MBOMBELA – The Department of Social Development has been failing to appoint the students whose studies they fund. In his budget speech last week, finance MEC
Mr Eric Kholwane announced that R27 million was to be allocated for the absorption of social-worker graduates in
the department in 2015/16.
Those whose degrees in youth-development and development studies had been funded by the department, said they were being overlooked for internships and work-experience programmes in favour of more recent graduates.
According to department spokesman Mr Ronnie Masilela, they were placed according to the availability of funds for each financial year. “The criteria we use is mainly per list of graduates who graduated earlier. More like first in, first out.”
He said the department offered internships and positions to all 73 students whose studies were sponsored in 2010. In 2011 this decreased to 87 out of 144 students sponsored. In 2012, only 20 of the 74 students were offered internships and positions. A total of 47 out of 84 were offered these in 2013.
“It is our wish that all of them could be placed and work for the development of communities – hence the extension and strengthening of the work done by non-profit organisations.”
According to Kholwane, R24,4 million was to be allocated for additional support to non-governmental organisations. But Ms Jane Sithole of the DA said the department’s annual report for 2011/12 showed the number of social workers as 444 with a vacancy rate of 6,5 per cent. The annual report of 2013/14 showed that the number of social workers employed was still 444 – with a vacancy rate of 10,1 per cent.
“What’s mind-boggling is the fact that the department’s annual performance plan for 2014/15 states that it will absorb 50 and 80 social-worker graduates in the 2014/15 and 2015/16 financial years respectively. The department always has figures of graduates they intend to employ but have yet to employ any of them.”
“Kholwane also announced a moratorium on all vacant-funded and unfunded posts, basically meaning that the government would not be filling any vacancies except for vital posts in certain departments. This begs the question of what will happen to the graduates this year because every year money is put aside but no appointments of graduates are made.”
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