
=====================================================================
Speech on the promotion of livelihoods programmes
=====================================================================

Speeches and Media Releases
 Housing, Local Government, Traditional Affairs

[         w

 EASTERN CAPE PROVINCIAL GOVERNMENT
SPEECH BY MEC NKWINTI ON BEHALF OF THE PREMIER
 ON
 PROMOTION OF RURAL LIVELIHOODS PROGRAMMES (RULIV)
ON 21 FEBRUARY 2001

As statistics have confirmed that Eastern Cape is the poorest Province in South Africa, this indicates how the legacy of the past has 
created "widespread poverty and gross imbalances in levels of development and the distribution of wealth, income and opportunities" 
(Opening Address of Parliament by President Thabo Mbeki on 9/02/01). This calls for a joint fight from all the people of this Province 
against poverty and its consequences for the upliftment of our people, especially in rural areas. Rural Development is one of the 
priorities of the government at all levels, nationally, provincially and locally.

In simple language one would argue that development is the process whereby people move from the current undesirable state to more desirable 
one, where they are able to meet their basic needs in a sustainable manner. The Rural Livelihood Programme is aimed at supporting such a 
process, by testing certain development measures so that lessons can be learnt in order to influence the policy and intervention approaches 
at all levels.

In a place that is characterised by high unemployment rates and poverty, development is the order of the day if we are really concerned 
about reconstructing and transforming our society. The basic dream in this instance is to ensure that the majority of the poor, 
particularly in the rural areas are able to solve their own problem with minimum external support. That is why when the rural communities 
are supported, one needs to identify solutions that are adjusted to the social context and can cater for the majority of the population. We 
need to take the task of identifying locally adjusted solutions seriously even though we often faced by a strong pressure to deliver.

Gone are the days when technocrats would come as professional &#145;rural development tourists’ dictating to the poor what they think 
should be done by the communities to alleviate poverty. The top down approach is outdated, there is a strong move towards decentralisation 
in as far as development is concerned - &#145;let us support people develop themselves’ rather than providing hand outs that are not 
sustainable anyway. That is why development practitioners should consider seriously the principle of subsidiary, which implies that you let 
the community do what they are good at and support them by developing options to strengthen their survival strategies only in those areas 
in which they lack capacity. The implications for government at all levels are the following:

Transformation of the extension strategies to be more participatory and specific to the needs of the local community;

Cooperation at all levels. Specific request is made to departments, district and local municipalities, to prioritise this project so that 
we can all learn in the process;

Realignment of departmental programmes to accommodate this project as we are testing some of the new approaches to development. This does 
not mean that departments should stop their programmes and focus on this one. Thank you to the key departments, namely, Economic Affairs, 
Agriculture and Land Affairs and Housing and Local Government who have showed some commitment by availing themselves and the necessary 
resources to support this move. This is what is called interdepartmental cooperation. This is what President Thabo Mbeki calls it "unity of 
action for change" in his opening address in the Parliament this year.

Capacitation of government officials / politicians to cope with the new challenges. You will all agree with me that we need to develop a 
capacity building strategy for development at all levels, as there are transformation processes that are taking place in our country. In 
this regard, I refer to the local government elections and the demarcation process in relation to the changing needs, demands and 
aspirations of our society.

NGO’s, CBO’s, parastatals and business in general have a key role to play in mobilising communities to be developmental and capacitated to 
engage service providers meaningfully. Secondly, they together with service providers need to be linked between government and the 
communities, especially private business as they have shown some commitment to partnerships with local entrepreneurs, which needs to be 
expanded.

The Rural Livelihood Programme is the project that test models of sustainable service delivery in the Eastern Cape that is in line with the 
thinking of integrated service delivery of government in general. In this, we are going to learn lessons that will help us to plan and 
implement strategically in addressing the needs of the poor. In a nutshell, the Rural Livelihood Programme will:

* Support local government transformation to ensure that they are able to deliver on their mandate;
* Ensure that government service delivery is appropriate and addresses the community needs directly;
* Stimulate local democratic process by capacitating communities to call their councilors to account;
* Ensure communities are able to engage the development debate and form an integral part of planning and implementation of their area.

We are said to be the poorest province - that is true; but we are perhaps the richest in as far as skill development is concerned, as we 
supply other provinces with resources at political, administrative and in the industry/private sector; that is why as Office of the Premier 
and other key department plus stakeholder we have come up with this idea to address our own problems.

In conclusion, this game is for everybody, that includes, tertiary institutions, parastatals, businesses, NGO’s, CBO’s, civil society in 
general and donor agencies that are supporting such development efforts. It calls for a multi-cultural approach to development.

Let us all play the ball and score the goals, namely, the capacitation of the poor and the establishment of positive preconditions in order 
to address poverty in this region.

Thank you.

---------------------------------------------------------------------
Home | About the Eastern Cape | Documents
 Economy | Structures | International Relations | Site Map
 Premier's Office | Speeches & Media Releases | Links
 Top of Page

---------------------------------------------------------------------

About the Eastern Cape

Premier's Office

Structures

Documents

Speeches & Media Releases

International Relations

Economy

Links


