South African Minister of Defence Mosiuoa Lekota said any blurring of functions between the state arms procurement agency, Armscor, and the state arms manufacturing entity, Denel, must come to an end.
”We must complete the transformation of Armscor. Its role and responsibilities primarily as a procurement agency must be vividly distinct from Denel, the manufacturing arm of the state sector,” he said, speaking in his department’s Budget vote in an extended public committee at Parliament on Tuesday.
He noted that he has already held preliminary discussions with the Minister of Public Enterprises, Alec Erwin, in this regard.
”I have instructed that we review Armscor’s internal administrative and operations activities.”
A senior government official noted that Denel was created in 1992 out of the production facilities of Armscor, but Armscor still retains ”one or two production and research facilities” that could be hived off to such institutions as the CSIR.
He explained that Armscor is ”in effect” the state tender board for the acquisition of weapons systems for the South African National Defence Force, the police and correctional services, while Denel produces arms for sale either to South Africa — ordered by Armscor — or to the international market via its own marketing activities. — I-Net Bridge