will develop a national facilitation framework for the built industry. The law enforcement will be meted out to those engaged in criminal activity such as extortion and not wanting to genuinely participate in the construction sector. Social facilitation, localisation and subcontracting will ensure that criminal elements do not use the community to shield their criminal conduct.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Republic of South Africa: Department of Public Works and Infrastructure.
Health Ombud releases findings on Zenizole Vena case
The Health Ombud, Professor Taole Mokoena, on Tuesday released the findings of the investigation into the allegations of a patient denied provision of care at the Motherwell NU 11 Clinic in the Eastern Cape.
Mokoena said his office was requested by the Minister of Health, Joe Phaahla, to investigate potential negligence and suboptimal care at the clinic.
The complaint alleged that the clinic denied provision of healthcare to Zenizole Vena, a 15-year-old, which resulted in her death.
Vena had gone to the clinic, accompanied by an elderly woman, seeking healthcare after being sexually assaulted.
The investigation established that Vena was turned away by healthcare workers at the clinic and that she later died at the Motherwell Police Station Community Service Centre (MPSCSC) where she had sought assistance.
The allegation that Vena was denied provision of care at Motherwell NU 11 Clinic was substantiated and confirmed based on the information gathered during the investigation, said Mokoena.
It was also established that two nurses did not arrange transport to take both the elderly escort and the victim to MPSCSC or call the police to come to Motherwell NU11 clinic to take over the case.
The investigation further revealed additional findings, such as the failure of the Motherwell Police Station Community Service Centre to assist Vena upon her arrival at the charge office.
At the station, she was told to wait and was attended to her after she waited for one hour and 30 minutes. During this time, she experienced seizures and was foaming at the mouth. She was later found dead on the floor in the charge office.
“The investigation was conducted through analysis and triangulation of information and documentary evidence received from Motherwell NU 11 Clinic, the Eastern Cape Provincial Department of Health (ECDoH), Nelson Mandela Bay District Health (NMBDH), onsite visits and interviews with relevant personnel,” Mokeona said.
Interviews were conducted with 13 witnesses between 28 February 2023 to 27 March 2023 by the investigation team from the Office of the Health Ombud.
“A further 10 interviews were conducted by the Ombud and the investigation team from 15 to 19 May 2023. This included eight witnesses, who were re-interviewed and they did not contradict themselves. Statements from three witnesses were also received from the Motherwell Police Station.
“It is important to mention that before the Office of the Health Ombud investigation, the Eastern Cape Provincial Department of Health had conducted an internal investigation in November 2022 and shared their report with the Office of the Health Ombud,” Mokoena said.
He said it was quite disturbing that a basic human instinct to assist a person in distress, particularly a child, does not seem to exist within the South African Police Service (SAPS) at Motherwell Police Station.
“The allegation that Motherwell NU 11 Clinic failed to refer Ms Z Vena to the next level of care was substantiated and confirmed.
“Based on the evidence obtained, it can be concluded that Ms Z Vena was not attended to in a manner that is consistent with the nature and severity of her health condition at Motherwell NU 11 Clinic,” Mokoena said.
The complaint was lodged by the Democratic Alliance’s Shadow Minister of Health, Michéle Clarke, in September 2022 against the Motherwell NU 11 Clinic.
In his remarks, Minister Phaahla said it is totally unacceptable for someone to be denied healthcare.
Recommendations include, among others, that the District Manager of the NMBDH should institute a disciplinary inquiry within one month against various personnel; the District Manager must, within two months, ensure that mentoring is provided to the healthcare workers to ensure that all the nurses are kept abreast of the new developments in the management of sexual assault cases; the District Manager of NMBDH and the Head of Department must, within six months, procure a service provider to install the Service/Notice Board at the Motherwell Clinic that indicates the health care services provided by the clinic and indication of working times at the clinic; the District Manager must within one month ensure the Standard Operating Procedure for the management of sexual assault cases is developed and in-service training is provided to the staff at Motherwell NU 11 Clinic.
The report with findings and recommendations was handed over to Health Minister for further analysis. It can be found on www.healthombud.org.za. – SAnews.gov.za
Edwin
Tue, 12/12/2023 - 14:40
JOHANNESBURG – 06 December, 2023 – The local technology skills shortage has been well documented over time, with recent statistics underscoring not only a dearth of technical expertise in South Africa, but also a concerning youth unemployment rate. New figures from Statista show a staggering number of unemployed youth (15 to 24 years), reaching 60.7 …
