Ministry of Youth, Sports and Family defends its budget, those of its different entities |17 November 2022
The Minister responsible for Youth, Sports and Family, Marie-Celine Zialor, was in the National Assembly for the whole day yesterday to defend the proposed budget allocations for her ministry as well as the different entities that fall under her portfolio.
Ministry of Youth, Sports and Family gets Assembly’s unanimous approval for R39.4m allocation
The sum of R39.4m allocated to the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Family for 2023 yesterday received the unanimous approval of National Assembly members.
The vote on this allocation was taken together with those for the Department of Youth & Sports and the Department of Family.
Minister Zialor was accompanied in the National Assembly by the two respective principal secretaries – Ralph Jean-Louis and Clive Roucou – to defend the budget for the two entities .
Department of Youth and Sports gets allocation of R9.864 million -- Presenting what she described as the smallest proposed budget allocation of the department, Minister Zialor said the sum represents an increase of around R1.956 million compared to the allocation it received for this year. Minister Zialor reminded Assembly members that the responsibility of the department is to look at everything that has to do with policies, laws and regulations related to youth and sports.
Department of Family allocated R29.539 million –Minister Zialor said this allocation represents an increase of approximately R6 million compared to the budget it received this year. The mandate of this department is to review all the policies, laws, programmes and projects relating to the development of the family.
“The department also focuses its attention on advocacy, education and prevention,” Minister Zialor informed Assembly members.
Members had a number of questions and clarifications relating to the two entities and the work they are currently undertaking to continue improving the lives of our young people as well as of our families.
Assembly members considered and approved the budgets for the two entities together with that of the ministry when 28 of them voted for, no one voted against and no member abstained.
National Sports Council’s budget of R104.852 million gets unanimous approval – After a lengthy debate during which Assembly members wanted clarifications and raised different issues and concerns related to sports programmes and activities and sports infrastructure nationally and in the different districts, 24 members voted for, no one voted against and no one abstained.
Present alongside Minister Zialor to defend the allocation for this entity was its chief executive Jean Larue as well as other key officials of the council. Presenting the allocation Minister Zialor noted that it has received a significant increase of around R34.5 million which will take care of expenses for the Indian Ocean Games next year as well as other restructuring and reforms already underway at the National Sports Council (NSC). Minister Zialor reminded Assembly members that the mandate of the NSC is also a facilitator and regulator for sports policies and strategies and it is the entity that manages sports projects and activities in the country.
Seychelles National Youth Council gets R21.419 million budget allocation
Altogether 19 Assembly members voted for the budget allocation of the Seychelles National Youth Council (SNYC) for next year while five members abstained during a lengthy and heated debate on this allocation which centred mostly on youth programmes nationally, for the districts, youth empowerment, among other related issues.
When she presented the budget for this entity, Minister Zialor, who was accompanied by the council’s chief executive Penny Belmont, said the SNYC’s allocation has received an increase of around only R1.6 millon which is going towards the payment of the 13th month pay.
The SNYC’s mandate is to regularise and facilitate work related to youth development as per the youth policy.
Newly proposed Home Care Agency gets R321.9 million budget approved— A total of 20Assembly members voted for and eight abstained on the vote to approve the budget of the yet to be established Home Care Agency.
The Assembly also unanimously approved the budget of the National Council for Children (NCC) without any debate and this is a sum of R14. 735 million.
Meanwhile when presenting the budget for the new Home Care Agency, Minister Zialor said the sum being allocated is being transferred from that of the Agency for Social Protection to her ministry and noted that the Bill to establish the new agency will soon be presented before the National Assembly for consideration and approval.
Its proposed mandate is to ensure efficiency in the administration and management of provision of homecare services for qualified applicants.
While members of the opposition argued that the agency has not yet been established and called for debate on its budget to be suspended, members of the LDS majority while they admitted that the opposition had a point, believed the contrary and the debate went ahead.
Meanwhile the National Assembly members will this morning consider and examine the budget allocations for the Ministry of Transport and its two entities, namely the Seychelles Maritime Safety Administration and the Seychelles Land Transport Agency.
Marie-Anne Lepathy