By Nobuhle L. Ngema
On the 18th of March 2025, the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, hosted Minister in the Presidency from the United Republic of Tazania, Mark Hunter-Borne, accompanied by his delegation on a collaboration engagement focused on South Africa’s largest poverty alleviation programme (EPWP), at in Birchwood Hotel and OR Tambo Conference Centre.
The aim is to drive EPWP into the next 20 years and help it grow from strength to strength, and ensure those who needs the EPWP programmes gets the maximum of them – upskilled and contribute to their personal growth and development. It looks into improving lives, and Minister Macpherson has been frequenting provinces to further reflect on the work of the EPWP, which is currently receiving more recognition in Africa and Globally, because of how it is impacting million lives of people with job opportunities.
EPWP needs to be reformed and strengthened, mentioned Minister Macpherson, so that it continues to provide these services to the communities, and so that “we are able deal with reports of corruption and other unfortunate elements of opportunities being sold for cash in exchange for sexual favours. This is completely unacceptable,” emphasised Minister Macpherson, “any official or politician that is caught up in any of these acts will not hold office in the department of public works, they will be immediately arrested and will face full prosecution.”
He further stated how they have 160 EPWP participants in Mpumalanga who received their certificates of participation and acknowledgement of their skills, which they can now use as proof of experiences when they apply for permanent employment elsewhere.
“Participants should leave the EPWP program with the necessary knowledge to know how they can use those opportunities when they first arrived. It is my belief that EPWP can be reformed to work closely with the private sector to deliver long-term and real opportunities to participants. This program has become a catalyst of for job creation across the length and breadth of our country. Whether we will be successful through the results that we will see, is in years to come.”
As part of their rethinking of the program, and the specific outcomes they would like to achieve, Minster Macpherson thinks it is pivotal that they consider their tool of success – would it be the on the number of opportunities alone created, number of permanent employment opportunities, number of people who receives payment every month, or how many people are skills being meaningfully transferred to?
Mark Hunter-Borne stated that they have the same programme that South Africa has devised through EPWP. Theirs is called TASA – a social action fund – aimed at uplifting those who are in extreme poverty. However, through his collaboration with Minister Macpherson, he believes they’ll be able to eradicate unemployment, provide digital skills and entrepreneurial opportunities.
The program also encourages participation of communities, supports local businesses, provide additional skills and long-term employment opportunities. “We want to build programme that is able to transition from short-term alleviation to long-term pathways to permanent employment.” said Minister Macpherson.
They are also looking forward to their infrastructure build that is ramping up dramatically so that they could have the people that they need for these projects. Minister Macpherson went further to state that they are actually looking forward to see what comes out of collaboration between department of public works and infrastructure, in South Africa, and the nation of Tzania.
As complex and difficult getting into a sustainable pathway of long-term employment is, Minister Macpherson said it’s what they are looking for. “It requires a shift in the way that public employment is done, but that’s the trajectory we need to be on.”
