Thank you, if you can take care of my time for me. You want to reset this clock here.
The ACDP is disturbed to learn that members of national sports teams are required to personally supply large sums of money in order to represent South Africa. The expression seems to be, "You pay, you play. You don't, you stay." This means the nation's best are often not participating at international sports events. Many talented players come from very poor backgrounds and even those who are not so poor find the sums too high. Right now the national women's softball team is having to find R25 000 per player to take part in the world series in June. Last year the national hockey team went to Argentina to play some of the top teams in the world - and players who went had to find R10 000 each. This is a national disgrace.
Emphasis has been placed on the 2010 Fifa World Cup by the President in his state of the nation address and due to the amount of planning and preparation involved, the Department of Sport and Recreation disbursed over R461 billion in 2009 for the purpose of stadia construction and upgrading. The cities and municipalities spent over R542 billion and the total expenditure of the national grant funds to date is nearly R13 billion. Now there is much excitement and anticipation but while these thousands of billions of rands change hands and accomplish their objectives in South Africa, we are still grappling with basics like disparities in access to sport.
Much still needs to be done to meet the sporting and training needs of our nation, including access for marginalised communities; equitable participation, especially for women, the youth and persons with disabilities; development of school sports; and sporting facilities, equipment and sports kit in poor, and especially rural, communities.
South Africa needs effective and innovative interventions by this department and all stakeholders to actively promote community development and safer communities, helping to prevent the negative impact of poverty, violence and crime.
Progress regarding mass participation will require the department to strengthen its relationship with the Department of Basic Education in the delivery of school sports programmes. What are the issues here, hon Minister? Why does progress seem continuously limited? The mass participation programme consumes a huge portion of the budget and there appears to be no meaningful value for this money; no clear impact on the ground.
The ACDP joins others in calling for the exorbitant funding allocated to loveLife to be redirected appropriately.
The ACDP also calls on the department to closely monitor the procurement of gymnasium equipment. The ACDP will support this Budget Vote. I thank you.