Speech delivered by Mr Gert C. Oosthuizen (MP) Deputy Minister of Sport and Recreation (SRSA) on the occasion of the SRSA Budget Vote Debate in the Parliament of the Republic of South Africa
22 May 2018, Cape Town
Theme: “I Choose to be Active”
Honourable Speaker,
Minister of Sport and Recreation: Honourable Tokozile Xasa,
Honourable Members
The National Development Plan(NDP) envisions a society where South Africans will be more conscious of the things they have in common than their differences. Their lived experiences will progressively undermine and cut across the divisions of race, gender, disability, space and class.
The sharing of common space will be enabled through improving public spaces and services and to elevate sport at both community and school levels.
As the Sport and Recreation Department, our focus more than anything, is to see our country physically active. It is when physical activity becomes second nature to us, that we will live healthy lives and hopefully unearth new talent which will assist in our transformation agenda.
Sport and Recreation Budget Vote is delivered at a time when the World Health Organization released alarming statistics regarding the growing inactivity of human kind all over the globe, including South Africa. Rapidly rising rates of chronic disease, escalating health care costs and shorter life spans are all linked to declining levels of physical activity.
The estimates by the World Health Organization, that 35 million people are dying annually of chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension, cardiovascular diseases and cancers, cannot be ignored. On the home front, a Medical Research Council study reports that 61% of the South African population is overweight or obese.
In the face of these challenges caused by inactivity, we call on everyone to Choose to be Active. We urge South Africans to join the active nation movement and support the ‘I Choose to be Active Campaign’ that the Minister has alluded too.
As a country, we have to address this growing phenomenon of inactivity as the economic costs are unaffordable and the human costs are unforgivable. This cannot be allowed to continue unabated on our watch.
As Ministry and Department, we are compelled to do everything possible to fulfill our vision of an active nation. This, not only for health reasons, but also to maximize the impact of sport on economic growth; on peace keeping and peace building, social cohesion and nation-building. We have to ensure dignity, equality and mutual respect for all women and men.
Outcome 14 of Governments Programme of Action, acknowledges that despite progress since 1994, the South African society remains divided.
As a delivery partner to Outcome 14, our Department will continue to offer opportunities for communities to participate in sport and recreation events that unite us as a nation and foster social cohesion. In fact, sport is one of the most important cohesive factors in uniting the entire nation. [MADIBA]
In short, our sector promotes participation in sport and recreation; we advocate and enact transformation in sport and recreation; we develop talented athletes by providing them with opportunities to excel; and we support high performance athletes to achieve success in international sport.
In addressing the need for social unification, SRSA will continue to utilize sport as a vehicle for social cohesion and nation-building. Through our “I Choose to be Active Campaign”, South Africans can engage in various recreation and sport activities, such as;
The World Move for Health Day on 10 May, an international event created in 2002 by the World Health Organisation with the view to promote physical activity. Move for Health is a strategic fit to the ‘I Choose to be Active’ Campaign where Sport and Recreation South Africa encourages South Africans to develop a culture of physical activity for 365 days.
Declared by Cabinet for the first Friday of October each year, the 2018 National Recreation Day will be expanded to incorporate South African tertiary institutions, and communities at large. We want a broader scope of South Africans to embrace and participate in physical activities for fun, leisure and most importantly, their health.
Aligned with World Walking Day of the Association for International Sport for All, commonly known as TAFISA, we will once again host the ever-growing Big Walk in October. Provincial Departments will conduct similar walks in major cities on the same day. We urge our communities to kickstart their healthy living journey with these events. [President: Thuma Mina]
Our 2018/19 Mass Participation and Sport Development Grant continues to provide resources towards the club development pilot programme which commenced in 2015/16 and is expected to conclude in 2019/20.
Key to the success of the club development programme, is that national sport federations have to take ownership of community clubs and have them affiliated. Capacity building of club office bearers remain a priority, because South Africa’s growth and development within the sporting sector is dependent upon strong and capable administrators who can establish and sustain their respective sport clubs.
As part of celebrating our heritage, the National Indigenous Games Festival will be in September this year. 9 Indigenous games commonly played in South Africa, will be showcased. The games bring people from culturally diverse backgrounds together as part of South Africa’s heritage celebrations.
The Golden Games will be hosted in October 2018, in partnership with the Department of Social Development (DSD). The Games will remain an active recreation festival for older persons’ whilst it continue to support the notion that; people can significantly improve the quality of their later years, by being active.
At the Youth Camps, which are attended by participants from various backgrounds, young people are taught leadership and life skills, the importance of national pride and patriotism, using practical lessons on social cohesion in a rural and outdoor environment. The Department will assist the Provincial Departments to ensure that the delivery of the 2018 National Youth Camp in October this year is a success.
INTERNATIONAL
International Relations are becoming more and more important. Worldwide sport strategies are focusing more on increasing the levels of participation in sport and recreation, as well as achieving success in sport. This is reflected in our vision of “An active and Wining Nation!”
Within the region, South Africa will continue to participate and play an active role in the activities of the African Union Sports Council, Region 5. We continue to participate in various committees of the Region, that of; Sport for Development; Women in Sport; Persons with Disability; the Marketing and Finance committee as well as the Executive Committee meetings.
The Department will continue to build and strengthen international bilateral relations to support sport and recreation development in South Africa by executing exchange programmes with international partners like Jamaica, India, and Russia. The Department is presently finalising agreements with Cuba, China; Palestine; and Bulgaria.
The Department will further continue to fulfill its responsibilities in international fora such as UNESCO, the UN Sport for Development and Peace International Working Group (SDP IWG) and World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), amongst others.
SDPIWG
Following problems experienced regarding the office accommodation and the work of the SDP IWG, there were fruitful engagements on this matter and we are awaiting feedback on the way forward.
