Activities that involve enhancing skills in young athletes remain an important task of the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Sports and Recreation. We see the troubled youth and how they easily fall victim to the ills of society but there is often a solution to this through activities that can stimulate the youth using sport.
Our province has seen its fair share of incredible athletes who have won many accolades. However, training to become these exceptional athletes stems from exposure at a young age to sporting opportunities.
From soccer, cricket, rugby, volleyball, netball to swimming, KZN has produced some of the ‘cream of the crop’ our country has seen. Sadly though, the Department is failing to keep this alive and this is notable in the Budget which has only seen a very minimal increase. The DA’s question today is – what can an increase from R472.6 million to R478.9 million sufficiently do?
Inadequate funding
It is no secret that this Department is under-funded – a clear sign that addressing inequalities of the past through sports is not a priority for the ANC. MEC – if you want to effect real change through your Department in our province then it needs to start at grass-roots level.
Regrettably, the Budget increase seems to be more of a formality for documentation purposes only. What can we honestly say that the Department of Sports and Recreation has achieved in the previous year that they plan to top in the forthcoming year. The Budget itself is also a slap in the face to future sportsmen and women who need facilities easily available to them to train yet it seems to place most of its focus on administration. This will be interesting to observe considering the vacant posts.
The Department should be focusing on mass sports participation for the youth but we are yet to see this. Mass sports participation at school level, could create high achievers athletically. It will also motivate learners and give way to enhanced communicative skills from children of different backgrounds. This is much needed in the rural areas where much of the exceptional talent is hidden. These children however are just not afforded the opportunity to flourish.
Aside from sport, health and fitness campaigns should also be included in the budget especially townships and rural areas. Healthy and fit children and young adults make for healthy minds and clear thinking. Realistically this is what children need to be exposed to, to become better individuals.
Budget needs a review
Disappointingly, the budget of R478.9 million is too small for the department to achieve all it is supposed to achieve. This actually calls for a review of the way in which Treasury allocate money to the Department.
The DA is aware of a school in Phoenix, known as Trenance Manor Secondary which has a roll call of up to 750 learners. The school is in a so-called urban area yet 70% of its learners are from nearby townships such as Amoati and Amoatana, disadvantaged backgrounds which experience financial difficulties. This particular school only has three soccer balls, two netballs and one volley ball. This is a prime example of how the Department prioritises its resources. Why even bother to allocate a Budget at all if the things that are needed the most cannot even be provided for?
There are many people in our rural communities without any proper sport facilities. Those who were lucky enough to get something must often put up with poorly constructed are incomplete and others are not properly maintained. Why is that MEC?
If you don’t believe me MEC, take some time and drive around the province and observe the absolute lack of sports facilities in our rural communities which make up the main of our province. And believe me when I say that provincial surveys indicate that 49.2% of KZN schools have no appropriate sports facilities, that 78% of our schools lack sport facilities and 46% lack equipment. Is this building a better life for all our people?”
Engaging with corporate business
This Department needs to engage with corporate business. There are many corporates that have social responsibility programmes and who can assist in building sport at grass-roots level. Then there are private public partnerships which could also assist in addressing the inequality that faces our province.
The strategic goals of the Department are to;
· Promote and contribute to the health and well-being of the citizens of KZN and to improve performance through talent optimisation, development and high-performance programmes
· Provide good governance and accountability in sport and recreation
· The transformation of the sport and recreation sector through the creation of equal access and opportunities for all, maximising access to sport, recreation and physical education in every school in KZN
· Social cohesion and national identity through participation in sport and recreation.
MEC – is this being done? I merely gave a scenario of one of thousands of schools in the province. And this is an urban area. Rural areas should be our biggest concern but they are the forgotten lot. Aside from sport, the most basic need such as a toilet appears to be but a dream to some.
Vacant posts
MEC – there are 64 critical vacant posts available within the Department and the DA wants to know – how has the Department been functioning? Most of these posts have been vacant for a long time? We need to make sure that these posts are filled with passionate and dedicated employees who will fulfil their mandate and ensure that tis Department does not collapse. Those hired need to be game changers. They need to set a stage to liven up the Department of Sports and Recreation so that we can bring more accolades home to our province. MEC – we need to say, particularly when a sportsman or woman earns gold, that, that is a child of KZN. We need to produce more athletes from this province.
The DA does not believe enough is being done in this province by this Department. MEC – there needs to be a lot more effort and time put into ensuring that your Department’s mandate is fulfilled.