DIRCO & ARF Adjusted Budget & Revised Annual Performance Plan; with Minister

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International Relations

08 July 2020
Chairperson: Ms T Mahambehlala (ANC)
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Meeting Summary

Video: DIRCO & ARF Adjusted Budget & Revised Annual Performance Plan

The Committee met to receive a report by the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) and the African Renaissance Fund (ARF) on the revisions to their Annual Performance Plans and adjustment budgets in response to the impact of the Covid19 pandemic on their operations,

DIRCO said R317 million would be reduced from its baseline budget, with the cuts coming mainly from goods and services, and travel and accommodation funding. Most of its targets would not be affected, and by making greater use of technology, such as virtual meetings, it would still be able to achieve some of the goals set out in its annual performance plan. However, South Africa’s volatile exchange rate posed an additional challenge to its limited financial resources. The revised planning framework made allowance for a midterm review, and revisions would then be made should they be required. The ARF said some of its targets had been affected, although its budget had not been cut.

The Committee Chairperson urged the Department to implement the Foreign Service Act with a minimum of delay, and to implement the resolutions of the Ministerial task team to modernise its obsolete information communication technology (ICT) infrastructure. It should also focus on the Southern African Development Community’s (SDC’s) integration and democratic processes.

Members asked for details of the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement, and wanted to know about DIRCO’s involvement in the repatriation of South Africans stranded abroad due to Covid19. They also questioned what the country’s response would be to the current ISIS terrorism threat in bordering Mozambique.

Minister Naledi Pandor was asked about South Africa’s continued diplomatic presence in Israel. She responded that the Cabinet had to look, in terms of international law, at what form of office South Africa should have in Israel. There would be an office to continue servicing Palestine, and this might be opened outside of Tel Aviv. These were considerations DIRCO would table to Cabinet as South Africa tried to find a solution to this problem.

 

Meeting report

Chairperson’s introduction

The Chairperson said the COVID-19 pandemic had impacted all economies around the world, and South Africa had not been spared. President Ramaphosa had announced a fiscal package of R500 billion to ease the impact of the pandemic. The Committee supported the President’s announcement that R130 billion of this package would be reduced from the baselines of national and provincial departments.

The COVID-19 pandemic created a unique opportunity for the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) in that it changed some of DIRCO’s mandates. The Committee believed that some of DIRCO’s engagements would still occur, although virtually, meaning that some of its core mandates would still be achieved. This would be despite R317 million being reduced from its baseline budget. The Committee was therefore mindful that the supplementary budget set out initial economic and fiscal responses by government to the COVID-19 pandemic. This revision was meant to provide resources to frontline services, provincial and local government, as well as businesses and households, with a specific focus on the most vulnerable South Africans. More importantly, it sets out a roadmap to stabilise debt, improve spending patterns and create a foundation for economic recovery.

It should give the Minister and Deputy Ministers comfort that the Portfolio Committee was aware of the fact that the Leader of Government Business had directed that all departments should table their adjusted performance plans in Parliament in the usual manner. The Committee, however, had decided to go ahead with this discussion in the meantime, as parliamentary processes would allow for the formal process to take place before the revised budgets votes were debated in the House.

The Department had recently reported that an extraordinary summit on the African Union’s (AU’s) “Silencing the Guns” initiative, and the implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, would be postponed to early 2021. This resonated with the Committee’s view that DIRCO could still achieve some of its targets, and it hoped that the Department would be able to proceed and at best revise their fourth quarter targets, zooming into the areas of its revised budget,

The Chairperson commented that goods and services covered most of the activities which, in her assessment, the Department had already put on hold during the lockdown period. Some of the areas covered by the revision had a direct impact on the Portfolio Committee’s recommendations on the 2020/21 budget vote.

The Committee had been consistent in its oversight concern that the Department should prepare ahead and should be ready to implement the Foreign Service Act with minimal delays. One area of intensified oversight had been to ensure the Department had the requisite property management strategy and appropriate skills of the built environment. It was important for the Department to explain how it was going to navigate this area.

The Committee had noted some positive movements on the information communication technology (ICT) issue, as the Department had reported that it had started the implementing the recommendations from the Ministerial Task Team towards modernising their obsolete ICT infrastructure. The plan initially was to procure equipment such as laptops, desktops and to refresh the server environment, which would secure data, with the revised budget suspending the procurement of machinery and equipment. How would the Department ensure that this plan did not fall through the cracks?

