The Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) had created 639 139 work opportunities as at December 31, 2012, Social Development Deputy Minister Maria Ntuli reported at the ninth yearly EPWP Social Sector conference, in Kimberley, earlier this month.

“While we have recorded notable progress in the first- and second-phase implementation of this programme, we are conscious that success does not come by chance but is the product of deliberate planning and commitment. And that is what makes this gathering so important,” she said.

Department of Public Works deputy director- general for the EPWP Stanley Henderson said it would be crucial to align the EPWP with the National Development Plan (NDP) to tackle challenges that included transformational imperatives and the upscaling of education, as well as training, to improve the employment prospects of South African youth, in particular.

“The EPWP must play a key role in tackling unemployment and provide access to social services, especially to marginalised communities. We have to ensure that, through the EPWP, our youth acquire the necessary work experience and skills to set them on sustainable career paths,” he added.

Despite the progress made in the implementation of the EPWP, Ntuli expressed concern about the monitoring and evaluation of the programme.

“We must address this as a matter of urgency. Previous assessments of EPWP progress have shown that ownership of the programme at all spheres of government is critical for its success,” she noted.

At this year’s EPWP Social Sector conference, the progress made over the past year would be evealuated; the work conducted by the implementing departments in the current financial year would be reviewed and strategic policy initiatives as pronounced by government would be deliberated on.

Further, the aim was to identify new areas of expansion for the sector to achieve set targets, while planning for the coming financial year would also be done.

Stakeholders and partners attending the conference included the departments of Public Works, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, as well as the South African Local Government Association.

The EPWP is a ten-year government programme, launched in 2004, that is aimed at alleviating poverty and providing income relief through temporary work for the unemployed.

During Phase 1 of the programme, which ran from 2004 to 2009, it exceeded its target of one-million work opportunities ahead of schedule, with 1.6-million work opportunities created.

Phase 2 of the EPWP, which covers the period 2009/10 to 2013/14, is geared towards creating 4.5-million work opportunities for the poor and unemployed, contributing to the Millennium Development Goal of halving unemployment by 2014.

There are plans to extend the programme to beyond 2014.