Day: August 24, 2021

The Deputy Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment Ms Makhotso Sotyu, accompanied by Executive Mayor of Sekhukhune District, Cllr Keamotseng Ramaila and the Mayor of Fetakgomo Tubatse Local Municipality, Cllr Ralepane Mamekoa will embark on a Good Green Deeds campaign in Mohlaletse village on Thursday, 26 August 2021.

Good Green Deeds is a national campaign launched by President Cyril Ramaphosa with an objective of encouraging responsible environmental practice within and across all sectors and levels of society. The campaign strives to change the individuals’ behaviour towards littering, illegal dumping and waste in general.

The Deputy Minister’s visit emanates from an invitation she received from Thakadu Tša Naga Farmers Association to support them with the establishment of inland fish farming (aquaculture). As part of her visit to Sekhukhune District, Deputy Minister Sotyu will engage with the communities and traditional leadership on several developmental issues including environmental educational programme. She will also donate garden tools, bins and participate in tree planting activities.

The campaign activities will be conducted with a strict observance of Covid-19 Adjusted Level 3 Regulations.

Source: Government of South Africa

Minister Didiza appoints the Ministerial Task Team on Animal Biosecurity with special emphasis on Foot and Mouth Disease, African Swine Fever and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza

The Minister Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development Ms. Thoko Didiza, MP has appointed a Ministerial Task Team on Animal Biosecurity with special emphasis on Foot and Mouth Disease, African Swine Fever and Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza.

The purpose of this task team is to find mechanisms and provide recommendations on a range of key decisions whereby a collaborative initiative between government and private sector through a public private partnership (PPP) can be established to tackle the country’s animal biosecurity issues.

The Task Team will also be responsible for issues which will include and not limited to realistic strategies with the intent to have an outcome that can be implemented by affected stakeholders. Focus on the complexity of the overall animal and public health system in a “One Health” approach, liaise with technical task teams of African Swine Fever (ASF), Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and Avian Influenza (AI). It will consider the roles of provincial government laboratories and private sector laboratories in disease monitoring, residue tests, meat hygiene with emphasis on all stakeholders’ consideration.

The following team of experts which is largely independent but with significant government and international experience are:

1. Prof. Johann Kirsten

2. Dr. Kgabi Mogajane

3. Dr Gideon Bruckner

4. Dr Shadrack Moephuli

Source: Government of South Africa

The matric results for the May/June Examinations have been released today.

The May/June examination is a special examination offered to adult candidates that have not attained a matric qualification and also to candidates that wrote the previous November examination but may not have met the requirements for a certificate or may have passed but wish to improve their results. A total of 239 024 candidates enrolled to write this examination. This included both the National Senior Certificate (NSC) and Senior Certificate (SC) candidates. 95 525 of these candidates were National Senior Certificate candidates and 143 499 of these candidates were Senior Certificate candidates.

The writing of the May/June 2021 Grade 12 examination commenced on Wednesday, 26 May 2021 and concluded on Wednesday, 07 July 2021. The May/June 2021 examination was written by a diverse cohort of candidates, comprising employed adults, unemployed youth and school learners that wrote the previous Grade 12 examination in November 2020. The criteria for the registration of the May/June examination include the following:

• Adult learners with incomplete Senior Certificate requirements, as well as those adult learners with no previous Senior Certificate credits, provided they have completed Grade 9 (or standard seven) or ABET Level IV;

• Candidates that enrolled for the 2020 NSC examination, who either failed the examination or passed but wanted to improve their results;

• Learners that may have dropped out of school in Grade 10 or Grade 11, due to special circumstances; and

• Candidates who were absent from the November 2020 examination, with a valid reason.

The 2021 May/June examination was successfully administered despite the enormous challenges relating to the Covid-19 pandemic. Both candidates with COVID-19 symptoms and those that tested positive were allowed to write the examination in special isolation venues.

The prevalence of examination irregularities of a serious nature such as imposters, crib notes and possession of cell phones during the writing has declined compared to previous years.

The administration of the examination was strictly monitored by the Department of Basic Education (DBE), Provincial Education Departments (PEDs) and Umalusi, the Quality Assurance Council. The marking of the 772 404 scripts, undertaken by 9 323 markers across 54 marking centres in the country was completed during the school vacation in July 2021. Despite the protests and the rise in infections during this period, in certain provinces, the marking was completed according to plan, observing the high standards commensurate with these examinations.