The Chairperson felt that the compensation of employees and the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations on the budget of the Department remained unresolved -- more so with the revised budget. It would be important to understand how the Department had cushioned itself regarding these two matters.

Some of the targets for the financial year could still be achieved with minimal disruptions, and a reduced budget did not necessarily translate into a lesser appetite to still continue with international engagements with partners through virtual platforms. Other important performance areas in the Department’s Annual Performance Plan (APP) could also still be achieved, such as:

  • the review of structured bilateral mechanisms;
  • the review on South Africa’s membership of international organisations;
  • focusing on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) integration and democratic processes, such as elections and pursuing economic and commercial  diplomacy;
  • delivering on the mandates of South Africa as the AU Chair;
  • ensuring the operationalisation of Agenda 2063 flagships projects,
  • operationalisation of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement; and
  • addressing conflict on the continent, with support from the African Renaissance Fund (ARF).

The Chairperson invited DIRCO to unpack how the revised budget would impact on the Department’s and the ARF’s strategic and performance plans for 2020/21. The Committee was interested to be briefed on how DIRCO intended to still pursue service delivery within the current revised budget scenario.

Dr Naledi Pandor, Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, apologised for joining the meeting late and said she was in a United Nations (UN) Security Council meeting, which was still ongoing. The Committee should allow the Department to present, and she would join in the deliberations once the presentation was done.

DIRCO’s adjusted budget and revised annual performance plan.

Mr Kgabo Mahoai, Director-General: DIRCO, presented the Department’s adjusted budget and revised annual performance plan. Government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic required all departments to pull together and make it work. DIRCO needed to adjust its plans, given the adjustment and the impact of COVID-19. The Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), in Circular 2 of 2020, had made provision for departments to revise their strategic and annual performance plans. Revisions of departmental plans were allowed to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the adjusted budget tabled by the Minister of Finance on 24 June. In its updated quarterly reporting processes, the DPME had included an additional reporting requirement, where departments had to report quarterly on COVID-19 activities. This made provision for where there were no targets for a COVID-19 response, and allowing them to report on related activities. The Department had undertaken a process to consider adjustments to the planned activities in its adjusted budgets. Part of the process was to determine how the revised activities would impact on the current targets set in the strategic plan (SP) and the APP. In addition, guidelines form the DPME Circular 2 of 2020 had been considered to determine what revisions were required to the SP and the APP. Following the consultation sessions and taking into consideration the criteria and guidelines form the DPME, no revisions were required for the department’s SP and APP, as the targets were output and outcome focused. Changes had been made at the operational level, where activities were targeted.

Strategic Plan 2020-25

The outcome indicators and five-year targets remained as set. The revised planning framework made allowance for a midterm review, and revisions would then be made should they be required. Revision to the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) would be undertaken in 2021, and once such revisions were completed, the impact on departmental targets would be considered and revised where required.

Annual Performance Plan 2020/21

Programme 1:  Administration

The implications of the reduced budget, and the response to the changed working environment as a result of COVID-19, were on the operational activities and would affect the organisational functioning of the Department. This would affect its ability to acquire new computers and to refresh the data centre. The Department’s objective to receive an unqualified audit opinion was still on track, and would not be affected by the adjustment. The internal controls and processes put in place in order to improve the audit outcome would continue. Most targets in this programme would remain the same, and work to achieve the targets in the programme was in process. Work around mainstreaming gender, youth and people with disabilities would continue, and alternative platforms were being utilised where the contact sessions could not be held. Work for developing the codes, directives and regulations were in process. Some work was being done virtually. Legal advice and services continued to be rendered.

Programme 2: International Relations

International engagements were continuing under the constrained and changed conditions. Engagements were taking place on virtual platforms. The reduced budget implications were being absorbed through the reduced travel, which did not necessarily imply reduced international engagements. Revisions of the structured mechanisms were currently under way as part of the drafting of country strategies for international engagement. Missions were finding alternative ways to engage the various role players in the respective countries, to explore investment opportunities which were much needed in the South African economy at this time. Missions were also looking for new ways to engage the various role players in the respective countries to explore trade opportunities. Work on regional integration was continuing, and the half yearly report would reflect the work being done. SADC had already hosted a virtual meeting to continue the work in the region.

