Chairperson, I am honoured to continue to support Mfundisi Stofile as we march, not only to 2010, but beyond. I am also delighted that another key part of the team is in place and my congratulations to the chairperson of the portfolio committee and the portfolio committee. We are looking forward to be working with them closely, as we did in the past.
We have to say that we are in full agreement, hon Komphela, when you talked about the role of the South African Institute for Drug-free Sport, Saids, and the laboratory in Bloemfontein and the role that they are playing in combating the scourge of doping in sport. We are in absolute agreement that they are doing a sterling job and we need to support them wherever we can to make sure that we eradicate this scourge of doping. When you talk about boxing, we are in absolute agreement. I was partly in agreement with the hon Lee, and we are dealing with that. The Minister is taking action and we are dealing with that very proactively. However, hon Lee, you disappointed me a little bit towards the end. You did not read the Act. This is why the Minister is taking action in a particular route and will come to the committee to ask for your assistance and support there to amend the Act to give him the enabling powers to do what we know he wants to do.
As far as the national emblems and the national anthem is concerned, when we spoke to the South African Football Association, Safa, they immediately, hon Komphela, corrected their mistakes. As we speak, we can say that all sports codes are now conforming to the resolutions taken and they all have the national emblem on the left of the chest. [Applause.] Hon MacKenzie, you are a new member here, I wish you a long stay in this House, but one piece of advice: If you have nothing to say, don't say it here. [Laughter.] [Applause.]
Aan die agb Spies, vriend, ons wens jou sterkte toe waar jy gaan. Ek hoop jy gaan 'n positiewe bydrae lewer. Ek glo ons sal weer van jou hoor. Ons kantoordeur bly oop en ek weet ek en die Minister skuld jou 'n koppie tee, so neem hierdie uitnodiging aan voor 31 Augustus, asseblief. (Translation of Afrikaans paragraph follows.)
[To the hon Spies, my friend, we wish you everything of the best where you are going. I hope that you are going to make a positive contribution. I believe we will hear from you again. Our office door remains open and I know the Minister and I owe you a cup of tea, so please accept this invitation before 31 August.]
Chairperson, the President, in his state of the nation address, said:
Sport is a powerful nation-building tool. Working together, we must support all our national teams, from Bafana Bafana to the Proteas and the Springboks; from Banyana Banyana to the Paralympians.
In this time of relative depression, sport has become a panacea for our people who remain sports-mad. We have had the privilege of being exposed to a surplus of sport taking place recently at an international level with our cricket team giving a more than creditable performance losing to the eventual winners of the International Cricket Council's T20 World Championships; the Springboks outperforming the British and Irish Lions - not once, but twice and Saturday again, I hope - and Bafana Bafana meeting their destiny against Brazil, the hosts of the 2014 Fifa World Cup and then Spain in the third and fourth playoff in the 2009 Fifa Confederations Cup. Let me say, we are all extremely proud of Bafana Bafana. You did us proud. You did well! [Applause.]
We are also preparing for the Deaflympic Games, the Global Games, where our deaf and intellectually impaired athletes will compete later this year, as well as the World Games in Chinese Taipei, where we hope our team will perform strongly. We also have the World Student Games currently underway and a host of other events in which all our federations participate on a regular basis.
As the President said: "Our teams can only do well with our support." Let me add that with the invaluable role played by the media in getting the information out to the South African public, we will support our teams fully, confident in their ability to deliver.
In recognising our teams, we also need to pay tribute to the other quieter successes that have taken place in this country. We have hosted a number of successful events in recent months, which have almost taken place back-to- back - and that in the middle of an election campaign in this country. Tribute must be paid to the security sector for ensuring the safety of spectators and teams alike. This is one part of government's support system brought to bear in hosting major sporting events.
