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Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister, Thoko Didiza, has announced the appointment of an interim Ingonyama Trust board.

The appointment of the new board, which is effective from 1 September 2020, comes after the expiry of the term of office of the current board, as of 31 August 2020.

In a statement, the ministry said the Minister had taken the decision to ensure that the current process of annual audit by the Auditor-General is not compromised, as well as enabling the process of appointing the permanent board and relevant consultations to go smoothly.

“The Minister is empowered by Ingonyama Trust Act, 1994 (Act No. 3 of 1994) to appoint board members after consultation with Ingonyama, the Premier and the chairperson of the House of Traditional leaders in KwaZulu-Natal,” said the ministry in a statement on Tuesday.

Since the chairperson of the board is designated by the Act, as Ingonyama or his nominee, Sipho Ngwenya has been nominated by Ingonyama as the chairperson.

The Minister has appointed the following members to serve on the interim board:

1. Dr Z. Qunta as vice-chairperson
2. Adv. V Z Mngwengwe
3. Adv. L. Zama
4. Inkosi W T Mavundla
5. Inkosi Z.T Gumede
6. Inkosi P.R Bele
7. Inkosi S.E Shabalala

Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister Lindiwe Sisulu says the Gauteng Provincial Government must deal with officials implicated in the sale of government houses.

This follows reports that some public servants have illegally benefitted in the Clayvile Housing Project in Tembisa.

According to the Gauteng Portfolio Committee on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs and Human Settlements, some units expected to be allocated to indigent beneficiaries have been sold to public servants, who do not qualify for fully subsidised housing.

“We commend members of the public for their bravery in exposing these unlawful activities. We cannot have public servants who break the law and steal from the poor.

“We have full confidence in our law enforcement agencies that they will get to the bottom of this, even if it means arresting some of their own,” Sisulu said.

Sisulu has also appealed to Co-operative Governance MEC Lebogang Maile to deal swiftly with those fingered in this illegal act.

The Clayville Mega City Project is one of the integrated housing development projects in Gauteng, which is expected to deliver over 14 000 units, consisting of fully subsidised government housing, rental stock and bonded houses, as well as social amenities including schools, parks and shopping centre.

Sisulu has also encouraged members of the public to be vigilant and to protect what is due to them by exposing and reporting all suspicious activities in human settlements projects.

Both grades of petrol are set to increase by one cent a litre at midnight.

The Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE) has announced a one cent increase in both grades of 93 (ULP and LRP) 95 (ULP and LRP) in Gauteng.

From Wednesday onwards, a litre of 95 ULP in Gauteng, which currently costs R15.17, will increase to R15.18 a litre.

Meanwhile, both grades of diesel (0.05% Sulphur and 0.005% Sulphur) will decrease by 21 cents a litre.

The price of illuminating paraffin (wholesale) will decrease by 26 cents.

The price of illuminating paraffin (SMNRP) will decrease by 35 cents, while the Maximum Retail Price for LPGAS will increase by 36 cents per kilogram.

The DMRE said the average international product prices for petrol, diesel and illuminating paraffin decreased during the period under review.

Police Minister Bheki Cele has warned that police officers who mistreat victims of gender-based violence will be harshly dealt with.

Cele made the commitment during a security cluster dialogue themed ‘Improving access to justice for victims and survivors of GBV and femicide’ on Monday.

During August, which is commemorated as Women’s Month, a slew of reports of women being raped, maimed and murdered continued to dominate the media.

From April 2020 to date, 14 777 suspects were charged in relation to GBVF, said Cele.

In the first six months of 2020, a total of 217 life sentences were handed down to 251 accused from 200 dockets of domestic violence.

“The FCS [Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences] unit has made significant strides in securing justice for victims, and detectives continue to put together watertight cases to secure multiple life sentences,” said Cele.

While the FCS continues to be beefed up with more officers to handle the caseload, officers within stations continue to undergo specialised sensitivity training in order to provide a professional service to the victims.

“The treatment of victims and survivors with compassion and professionalism is a policy of the SAPS [South African Police Service]. However, the treatment of some complainants of domestic violence at stations remains a concern.