Programme 3: International Cooperation

DIRCO would also continue to do work in line with the long-term strategy for South Africa’s membership /candidatures. International engagements were continuing under the constrained and changed conditions. Engagements were taking place on virtual platforms. The UN had already decided that the General Assembly would have a virtual engagement in September/October. Reduced budget implications were being absorbed through the reduced travel. Once there were revisions to the MTSF, the impact on departmental targets would be considered and revised where required.

South Africa would have to continue to meet its international reporting obligations, and the report reflecting South Africa’s adherence would be drafted and submitted to Cabinet. South Africa would have to continue to monitor how the country was contributing to the operationalisation of identified Agenda 2063 flagship projects. International engagements were continuing under the constrained and changed conditions. Engagements were taking place on virtual platforms.

South Africa would have to continue to assess how the outcomes of African partnerships were aligned to the AU Agenda 2063. Work on fulfilling South Africa’s obligations to SADC and AU were continuing. Once there were revisions to the MTSF, the impact on Departmental targets would be considered and revised where required. South Africa was continuing to deliver on its deliverables as AU Chair, with a focus on the continent’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, in addition to the other main issues. South Africa would continue to honour commitments to resolve continental conflicts.

Programme 4: Public Diplomacy and State protocol and Consular services.

Public diplomacy (PD) work would continue exploring alternative platforms in order to implement the PD strategy. Providing missions with timeous support on domestic and global developments remained important, now more than ever, in this constantly changing environment. The public-private partnerships (PPPs) were continuing, using alternative platforms, such as virtual engagements. The Department would continue to release media statements and publish opinion pieces. It would continue to provide protocol services. Missions would continue to fulfil their mandate to assist South African citizens in distress abroad. DIRCO continued to render legalisation services -- it was one of the essential services being rendered even during lockdown.

Financial Resources Plan

The Department’s initial allocation of R6.85 billion had been revised downward by National Treasury to R6.533 billion, in line with the President’s announcement of a fiscal package of R500 billion to cushion the impact of the COVID19 pandemic. The President had also announced that R130 billion of the package would be reduced from baselines from national and provincial departments. The reduction was mainly in goods and services (R110 million) and the capital infrastructure budget (R207 million). The activities in the APP were aligned with the budget reduction wherein a hybrid system was used, with virtual meetings and minimum contact.

Programme 1: Administration

The reduction of R199 million was related to infrastructure projects. The remaining R15 million related to the travel budget -- mainly the Ministry and corporate management, such as outgoing visits by executives and the transfer of officials.

Programme 2: International Relations

The reduction of R83 million was related to activities that were planned for first three quarters of the financial year, such as the hosting of national day celebrations, including the venues and facilities budget, the entertainment budget, as well travel and subsistence.

Programme 3: International Cooperation

The reduction of R10 million involved activities that were planned for first three quarters of the financial year, such as the hosting of national day celebrations, including the venues and facilities budget, the entertainment budget, as well travel and subsistence.

Programme 4: Diplomacy and Protocol Services.

The reduction of R9 million was related to travel activities in support of the executive programmes. The adjustment was made within State Protocol to cover the repatriation costs from the outgoing and incoming state, as well as the hosting of the AU summit.

Reprioritisation of infrastructure and capital projects

The Foreign Service Act (No 26 of 2019) was assented to by the President on 26 May 2020.The Minister of International Relations and Cooperation became the custodian of all immovable assets outside the Republic in terms of Section 9 of the Act. DIRCO had opted to defer the implementation of the capital projects in order to allow more time to revise the infrastructure implementation plan. National Treasury had agreed that R199 million would be reprioritised. In line with the Portfolio Committee’s recommendation, the Department would establish a work stream on property management, to assist the Minister to achieve the following:

  • Development of a property acquisition, maintenance and disposal strategy;
  • Identification of sources of funding and development of a financial model; and
  • Establishment of a construction, built environment and project management unit.

 

African Renaissance Fund: Revised 2020/21Annual Performance Plan

Mr Mahoai also presented the African Renaissance Fund’s (ARF’s) revised Annual Performance Plan.

He said the implementation of the 2020/21 APP would be affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The last couple of months had seen unprecedented lockdowns in various countries. The APP focused on two strategic objectives, in line with the theme of the AU’s “Silencing the Guns: Creating Conducive Conditions for Africa's Development” to support South Africa’s Chairship of the AU during this period:

  • To support socio-economic development and integration
  • The prevention and resolution of conflict.

