Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

In the past three weeks we (the Ministry of Defence and Military Veterans) have had occasion to brief the Portfolio Committee on Defence on our strategic vision for the current period.

My deputy minister and I are not new to this portfolio. We are pleased to be back to a place where we both cut our political teeth. It is our intention to nurture the relationship between ourselves and the committee for the benefit of our national assets – the Defence Force and the Military Veterans.

In the past week an important matter has been raised in discussions of the committee that the Department of Defence provides it with a briefing on the state of readiness of the SANDF.

We have been responsible for the Defence Force now for all of six weeks and it would be proper that from the outset we admit we have major challenges at Defence and it is for this reason that we are hoping to have a good relationship with the committee, one that transcends party political boundaries and concentrates on this national asset.

The first challenge that confronts us is a declining budget where our domestic obligations remain defined in the constitution, against a backdrop of our growing international responsibilities against a deteriorating infrastructure and, very importantly, against a clear and pressing reality that conditions of service for the Defence Force need our immediate attention.

With a declining budget our competence is severely hampered, with dire consequences.

Peace, that which we are required to guarantee, is immeasurable. What it provides for us and the African continent cannot be quantified. It is that without which it would not be possible for us to realise our development as a continent.

We are acutely aware that we are in a recession and will propose a number of strategies to ensure we are not an additional burden to the state.

The second challenge is that for the past nine years the Auditor-General has given us qualified reports. We have put steps in place to ensure we have the necessary capacity in our financial management to begin to produce different results.

Our third challenge is the defence industry. We are aware that we have not had outstanding performances in the defence industry, ie Armscor and Denel.

We are paying particular attention to ensuring that the necessary management and governance is in place. I have on my table a report from the committee that has looked at the matter of Armscor and made some very strong recommendations.

We intend to negotiate Denel back into the ambit of Defence. Denel is a strategic security manufacturing asset for Defence and we would like to retain it as such.

The fourth challenge is an outdated Defence policy. We are embarking on a policy review to ensure that the Defence Force is in line with the reality of our democracy.

We want to take on board what we have become and take into account new challenges facing us as a country and as a continent.

In a country bedevilled by skill-shortages, the Defence Force presents itself as one avenue that the nation can tap into. It is an equal-opportunity provider to those who wish to advance themselves.

In rethinking our role in the economy, we would like to provide training for essential skills in the economy. We have huge skills training capabilities and have tested this through our Military Skills Training Programme. We want to extend this to cater for various industries and government departments.

Having assessed our options, we are considering making a request for a separate dispensation for Defence that would allow us to creatively deal with our own needs and the specificities of our own unique security requirements.

Finally, here is a good note to end my input. On August 8 we will be lowering the South African flag in Burundi, marking the end of one of our most successful deployments in Africa. Our mandate in Burundi expired in June after 10 years of peace keeping in that country.

As we speak all parties in that country have started campaigning in the elections in a peaceful atmosphere, all because of our contribution. Nothing can be more fulfilling than the knowledge that we have saved lives and held democracy together.

l This is an edited extract from the minister’s Defence budget vote address to the National Assembly yesterday.