MINISTRY
WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
Private Bag X313, Pretoria, 0001, Tel: (012) 336 8733, Fax: (012) 328 7817
Private Bag X9052, Cape Town, 8000, Tel: (021) 464 1500, Fax: (021) 465
3362
MINISTER
QUESTION NO. 395 FOR WRITTEN REPLY: NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
A draft reply to Mrs H N Ndude (Cope) to the above-mentioned question is
enclosed for your consideration.
DRAFT REPLY APPROVED/AMENDED
MRS B E E MOLEWA, MP
MINISTER OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS
DATE:
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
(For written reply)
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
(For written reply)
QUESTION NO. 395
INTERNAL QUESTION PAPER NO. 2 NW429E
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 18 February 2011
Mrs H N Ndude (Cope) to ask the Minister of Water and Environmental
Affairs:
Whether her departments have implemented any specific graduate development
programmes over the past five years to help improve the supply of (a)
climate change specialists, (b) water plant superintendants, (c) engineers
and (d) technicians; if not, why not; if so, what (i) success have her
departments recorded in respect of each specified category and (ii)
percentage of her departmentsâ critical staff were recruited through these
programmes?
Mrs H N Ndude (Cope)
SECRETARY TO PARLIAMENT
HANSARD
PAPERS OFFICE
PRESS
395. THE MINISTER OF WATER AND ENVIRONMENTAL AFFAIRS ANSWERS:
The Department of Environmental Affairs has in the past five years or more
provided financial support, in the form of bursaries, to students who are
studying for Environmental Science related qualifications, e.g.
Environmental Management/ Science, Oceanography, Chemical Engineering and
Chemistry, and so forth.
After completion, sponsored students were absorbed by the Department as
bursars and some of them are currently employed as permanent officials. The
Departmental internship programme has also been used as a means to attract
students who have completed their tertiary studies to join the Department
as interns. The aim of this programme is to assist students to convert
theoretical knowledge obtained at tertiary institutions into practice and
to increase their access to enter the labour market.
Furthermore, the Department has consistently recruited learners to
participate in its Environmental Education Learnership. These learners are
placed at various municipalities across the country.
The breakdown of percentages for the past five years is as follows:
BURSARIES
|YEAR |NUMBER OF BURSARIES |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006 |51 |35% |
|2007 |34 |26% |
|2008 |7 |None |
|2009 |12 |50% |
|2010 |29 |48% to be placed from |
| | |April 2011 |
INTERNSHIPS
|YEAR |NUMBER OF INTERNS |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006/07 |116 |25% |
|2007/08 |78 |2% |
|2008/09 |No interns appointed | |
|2010/11 |29 |4% |
South African Weather Services (SAWS) implemented a bursary and internship
programme that has trained
a) 83 BSc. in Meteorologists
b) None
c) 3 Electrical Engineering
d) 59 Meteorological Technicians
i) SAWS has recorded successes in a, c and d. The majority of successful
students have been recruited by SAWS. The Electrical Engineering
learners are currently doing their practical component of their
studies with SAWS.
ii) (a) 75% have been employed
(c) Currently doing their practical component at SAWS.
(d) 88 % have been employed by SAWS
The breakdown of percentages for the past five years is as follows:
BURSARIES
|YEAR |NUMBER OF BURSARIES |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006 |20 |85% |
|2007 |15 |60% |
|2008 |40 |63% |
|2009 |43 |56% |
|2010 |31 |In progress |
Students that have not been recruited are continuing with their studies
INTERNSHIPS
|YEAR |NUMBER OF INTERNS |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006/07 |N/A |N/A |
|2007/08 |N/A |N/A |
|2008/09 |13 |4 |
|2010/11 |10 |Internship in Progress |
The South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI) has contributed
extensively towards to the development of young climate change specialists
in the form of bursary programmes at Masters and Doctoral level as well as
collaborative initiatives with South African universities. In addition to
bursaries and internship programmes offered, we have also supported 4 staff
in the Climate Change and Bio-Adaptation Division to obtain their Masters
and Doctoral degrees.
The breakdown of percentages for the past five years is as follows:
a) Climate change specialists
BURSARIES
|YEAR |NUMBER OF BURSARIES |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006 |4 |100% |
|2007 |9 |30% |
|2008 |11 |18% |
|2009 |9 |11% |
|2010 |5 |20% |
INTERNSHIPS
|YEAR |NUMBER OF INTERNS |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
|2006/07 |3 |33% |
|2007/08 |0 |0 |
|2008/09 |1 |0 |
|2010/11 |2 |0 |
b) Water plant superintendants - None
c) Engineers - None
d) Technicians - None
iSimangaliso does not offer any graduate support programmes.
It does have a bursary scheme for undergraduate study in environmental,
tourism, engineering and financial studies. The programme is in its second
year. Twenty-eight students are being supported.