In the first quarter of year, the ARF had focused on humanitarian projects to address the COVID-19 pandemic. Four election observer missions were anticipated on the SADC calendar for the 2020/21 financial year. One election in Malawi had taken place without any observer mission. The others, in the Seychelles, Mauritius and Tanzania, were expected in the third quarter of the year. The SADC desk had recommended that these projects remain in the APP because travel restrictions might have been lifted by the third quarter. One project was under consideration to provide support for the operationalisation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA). It was anticipated that South Africa may be requested to provide technical assistance for the elections to be held in the third quarter. A project on prevention and resolution of conflict was also being anticipated.

Discussion

Ms T Msane (EFF) said one of her major concerns was the foreign exchange fluctuations affecting the compensation of employees (CoE). The CoE budget had not been reduced, but how would the Department be able to meet the CoE demands with the fluctuating exchange rates? The Committee had also requested DIRCO to submit documentation regarding its property management strategy team, to back up the information given to the Committee by the Department. The Committee was looking for a team with certain professional skills to manage the foreign property that had now fallen into the hands of DIRCO, so had the Department submitted those documents to the Committee as asked? How would the Department be able to maintain its properties abroad with regard to rentals, as the budget had been cut?

Referring to the ARF, she said there was a project under consideration for the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement, and asked the Department to explain what this programme was and what it sought to achieve. With regard to capacity building, the presentation in May had stated that capacity building was at 10%, and currently it was at 100%, so could the ARF explain what type of capacity building had been done to reach this 100%.  She asked if the Minister could assist and give the Committee a way forward on what had been decided on the closure of South Africa’s embassy in Israel. She also commented that South Sudan had been removed from the AU body because of outstanding funds, and asked if the Minister could explain what had happened in this regard. There was also a burning issue regarding the presence of ISIS in Mozambique -- what plans had been put in place by SADC to stop this terrorist group, and would SADC get assistance from the AU?

Mr D Bergman (DA) joked that since the Ambassador post for Israel was open, and knowing no one was willing to take up the post, the Minister should consider him. A few months ago, the Committee had asked the DG about the mid-term reviews. The CFO and his team had had to travel to London or Dubai to have these reviews, while in actual fact these reviews had been held before in Pretoria. Now, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department could see that they could actually save money by using Zoom and Microsoft Teams to connect with missions, which was saving DIRCO lots of money by not having people travelling from mission to mission across the world. Another solution would also be for everyone to converge on South Africa.

Regarding the handover of properties abroad from the Department of Public Works, he asked when exactly this would happen, and wondered if Public Works would also give some of its budget to DIRCO for the upkeep these properties. He asked where DIRCO had had to use repatriation money, because a lot of the time on the SAA flights there was sponsorship, and Treasury had also financed some of the repatriation flights. There were people who were stranded now and would probably not get flights until commercial flights start operating again, and they would require expensive flights to get to South Africa, so were there plans to subsidise or allow stranded people to sign acknowledgments of debt, because SAA had stopped the project that had started at the beginning of the lockdown.

Mr D Moela (ANC) thanked the Chairperson for raising a number of issues in her opening statements. There had been some improvement in these reports, and he commended the Department for that. On the issue of ICT, he appreciated the fact that the Minister had established a task team that was handling the matter. On the unqualified audit opinion, were there any other areas that might affect DIRCO’s audit outcome about which the DG could alert the Committee? Had the budget reductions created problems that would affect the programmes?

Mr B Nkosi (ANC) said the starting date for the African Continental Free Trade Area agreement had been moved 1 June 2020 to 1 January 2021, primarily because of travelling restrictions. He asked how ready South Africa was to assist and ensure the agreement’s protocols were properly implemented. The technical assistance for the operationalisation of the AfCTCA had been done through the ARF, and DIRCO may in future need to make this part of their integral budget so that it was allocated to a programme of the Department, rather than being seen an ad hoc programme.

