8 FEBRUARY 2022

TO ALL MEDIA

REPORTED CHAOS, EDUCATORS’ FIGHT AT A SCHOOL, THE KZN EDUCATION PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE INTERVENS

The Education Portfolio Committee has taken it upon itself to visit the school in the Zululand District after reports of educators fighting amongst themselves during school hours and in front of the learners.

The Committee will undertake this oversight visit on the 12 February 2022 at 10am. “The reports of this school are appalling, it is beyond anybody’s imagination that educators who we know should be exemplary to our children would do such a horrible thing”, said Hon Sifiso Sonjica, the Chairperson of the Committee.

The Committee has resolved to conduct its oversight work by visiting this school and observe for itself many disturbing incidences reported and provided to the Committee.

“Unconfirmed reports of lack of necessities such as water, electricity, grass not being cut at a school with just under 150 learners, with 13 classrooms but only 5 educators. We do not believe we want to see for ourselves what school is this school”, Hon Sonjica said in shock.

Telephonic media interviews will be arranged for reporters.

End

For more information, contact:

Wesley Canham
0833767299
Media Liaison and PR

07 December 2021

MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

LEGISLATIVE SECTOR LAUNCHES ITS SEMINAL PARLIAMENTARY INSTITUTE TO BUILD CAPACITY OF MEMBERS AND STAFF

The South African Legislative Sector (SALS), will on Thursday 09 December 2021, launch its flagship Institute known as the South African Parliamentary Institute (SAPI), that will be seized with the responsibility to train and develop the capacity of Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Provincial Legislatures (MPLs), including staff members who work for the sector.

The event will take place at National Parliament in the National Assembly Building in Cape Town from 18h15.

The South African Parliamentary Institute was conceptualized by the South African Legislative Sector (SALS).  In the Third Term (2004 – 2009), the then Speakers’ Forum resolved to strengthen the Legislative Sector towards ensuring that Parliament and Provincial Legislatures collectively become the backbone of a successful and representative democracy.   The Speakers Forum of the third term developed and adopted a Sector Policy and Strategic Framework for the Legislative Sector. This ensured that the sector collaboration was strengthened and the sector approach institutionalized.

The Speakers Forum of the 4^th term resolved, at the beginning of the Fourth Term (2009 – 2014), to continue with sector collaboration through implementation of strategic interventions and frameworks aimed at strengthening and entrenching a people-centred democracy in South Africa, strengthening capacity in law making and oversight, building an efficient legislative sector, and also strengthening the capacity to engage, participate in, and oversee international relations.

The sector collaborated with institutions of Higher Learning to develop sector specific capacity building programmes for Members and staff. This collaboration led to the implementation of successful programmes for Members with the first group of Members graduating in November 2011.

In the Fourth Term, the sector identified the need for a Sector Parliamentary Institute as one of the recommendations of the sector oversight framework called the Sector Oversight Model (SOM). To provide the sector with access to relevant information, identify relevant needs, design and deliver specific programmes, and conduct research, the Speakers’ Forum approved the establishment of the Parliamentary Institute in the Fifth Term with the establishment process approved in the Sixth Term.

The main purpose of the Parliamentary Institute is to enhance the effective and efficient functioning of Legislatures by providing capacity building interventions, technical assistance, and quality research and knowledge management. The mandate of the Institute will include the following:

• Enhance performance of Members and officials of Parliament and Provincial Legislatures by developing and implementing quality learning, training and development programmes that addresses performance, access and growth.
• Conduct quality research and provide up-to-date information to members of Parliament, Committees and Legislatures.
• Provide technical assistance to committees and Office Bearers in the legislative and policy related matters.
• Professionalize the Legislative Sector by offering professional development programs and seminars fostering Batho Pele values and ethos through the forums.
• Retention of institutional memory by establishing, coordinating and hosting of the alumni association of former members of the Legislative Sector. The Institute through alumni members will offer short term employment to former members with expert knowledge on a need basis.
• Coordinate knowledge exchanges programmes through educational study tours, field visits and outreach programmes for members and staff.

The media will be informed of the streaming information tomorrow to access the proceedings of the launch of the Institute.

Ends

Issued by

Communications Unit of KZN Legislature

For more information:

Sina Nxumalo: 0829060449

30 November 2021

TO    ALL MEDIA

2021 PARLIAMENT FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES -KING CETSHWAYO DISTRICT

As we celebrate the International Day for People with Disabilities, the KZN Legislature, will hold its annual Parliament for People with Disabilities, from 1 to 2 December 2021, at the Indoor Centre in Melmoth, under Mthonjaneni Municipality.