The South African National Parks (SANParks) breakdown of percentages for
the past five years is as follows:
BURSARIES
|YEAR |NUMBER OF BURSARIES |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
| | | |
|2006/07 |4 |0% |
| | | |
|2007/08 |0 |0% |
| | | |
|2008/09 |5 |0% |
| | | |
|2009/10 |7 |0% |
| | | |
|2010/11 |2 |50% |
| | | |
|2011/12 |4 |0 |
SANParks offers bursaries to children of employees without prescribing to
them in terms of the line of studies that they must follow; the above
numbers are those who followed Environmental related studies. Most of them
were offered Internship opportunities, but only one has been absorbed thus
far.
 INTERNSHIPS
|YEAR |NUMBER OF INTERNS |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
| | | |
|2006/07 |42 |0% |
| | | |
|2007/08 |178 |0% |
| | | |
|2008/09 |132 |0% |
| | | |
|2009/10 |255 |6% |
| | | |
|2010/11 |111 |23% |
| | | |
|2011/12 |0 |0% |
SANParks Internship programme has focussed in the past on two areas i.e.
Conservation and Tourism, and later included support functions, hence the
increase in numbers. The absorption of the interns has been limited to the
number of funded vacancies available, hence the small number absorbed. We
did not cater for Water plant Superintendents, Engineers.Only Science
Technicians were catered for under Conservation services.
LEARNERSHIPS
|YEAR |NUMBER OF LEARNERSHIPS |PERCENTAGE PLACED |
| | | |
|2006/07 |0 |0% |
| | | |
|2007/08 |139 |0% |
| | | |
|2008/09 |136 |0% |
| | | |
|2009/10 |348 |35% |
| | | |
|2010/11 |17 |0% |
| | | |
|2011/12 |0 |0% |
WITH REGARD TO THE DEPARTMENT OF WATER AFFAIRS, THE MINISTER ANSWERS AS
FOLLOWS:
(a) No, the Department graduate programme has not specifically
focused on climate change specialist per se, but on
environmental management broadly. However one Graduate Trainee
is already actively involved in a project through the University
of Stellenbosch on the invasion success of alien plants under
global climate change.
b) Yes, there is a total of 19 graduate trainees within the
water care; and waters and sanitation disciplines.
c) Yes, a total of 22 graduate trainees are within the
engineering field (i.e. Civil, Mechanical and Electrical
Engineers).
d) Yes, there is a total of 71 graduate technician trainees
in respect of technicians.
i) Below is a list of success the Department recorded;
⢠Overall, in environmental management 67 graduatesâ trainees;
⢠19 Graduate Trainees of which 10 are within the water care
and 9 in the water and sanitation disciplines;
⢠a total of 22 Engineers Graduate Trainees qualified of which
11 are within Civil, 7 in Mechanical and 4 in Electrical
Engineers; and
⢠a total of 71 graduate trainees of which 62 Qualified as
Civil, 5 Mechanical and 4 Electrical Engineering
Technologists and Technicians.
ii) None have been recruited by the Department yet as this is a long
term (up to 5 years) that started in 2007 and the first group will
be absorbed into core, critical and scarce skills posts within the
Department.
⢠The first group of 43 Graduate Trainees has been identified
to be absorbed into candidate engineering and engineering
technologist and technicians posts in line with Occupational
Specific Dispensation (OSD). This will be affected from the
1st of April 2011;
-2-
⢠Two Graduate Trainees have submitted applications for
professional registration as Engineers with the Engineering
Council of South Africa (ECSA). The outcome is expected in
June 2011;
⢠Five Graduate Trainees has already received their
professional registration with the South African Council for
Natural Science Professionals (SACNASP) and is currently
been considered for full time appointments within the
Department. A further 18 Graduate Trainees has submitted
their application for professional registration and their
registration is pending as SACNASP will consider
applications only in March 2011 again; and
⢠One Graduate Trainee is ready to submit application for
professional registration as a Surveyor with PLATO, the
professional council for surveyors.
In addition it should be noted that:
The Learning Academy is a technical and scarce skills
development programme which was initiated in 2007 as a response to
the specific skills shortage challenge affecting both the
Department and the national water sector. It represents an
investment in sustaining quality in Department of Water Affairsâ
(DWA) human resources, thereby ensuring that in the long term, the
DWA will remain competitive and be able to deliver on its mandate.
The Learning Academy programme is designed to meet specific
organizational requirements, lead a sustained campaign to secure a
steady supply of high-level skills in water-related science,
engineering, and technical disciplines in order to meet projected
demand within DWA and the water sector as a whole.
The Learning Academy responds to the imperatives mentioned with
a dual focus by addressing both the academic and professional
development components that will provide aspiring engineers,
scientists and technicians the opportunity to be exposed to real-
time professional experiences and valuable work experience.
A total of 350 bursaries have been granted since 2007 to
learners at the identified Institutions of Higher Learning. Of
these bursars, 211 have joined the Learning Academyâs Professional
Development Component.
By December 2010, 103 Learner Interns had successfully
completed their experiential training with the Learning Academy. A
new group of 36 Engineering Learner Interns joined the Learning
Academy in January 2011 and is presently busy with their specific
structured training programmes.
In total, 241 Graduate Trainees joined the programme by February
2011 and all of them have been placed successfully with a mentor
in the various Directorates and regional offices within the
Department.