Chairperson and hon Minister, I will move from the vital statistics beneath the bikini to the serious debate on statistics. Let me start by saying that my party aligns itself with the recommendations that were developed by the committee on Finance and that we support this budget of Statistics SA. [Applause.]
I must say, Chairperson and hon Minister, that I was personally very impressed during the oversight visit to Statistics SA and to witness for myself, with some of my colleagues, the scale and complexity of Census 2011 and what is still going to be required to complete and present to Parliament and the nation the outcomes of Census 2011. Having said that, and quite strangely enough, when I got home that evening, I went to a meeting. It was a board meeting of hospice, which I chair in my area. There were 10 people there, and I indicated to them that I had just come from Statistics SA and had looked at this very mighty operation. Eight of those ten people indicated to me that they had not been counted. One told me that there was a sign on their door, but nobody came to their house. Statistically speaking, if one has to extrapolate that information, it means that 75% of the people were not counted during Census 2011. [Interjections.]
Chairperson, this brings me to the point that I think as we move towards the next major census in five years' time - I think the Act says every five years, but we did it 10 years afterwards - Statistics SA needs to look at the methodology. We need to keep up with the technology, the use of iPads, the use of cellphones and other technology to ensure that we get accurate information and that we get the co-operation of the majority of the citizens of South Africa. Unfortunately this did not happen in Census 2011, because there were a number of people that gated themselves and didn't allow these census collectors to come in and get the kind of information that they wanted. So, I think, we really need to start getting up to date with the kind of technology we use towards the next census.
I also want to remind Statistics SA of one of the strategies that they have documented of promoting transformation. That strategy is: "collaboration and partnership between producers of statistics". To that end, I want to agree that the unfortunate spats that occur between Statistics SA and other producers of statistics are not good for us in the country, and they are not good for people internationally who read these kinds of statistics. I am in no way suggesting that any other agency produces correct and more accurate statistics than Statistics SA, but what I am saying is that there is a greater need for collaboration and consultation so that, at the end of the day, there are particular norms and standards that one can follow in producing the statistics. The same would apply with statistics that are gathered by municipalities and other departments. Statistics SA, as the mother body, has a duty to ensure that there are norms and standards which govern the way they go about collecting their statistics.
Chairperson and hon Minister, you also mentioned that as Census 2011 information gets revealed, Members of Parliament could utilise this information to agitate for better service delivery. I would go a step further by saying that the way the information is presented must be so user- friendly that civic organisations, nongovernmental organisations, and people out there in rural areas and everywhere else should be able to understand and back up their claims for service delivery in their areas on the basis of what Census 2011 has produced.
It is important for them, because sometimes we take them for granted when they say, "Well, half of the people in this area do not have water" or, "Three quarters of the people do not have electricity in this area". With this information, if we presented it to them in a user-friendly way, they would be able to utilise this to agitate for better services.
I want to compliment Statistics SA on the bursaries that they issue, and I do understand that they have a training institute. I don't know how effective the training institute is. Maybe the Minister could advise us on whether the training institute is working and achieving its desired objectives. I also want to congratulate Statistics SA on the Auditor- General's reports. I see that they have done pretty well in pleasing the Auditor-General, and I see representatives of the Auditor-General sitting in the gallery, who can confirm that Statistics SA has come of age in terms of ensuring that they comply with financial regularity, which I think is very important.
I can see my time is up, and the Chairman is looking at me. So, Chairperson, once again, we confirm our support for this Budget Vote. Thank you. [Applause.]