Programme of Action

Government's Programme of Action reflects its strategic plan for the 2014–2019 electoral term, the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) . The MTSF is the first five-year implementation phase of the National Development Plan (NDP) . It is structured around 14 priority outcomes which cover the focus areas identified in the NDP and Government’s electoral mandate: education, health, safety and security, economic growth and employment, skills development, infrastructure, rural development, human settlements, local government, environment, international relations, public sector, social protection, nation-building and social cohesion.

Operation Phakisa was designed to fast-track the implementation of solutions on critical development issues. This is a unique initiative to address issues highlighted in the NDP such as unemployment and poverty.

Outcome 1: Education

• Early Childhood Development – a comprehensive approach to programmes and policies for children from birth to nine years of age.
• Kha ri Gude Mass Literacy Campaign – teaches adults to read and write.
• National School Nutrition Programme – aims to enhance the learning capacity of learners through the provision of a healthy meal at schools.

Outcome 2: Health

• Partnership Against HIV and AIDS – Government launched this partnership in 1998 to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS.
• HIV Counselling and Testing (HCT) Campaign
• National Health Insurance – a financing system that will make sure that all citizens are provided with essential healthcare.
• The Albertina Sisulu Executive Leadership Programme in Health (ASELPH) provides executive-level training and support to build the capacity of leaders and managers who drive health system transformation in South Africa.

Outcome 3: Safety and security

• Implementation of anti-crime initiatives – the crime situation in South Africa led to the implementation of anti-crime initiatives in 2007.
• Domestic violence – the rigorous steps the justice, crime prevention and security (JCPS) cluster is taking to root out gender-based violence include the adoption of zero-tolerance towards rape, violation of the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people and other forms of violence towards women and children.

Outcome 4: Economic growth and employment

• The New Growth Path – aimed at enhancing growth, employment creation and equity.
• The dti provides financial support to qualifying companies in various sectors of the economy. Financial support is offered for various economic activities, including manufacturing, business competitiveness, export development and market access, as well as foreign direct investment.
• Women Economic Empowerment Financial Assistance – financial incentives from the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) that help women in various areas of business development.
• Finance for small businesses:
  • Black Business Supplier Development Programme (BBSDP)
  • Small Enterprise Finance Agency (SEFA)
  • Technology for Sustainable Livelihoods
  • Registering Your Business
• RSA Retail Savings Bonds – government developed these bonds to encourage the public to start saving.
• Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) – provides poverty and income relief through temporary work for the unemployed. EPWP includes the Home-Based Community Care and Food for Waste Programmes.
• Youth Economic Participation – coordinates the efforts of State-Owned Companies (SOC) under the Department of Public Enterprises towards maximising their inputs towards youth economic empowerment.
• Community Work Programme – aims to create one million work opportunities by the 2018/19 financial year, covering all local municipalities.
• Local Economic Development (LED) – an approach towards economic development which allows and encourages local people to work together to achieve sustainable economic growth and development, thereby bringing economic benefits and improved quality of life for all residents in a local municipal area.
• Youth Build – a community-based National Youth Service programme that offers volunteers a comprehensive programme integrating academic achievement, work experience, social action, leadership development and personal transformation in a single project.

Outcome 5: Skills

• The Department of Higher Education and Training reports that significant changes have happened in the skills development landscape between 2011 and 2013, including:
  • The establishment of the Quality Council for Trades and Occupations .
  • The rationalisation of the Sector Education and Training Authority (SETA) framework and the strengthening of the SETA administration controls.
  • The establishment of a consolidated national qualifications framework .
  • The shift of the National Skills Development Strategy (NSDS) from being a targets-driven strategy to an outcomes-driven strategy.
  • Moving towards a Green Economy.

Outcome 6: Infrastructure

• The Energy Efficiency Programme deals with the problems with electricity supply.
• The Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme alleviates the electrical energy shortfall.
• The Integrated National Electrification Programme increases access to electricity.
• The New Build Programme aims to add more than 17 000 MW to the national electricity grid by 2018.
• The Working for Energy programme aims to provide sustainable clean energy solutions to rural and low-income urban communities.
• The Municipal Infrastructure Grant aims to eradicate municipal infrastructure backlogs in poor communities to ensure the provision of basic services such as water, sanitation, roads and community lighting.
• S'hamba Sonke (walking together) is a labour-intensive road-maintenance programme involving all provinces.
• Bus Rapid Transit System (BRT) is an efficient bus transport system linking different parts of cities.
• The Taxi Recapitalisation Programme aims to replace old, unsafe taxis with new vehicles.
• Gauteng Freeway Improvement Project was launched on 8 October 2007 to ease increasing congestion on Gauteng roads.
• Square Kilometre Array (SKA) – the SKA project is an international effort to build the world’s largest radio telescope, with a square kilometre (one million square metres) of collecting area.

