Hon Chairperson, hon Minister, chairperson of the committee, members of the committee, hon Members of Parliament and their guests in the gallery, good morning to you all.

Allow me to start with the hon Louw, who spoke on behalf of the EFF. I must say, hon member, you are also invited to come to participate in our committee meetings. It is the first time we have seen you at this podium debating on women's issues. You are invited because you actually sent a Member of Parliament - I don't remember that lady's surname - but she has been so quiet since the first day of our debates, and now you come here to be her spokesperson. [Laughter.] You are invited too.

It is also a shame. As the ANC, we have a good story to tell. Yes! And you yourself are part of "a good story to tell" because we, the ANC-led government, have given you an opportunity to come to be a Member of Parliament here and be present in front of the people. [Applause.] Previously, before 1994, this Parliament was dominated by males. [Interjections.] So this is a good story too. I am proud, because is it a good story to tell, also about you. [Interjections.] Definitely! Thank you very much.

Ntetle, mogaetsho, ke leboge Poresidente ya naga, Rre Jacob Zuma, ka go tlhoma Lefapha la Bomme ka fa ofising ya gagwe. Seno, se netefatsa le go matlafatsa maikemisetso magolo a mokgatlho wa rona wa ANC a gore re tla tsaya boikarabelo jwa gore tekatekano ya bomme le borre mo nageng ya rona e a diragala, le go bona gore bomme ba fitlhelela thuto e e maleba; maemo a pholo a a itekanetseng; ditiro tse di siameng; le gore ba kgona go ikemela, ka gonne ba tsaya karolo e kgolo mo nageng ya rona. Go ya ka ... (Translation of Setswana paragraph follows.)

[Please allow me to thank the President of the country, Mr Jacob Zuma, for establishing the Department of Women in the Presidency. This ensures and strengthens the main objective of the ANC of taking responsibility for ensuring that equality between men and women in our country happens, and also to ensure that women are exposed to the right education; the right health care; proper jobs; and that they can be independent, because they play a big role in our society. According to ...]

... Statistics SA, the female population exceeds the male population by 7,1% and women make up 51,3% of the South African population.

Ke ka moo botlhokatiro le tlala di bonagalang thata mo go bomme ka gonne ke bona ba eteletseng malapa kwa pele. Ka Setswana sa gaetsho re a re ngaka, mosadi mooka o nya le mariga. Madi a re a fetisang gompieno ke a Lefapha la pele la Bomme, Bana le Batho ba ba nang le Dikgwetlho. Re le mokgatlho wa ANC, re tshegetsa ... (Translation of Setswana paragraph follows.)

[That is why unemployment is more visible in women because they head many households. There is a Setswana idiom that says, a woman takes care of everything every time. The funds we are approving today are those of the first Department of Women, Children and People with Disabilities. As the ANC, we support ...]

... this Budget Vote, because we have made a commitment to the people of South Africa.