Publisher

The visitor registers at the Union Buildings and Sefako Makgatho Presidential Guesthouse in Pretoria – and government premises across our country – tell an important story about our country’s present and its future.

These registers bear the evidence of how government is reaching out to various sectors of our economy and society – or at the very least responding to meeting requests from such sectors – as, together, we move South Africa forward.

Local Government

The days of street flooding, poor sanitation and potholes on roads in Missionvale, Port Elizabeth, will soon be a thing of the past. About 2 500 homes in the area will be connected with sanitation and water services by the end of April.

From studying in a shack, with holes and no electricity, in the dusty streets of Braandvlei on the outskirts of Randfontein (West of Johannesburg) to obtaining two distinctions in Grade 12, Sithelosethu Sigwela is on his way to living his dream and changing his life.

South Africans have been encouraged to register to vote in the upcoming local government elections.

The first registration weekend will be on 5 and 6 March. President Jacob Zuma announced during the State of the Nation Address, in Parliament, that the local government elections will be held within three months after 18 May, the date of the last local government elections.

“We urge the youth, in particular those who are turning 18 this year, to register in their numbers for this first ever opportunity to cast their votes,” said President Zuma.

When government launched the tuberculosis (TB) screening campaign last year, it aimed to encourage all South Africans – particularly those in mining communities, inmates at correctional facilities and those in early childhood development centres – to be screened and tested for TB.

The campaign, launched by Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi, aims to reduce the number of new infections and related deaths. The massive, three-year TB screening programme is similar to the HIV counselling and testing campaign rolled out in 2010.

Leratong Hospital’s obstetrics and gynaecology department is a good example of what hard work and innovation can do for the health sector. The department took the first prize in the Department of Public Service and Administration’s 13th Annual Centre for Public Service Innovation Awards, winning the Innovative Service Delivery institutions category for its One-Stop Shop Project.

A multi-million Rand road upgrade project is set to benefit thousands of community members in Lephalale, in Limpopo. The project, which was launched by Mayor Jack Maeko in December last year, will improve access to transport and efficient roads for 13 villages, allowing community members to move freely and safely in and around in the area.