The reprioritisation had happened at a time when Treasury had requested DIRCO to do the reprioritisation, and the Committee should not lose sight of the fact that it was in line with the Department’s new focus in the MTSF, and should not fall through. It was also interesting that DIRCO had been able to cut costs for travelling, accommodation and other areas through reprioritisation -- would this in future form part of DIRCO’s strategy to cut costs, particularly if it moved to e-diplomacy rather than contact diplomacy. Were the travel restrictions affecting DIRCO’s ability to deliver on its mandate?

On payment of capital assets, which one of the areas that had been reprioritised, his concern was on the suspension of spending on foreign capital infrastructure. If this had been done, had there not already been a commitment to third parties, who may in turn come back and sue DIRCO? What would the impact of suspending these activities be? Regarding ITC, to what extend would the modernisation project be affected by budget cuts. The National Treasury announcement that departments were moving to zero based budgeting would have very serious implications. Would the money that had been removed from DIRCO’s baseline be returned in the future to ensure it reached its targets?

Rev K Moshoe (ACDP) said the only issue he wanted to raise was around reprioritisation. As it was part of the Committee’s mandate to ensure there was peace and democracy on the continent, the threat that was near South Africa’s border with Mozambique was a great concern, because if ISIS had made the threats that had been reported -- instructing South Africa to stay out of the conflict -- this might sabotage all the other efforts by DIRCO for peace on the continent. Why had this issue not been made a priority, because it could destabilise peace on the continent, and the Committee knew democracy did not succeed where there was conflict.

Mr T Mpanza (ANC) said DIRCO should take note of the issues raised by the Chairperson in her opening remarks. He reminded the DG that at its previous meeting, the Committee had given DIRCO a time frame of three weeks to report on what plans were being put in place regarding its ICT strategy. On the implementation of the Foreign Service Act, could DIRCO provide the Committee with a plan of how this would be done with specific time frames, which would allow it to monitor the progress made?

Regarding reprioritisation, what criteria had been used to decide which programmes to cut money from? There were also cost implications of having virtual meetings, so could DIRCO let the Committee know how much virtual meetings were costing the Department. He also wanted to echo what some of the Committee Members had said, and give credit to Department for the improvements it had made.

DIRCO’s response

Mr Mahoai said South Sudan had been suspended because of its failure to pay membership fees. It was still a member, but would not be able to participate in AU processes. This should be resolved, as South Sudan would make payment soon.

A decision had been taken to cancel mid-term reviews. DIRCO had learned a lot about how to do things virtually, and the current platform would save DIRCO a lot of money. Everything was in place to ensure DIRCO implemented the ICT strategy effectively.

DIRCO should be able to share the report on the internal processes as part of DIRCO’s accountability mechanism with the Committee at an appropriate time, when all the internal processes had taken place.

Regarding the unqualified audit opinion, there had been some disruption to the audits of the Department. The preliminary indications had woken them up and showed them the areas that the Department struggled in. DIRCO had been having interactions with the Auditor-General, and had re-scoped with a new engagement letter and strategy, and had been doing a lot of work to address these areas. There had been indications in the beginning, based on the few missions that were audited, that positive progress was being made. The Department had put measures in place to ensure that DIRCO’s internal control environment was strengthened.

When it came to the implications of what effect the revised budget would have on programmes, the biggest problem would be the loss which was caused by COVID-19. DIRCO was also implementing a number of measures to ensure that they mitigated the effects of foreign exchange fluctuations on the employees’ compensation ceiling.  The budget cuts meant DIRCO would have to make do with what it had to ensure it achieved most targets.

On the issue on the Foreign Service Act, there was a plan in place and at an appropriate time the Department would be able to report back and provide the Committee with that plan. There were clear time frames, and there was a cross-cutting implementation task team that would deal with aspects of the act.

Although the custodianship of properties had been placed with DIRCO, there would have to be a proper systematic handover in order for the process to be complete.

The baseline reductions had been done by National Treasury, and the Department’s role was to advise National Treasury on what DIRCO’s priorities were. It had been decided that the allocations that were meant for ICT should be kept, as the Department saw this as a priority, so it would be able to purchase ICT equipment relating to ICT during this period.

The Chairperson reminded the DG that he had overlooked the issue of the documentation that needed to be submitted.

Mr Mahoai said there they were in possession of the required documentation, but the problem was because of the nature of the documents, they could not be sent virtually, However, the Department would submit them to the Committee.

On the three-week notice the Committee had given the DG to submit a full ICT report, he said the report was on track and he would submit it next week. They would have to find a way to physically submit the documentation and the report to the Portfolio Committee.

