Celebrating Women’s Month2014 Budget VoteBlood Donors

August 2014

Editor’s noteAbout 60 years back, women marched to Pretoria’s Union Buildings to hand over a memorandum to the then Prime Minister JG Strijdom, expressing their thoughts on the unjust law that forced black people to always carry, what used to be called dompass.

Their actions would change the cause of history, for today we are a free society that lives a normal life.

In this issue we pay tribute to the CoGTA women in pictures and words. We salute them for their resilience in pursuit of equality and advancement in the workplace.

We also salute former president Nelson Mandela for having shared the same vision of a democratic and free South Africa with women, who took the fight to those who sought to make us lesser human beings.

International Mandela Day saw the CoGTA Minister and his two Deputy Ministers also contributing their time and energy to make the lives of the less fortunate amongst us, better.

Whole areas were beautified by massive clean-up, painting and building of new homes for the poor and other good deeds were visited on those who can’t afford life’s material things.

Kenosi

Credits

Editor : Kenosi Moshupi Design & layout : Charles Photographers : Sibusiso Mokoena Fanie Mahlangu ContributorsBoitumelo MahumapeloWilhemina ModianeSibongile MalebyeTina Andries

For any comment contact:Tel : 012 334 4964Email : KenosiM@cogta.gov.za

Content

Inspired Women Celebrate Their Day

Emancipation of Women In The Workplace Donating Blood

Waste Management

From Group-Wise To Microsoft Outlook Performance Assessment

Gogta In Pictures

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Under the theme “Celebrating the 60th anniversary of the women’s charter and 20 years of democracy,” CoGTA women enjoyed themselves at the foyer of 87 Hamilton street, as they shared inspirational and sometimes emotional stories of how far women have come since the days of apartheid South Africa.

Women recalled how in 1956 the likes of Lillian Ngoyi, Helen Joseph and many other heroines of that time, bravely marched to Pretoria’s Union Buildings to give the then Prime Minister, JG Strijdom, a memorandum stating their dissatisfaction with an unjust piece of legislation that forced black South Africans to carry the “pass” on their persons wherever they went.

It was at this gathering, almost 60 years ago, where a crowd of determined women from all walks of life, numbering up to 20 000 coined the slogan, “Wathint’abafazi wathint’ inbokodo. Loosely translated the slogan means “You strike a woman you strike a rock. To this day women use this slogan as part of their battle cry when faced with difficult situations such as the violation of women’s rights and other societal challenges.

In remembrance of the heroics of their

forebears, CoGTA women took time out to celebrate Women’s Day discussing initiatives that promoted and supported women’s advancement in the workplace.

Guest spaeker Nontobeko Sibisi, founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bhubesikazi Investment Holdings, used encouraging words to inspire CoGTA women to greater heights. She said women should have faith in their abilities, never give up their dreams and be positive no matter the circumstances.

She also pleaded with CoGTA women not to be caught up in the ‘pull her down’ syndrome and that they should instead encourage and support each other.

Any women’s event would be incomplete without tips on beauty and the latest fashion trends. The Estee Lauder Beauty Company was there to give CoGTA sisters beauty tips on how to choose suitable make-up for different skin types.

The event ended on a high note with Lavish Online marketing company showcasing its Forever Living products that included the use of beads as fashion accessories.

Inspired women celebrate their day! By: Boitumelo Mahumapelo

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CoGTA women share their views on gender equality and transformation within the department and South Africa.

Kelly Govender: Community Work Programme Intern. I believe that women enjoy strong representation in the organisational structure of our department but when I look at the country as a whole we are a little bit behind. I believe that the balancing of gender equity in the organisation is being done in a fair manner.

Marie Wege: Logistics managerAs a country we have come a long way since 1994. I have seen a lot of women being appointed in higher positions because they deserve to be there and men are also beginning to accept that. I think that it is only fair for every organisation to look at their gender and racial equity policies and make sure that these are balanced according to specified quotas.

Petunia Davids: Executive Assistant of the Chief Financial Officer

Although I am not holding any management position, I think women in our department are really getting to a point where they will enjoy equal representation, if you look at the statistics published on the noticeboard recently.I think more women should be hired to balance the gender equation of the work force.

Charlotte Sebego: Human Resource Development Senior ManagerGovernment must introduce compulsory programmes for the advancement of women in the Public Service through the National School of Government and Institutions of Higher Learning.

I think it is fair to appoint women who have capabilities and the potential to be developed. It is incumbent upon women to ensure that as they are appointed to top positions, they contribute positively towards transforming the workplace.

‘If you strike a woman you strike a rock’. Forward with women emancipation!

Emancipation of Women in the workplace By Wilhemina Modiane

From left to right: Marie Wege, Charlotte Sebego, Kelly Govender and Petunia Davids

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By donating their blood, CoGTA volunteers assisted the South African National Blood Service (SANBS) to replenish its blood supply. This was evident as colleagues took turns during working hours to offer 500ml of their most precious fluid to people who need it.

