06 Mar 2013

The Assistant Minister of Local Government and Rural Development is aware that the social and community development (S&CD) office has been tasked with responsibility of the implementation of the poverty eradication programme even though from the onset there was no provision for additional resources.

Answering a question in Parliament, Ms Botlogile Tshireletso said her ministry would ensure continuity of services and programmes that the S&CD had been offering by rationalising the available manpower resources they had.

She told the house that poverty eradication had always been the mandate of social and community development in terms of community mobilisation and support for the sustenance programme through the extension machinery at district level.

Kanye South MP, Mr Abram Kesupile had asked the minister if she was aware that S&CD was overloaded and overstretched by assumption of a greater part of responsibilities for the poverty eradication programme, since it did not come with additional staff, money, vehicles or reduction in the volume of its traditional services and programmes.

MP Kesupile also wanted to know what the minister would do to avoid a collapse of the services and programmes that S&CD had been offering and how she would sustain support for the programme without injuring the capacity of the S&CD to continue with its usual services and programme. ENDS