“Police [officers] who choose not to comply with the policy by turning victims away don’t have a place in the SAPS,” said the Minister.

Such acts, he said, are a dereliction of duty, “which is a serious offence that warrants [action].”

The Minister said a police directory will soon be made available at police stations across the country. The directory will contain every contact number of every police station, station commander, the National Commissioner, Police Minister and Deputy Minister, and all police officers in leadership roles.

Cele said this will enable citizens to escalate complaints until they are assisted.

“If anyone feels they’ve been let down by any man or woman in blue, they can contact the GBVF complaints line: 0800 333 177,” said Cele.

Cele said the brutal killing of women is a shame.

“It’s a fact; men commit these heinous gender crimes. It’s often men that the women [victims] know, men they love and trust, and men that they expect protection from.”

He emphasised that GBV remains a priority for the SAPS.

“We continue to improve and intensify the combatting, prevention and investigation of crimes against women of all ages, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression.”

Cabinet has tasked the JCPS cluster to ensure that GBVF victims and survivors get access to the criminal justice systems. The system must be efficient and sensitive to the needs of survivors.

Time for change

Cele said SAPS is making progress in resourcing specialised units that deal with GBVF, both in funding and human capital.

“We have a FCS that has trained specialist detectives to investigate gender-based violence.”

The shortage of rape kits, the Minister said, has been resolved and will not be an issue for the next three years after a supplier was recently appointed.

“Things need to change. Change must be at our stations – from the most junior officer right up to top management. The change must come from our homes, our communities, boardrooms and other places of work, schools, places of worship, educational institutions, and all public spaces,” he said.

Also speaking at the event, the Minister of Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Maite Nkoana-Mashabane, said the country should be focusing on fighting against COVID-19 instead of men making women’s lives “impossible”.

“Women don’t do these painful things to themselves. The perpetrators are men. Yes, it has to start with the communities. Every woman must be able to walk the streets of a free South Africa, without the fear of being tampered with,” she said.

Cabinet recently adopted the National Strategic Plan for GBVF, which was developed by government, in conjunction with civil society.

The Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (dtic) has launched the  Export Barriers Monitoring Mechanism (EBMM) that will provide the support needed to continuously improve the country’s export environment.

The Export Barriers Monitoring Mechanism (EBMM) was launched on Monday.

The department’s  Deputy Director-General of Export Development, Promotion and Outward Investments Lerato Mataboge said the fundamental aim of EBMM is to make the government’s support to exporters facing barriers more effective, flexible, and more accessible.

Mataboge said by creating a systematic approach to monitoring these barriers, government can develop a long-term agenda to target the most important export barriers.

She said by addressing each individual barrier, government can begin to manage each problem with the level of nuance and detail needed for these complex challenges.

Pilot project

“During an initial pilot project, 28 key export barriers were processed by the EBMM and during the initial phase of the national lockdown, the EBMM methodology was used to process 76 barriers related to COVID-19.

From today, the EBMM is open to any firm that encounters an export barrier of any kind, whether locally or in any foreign market. We strongly encourage you to tell us whenever you encounter a challenge, no matter how big or small,” she said.

Mataboge added that in 2018, South African exporters faced an estimated 154,571 unique customs requirements worldwide.

She said over the last ten years, 23 795 new or amended technical barriers to trade have been registered with the World Trade Organisation; while over the same period 13 364 sanitary and phytosanitary barriers were registered or amended.

Competitiveness

“While our priority must be to work progressively to smooth these barriers, the experience of the last decade of trade has demonstrated that we need to be prepared to manage this growing complexity. Increasingly, a key component of global competitiveness will be how we manage a constantly changing global trading environment. Managing this environment will only be possible through a close working partnership between the government and the private sector,” she said.

Reducing barriers

Executive Director of the South African Electrotechnical Export Council Chiboni Evans, highlighted the importance of maximising content and projects in the African continent while also highlighting the role played by export barriers in reducing competitiveness in the region.

“Persistent logistics barriers meant that transporting goods by road took longer from all our major cities to mines in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. It was then easy for these countries to import goods from Asia, Americas and Europe rather than waiting on South Africa,” said Evans.