The event is held every year to allow people with disabilities to engage and discuss issues that affect them in their daily lives. This is also a platform for the Legislature to involve various sectors in its legislative processes as part of its constitutional responsibility.   

“With this parliament we hope to address many barriers that people with disabilities face including socio economic barriers which continue to exclude people of this sector from participating in the mainstream economy”, Hon Phumzile Mbatha Cele, the Chairperson of the Standing Committee on Quality of life commented.

Expected in this parliament is the debate by the disability sector around the theme, “Leadership and Participation of Persons with Disabilities Towards an Inclusive and Sustainable post COVID19”.

The discussions will ultimately lead to the adoption of resolutions that will be forwarded to the Legislature for further consideration and processing, and ultimately to the Members of the Executive Council for implementation.

Media is invited to cover the event.

                                                            End

For more information, contact:

Wesley Canham                                          Nomusa Phungula

0833767299                                                  0722 94 7237

Media Liaison and PR                                 Media Liaison: Speaker’s Office

24 November 2021

MEDIA STATEMENT

KZN LEGISLATURE TO OBSERVE 16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM FOR NO VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND CHILDREN

The 25^th of November marks the beginning of the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence Against Women and Children. The day is also celebrated as the United Nation’s International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.

Members of the KZN Legislature, led by Hon Speaker Nontembeko Boyce, will observe this period through a series of activities in their constituencies monitoring this scourge and encouraging communities to report acts of gender-based violence (GBV) to law enforcement agencies and to the committees of the KZN Legislature.

This year’s campaign is themed: “The Year of Charlotte Maxeke –16 Days of Activism – moving from awareness to accountability”. It is the government’s effort to fight and ultimately conquer the scourge of violence directed at women and children.

This will see Honourable Members of the Provincial Legislature joining members of the civil society, grassroots organisations, LGBTQI, non-governmental organisations and government departments to demand accountability for the protection of women and girls over the next two-weeks.

During the year, Legislature has already had a number of programmes and symposia, working with LGBTQI sector, traditional leaders, rural women, senior citizens and sex workers to intensify awareness in communities about the gravity of Gender Based Violence.

The Legislature urges all those who experience or witness acts of gender based violence to report these to law enforcement officers.

The institution, through its portfolio committees, will monitor the incidents of gender based violence and how relevant government departments and law enforcement agencies respond to these.

The Legislature will be issuing media alerts to inform media houses of several planned 16 Days of Activism activities to be undertaken by the Legislature during the next two weeks.

Ends

Issued by

Communications Unit of KZN Legislature For more information:

TO ALL MEDIA

KZN LEGISLATURE INTENSIFIES VOTER EDUCATION CAMPAIGN IN THE PROVINCE

Tomorrow, 1 September 2021, the Legislature will continue with its voter education campaign to encourage citizens to participate in the upcoming local government elections next year. The campaign is planned as follows:

Ilembe District Municipality

King Cetshwayo Local Municipality

There will be briefing meetings with political leadership of the Legislature and local municipalities before the voter education campaign kicks off in the two districts. The briefings will take place in municipal council chambers. Home Affairs and IEC will be present to assist citizens as they prepare for registration, ID applications and other services as provided by these institutions.
The Legislature is the custodian of democracy and with this programme, the institution aims to strengthen participatory democracy by ensuring that all eligible voters participate in the local government elections to elect their public representatives where they live.

Media is invited to cover the event.

Ends

For more information for, contact:
Wesley Canham
0833767299
Media Liaison and PR

22 August 2021

Embargo: For Immediate Release

RE: COMMUNITY CALLS FOR THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE INTERVENTION TO SAVE NTINGWE TEA ESTATE

Impoverished communities in the deep rural villages of Inkandla have made an impassioned plea to the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development to intervene to save Ntingwe Tea Estate from collapsing.

The tea estate, which is funded by the provincial department of Agriculture and Rural Development and managed by its entity Agri-Development Agency (ADA), is an economic lifeline to the people of Inkandla where it provides employment to hundreds of labourers and seasonal workers.

On Saturday, the Portfolio Committee, led by Chairperson Honourable Ntombikayise Sibhidla-Saphetha, visited the estate as part of its oversight work over the provincial department of Agriculture and Rural Development and its entity (ADA).

Sibhidla-Saphetha was accompanied by other members of the Portfolio Committee including Honourable Sthembiso Mshengu and Honourable Super Zuma who is also the legislature’s Chief Whip.

They met the senior management from the provincial department of agriculture and rural development, ADA, estate’s board, Inkandla Municipality Speaker and other stakeholders.