Minister’s comments

Minister Pandor continued DIRCO’s response.

She said the foreign exchange fluctuations were a problem that affected all foreign ministries throughout the world, and it was very difficult to convince national treasuries to make adjustments based on the fluctuations. Foreign ministries had to work within the budget provided to them and make adjustments without disadvantaging employees and the programmes they worked on. There would be a meeting between DIRCO and the National Treasury to see if there were any means through which improved assistance could be provided to the Department.

Referring to the maintenance of foreign properties, she said DIRCO did have a maintenance programme, but it was on a much smaller scale due as the properties occupied by officials were leased, and it would be owner of those properties who had to carry out maintenance. The areas where the Department had to do a lot of work were the properties owned by South Africa, but which had not been maintained and had to be renovated for purposes of disposal. DIRCO would have to work out a programme and proper plan around this.

On the African free trade agreement, Members would recall that South Africa had the objective of hosting the extraordinary summit, but had been unable to host it because of Covid19. The summit still remained a part of DIRCO’s plans. It had proposed that the summit be held later this year, and would be submitting this to the executive council.

Regarding the matter of Israel, the decision of Cabinet had been that South Africa would downgrade its embassy in Israel, and this had been done. There was a need to reflect what the future relationship should look like between South Africa and Israel on diplomatic and international law terms, and this was something DIRCO was discussing within the Department, and it would continue to engage Cabinet on this matter.

South Sudan’s suspension was the result of a decision that all AU members took in 2018 -- that if a country did not meet its obligations for a particular period, then membership would be suspended. All member states had agreed on this. This was part of the discipline of running an organisation effectively on the continent.

The matter of Mozambique was before the organ of SADC. A special meeting of the organ had been convened, and the sole subject had been the situation in Mozambique. SADC members would work together to withstand this threat. There was an international terrorism strategy, of which SADC was part of under the UN, and South Africa’s security organs were working on the matter. If there was more to be said, DIRCO would come back and report this to the Committee.

The Minister said she agreed with Mr Bergman that the reviews should be done virtually, and DIRCO should not have to travel as large teams to different missions across the world.

She had always felt that South Africa had amazing talent, and DIRCO had approached a research firm to assist them with implementing the ICT strategy. A mechanism had been developed in the CFO’s office that would give attention to areas where it was indicated there may be a heightened risk. There had also been improvements with supply chain management practices. She had been astounded by the number of virtual meetings one could do, and this had kept all international actors very busy.

The Minister asked the CFO to give information on the repatriation costs.

Mr Caiphus Ramashau, Chief Financial Officer: DIRCO, said the repatriation cost was more of a recovery cost process of assisting stranded South Africans abroad. DIRCO had requested funding for 12 flights from the National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC), which had been covered. What remained was to assist South Africans to use aircraft that were currently operating, and this came at a high cost. The cost that DIRCO was carrying was around R26 million, and it was in the process of finalising a reconciliation with SAA on how to manage the project.

The Chairperson said there was a view that the embassy in Israel should be closed. The embassy did not only serve Israel, but also served Palestine. She asked the Minister if closing the embassy would do justice to the people in Palestine. Regarding the repatriations, there were some South Africans abroad who were abusing this, and there needed to be some kind of monitoring from the Department to avoid resources being abused.

The Minister responded that the Cabinet had to look, in terms of international law, at what form of office South Africa should have in Israel. There would be an office to continue servicing Palestine, and this might be opened outside of Tel Aviv. These were considerations DIRCO would table to Cabinet as South Africa tried to find a solution to this problem.

The Chairperson said that for the Committee to adoption a supplementary report, the Department had to ensure it tabled its revised strategic and annual performance plans, and those of ARF, before the Committee adopted the report. Procedurally, the Committee could not adopt it, and the delays in the infrastructure and capital projects had made it clear that the Department had given up on reaching the targeted indicators for this year. The implications of this would be a delay in entering the Foreign Service Act, because they had opted to create regulations and guidelines, which was understandable, but this would delay taking full responsibility for properties abroad. The Chairperson asked for a roadmap on how this would unfold, as the delay would have an impact on the oversight ability of the Portfolio Committee.

 The Chairperson said she was also grateful to see DIRCO’s officials moving in unison.

The meeting was adjourned.

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