Highlighting previous experiences of partnering with the dtic to resolve export barriers,Evans noted that a lot of the barriers to export can only be resolved by the private sector working together with government.

She added that this new mechanism will assist greatly in opening up government support to a much broader spectrum of private sector individuals.

All export barrier queries can be reported at ExportBarriers@thedtic.gov.za or through the dtic website (www.thedtic.gov.za).

Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Minister Thoko Didiza says the issue of women’s empowerment will be central in government policies, regulatory reform and programmatic intervention.

Addressing a virtual dialogue webinar with female farmers on Monday, Didiza acknowledged that South Africa has progressed in a number of areas to improve the position of women in society.

This includes political representation, education and health, where milestones have been made.

However, she said the country is struggling in areas of the economy.

“As a country, we are one of those who have joined the Global Coalition whose aim is to champion economic justice for women. In this regard, the issue of women’s empowerment will be central in our policies, regulatory reform and programmatic intervention.

“We will also advocate for this using the opportunity of being the Chairperson of the African Union. The question is how then we make this campaign find expression in the land and agriculture sector,” Didiza said.

Held under the theme “Realising women’s rights for an equal future”, the dialogue featured female farmers who reflected on their journey in the sector.

When assuming office as the Head of State, President Ramaphosa highlighted the importance of agriculture and agribusiness sector.

The President also announced that, government would rapidly release agricultural state land as its contribution. This as the country still faces challenges of land inequity as a result of colonial and apartheid policies and laws.

In response to the President’s commitments, and recommendations by the Advisory Panel on Land and Agriculture, Didiza highlighted that the department has developed a Land Beneficiary Selection Policy to guide land allocation, producer support model, Agriculture and Agribusiness Master plan, Poultry and Sugar Master Plan, and developing a plan for land release.

“These are important milestones in terms of the work that has been done thus far,” Didiza said.

Challenges in accessing land

However, the Minister said the issues of access to land and financial services, amongst others, have emerged during her engagements with women in the sector.

She said that women in the various sub-sectors of agriculture have raised challenges in accessing land either for leasing, acquisition or state land, and this relates to prices that make it impossible to access.

“Applications take long on government’s lease program [and] the allocation is perceived to favour male farmers. Government through it programmers has not strategically targeted land according to commodities for acquisition in order to be deliberate on improving participation of women in these sectors.

“While women appreciate the support that government is giving through Ilima /Letsema and Comprehensive Agricultural Program, these do not take multiyear support that will enable financial viability. Specific support program taking into consideration challenges that are there in the sector such as marketing and trade requirements,” the Minister said.

Issues of agriparks that government implemented which sought to deal with mechanisation and other implements, and lack of statistical data of how many women are in the sector remain a challenge.

“Research and technology access remains a problem. Extension and advisory services are far and in- between,” Didiza said.

In addressing some of the challenges, the department had released state land with 50% being women, training for beneficiaries, and effective land reform through supporting those who had received the land.

The department has also developed a targeted program for women farmers and entrepreneurs in the space, and 40% procurement for women businesses.

The Department of Transport has sought to clarify some uncertainties surrounding various licence renewals and expiry deadlines.

According to the directions previously published by the department, the following deadlines were set:

• Motor vehicles licence discs, temporary permits and roadworthy certificates, which expired between 26 March 2020 and 31 May 2020, were deemed to be valid up until on 31 August 2020.
• All learner’s licences, driving licence cards, temporary driving licences and professional driving permits, which expired between 26 March 2020 and 31 August 2020, are deemed to be valid for a period ending on 31 January 2021.
• Motor trade number licences, which expired between 26 March 2020 and 31 May 2020, are deemed to be valid until 30 November 2020.

“It must be taken into account that no further extensions will be granted, and those who fail to renew on time will have to pay the applicable penalties or face the necessary repercussions for late renewal,” the department said on Monday.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned that while people are experiencing pandemic fatigue, the COVID-19 pandemic is not over.

“WHO fully supports efforts to re-open economies and societies. We want to see children returning to school and people returning to the workplace – but we want to see it done safely.

