The Portfolio Committee on International Relations has congratulated the Department of International Relations and Cooperation for the department’s quarterly performance for the 2022/23 financial year and for achieving all its fourth quarter targets relating to the African Renaissance Fund (ARF).
The department met yesterday with the committee to brief it on these achievements. The ARF Fund was established in terms of Section 2(1) of the African Renaissance and International Co-operation Fund Act of 2000. The funds are utilised to enhance the cooperation between South Africa and other African countries. It is also there to promote democracy and good governance; prevent and resolve conflict; and provide humanitarian assistance and human development, among other things.
The department’s Deputy-Director, Mr Daniel Dercksen, told the committee that of the ARF’s six performance targets, five were achieved, with 83% in one target area. Some of its funded projects include a pledge made by President Cyril Ramaphosa at the South African Development Community Summit, which took place in Malawi in January 2022, to assist Mozambique with a humanitarian crisis.
The pledge follows the political conflict in Mozambique’s Cabo Delgado province, in which large numbers of people were displaced from their homes, causing major distress and loss of income. This project seeks to enhance food and nutrition security through new and improved technologies and climate-resilient farming practices. It will provide 4 000 crop production technology kits over a period of two years. Monitoring of the project will continue for a further three years to ensure sustainability, the committee heard.
On financial reports, Mr Dercksen said the Agricultural Development Support project was considered in quarter two and subsequently funded in quarter three for R34 million. The seeds for the project were delivered during December 2022 in time for the planting season, despite the logistical challenges in the area.
The committee also received a briefing on the department’s overall quarterly performance. The department’s Deputy Director-General, Mr Clayson Monyela, said the department has achieved 100 per cent in meeting its targets for this period. As for the department’s financial report, Mr Monyela said the actual total expenditure for the fourth quarter of the 2022/23 financial year amounts to R1.972 billion, as compared to the projected expenditure of R1.714 billion. This represents a variance of 15% higher than what had been projected. The department attributed the variance to the fluctuation of the rand.
The committee applauded the department for achieving an unqualified audit report and further requested a follow-up meeting for a comprehensive report and update on IT contracts within the department, as well as the renovations at South African missions worldwide.
The Chairperson of the committee, Mr Supra Mahumapelo, thanked the department for the report presented to the committee. “We hope that all the decisions we have taken will add value to the work of the department in the current financial year. Our follow up meeting will take place as agreed so that we can take up the issues forward.”
Source: Parliament of South Africa