Taking but one example, the Indian Premier League brought an estimated 50 000 spectators into the country and injected in the region of R1 billion into our economy with, among other things, over 25 000 bed nights being sold, which otherwise would not have happened; and 6 000 flights were booked locally over the 40 days of the event. The fact that this is happening in the midst of our recession, can only be good news for our economy. Of these, 59 matches were broadcast with a cumulative total of television coverage of 177 hours of positive images of our country with the most wonderful backdrops of mountains and seas to an international audience with ratings being 11% higher than the inaugural event held in India. A total of 800 000 people watched the matches in the stadia, 40% of whom were doing so for the first time ever in their lives. What an achievement!
There is no doubt that many visitors who visited us for the first time will be back! Not only was this event a boost economically, but it also reinforced good sporting, trade and international relations between South Africa and India. The good news continues with Cricket South Africa undertaking to put much of the surplus they made on the event into development. I hope and trust that, in line with government policy, a major surplus of this money and funding will be used in our rural areas.
We also had the privilege of hosting the Supreme Council of Sport in Africa Zone VI U20 Youth Games in Potchefstroom in Tlokwe last year in December where: 600 volunteers were trained; over 700 children in the North West province were trained for magnificent gymnaestrada displays in both the opening and closing ceremonies; local economic development was given a boost, because many teams purchased what was available in the shops to take home; and local infrastructures, particularly sports facilities, were upgraded through a much-appreciated grant from the National Lottery Distribution Trust Fund. I would like to thank our colleagues from other Ministries who contributed to the success of the Games and to enabling South Africa to lift the bar on the quality of organisation. I hope sincerely that the Chairperson, who is sitting next to me here, of the Zone VI Council of Ministers was duly impressed by South Africa's performance, on and off the field. Team South Africa topped the medals table with 56 gold, 40 silver and 14 bronze medals. I am particularly indebted to former Deputy President, Baleka Mbete, for presiding over the closing ceremony.
This is what we need to encourage more of through our sports tourism strategy, which is being developed in close co-operation with the Department of Tourism and South African Tourism. I look forward to the strategy and policy being delivered for implementation in the next financial year. This will ensure that our economy benefits from increased hotel occupancy, more internal transport being booked, more purchases being made and invaluable word of mouth marketing bringing more tourists to South Africa for sporting events, let alone the myriad of other activities and sights to see in our wonderful country.
However, there is life after 2010 and the Fifa World Cup and we are delighted that Cabinet threw its full weight behind the bid by the South African Rugby Union to host the IRB 2015 or 2019 Rugby World Cup. I would like to acknowledge the co-operation received from National Treasury in preparing that bid. With government's full support, we hope that the International Rugby Board, IRB, will announce that South Africa's bid is successful on 28 July 2009. In fact, I know that we tabled the best bid by far.
As we move towards that decision, it is appropriate to expand on why this is an important bid for South Africa. We have spent billions of rands on accelerated infrastructure expenditure, significantly on stadia. Hosting the Rugby World Cup will provide additional high profile opportunities to use those world-class stadiums with all the Information and Communications Technology, ICT, and other investments, which more than meet the requirements of the Rugby World Cup. In fact, no other country comes close to offering what we are offering in the bid in terms of infrastructure. This is where we need to ensure that there is a continuous, planned and sustainable return on the investment made by South African taxpayers. Hosting major events can provide integral support to this endeavour.
The economic impact study done for the Rugby World Cup bid indicates that the total economic impact will be in the region of R9,5 billion, of which direct expenditure equates to R5,2 billion. The South African Rugby Union and we sincerely hope that there will be at least 110 000 foreign visitors for the event who will spend, as they predict, at least R2 000 a day. Our colleagues from the SA Revenue Service will be happy to note that there will be an estimated R740 million in additional tax revenue accruing to the state should we be successful. The value that is more difficult to estimate is the goodwill generated by South Africa in our interaction with visitors and with visiting teams. Add to that the media impact of the tournament being broadcast across the world. Another significant aspect which is intangible is the contribution the tournament will make to the development of the game of rugby with funds being contributed, focusing on South Africa, Africa and the rest of the world in priority order. This is yet another contribution South Africa can and must make to the development of sport on the continent.