“At the same time, no country can just pretend the pandemic is over. The reality is that Coronavirus spreads easily. It can be fatal to people of all ages, and most people remain susceptible,” said WHO Director-General, Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus, on Monday.

Eight months into the pandemic, countries have started opening up their societies and economies again after months of restrictive stay-at-home orders and other restrictions to combat the spread of Coronavirus.

WHO has warned countries against applying a blanket approach to opening up economic activities without suppressing transmission and saving lives.

“It can be done, and it has been done. But it can only be done if countries are in control of transmission. The more control countries have over the virus, the more they can open up.

“Opening up without having control is a recipe for disaster. It’s not a one size fits all, it’s not all or nothing,” said Ghebreyesus.

WHO urged countries to implement four essential things that all communities and individuals must focus on to take control.

First, prevent amplifying events. COVID-19 spreads very easily among clusters of people.

In many countries, explosive outbreaks have been linked to gatherings of people at stadiums, nightclubs, places of worship and in other crowds.

“Preventing these amplifying events is essential, but there are ways to hold gatherings safely in some places.

“Decisions about how and when to allow gatherings of people must be taken with a risk-based approach in the local context,” said Ghebreyesus.

Second, reduce deaths by protecting vulnerable groups, including older people, those with underlying conditions and essential workers.

“Countries that do this well may be able to cope with low levels of transmission as they open up.

“By protecting those who are most at risk, countries can save lives, prevent people from becoming severely ill, and take the pressure off their health systems,” said Ghebreyesus.

Third, WHO called on individuals to play their part by taking the measures of staying at least one metre away from others, cleaning hands regularly, practising respiratory etiquette, and wearing a mask.

“Avoid the three Cs: closed spaces, crowded places and close-contact settings.”

Fourth, WHO implored governments to take tailored actions to find, isolate, test and care for cases, and trace and quarantine contacts.

“Widespread stay-at-home orders can be avoided if countries take temporary and geographically-targeted interventions,” said Ghebreyesus.

Deputy President David Mabuza has condemned the brutal murder of Glen and Vida Rafferty, who were killed on their farm in Normandien, KwaZulu-Natal, over the weekend.

The Deputy President says law enforcement must conduct a thorough investigation and bring the perpetrators of these heinous crimes to book to ensure that justice is served for the victims.

Mabuza has called on all South Africans to value farmers and farm workers, and to be relentless in the pursuit of a better country, where all people live in dignity and at peace with one another.

“This is what defines who we are as a nation and should be the guiding light within our communities. Even in difficult times, our prevailing challenges must not lead us to despair and to engage in all that is against our humanity as a people.

“We must remain resolute in building a better South Africa that values human life,” said Mabuza.

The Deputy President will on Friday convene the Inter-Ministerial Committee on Land Reform and Agriculture, in his capacity as the chairperson of the committee.

The meeting will, among others, focus on specific programmes aimed at curbing violent attacks on farmers, which has negative impact on food production and security.

“The lives of farmers, farm workers and farm dwellers, as well as every citizen of the country, black and white, matter. It is for this reason that government will continue to work with the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster to ensure prevention as a priority in dealing with farm murders,” the Deputy President said.

Eskom has announced that it will implement stage 2 load shedding from noon today until 10pm due to challenges of a constrained power system.

“Ten generation units at seven power stations suffered breakdowns in the last 48 hours,” the power utility said on Tuesday morning.

According to Eskom, one generator broke down at Arnot, Medupi, Lethabo, Matla power stations, respectively, while two units failed at Majuba, Camden and Tutuka power stations, respectively.

“This, together with the need to conserve emergency generation reserves, necessitates that load shedding be implemented in order to protect the integrity of the system,” Eskom explained.

The power utility said the unplanned breakdowns stand at 11 665MW of capacity, adding to the 4 558MW currently out on planned maintenance.

In addition, Eskom has also warned that any further deterioration in the generation performance may necessitate the escalation of power cuts at short notice.

“As the aged generation infrastructure is unreliable and volatile, this constrained power system is expected to persist for the rest of the week.”

The utility has urged citizens to help reduce electricity usage to assist Eskom to minimise the chances of more load shedding.