Madam Chair, hon Minister and Deputy Minister, hon chairperson of the portfolio committee of the portfolio we are discussing now ...
Ndiza kwenza nje amagqabantshintshi ukonga ixesha, ndibe yinxalenye yoku sele kuthethiwe. [I will be brief to save time, and take part in what has already been said.]
I feel exceptionally honoured to be part of this Budget Vote debate today, as it relates to the core of one of the five critical and priority points of our ANC manifesto. Coming from the Eastern Cape rural areas where, wherever you look, you see soil erosion, not only on the land but on the human faces, I am conversant with, and have witnessed abject poverty and suffering endured by rural communities. We would support the budget that seeks to address these disparities suffered and the plight of the rural communities under rural development.
Rural development, land and agrarian transformation is thus a mainstay of the policy of the newly elected South African government. Regrettably ...
... ke maqabane ... [... so comrades ...]
... all the previous speakers have stolen my thunder. Rural development and land affairs are inextricably intertwined with agriculture. We have heard what the Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries in particular was saying. Our President, the hon Jacob Zuma, in his augural speech emphasised, and in his state of the nation address reiterated, that as long as there are workers who struggle to feed their families; communities without clean running water, decent shelter and proper sanitation; rural dwellers unable to make a decent living from the land on which they live; women who are subjected to discrimination and all sorts of other practices of disenfranchisement, the government of South Africa should not rest. This resolve is evidenced by the restructuring of the key government Ministries and departments, ie Rural Development and Land Reform, and Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, with the thrust on rural development, land reform and agrarian transformation, to name but a few.
Likewise, the Premier of the Eastern Cape, Madam Noxolo Kiwiet, in her inauguration speech also stated, and so did other Premiers, that, in line with the ANC manifesto the Eastern Cape government will greatly intensify its rural development initiatives and will be implementing state- facilitated agricultural and agroprocessing programmes, with the aim of creating decent work and addressing food security. The Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, who has just given us an address, has gone to great lengths on these strategies.
However, it is crucial to understand that for rural development to take place, it is important to understand what is meant by the word "rural", to unpack what and who it refers to. Generally, it is understood to refer to the communal dwellers, who are poor and landless, and those who lead subsistence existences - "iiLali" - to the total exclusion of the rich farmers with vast sprawling land who vigorously engage in economically viable farming activities, agribusinesses, and are consequently well endowed with financial and capital assets, and are vigorously possessive of these ill-gotten gains from black sweat and blood, whilst the blacks, their counterparts, are suffering because of high unemployment, poverty, hunger, and dependency on social welfare grants. This is a gross abnormality and invariably women are at the receiving end.
For rural development to take place, it is imperative to reflect on the root causes of rural as well as urban poverty and underdevelopment in our country, South Africa. These causes are fundamentally historical, ie the native reserve and influx control policies of 1910 to 1948. The legacy of "native reserves" and apartheid policies have left enduring and massive infrastructure backlogs, underdevelopment and unsustainable local economies, lack of institutional capacity to plan and implement development, fragmented service delivery - the list is endless. The premise for rural development is diverse but it is essentially historical, with social, political and ecological effects. Our ANC government still, after so long, is grappling with the demon, but alas, salvation is nigh - we have a new mandate! Watch us during these five years - you will see things! [Applause.]
When the ANC government came into power in 1994, it inherited all the above, and many more not mentioned in the interests of time. This government, believing in the resolve to create a better life for all, put rural development at the centre of its agenda. A host of interventions were undertaken, such as the Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Programme, the ISRDP, which appeared relevant but was abandoned, hence insufficient progress was realised; and the Provincial Growth and Development Plan, the PGDP, which has an agrarian transformation and rural development pillar. These programmes have not fully addressed the inherited problems, but a host of these policy papers affirm government's commitment to rural development. It is one of the reasons why, at the 52nd ANC national conference held at Polokwane, there was a resolve to reassess strategies to redress the backlogs, among which were rural development, land and agrarian relations, propelled by the challenge of translating the hard-won victory of political democratisation into economic democratisation and development, particularly, though not exclusively, in the rural areas of our country. Unprecedented gains earned by the ANC government through transformation over 15 years of democracy being realised, rural area development and poverty eradication still demand attention. The great deal of work needed to attain these has been alluded to, but - Akusheshe, ke nako! [Hurry up, it is time!]
Hon Minister of Rural Development and Land Reform, we appreciate the fact that rural development is not going to adopt the top-down approach to development. It will be profoundly important also that interrelated Ministries, as well as yours, do not only take a "catalystic position", but create an enabling environment by deregulating where necessary. Rural communities more often than not are alert to their needs. Take the Giyani project, which you have alluded to. There are also the Mhlontlo pilot project, pioneered by the Walter Sisulu University in the Eastern Cape, and the Tshani Mankosi fishing and the aquaculture pilot project at Nyandeni in the Eastern Cape. Some rural projects have colossal challenges which cry out for the assistance push of the Ministry of Rural Development and Land Reform, such as the Bumbane rural development project spearheaded by its king, King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo, in the KSD municipality. The Walter Sisulu University is trying to assist.
Working together with our people in the rural areas ... [Time expired.] [Applause.]