Deputy Chairperson, thank you, hon Tau. The design of the employment subsidy for unemployed young people has not yet been completed. Before the design is finalised it will be discussed with all relevant stakeholders to ensure that there are no undesirable and unintended consequences of the subsidy.
We will certainly seek to avoid casualisation, a dual labour market, or the cynical exploitation of youth in the implementation of the subsidy. We are all too aware of the concentration of unemployment in some of our very poor rural areas, and we will ensure that the subsidy addresses this issue as far as it is able to do so.
I wish to encourage all stakeholders, social partners, public representatives and young people, in particular, to constructively engage with this proposal so that we emerge with the most meaningful youth employment programme this country has ever experienced. We owe it to our young people to offer them opportunities to gain occupational competencies through skills development and work experience. This is what this wage subsidy proposal seeks to do. Thank you.
Deputy Chair, thank you, Deputy President. Taking note of the fact that rural development is a priority of this government - and I'm quite happy that the design of the employment subsidy has not been finalised - what I would like to know from the Deputy President, as a clear statement, is whether the Deputy President would say to us that one of the key elements central to the design of the employment subsidy would be a bias towards rural young women in particular. Thank you.
Deputy Chair, that is a detail but, as I said, this is aimed at ensuring that we address this huge challenge of unemployed youth, particularly from rural communities where there is grinding poverty, so to speak. The idea is that we should, as far as possible, afford opportunities to those who otherwise would not be able to lift themselves out of this cycle of poverty. Of course, the approach is in addition to some of the interventions that we employ in addressing poverty, because we believe that education is the key to addressing issues of unemployment and poverty.
We want to deal with this challenge at a household level in order to ensure that we don't have poverty being transmitted from one generation to another in the same household. We should be able to address that and I can quite plainly state that, if there are young women who are in this category in any rural community, they would no doubt receive the necessary attention.
UMBHEXESHI OYINTLOKO WEBHUNGA: Sekela-Sihlalo, ndingathanda ukuqonda kuSekela-Mongameli ukuba ingaba le mpendulo ayinike leNdlu ichaphazela isebe elinye na okanye onke amasebe karhulumente? Kwaye njengoko sithetha ngophuhliso lwasemaphandleni, ingaba le nto iza kuwachaphazela ngakumbi na amaphondo ngoba olu phuhliso silufuna phaya kanye ezilalini. (Translation of isiXhosa paragraph follows.)
[The CHIEF WHIP OF THE COUNCIL: Deputy Chairperson, I would like to know from the Deputy President if the response he gave this House affects only one department or all government departments. Again, as we talk about rural development, will this have a negative impact on the provinces because we need this development mostly in rural areas?]
Deputy Chair, indeed with the approach that we employ, as I said, the focus is on households and there are areas where we've already piloted this approach whereby we go into each and every household to get its profile and we believe that once we are able to identify one or two potential change agents in that household we then ensure that they receive support from the various departments. If I had time, I would share with you some of the positive experiences arising out of this approach.
Most of the difficulties that face our people in rural areas sometimes are problems that admit to resolution just through the sharing of information and can be addressed almost immediately. We believe that by co-ordinating government interventions, it's possible to assist a household so that the next generation never finds itself mired in poverty in the same way as the current generation by simply identifying those with potential to be assisted to lift that household. If it's people who have dropped out of school, we persuade them and get them to go back to school, monitor them and support them whilst other interventions from the various government departments are brought to bear as well. Thank you.
Deputy Chair, if I may ask the Deputy President, the Budget documentation that announced the way the subsidy is referred to in the question is accompanied by two other interventions under the section of interventions in the youth labour market. The first is regulatory reform covering the probationary period to reduce the cost associated with determining a young worker's productive potential and the second one is minimum wage reform to align productivity in wages for young workers.
I understand the actual wage subsidies being investigated by Treasury, but which departments are responsible for the investigation and implementation of those other two interventions and what are the timeframes associated with their introduction?
In Cabinet there is a special Inter-Ministerial Cabinet Committee, IMCC, established to investigate the various aspects of this intervention and that naturally would include Economic Development, Labour and it would also include Trade and Industry. That's the IMCC that would investigate the various aspects so that by the time we implement we should have looked at all potential challenges and obstacles towards a smooth implementation. Thank you.
Government's position with regard to statement by Zulu King on 23 February 2010 regarding circumcision of men as a means of combating HIV/Aids
4. Mr R A Lees (DA) asked the Deputy President:
What is the government's position on the statement made by the Zulu King in his address to the KwaZulu-Natal legislature on 23 February 2010, that all men be circumcised as a means of combating HIV/Aids?