Modulasetulo, ke a leboha. Letona le kgabane le Motlatsi wa Letona; Matona a diporofense ... [Chairperson, hon Minister and his Deputy, MECs of provinces ...]
... the Department of Arts and Culture, council and board members of Arts and Culture and heritage institutions, hon Members of Parliament, ladies and gentlemen, comrades and friends ...
Kgotsong! Ha ke qala, Mokgatlo wa ANC o tshehetsa Voutu ya Bajete ya Lefapha la Bonono le Setso. Modulasetulo ... [Greetings! To start with, the ANC supports the Budget Vote of the Department of Arts and Culture. Chairperson ...]
... it was on this day, 37 years ago, that learners at Phefeni Secondary School in Orlando West, Soweto, started boycotting classes in protest against the imposition of Afrikaans as medium of instruction in certain subjects in schools. The unrest spread to Belle Higher Primary School, Thulasizwe Higher Primary School and other schools in the country.
We also remember the role played by young African giants like Tsietsi Mashinini, Comrade Susan Shabangu, Dan Montsitsi - the list is endless. These boycotts spread like wildfire and culminated in the 16 June 1976 uprisings. It is against the backdrop of these uprisings that the power of language, culture, memory, history and heritage should be remembered. The arts and culture sector has the ability to act as an agent for social change in our society.
I am talking about gallant fighters for freedom, some of whom are Members of Parliament today. Their role will never be forgotten in the history of our struggle.
Today, as we stand on the brink of celebrating 20 years of democracy, we can proudly reflect on our collective achievements. The vital role played by Department of Arts and Culture in building the nation and social cohesion should not go unnoticed.
Because the National Development Plan, the NDP, is the point of departure for strategic planning within all spheres of government, we should heed the following statement, which is taken from the NDP:
Arts and culture open powerful spaces for debate about where a society finds itself and where it is going. Promoted effectively, the creative and cultural industries can contribute substantially to small business development, job creation and urban development and renewal.
The department is progressively improving on delivery in respect of its strategic goal to strengthen governance and accountability.
Effective human resource management is fundamental to improving performance and delivery. The department has worked to reduce its vacancy rate from 26,8% in 2009 to 9,5% in 2012, with female representation at 43% at senior management service level. We look forward to the department maintaining its current estimated vacancy rate of 10% over the medium term and attaining its goal of having 50% female representation at the SMS level.
Further, the department has progressively improved on spending against its approved budget. This is evidenced by the estimated performance of 98% of the approved budget spent in the last financial year.
The department has successfully received unqualified audit reports since 2009. Tied to this, the department has, since 2010, made great strides to successfully attain targets set out in its annual performance plan.
Entities of the Department of Arts and Culture strive to spend the taxpayer's money appropriately. The ANC wishes to congratulate the following institutions for achieving a clean audit during the 2011-12 financial year: the KwaZulu-Natal Museum, which is in Pietermaritzburg; the KwaZulu-Natal Playhouse Company, which is in Durban; the Msunduzi Museum in Pietermaritzburg; the Market Theatre Foundation in Johannesburg; the Luthuli Museum in KwaDukuza; the Iziko Museum of South Africa, which is here in Cape Town; and Freedom Park in Pretoria.
I am proud to announce that 63% of the Department of Arts and Culture's entities and institutions received unqualified audit opinions. In our recent engagement with the Auditor-General, it was made clear that more entities were expected to receive clean audits for the 2012-13 financial year.
With regard to the department's job-creation strategic goal, 3 300 jobs will be created through infrastructure initiatives over the medium term, with 1 000 jobs to be created in the 2013-14 financial year.
In his 2013 state of the nation address, the President made mention of the Summit on Social Cohesion, hosted in 2012. It focused on building a socially inclusive, caring and proud nation. The subsequent implementation of the social cohesion programme will constitute a major focus within the department over the medium term. The impetus for this programme stems from the Constitution, which compels the country to heal the divisions of the past, while being mindful that the democratic South Africa emerged from a system where the majority of its citizens were deliberately disadvantaged and marginalised in terms of opportunity.
Access to information is key to successful programmes and public participation. To keep abreast of digital technology trends, the department plans to promote its public profile and programmes through activating five social media platforms over the medium term.
The strong focus on promoting the work of the department and strengthening partnership with associated institutions and provinces can only contribute to greater efficiency within the department. We accept that there are still same challenges in the department and working together with family of Arts and Culture, we shall achieve more.
In conclusion, the ANC supports the Department of Arts and Culture's effort to build small business by enforcing that service providers are paid within 30 days, as required by law. The ANC supports the Budget Vote of the Department of Arts and Culture. Ke a leboga. [I thank you.] [Applause.]