This happened during the Mandela Month and a few days away from July 18, a day marked by South Africans and indeed the global community as an event that inspires humanity from all walks of life, to do good to fellow human beings.

Talking to Inside CoGTA, the official on duty at the SANBS Kiosk said blood donated by volunteers was used in hospitals across South Africa, to save the lives of seriously ill patients

who had been injured in all kinds of accidents and had also suffered heavy loss of blood, those suffering from leukemia (Blood cancer) or other life-threatening diseases. He cautioned that volunteers had to lead healthy lifestyles as SANBS applied strict measures when screening blood to protect patients from a myriad of other potential ailments.

Facts about donating blood:• Volunteer blood donors have to weigh

50kg and more• Should be between the ages of 16 and 65• Must lead a safe sexual lifestyle• Have to commit to donate blood by-

monthly

Congratulations in order to those who showed the way ahead of Mandela DayBy: Kenosi Moshupi

Volunteer: Ineth Marole donating blood at the foyer

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“Back to basics to ensure all municipalities perform their basic responsibilities”

In his first budget vote speech since he took over his new portfolio at CoGTA, Minister Pravin Gordhan signaled his department’s vision to transform and strengthen the capacity of municipalities to deliver basic services to South African communities through a strong cooperative governance system that include municipalities, provinces, key national departments and identified partners as stated in the National Development Plan. He said taking South Africa forward into the next phase of transformation would need going back to basics of setting clear benchmarks of performance to ensure that all municipalities perform their basic responsibilities such as the cutting of grass, patching potholes, ensure

that the robots and streetlights are always in good condition and refuse is consistently removed.

“President Zuma, in his state of the nation address of 17 June 2014 announced government’s plan of action to revitalize local government. He announced intensive interventions to support specific municipalities as a matter of priority in the immediate term.CoGTA will be working with provinces, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, our Municipal Infrastructure Support Agency (MISA) and other partners to provide targeted support to the municipalities mentioned by the President,” said Minister Gordhan.Tackling governance challenges that made it

By: Kenosi Moshupi

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impossible for municipalities not to perform as expected, the Minister again suggested the back to basics notion where functioning municipalities have councilors holding regular meetings with communities to engage them on programmes such as the Integrated Development Plans (IDP) that include among other things, service delivery plans and how budgets are going to be used to meet the needs of the communities.

The minister reminded municipalities to promote and encourage the concept of public participation, where communities can fully part-take in the governance of local government structures.

Focusing on other important governance issues, he encouraged municipalities to enhance their service delivery through enforcing competency standards for senior managers by appointing people with the requisite skills, expertise and qualifications.

He said that all senior managers must sign performance agreements and recommended that performance management development systems (PMDS) be applied in accordance with the law.

Statistics about service delivery in 20 years of democracy show

• That 89% of South Africans have access to water;

• That 85.4% can light up their homes with electricity and keep warm during winter;

• That 63.5% of the South African citizens have their garbage collected; and

• That 77.9% people enjoy access to decent sanitation

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A Japanese delegation recently visited Mahikeng to study the efficiency of

the Mahikeng local muncipality’s waste management strategy. This visit came after the national Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs had forged yet another partnership with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), through its Clean Cities, Towns and Villages programme.

During the visit the delegation, which was accompanied by the mayor and her mayoral committee, was taken on a tour of refuse hot spots such as the municipal landfill site, taxi ranks, vehicle maintenance workshops and other places prone to littering, to have first- hand experience of how residents and hawkers cause littering by throwing around papers, bottles and tins.

The delegation also got to experience the process of refuse collection by the municipality in the township and Central Business District of Mahikeng. The mayor said: “We are indeed humbled that this visit coincided with such an important month where we honour and celebrate the Mandela International Day.

Solid waste management remains one of the biggest challenges faced by many municipalities, cities, towns and villages are often untidy and polluted by scattered and unattended waste.

With the engagement of the Japanese expertise, Mahikeng will soon be counted amongst the cleanest cities in the country”.

Yet another partnership formed to improve waste management By Sibongile Malebye

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KM: Why is it important for staff to migrate to Microsoft Outlook?PN: Microsoft is the global leader in software technology.KM: What prompted the decision to move to Microsoft Outlook, considering the software programme had been around for some time?

PN: Microsoft Outlook is effective and more user- friendly. It boasts advanced features that can be used by people, especially the Microsoft Office suite because it allows for the implementation of enhanced security that safeguards the confidentiality of exchange of information between users, and most importantly it saves money in reduced integration and support costs.

KM: Did colleagues meet the July 14 deadline to migrate to Microsoft?PN: The July 14 deadline for migration to Microsoft was extended to August 29, 2014 to accommodate colleagues who are not always available because of assignments outside of

the office.KM: Lately we are experiencing problems with the e-mails. Why?