On 12 August 2021, the Council for Quality Assurance, after having scrutinised the reports from both the DBE and the Umalusi monitors, declared the 2021 May/June examinations as being conducted in accordance with the standards prescribed in the Examinations regulations and also confirmed that there were no irregularities that were of such a nature so as to compromise the examinations as a whole. At this meeting the results of the examination were approved for release to candidates.

The results of these candidates cannot be reported in terms of overall passes or candidates that have attained the NSC or the SC, given that candidates register to write one or more subjects in this examination. A significant number of candidates attained a pass in the gateway subjects including Mathematics and Physical Sciences. The total number of candidates who attained a pass in Mathematics and Physical Sciences is 11 557 and 8 258 respectively.

The results of candidates that wrote this examination will be available at the district office or at the centre where the examination was written.

Senior Certificate candidates who sat for this examination can obtain their results from the DBE website www.education.gov.za.

If a candidate is not pleased with his/her performance in a subject, such a candidate is free to request for a recheck or remark of his/her script and/or even request to view the script. The centres where the candidates wrote their examination or the district office, will assist the candidate to complete the application form for this purpose.

The May/June examination is becoming more popular and many candidates are using this second examination opportunity to improve their performance or complete the remaining subjects for them to achieve the National Senior Certificate (NSC) or the Senior Certificate (SC). All candidates who are eligible to write this examination must register and such candidates must also participate in the Second Chance Matric support programme. The Second Chance Matric programme offers face to face support programmes, learning support material and on-line support.

Source: Government of South Africa

Minister De Lille to host Women’s Month Land Reform Webinar

In commemorating Women’s Month, Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Patricia de Lille, will host a Women’s Month Land Reform Webinar.

Women are the invisible workforce, the unacknowledged backbone of the family, who play a vital role in meeting the food and nutritional needs of families through food production, economic access to food and ensuring nutrition security of family members.

Despite this bedrock role, women are constrained by poverty, lack of access to land as well as by inherent difficulties of discrimination that perpetuate gender inequalities.

The empowerment of women is crucial to provide them with the means to voice their needs and desires and to take action so that they can influence agricultural development for the improvement of nutrition and food security, and participate effectively in our society.

Minister de Lille will address the role of the State in land reform, highlight successes and engage a range of experts on the way forward and what needs to be done to empower more women under the banner of land reform.

The webinar will also enable attendees to hear from a female farmer who benefitted from government’s land reform programme.

Panellists:

• Minister Patricia de Lille – Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure

• Professor Ruth Hall – Professor at the Institute for Poverty, Land and Agrarian

Studies – University of the Western Cape and member of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform

• Advocate Bulelwa Mabasa – Director and Head of the Land Reform Restitution & Tenure practice at Werksmans Attorneys and member of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform

• Christo van der Rheede – Executive Director of AgriSA

• Grace Dinkwanyane – Tafelkop farmers, winner of Female farmer of the year and beneficiary of government’s land reform/redistribution programme

• Dr Dimakatso Malwela – President of Women of Value Africa and businesswomen

Source: Government of South Africa

The Moroccan navy has rescued more than 400 migrants since Thursday, after their makeshift boats ran into trouble on the dangerous sea crossing to Europe, state media reported.

The 438 migrants, most of them from sub-Saharan Africa, were given first aid before being taken to the nearest Moroccan port, an officer told the state-run MAP news agency late Monday.

Earlier this month, a merchant ship rescued 33 migrants who had spent two weeks adrift in the Atlantic Ocean en route for the Canary Islands. Fourteen fellow migrants lost their lives.

Migrant arrivals on the Spanish archipelago have surged since late 2019 when increased patrols in the Mediterranean dramatically reduced crossings there.

At its shortest, the sea crossing from the Moroccan coast is around 100 kilometres (65 miles), but strong currents make it very dangerous.

The vessels used are often overcrowded and in poor condition, adding to the risks.

In the first six months of this year, a total of 2,087 migrants died trying to reach Spain, according to Caminando Fronteras, a Spanish NGO that monitors migrant flows.

Source: National News Agency