Outcome 7: Rural development

• Comprehensive Rural Development Programme – creating sustainable rural communities throughout the country.
• National Rural Youth Service Corps programme – aims to enhance skills development by providing unemployed youth in rural areas with opportunities to work in their communities and to be trained to provide the necessary services for local socio-economic development.
• Recapitalisation and Development Programme (RADP) – develops and provides strategic support to farmers and cooperatives.
• Comprehensive Agricultural Support Programme (CASP) – provides post-settlement support to targeted beneficiaries of land reform and redistribution, and other producers who have acquired land and engage in domestic value-adding enterprises or export agricultural produce.
• The Animal and Veld Management Programme – focuses on rehabilitation of degraded lands to improve crop production, de-bushing and infrastructure to support the livestock industry.
• More agricultural programmes

Outcome 8: Human settlements

• Finance Linked Individual Subsidy Program (FLISP) – intended for the market segment whose income is inadequate to qualify for a home loan, but exceeds the maximum limit applicable to access government’s free basic house subsidy scheme.
• The Bucket Eradication Programme – aims to eradicate all bucket toilets across the country.
• Human settlements programmes and projects

Outcome 9: Local government

• Back-to-Basics – a programme devised to build and strengthen the capability and accountability of municipalities.

Outcome 10: Environment

• Working for Water – eradicates invasive alien vegetation to conserve water and the environment.
• Working on Fire – a job-creation programme focusing on implementing Integrated Fire Management.
• Working for the Coast – deals with coastal challenges in line with the Integrated Coastal Management Act.
• Working for Wetlands – uses wetland rehabilitation as a vehicle for job creation, skills development and the wise use of wetlands.
• Oceans economy (Operation Phakisa) – to unlock the potential of South Africa’s vast coastline.
• Youth Jobs in Waste – focuses on landfill operation and management, planning administration related to waste collection and awareness campaigns.
• LandCare – encourages communities and individuals to manage South Africa’s environment and natural resources using an ecologically sustainable approach.
• National water security – the prolonged lower-than-normal rainfall since the beginning of 2015 has necessitated plans to mitigate the effects of drought.

Outcome 11: International relations

South Africa has relations within southern Africa, on the continent of Africa and globally.

• African Union
• SADC
• BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa)
• IBSA (The India-Brazil-South Africa Dialogue Forum)
• New Partnership for Africa’s Development (Nepad)

Outcome 12: Public service

• Batho Pele – the Batho Pele principles were developed to guide government employees in their work with the public.
• Disaster management – the National Disaster Management Centre ensures integrated institutional capacity for disaster risk management.
• Centre for Public Service Innovation – nurtures innovation in the public sector.
• Access to information – the Promotion of Access to Information Act 2000 (PAIA) guarantees the public access to information that is not classified secret.

Outcome 13: Social protection

• Neighbourhood Development Grant programme – a conditional grant to municipalities to stimulate and accelerate investment in poor, underserved residential neighbourhoods.
• Home-Based Community Care Programme – provides health and social services to vulnerable people in their homes, and trains caregivers to administer these services.
• The National Responsible Gambling Programme integrates research and monitoring, treatment and counselling, public education and awareness, as well as industry training.

Outcome 14: Nation-building and social cohesion

• The Bill of Responsibilities aims to teach children that with the rights they enjoy under the Constitution, they also have responsibilities.
• The Public Art Development Programme aims to strengthen and grow the arts, culture and heritage sector.
• The Department of Arts and Culture is driving nation-building and social cohesion programmes.

More programmes

• The Smart Identity Document (ID) card will eventually replace the current green bar-coded ID document.
• Road safety – Arrive Alive – a road safety plan that peaks over the festive periods in December and Easter.
• The National Youth Development Agency enhances service and development opportunities provided to the youth.
• Digital migration – migration from analogue to digital broadcasts.