PN: The migration project brings with it uncertainties and challenges, especially if you run Groupwise and Outlook environments at the same time while migrating people from one system to the other.

KM: What is being done to address the e-mail problem?PN: We have implemented a limit on mail box sizes and local archive processes to enable users to better manage their individual e-mails boxes.

KM: Can we expect things to go back to normal soon?PN: The e-mail service has been made available for people to use and various management and monitoring processes had been put in place to ensure continuous availability of this service.

From Group-wise to Microsoft Outlook

Kenosi Moshupi asked Paul Ngobese, senior manager: ICT infrastructure management, about the migration from Groupwise to Microsoft Outlook and technical challenges experienced in the workplace during this move

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By: Kenosi Moshupi

The initiation of the bi-annual performance assessments for the financial year 2014/15 is underway and the expectation is that every CoGTA employee will have done their self- assessments by October 30, 2014. These assessments would be based on the 2014/15 financial year performance agreements already signed by staff in April 2014.

Individual staff members will sit with their immediate supervisors on a one-on-one basis to discuss their performance during the six months period, from 1 April to 30 September 2014. This process is key to developing an organisation’s workforce.

It provides employees with the opportunity to identify their strength, at the same time improve on areas of their work that may be lacking behind. The PMDS can also be used as a tool to translate overall institutional objectives into clear objectives relevant to individuals, to set reasonable and achievable quarterly targets. To ensure that the PMDS does not return their performance assessments for corrections, employees should follow this simple check list: • Ensure their documents have been signed

by themselves and their supervisors;

• That before they submit their performance assessments for the financial year 2014/15, they don’t use decimals in scoring their KRAs, CMCs and KSRs;

• Ensure that KRAs and KSRs in the performance assessment match those in the performance agreement;

• Ensure that the correct rating calculators are used and match with the scores in the performance assessments and signed by both parties;

• Ensure compliance with the policy provisions in relation to the number of KRAs, KSRs and in the case of senior managers CMCs.

PMDS organises quarterly workshops to explain to staff how to draft performance assessments and performance agreements with the view to simplifying the policies, prescripts and principles underpinning PMDS. At these workshops employees are also given the opportunity to engage the facilitator on any topic related to PMDS.

For more information on PMDS contact Tina Andries on extension: 0717

Tina Andries, manager: Performance Management and Development System (PMDS) explains how the PMDS works, the due date for submission and how to avoid mistakes when filling your performance assessment

Submitting your performance assessment in time could assist in avoiding an audit finding

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By: Tina Andries

Xoliswa Saila used the opportunity offered by the Cooperative Governance bursary scheme to acquire a post graduate diploma in Development Monitoring and Evaluation at the Witwatersrand University. She has a degree in industrial and organizational psychology and works in the Human Capital Chief Directorate of Cooperative Governance.

Angeline Sehone is employed in the Chief Directorate: Intergovernmental Planning and Support. Through the Cooperative Governance Bursary Scheme, she managed to obtain a Master’s degree in Town & Regional Planning from the University of Pretoria. Her intention is to use this qualification in her present job, to assist in strengthening the spatial planning support which is being rolled out to targeted municipalities.

Nomusa Khanyile obtained a certificate in Public Management and later acquired a post graduate diploma in Public Management, which she got from the Regenesys School of Public Management. She is grateful to the Cooperative Governance Bursary Scheme because she managed to top her success with another certificate in Public Management Programme, which is regarded as NQF level 8.

Muvhulawa Faith Ramaboka obtained a Master of Arts in Development Studies from the University of Witwatersrand through the Cooperative Governance Bursary Scheme. She works in the Research Directorate of Cooperative Governance.

Boitumelo Beryl Mahumapelo is a Senior Communication Officer in the Chief Directorate: Communication and Marketing. Through the Cooperative Governance Bursary Scheme, she obtained a B – Tech degree in Public Relations Management at the Tshwane University of Technology.

Wilhemina Modiane, Administrative Assistant in the Communication and Marketing Chief Directorate, under the sub-directorate Local Government Communication Support. She has a three year National Diploma in Commercial practice obtained from Tshwane University of Technology and a National Diploma in Public Relations Management which she obtained through the department’s bursary at the University of South Africa.

Women on the moveThey took advantage of a benefit offered by Cooperative Governance to advance their careers

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By: Kenosi Moshupi

International Nelson Mandela Day

Women’s Day

CoGTA In Pictures

Women’s Day

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CoGTA In Pictures

Farewell function for Interns

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Anniversary of Women’s Charter and 20 Years of Freedom:

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Together we move South Africa forward

Celebrating

WOMEN’S MONTH 2014WOMEN’S MONTH 2014

TOGETHER MOVING A NON-RACIAL, NON-SEXIST SOUTH AFRICA FORWARD!

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