I am able to report that we have finally been able, hon Komphela, to implement an initial pilot project of sport for peace and development. The Minister and I were approached by colleagues from Burundi late last year requesting South Africa to contribute a variety of sports balls. We worked closely with the SA National Defence Force and our Mission in Burundi and the balls were finally handed over to the Minister of Youth, Sport and Culture by Ambassador Lembede as part of South Africa's Freedom Day celebrations in April this year, who, in his speech at the handover ceremony, referred to the work South Africa has done in conjunction with others to bring peace to Burundi. He also said that the focus is appropriately moving from military support to support through sport as the respective federations promote reconciliation through sport. How great is that? [Applause.]
Their Minister indicated that "sport is life". That is a powerful statement from someone who has experienced division in his own country. He said that, according to the youth of Burundi, "When I play, I live".
This is a contribution that South Africa must continue to make to our brothers and sisters in Africa. We are obliged to do this for those who supported our struggle for a free, democratic, nonracial and nonsexist society.
However, we must go further by ensuring that our Defence Force personnel and national federations are empowered to leave a lasting social legacy in nations who have overcome war. We need to promote sustainability of sports clubs and federations when we leave that particular country. Most of all, we need to contribute in whatever small way to an integrated society which values all its citizens, men and women, those with and without disabilities often caused by internal strife, as well as those who have opposed each other over the barrel of a gun rather than on the field of play of their chosen sport. As Mfundisi Stofile said, it is fine for us to contribute to sport for peace and development in other countries, but he also said to me: "Gert, but what are we doing back home in South Africa?"
I am delighted that our department has now taken this message on board and is working closely with the SA Police Service on what is called sport for safety. I have to acknowledge our thanks to the pioneering work done by our partners from the United Kingdom: The British High Commission; British Airways; the Metropolitan Police, specifically the Southwark Police Station in London; and the Charlton Athletic Football Club. They have been partnered by Ajax Cape Town with the police stations in Khayelitsha and Mitchells Plain; by Bidvest Wits in Hillbrow and in Alexandra; and AmaZulu, who recently joined the programme in KwaMashu.
With the focus on schools, it is imperative that we work with both the police and the Department of Basic Education in close co-operation to ensure that we collectively meet our government's commitment to reducing crime, particularly among the youth. This is a national imperative and we are committed to working in this collaborative way to ensure the programme takes root. I hope that we can roll it out in the near future with additional partners in the shape of our provincial colleagues, the nascent provincial sport councils and local government.
Research in the United Kingdom by the Association of Chief Police Officers indicates that every 1 spent on youth leads to a saving of 18 on future criminal justice activities. With this return on investment evident in the United Kingdom as a developed country, South Africa can expect at least the same benefits.
This, hon members, bears out what we have been saying for years, namely that the full value of sport is underestimated and with increased investment from the state and private sector, we can at present only imagine what an enormous impact we could have on the fabric of our society. This developing relationship between Sport and Recreation, the Police and the Department of Basic Education is something we will be monitoring closely and for which, with the assistance of the portfolio committee, we will provide a budget and other resources, hopefully, in future financial years.
The President, in his state of the nation address, stated:
It is clear that we need to invest on a large scale in sports development. We will speed up the revival of school sport and ensure that it forms part of the school curriculum. In addition we will ensure that the provision of sports facilities in poorer communities receives priority.
The Minister was going to speak about school sport and its importance to the health and future welfare of our nation and the transformation of our sports teams and federations. It goes without saying that we need basic sports facilities in our communities, particularly in our rural areas, to enforce our commitment to rural development.
Last year, I reported on the failure of the Municipal Infrastructure Grant, MIG, to address the need for basic facilities. I can report that we are making slow but inexorable progress towards getting funding allocated to our department to fund this dire need. Moreover, we need to ensure that the Department of Human Settlements incorporates sports and recreational facilities. Thank you. [Time expired.] [Applause.]