Category: MIL-OSI

Source: Government of South Africa

Tuesday, November 4, 2025

Source: Government of South Africa

In preparation for the summer initiation season, the Western Cape Department of Cultural Affairs and Sport (DCAS), has equipped cultural practitioners with the necessary skills and resources to ensure a safe and dignified rite of passage.

The 2025 summer initiation season commenced on Saturday, 1 November 2025, and will run until 31 January 2026, marking the beginning of a significant cultural period for initiates, their families, and communities.

According to the provincial department, a total of 680 cultural practitioners, including traditional surgeons, traditional caregivers, and administrators, have participated in capacity-building training. 

The training focused on key areas, including fire and environmental management, health and hygiene, specialised training for traditional surgeons, and organisational development.

In collaboration with the Initiation Forums, DCAS has also announced the revised Initiation Minimum Standards to reinforce safety and accountability. 

“These standards now require Initiation Forums to be registered under relevant legislation as responsible community organisations, ensuring both the safety of initiates and compliance by cultural practitioners.” 

Meanwhile, the DCAS is also actively distributing personal protective equipment (PPE), fire equipment, and water tanks to initiation schools across the province.

From this summer season, the department said a digital initiation management system approved by the Western Cape Provincial Initiation Coordinating Committee (WCPICC) will be utilised. 

This system is designed to improve the efficiency of initiation applications and represents a significant step forward in enhancing the protection and well-being of initiates.

“The Western Cape Government is committed to supporting initiatives in our province to ensure that all initiates can safely undergo this important and sacred practice. We wish all initiates well for the upcoming season, and we will continue working closely with all stakeholders to protect the welfare and dignity of all initiates,” said the Western Cape MEC for Cultural Affairs and Sport, Ricardo Mackenzie.

The Head of Department, Guy Redman, stated that ensuring a safe and meaningful rite of passage depends on strong collaboration among all stakeholders involved. 

This includes the initiates, their families, cultural practitioners, healthcare professionals, Initiation Forums, traditional leaders, municipalities, and the Provincial Initiation Coordinating Committee.
“Each of them plays a crucial role, and by working together, we can uphold this tradition with the utmost care and respect for all,” Redman added. 

The Chairperson of the WCPICC, Nkosi Ntsika Minenkulu Joyi, said that they are working hard as a collective with all stakeholders to ensure compliance with the Customary Initiation Act (Act 2 of 2021) across the province.

“We wish all initiates well as they undertake this important journey, and we will continue providing support to ensure that initiations are practised safely in the Western Cape,” Joyi said. – SAnews.gov.za

Source: Government of South Africa

Government has reiterated its commitment to the Independent Transmission Projects (ITP) Programme, aimed at unlocking large-scale investment in transmission infrastructure critical for the expansion of the electricity grid.

This according to a joint statement by the Department of Electricity and Energy and National Treasury.

“The ITP Programme remains on track to unlock large-scale investment in transmission infrastructure and is being implemented in a manner that upholds bankability, transparency, and credibility, which are key conditions for long-term investor confidence.

“The [departments] remain united in their commitment to deliver a credible, transparent, and globally benchmarked procurement process. By aligning the ITP and CGV timelines, government is acting decisively to ensure that this first-of-its-kind programme is technically sound, commercially bankable, and institutionally aligned.

“The ITP Programme continues to serve as a cornerstone of South Africa’s energy reform agenda and as a catalyst for investment, localisation, and economic renewal,” the statement read.

The two departments said there would be a refining of timelines to “strengthen alignment and market confidence”.

“As part of ongoing coordination between government and development partners, it has become necessary to better align the timelines of the ITP Phase I procurement with the establishment of the Credit Guarantee Vehicle [CGV], a key credit enhancement instrument being developed by National Treasury with the support of the World Bank Group.

“The sequencing of these two processes is critical to ensure that bidders and lenders have full clarity on the guarantee framework that will underpin the financial close of the ITP transactions,” the statement said.

Pre-qualified bidders (PQBs) are expected to be announced no later than 15 December 2025, which will be followed by the release of a draft Request for Proposal (RFP).

“This will allow PQBs to provide feedback on commercial and bankability components prior to the release of the final RFP. The final RFP will be released by no later than quarter 3 of the 2026 calendar year,” the departments said.

The consultations with the market are aimed at ensuring that the final RFP will be:

• Be a fit-for-purpose RFP that reflects market realities, lender expectations, and international best practice.
• Enable early identification of technical and commercial barriers, thereby minimising post-release clarifications.
• Instill enhanced investor confidence, signalling government’s commitment to transparency, predictability, and collaboration.
• Provide a strong foundation for competitive, high-quality bids that support timely financial close.
• Reduce downstream clarifications once the RFP is formally released.
• Reinforce South Africa’s reputation for transparent, credible, and world-class energy procurement.

“Although this refinement adds time to the initial RFP schedule, it ensures that the ITP Programme proceeds on a sound, coordinated, and fully bankable footing, protecting the integrity of both the RFP process and the CGV’s credit framework,” the statement said.

At the same time, the two departments have made “significant progress on the CGV’s technical, legal, and financial design”.

“The CGV will be established as a private, nonlife insurer, independent from government and regulated by the Prudential Authority. The CGV is expected to provide credit guarantees for qualifying infrastructure projects, commencing with Phase I of the ITP Programme.

“The current focus is on finalising capital commitments and progressing licensing requirements, with CGV operationalisation anticipated in second half of 2026, which is critical to implement Phase I of the ITP Programme.

“This facility is a groundbreaking innovation in South Africa’s infrastructure finance architecture, designed to mobilise private capital and reduce reliance on sovereign guarantees,” the statement said. – SAnews.gov.za