Ntombela says despite the R626 million allocation to her office in the 2019/20 financial year, her office will absorb all contract workers, mainly young people who have been part of the structure of the Office of the Premier for a considerable period.

She further says investment in human resource development will also be a priority and both the Provincial Training and Development Institute and the Provincial Skills Development Coordination units will be at the centre of the provincial skills revolution. OFM News previously reported that contractors recently criticised the provincial government and municipalities for overlooking them and instead appoint questionable contractors outside of the province.

During the tabling of her budget vote speech in the provincial legislature on Wednesday, Ntombela says to encourage mutual actions, amongst others, her office will assist municipalities to align their Integrated Development Plans with the National Development Plan and Development Strategy.

She says the credibility of municipal plans will be improved. In June 2019, Foko Motlatsi Phillimon (FMP) Contractors dragged Mangaung Metro Municipality (MMM) to court over its Integrated Public Transport Network (IPTN). This as the local businesses alleged exclusion from the metro’s IPTN Hauweng project.

The Mangaung Business Transformation Umbrella (Mabtu)  Chairperson, Mzwandile Phaphu, expressed their dissatisfaction regarding the awarding of tenders to contractors from outside the province when there are capable companies locally.

Ntombela also announced that as the 4th Industrial Revolution approaches, they will need new technologies to enhance public sector effectiveness and efficiency. She says the Information and Communication Technology unit will prepare us for this coming change.

"We will co-host the 4th Industrial Revolution summit with universities and businesses to explore benefits of this phase of development," she further adds. "Most importantly, we will create a shared service centre on ICT located in the Office of the Premier to position government for the coming 4th Industrial Revolution," Ntombela adds.

OFM News