MINEPS VI was an important event for the sport sector globally. It provided us with an opportunity to interrogate afresh how governments can embrace the potential of sport and Physical Education. Through this process governments could answer the call of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals that have identified the promotion of peaceful and inclusive societies as among the most urgent, yet challenging issues across the 2030 Agenda.
Under the leadership of South Africa, MINEPS VI marked a shift from declarations of policy intent towards measurable actions. In fact; Governments world-wide are experiencing the impact of sport in the different spheres of society.
CIGEPS
On the 26th April 2018, South Africa was unanimously re-elected as Chairperson of CIGEPS for a second term. As Chairperson, we must continue to play a leading role in the monitoring and implementation of the KAZAN Action Plan. CIGEPS, during its recent Ordinary Session also resolved to establish a Working Group on the Revision of its Statutes. This Working Group will shape the future configuration of CIGEPS.
At the adoption of the Kazan Action Plan, it was declared that: “Active schools, in which physical activity is placed at the heart of the school, support the establishment of healthy lifestyles, behaviour and learning. In addition, quality physical education is a necessary component of primary and secondary education”. This talks to our call for a stand-alone subject of Physical Education.
While we understand the challenges that our counterparts in Basic Education have, which include amongst others; the implications of curriculum changes; staffing as well as resource allocation for Physical Education; we cannot tire to make this call. Equally, we need to engage the Department of Higher Education with regard to the training of teachers. As a sector, the universities play a critical role in this matter, particularly when it comes to the development of a curriculum that is relevant to Physical Education.
We continue to enforce and monitor transformation within our various sporting codes and bodies. We recently published and released the 2016/ 2017 EPG: Sport Transformation Status Report in relation to 19 identified codes. I will not attempt to summarise the very detailed findings in the said report, suffice to say that the performance within and across the codes is uneven. However, a positive aspect of the latest findings has been the increased buy-in of national federations to the EPG processes, resulting in improved data collection which is inextricably linked to good governance.
Through a partnership with the SportsTrust and our Ministerial Outreach Programmes; we continue to address the challenges of the lack of sporting equipment, sport infrastructure, development and active participation in sport and recreation. We will continue to build on this. [YESTERDAY]
The district academies are an integral part of sport development and is directly linked to community sport and the school sport programme. The district sport academies play a key role in talent identification, selection and development. They facilitate access to sport facilities and to specific scientific and medical support. During 2018/19 the Department will, in consultation with municipalities and the sport sector, work towards ensuring that district academies are optimally resourced and functional. The Department aims to expand the reach of the district academies to where they currently do not exist
The national sport academy is at the core of high performance sport and are responsible for athlete and team preparation. In consultation with SASCOC, the Department oversee the establishment of one of the components of the national academy system; The National Training and Olympic Preparatory Centre (NTC) in Bloemfontein.
The Andrew Mlangeni Golf Development Day expose amateur golfers to a professional tournament and to give them the opportunity to play alongside professional golfers. The funds generated from this golf development day are channelled into programmes to honour the life of Andrew Mlangeni as a national hero of our people and a true embodiment of the philosophy of life-long participation in sport and recreation. A portion of the funds raised from the Andrew Mlangeni Golf Development Day is channelled to the Andrew Mlangeni Chapter of the South African Golf Development Board.
This Chapter is based in Soweto and will provide approximately 50 young and aspiring golfers the opportunity to receive professional coaching and assistance with equipment and attire required.
We are also hopeful that the Davis Tax Committee will respond to our submission relating to Section 18A of the Income Tax Act. In Part 2 of the Ninth Schedule sport is excluded. We know that sport and recreation portfolios are acknowledged as underfunded and recipients of the smallest share of the annual division of revenue.
We believe that, incentivising sponsorship for the projects in these sectors would assist immensely in sport, realising the nation building and social cohesion objectives assigned to us in the National Development Plan.
A Ministerial Committee of Enquiry was established to investigate the alleged board-related governance issues and non-adherence to SASCOC’s constitution that impact negatively on SASCOC and on sport in general. The public hearings commenced on 12 February 2018. The enquiry report is being compiled and will in due course be submitted to the Minister of Sport and Recreation for consideration.
In conclusion, I want to emphasize that the potential of sport, its global reach, its universal language, its impact on communities in general, and young people in particular, is a fact which is increasingly being recognized around the world.
This is also acknowledged by the United Nations. In paragraph 37 of the document entitled, “Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" it is stated and I quote:
“Sport is an important enabler of sustainable development. We recognize the growing contribution of sport to the realisation of development and peace in its promotion of tolerance and respect and the contributions it makes to the empowerment of women and of young people, individuals and communities as well as to health, education and social inclusion objectives.”Unquote
In South Africa, the time to invest and capitalize in and on this potential of sport is NOW. If we as the leaders of the sport sector do not embrace the potential benefits of sport and recreation, an injustice will be done to all South Africans.
We need to believe in the power of sport to deliver in and on peace building, peace keeping, social cohesion and nation building.
The driving force of our actions should be the passion to maximize the potential of sport to address many of the ills in society linked to inactivity; to play an important role in the achievement of the 2030 SDGs and to contribute in building healthy and peaceful communities and a better South Africa for all.
Finally Honourable Speaker, a prolonged neglect of physical education could have a serious negative impact upon national health, education sectors as well as the development of the world’s youth.
The rising levels of physical inactivity, along with the substantial associated disease risk are regarded in many circles as a pandemic. In the face of this reality, the horse should not be waiting to be taken to the water. But it should be asking: ‘where is the water?’ and be willing to drink.
An Active and Winning Nation requires citizens who Choose to be Active.
I Choose to be Active; What About You?
