Hon Chairperson, hon Minister and hon Deputy Minister, our country's poor, most vulnerable and those with special needs require an adequately resourced and efficient network of social development services in order to minister to their various needs. The Minister and the department are at the veritable coalface of this very important portfolio, a portfolio in which delays in the provision of services can cost lives.
The Hon President, in his state of the nation address, identified three challenges facing the government, which are poverty, inequality and unemployment. As it is the core mandate of the Department of Social Development to build a caring and integrated system of social services that facilitate human development and improve the quality of life for all, it is to this core mandate that we turn when we measure the overall success of the department.
The IFP welcomes programmes, such as Early Childhood Development, ECD, and the announcement that there were funds set aside for the development of infrastructure related strictly to ECDs, as these centres are very important as they deal with the development of a child from an early age. Child and youth care programmes that address the needs of orphans and vulnerable children through appointing child and youth care workers to provide support to children in their homes and communities is also welcomed.
The anti-substance abuse campaign aimed at educating the population on the dangers of substance abuse, especially alcohol, will have a knock-on effect in assisting with the reduction of related crimes such as violence against women, children and people with disabilities. We support the Zero Hunger and Food for All programmes which will be implemented in partnership with the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, to deal with issues of improving access to food in households that are most likely to experience hunger.
Whilst these programmes are all wonderful initiatives, the IFP hopes that they are implemented in such a way so as to ensure even distribution of benefits, particularly within our rural communities. The department must ensure that these projects are sufficiently funded and have adequate human resources if these programmes are going to have the desired impact on the ground.
The old age grant beneficiaries are targeted at being 2,8 million by March 2013 and child support grant beneficiaries 11,491 million by March 2013. We therefore support the re-registration of beneficiaries that is currently being done by the department and hope that this will also assist in making sure that the beneficiaries receiving these grants are those that are supposed to and qualify to do so. The introduction of the new South African Social Service Agency, Sassa, smart card which operates in both the formal banking environment and at designated cash points is also welcomed, as this will alleviate grant beneficiaries from travelling extra distances to access funds.
As nongovernmental organisations, NGOs, are funded by the National Development Agency, NDA, they must be supported by programmes that will enhance their capacity to enable them to carry out their work effectively. Funding and not educating them on how to successfully run their organisation is not helping them. They also require oversight, monitoring and evaluation. We have also noted that there has been a great improvement when it comes to missing files and hope that measures are now in place to ensure that the situation does not revert back to where it was. The improvement of local offices and pay point infrastructure must be attended to urgently, as conditions at some pay points are not conducive to effective service delivery.
In conclusion, the IFP is happy with the progress the department has made to date, and we continue to offer our full support to the Minister and her department, as we, as a country, seek to address the social inequalities of our citizens. The IFP supports Budget Vote No 19: Social Development. Thank you. [Applause.]