Hon Chairperson, hon Minister Mnqarhwana, hon Deputy Minister and hon members, good afternoon.
Let me start by congratulating hon Mnqarhwana on his appointment as Minister, particularly of this critical department. I'm doing this because I'm talking to a person who knows what it means to transform rural areas, such that a rural person at Gxaku, on the border between Mount Frere and Mount Fletcher, will not see the need to put up a shack in Mount Frere ...
... kuba eleqa ukuba sedolophini. [... because this person is rushing to an urban area.]
I am talking to the hon Minister because he knows what it means to upgrade rural towns, such that the debate about Kokstad is not driven by comparison of infrastructure. I am talking to the hon Minister because he knows what it means to develop the village of Mpame in Elliotdale, such that those deep rural inhabitants see their area as a tourism site.
For me, it means addressing the lack of basic infrastructure like roads, water, electricity and communication supply, and ultimately dealing with and defeating poverty. Basic services do not reach all our people on farms and in rural areas. Access to government services such as education and health care are very weak. Hence, diseases related to contaminated water, such as diarrhoea, are prevalent in rural areas.
The Ministry is therefore charged with the responsibility to cut across and co-ordinate all those government departments and entities that have a stake in the upliftment of the lives of our people in rural areas, and this includes rural towns.
Rural municipalities are in a deprivation trap. This means, if not assisted, they will remain in poverty because of a continuous lack of expertise, particularly in the fields of engineering and financial management.
I know that the hon Minister is very passionate about land and agrarian reform and co-operative development. But, hon Minister, this has to be given direction and be uniformly and speedily implemented, particularly in rural provinces. You will notice that most rural municipalities are sitting on claimed land, and this makes it very difficult, if not a nightmare, for them to engage in development programmes.
Our rural communities should be empowered to deal with poverty through the establishment of co-operatives. Land reform should be informed by the purpose of dealing with, and ultimate defeating, poverty. Hence this process of land reform has to involve thoroughgoing consultation with all political parties, organised traditional institutions, and interest groups involved, so that there is a win-win situation in which everybody can own the programme at end of the day.
The Freedom Charter says: "The land shall be shared among those who work it." It is high time that this noble clause of this noble document be considered. Our people who are getting their land back through the land claims processes should be assisted to optimally use and sustain the condition of the land. The picture of large areas of land lying unused and ultimately being eroded is very bad. This should change and should include the affected communities. This will avoid a situation ...