Latest news with #FaithMazibuko
Eyewitness News
2 days ago
- Business
- Eyewitness News
Children's homes, rehabs and shelters face closure once again as Gauteng govt fails to pay
Two months into the financial year, which started in April, hundreds of non-profit organisations in Gauteng have not yet received their subsidies from the provincial Department of Social Development. 'These organisations include domestic violence shelters, child and youth care centres, inpatient substance abuse treatment facilities, and residential facilities for persons with disabilities,' the Gauteng Care Crisis Committee said in a statement on Friday. Organisations GroundUp spoke to say they only have enough reserve funds to last them two or three months before they will have to shut down. This echoes similar chaos last year, when organisations funded by the Gauteng Department of Social Development went unfunded for months. Many had to go into debt, from which they have not yet recovered. Premier Panyaza Lesufi intervened last year and a new MEC, Faith Mazibuko, has since taken the helm. But despite promises to restore the department's relationship with the organisations, problems with service agreements and late payments have not been curbed. At least 40 of the crisis committee's 114 member organisations have not been paid and 14 are still waiting for service level agreements (SLAs). According to a statement by the department on Monday, of the 1,640 SLAs issued to organisations, 1,424 have been signed and 818 payments have been made. That leaves more than 600 payments outstanding. And this excludes organisations who have not yet received SLAs, says committee chair Lisa Vetten. Department spokesperson Motsamai Motlhaolwa told GroundUp that late payments were due to challenges with the payment system. He also said some organisations had not signed the SLAs in time, and others were 'non-compliant' with municipalities and in some cases with the Children's Act. CHILDREN'S HOMES FACE CLOSURE Jacaranda Kinderhuis and Louis Botha Children's Home are two of the largest Child and Youth Care Centres in Gauteng and house more than 250 children. Neither centre has received an SLA for the new financial year, says Charlene Grobbelaar, CEO for both Louis Botha and Jacaranda. The subsidies received from the department usually cover 40% of their expenses. The SLA delays are apparently because the department said it requires a J738 form from the Department of Justice (DOJ) to show that no staff members are on the sex offender registry. The department initially accepted proof that the centres had applied for the form from the DOJ on 13 March. But since the start of May, they have received no update from the department. Without funding from the department, both homes are now running on reserve funds, which are quickly running dry. If the funding does not come through soon, the homes can only keep going for 'maximum a month', says Grobbelaar. Operations at both centres have been pared down, reserving the little funds available for food and salaries. Field trips and extracurricular activities have been cancelled. The centres have recently taken in children from small nearby centres that have closed their doors due to funding cuts. 'It's ridiculous, these are children's lives,' said Grobbelaar. Paul Kruger Kinderhuis in Gauteng with room for 63 children, which the department has funded for decades, received verbal indication from the adjudication panel that it would be funded but has not received anything in writing, despite repeated follow-ups. Manager Kobus Vorster said they have enough funds for another two months. Mothaolwa told GroundUp that all funded youth centres that have not received SLAs 'have been appraised on the reasons for the delays'. 'We would also like to bring to your attention that all the [organisations] that have worked with [the department] know our teams at regional offices … We are not sure why they asking us through the media, where we wont even give out information about them, because we respect the working relationship we have with them.' PAST UNDERSPENDING GroundUp previously reported that last year's funding crisis led several organisations to take the department to court over non-payments. Some have still not been paid despite having signed SLAs for the 2024/25 financial year and are still busy fighting for their money in court. The department has said that the reason it could not pay all NPOs was that it had run out of money and overcommitted its budget. GroundUp previously reported that organisations were dissatisfied with this answer. And on Monday, News24 reported that the department will have to return R102-million to the national treasury due to underspending in the 2024/25 financial year. Mothaolwa has previously said that underspending is mainly due to 'compliance' issues. This article first appeared on GroundUp. Read the original article here.
The Citizen
5 days ago
- Business
- The Citizen
No NPO crisis
The Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD) has rejected false and alarming claims made by some political parties and groups alleging there is a non-profit organisation (NPO) funding crisis. • Also read: NPO appeals process for funding underway According to the MEC for Social Development, Faith Mazibuko, these claims are said to be not only misleading but also deliberately distorting the facts to create unnecessary panic within the sector and among the communities that the department serves. Mazibuko made it clear that while the department experienced funding challenges in the previous financial year, these challenges have been effectively addressed, and the ongoing narrative of a crisis is a gross misrepresentation of facts. She said the department has adjudicated about 2 000 applications from NPOs. 'So far, over 1 200 letters of award have been issued to successful organisations. Notifications to unsuccessful applicants are underway, with a formal appeals process in place. Appeals must be lodged within seven days of receiving a rejection notice and are being handled by a dedicated team led by the Deputy Director-General. 'The department has also signed Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with many of the approved NPOs, and over 300 SLAs have already been paid. A brief payment delay occurred due to technical issues at Treasury – a challenge not unique to Gauteng. Several other provinces also only effected NPO payments last week for the same treasury-related reasons.' According to the MEC, payments are now being processed daily, and the department is on track to complete payments to all approved NPOs by the end of the first quarter of the current financial year. 'The department's ongoing engagement with the NPO sector through meetings and media platforms keeps NPOs informed and supported. These efforts have ensured stability, with no protest action directed at the department's offices.' The MEC further issued a clear warning that compliance is not an option. 'NPOs are expected to meet all legislative and regulatory requirements, including municipal by-laws, departmental programme registration, and full compliance with the NPO Act. The Department will not be held responsible for the consequences faced by organisations that fail to comply. The GDSD remains focused and unwavering in its commitment to work with compliant NPOs to deliver critical services to the people of Gauteng. We will not be derailed by misinformation or political grandstanding,' she concluded. If you are affected as an NPO or NGO, please send an email to randfonteinherald@ At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
eNCA
27-05-2025
- Politics
- eNCA
DA slams revival of Nasi ispani jobs scheme
KLIPTOWN - The Democratic Alliance in Gauteng has slammed Premier Panyaza Lesufi for reviving the Nasi Ispani jobs programme. It aims to create fourty-thousand new positions. The party is criticising the move over the abrupt collapse of the programme in March due to budget constraints. It's demanding answers from Social Development MEC Faith Mazibuko about the programme's financing. According to Gauteng Government spokeswoman Vuyo Mhaga, potholes, broken traffic lights, and all road infrastructure and buildings in need of painting are the problems that Johannesburg residents face.
Eyewitness News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Gauteng DA criticises Lesufi on decision to revive Nasi Ispani programme
JOHANNESBURG - The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng has criticised the province's Premier, Panyaza Lesufi, on his decision to revive the controversial Nasi Ispani programme, which government hopes will create 40,000 jobs in its return. The party's Refiloe Ntsekhe launched an attack against Lesufi at the weekend, pointing to the initiative's collapse in March. ALSO READ: Lesufi announces second instalment of Nasi Ispani programme Thousands of people were left jobless when their temporary Nasi Ispani contracts abruptly ended due to budget constraints. Ntsekhe claimed that the funds were redirected from other Social Development programmes to cover the contracts, further claiming that other vital Social Development projects suffered as a result. She said the party wants the province's MEC for Social Development, Faith Mazibuko, to account for the source of funding in the first round of the initiative launched ahead of 2024's general elections. 'With the questions to MEC Faith Mazibuko, she said in Social Development, they had ended the project on the 31st of March 205, and in the previous questions, recently she indicated that R48 million had been taken from poverty alleviation programmes to fund Nasi Ispani in Social Development.'
