DFFE briefing on Forestry Master Plan implementation, plantation and hatchery status, and SAFCOL share transfers to beneficiary communities; with Ministry

Video The Portfolio Committee on Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment reviewed the five-year 2020-2025 Forestry Master Plan, assessing achievements, gaps, and stakeholder disputes between government, industry and communities. Presentations were given by the Minister, Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment officials, Forestry South Africa, the South African Forestry Company Limited (SAFCOL) and sector experts; cross-cutting issues included investment, jobs, transformation, afforestation, post-transfer support, fire and pest protection, procurement integrity, and enforcement. The Minister and DFFE reported that investment commitments exceeded the plan’s R25 billion target and that some authorisations and environmental impact assessments are in progress (approximately 10 500 ha authorised in KwaZulu‑Natal, and assessment work is underway for approximately 47 000 ha in Eastern Cape/KwaZulu-Natal and further Western Cape listings). The Department’s internal tracking showed 87 master-plan deliverables: 13 completed, about 35 ongoing, and 17 redundant or dependent; many outstanding items concentrated in growth/expansion (Key Focus Area 1) and transformation (Key Focus Area 2). The Department acknowledged uneven implementation, procurement delays for environmental assessment practitioners, unresolved dependencies, and constraints in water, transport, and freight logistics. Data, metrics and governance issues were repeatedly raised: Members asked for plantation‑by‑plantation performance reports, geographic/demographic job breakdowns, transformation scorecards, verification of Fire Protection Association (FPA) payments, diesel rebate and freight logistics clarifications, and disclosure of investment sources and amounts. The Department committed to providing written data, including plantation lists, budgeted funding and the Charter Council transformation scorecard. The Chairperson requested specific written responses by 23 June and a copy of post‑settlement and post‑transfer manuals by the end of June. Outstanding requests included industry calls for forensic or Special Investigating Unit-style probes into timber theft and contested procurements, concerns about declines in national firefighting capacity and research funding, and disagreement over realised job figures versus plan targets (original 100 000 target; the Deputy Minister presented a recalculation estimate of approximately 70 035 realistic jobs linked to afforestation/recapitalisation). The meeting recorded multiple unresolved dependencies across departments (Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, the Department of Land Reform and Rural Development, development finance institutions and the National Treasury) affecting leases, trust formation, blended-finance operationalisation, and land‑claim processing. Deputy Minister Bernice Swarts outlined the Working on Fire five-year tender running to 2028, detailed the R4.5-R4.6 billion allocation and approximately R1.8 billion remaining after legal re-award, and asserted that contract amounts cannot be altered and procurement must follow Public Finance Management Act rules. She described departmental commitments to train beneficiaries, pay FPA contributions, and introduce Expanded Public Works Programme support, and stated the master plan did not govern procurement decisions. She also reported receiving an allegation of official collusion with service providers and recommended a forensic investigation if evidence exists. Employment figures, master plan timeframe, and concerns about share transfers: a Member queried the slide reporting 145 000 employed versus components totalling 130 000 and requested a breakdown and methodology, asked whether employees are permanent or seasonal, and sought confirmation of any formal revision or extension of the master plan and the reasons for changes. The Member asked Mr Michael Peter to specify plan discrepancies, questioned the realism of the 104 000 job target and sought revised targets and progress, and raised concerns that share transfers up to 75% could amount to privatisation without adequate community support given prior failures. Members requested clarity on governance, anti-fraud safeguards, criteria for blended finance, timelines for land-claim resolution, and long-term financial support for community trust shareholders. Members flagged large gaps between sector commitments and outcomes, including only 460 processing jobs achieved versus a 104 000 target and failure to secure planned private investment and afforestation targets. Strategic resilience, contingency planning, and governance structure questions: a Member asked how the master plan will secure sustained DPWI cooperation to avoid transfer delays, which plan areas need strengthening, how forest expansion will align with biodiversity and climate mitigation goals, contingency measures for global market shocks, preparedness for extreme weather and emergent pests, long-term government/industry/labour collaboration structures, demand analyses underpinning share transfers, community interest in special purpose vehicle (SPV) governance, contingency planning if the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform delays community-trust establishment, intended trust governance and beneficiary definitions, limits of minority state transfers on community influence, beneficiary-identification limitations and dispute resolution, and structures with the South African Police Service and the South African National Defence Force for rapid response against illegal mining. Procurement, FPA issues and master plan concerns: a Member requested an investigation into how a little-known contractor was awarded forestry work and asked for disclosure of other applicants and selection reasons. Members concluded that reported increases in investment and coordination under the Forestry Sector Master Plan have not produced corresponding operational results like new businesses, empowered communities, or job growth. Community trusts, SAFCOL transfers, and KFA deliverables: a Member asked questions focused on community trust formation (bottlenecks, accountability, beneficiary identification and governance capacity) especially for Amathole and Mountain To Ocean forestry, the impact of SAFCOL minority stake transfers on strategic influence and financial sustainability, measured community economic benefits, and reasons for discrepancies and low completion rates across KFA deliverables (13 of 87 completed) including whether capacity or funding constraints are causal. She also probed federalisation of leases with the Department of Public Works, the status and condition of 39 community-managed plantations and the outcomes of the first versus second strategic partner calls. Data, logistics, and transformation questions: Multiple Members requested targeted evidence and action. A Member sought a detailed plantation-by-plantation performance and funding report from the Department and SAFCOL. Members asked for geographic and demographic breakdowns of the 145 000 jobs, explanations for transformation rating variance, metrics for SAFCOL share transfer success and sustainability, reasons for uneven provincial progress, diesel rebate consistency, transport framework updates, and disclosure of R30 billion investment sources and allocation. The Chairperson raised an industry crisis over cheap substandard plywood/veneer/fibre board imports, asked whether those products will be restricted in the September 2026 list, questioned Brazil’s exclusion from proposed quality protocols, and demanded a transparent sector equity scorecard against the 2025 25% black ownership target and identification of noncompliant corporate players. The Chairperson reminded meeting delegates of required written responses and requested the post-settlement and post-transfer manuals by the end of June to support oversight. Written responses on community share values, detailed information on state plantations and funding, the transformation scorecard, and a forensic audit roadmap are due to the committee on 23 June.