The committee resolved to call an urgent meeting with the Portfolio Committee on Economic Development to discuss challenges facing Ntingwe Tea Estate. This is because Ithala Bank, which is an entity of the provincial department Economic Development, is also a shareholder to Ntingwe Tea Estate.

According to the presentation made to the committee by ADA during Saturday’s oversight visit the challenges that have grounded operations at Ntingwe Tea Estate include the following:

• High Production Costs – due mainly to the labour intensive nature of tea production;
• Global Competition – flood of cheap imported tea and rising global food safety and environmental standards
• Low Global Market Prices – this has been exacerbated by the increase in global tea supply
• Dominance of tea packers – multinational giants dictate pricing

Operations of the estate have almost collapsed to such an extent that in the last three years it has only been harvesting a fraction of the 400-hectare estate and the resignation of the estate manager has also dealt the facility a huge blow.

The Estate consists of about 400 hectares of clonal tea and could produce high quality black and green tea.

Sibhidla-Saphetha said the joint portfolio committees will explore a number of avenues to save the facility.

“This facility is very important to the people of this area and has a potential to play a massive role in fighting poverty, unemployment and inequality. It employs a number of people and the majority of those are women and young people,” said Sibhidla Saphetha.

Ends

For more information please contact Wonder Hlongwa at 0829083532

From today 27 to 28 July 2021, KZN Legislature MPLs including MECs are conducting mid-year oversight visits in schools throughout the province to inspect their readiness to resume teaching and learning after the winter break.

The schools functionality monitoring programme which is conducted in the beginning of the year when schools open and in the middle of the year when schools reopen after the mid-year break aims to ensure that teaching and learning take place in a conducive environment in our public schools.

The visits include various stakeholders such as SGBs, Teacher Unions, Councilors, Community Leadership and various government departments.

MEDIA ALERT
DATE: 24 JUNE 2021
ATTENTION: REPORTERS, NEWS AND ASSIGNMENT EDITORS

KZN LEGISLATURE MULTIPARTY DELEGATION EMBARK ON OVERSIGHT VISITS IN UMKHANYAKUDE LOCAL MUNICIPALITIES

A high powered multiparty delegation of Members of the Provincial Legislature will be deployed in all local municipalities in uMkhanyakude to hold meetings with various stakeholders with a view to understand their service delivery challenges. The visits start on Friday the 25th and end on Saturday the 26th June 2021.

On 25 June, various teams will start the programme by visiting various projects that have been implemented by local, provincial and national government to bring service delivery in uMkhanyakude District.

Due to the outbreak of the 3rd wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and the country’s move to Alert Level 3 Lockdown Regulations, public meetings, which will be held on Saturday the 26th June, will only be limited to 50 people in each venue. People are encouraged to participate in these meetings by raising service delivery challenges in their wards by using the Legislature’s social media pages, Twitter: @KznLegislature, Facebook: KZN legislature.

The media is invited to attend the meetings which will also be streamed live on our social media pages.

Ends

For more information contact:
Sina Nxumalo
Communications Manager
Cell: 0829060449
E-mail: nxumalow@kznleg.gov.za

Media Alert
For Immediate Release
24 May 2021

SPEAKER NONTEMBEKO BOYCE TO DELIVER KWAZULU-NATAL LEGISLATURE BUDGET SPEECH TOMORROW 25 MAY 2021

The Speaker of KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Honourable Nontembeko Boyce will present the Budget Speech for the KZN Legislature (Vote 2) for 2021/2022 financial year in the Legislature Chamber on the 25th May 2021 at 9h00.

The Speaker will unveil the Legislature’s ground-breaking programmes and initiatives which are set to change the way the Legislature operates during the 6th term.

Necessitated by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the regulations put in place to curb the further spread of the virus, the Legislature continues to perform its core business of law-making, oversight, and public participation through various digital platforms.

The adoption of digital platforms aims to ensure that the business of the legislature remains in full force and that we continue to execute our constitutional mandate and place the citizen’s views at the centre of our work

The Speaker will deliver the budget speech in a hybrid sitting where Members of the Legislature (MPLs) will attend physically while others will participate in the sitting virtually. It will be streamed live on the Legislature’s social media platforms and YouTube channel.

Date – 25 May 2021
Time – 09:00
Members of the media are invited to cover the budget speech.

A limited number of media houses will be allowed in the chamber, kindly RSVP by 3pm today

ISSUED BY THE KWAZULU-NATAL LEGISLATURE OFFICE OF THE SPEAKER

Enquiries
Nomusa Phungula – 071 851 0085/ 072 294 7237