KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu calls for inclusive economic growth
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Senzo Mchunu has called on the private sector and government departments to work together to ensure inclusive economic growth and job creation through strategic intervention. He was speaking during the Economic Council Summit in Durban today. The summit was attended by big business, organized labour and government and was addressed by the Minister of Labour Mildred Oliphant.
“This summit takes place a day after we got the opportunity to appear before the legislature to reflect on the performance of the provincial government over the past financial year. All government departments and entities presented annual reports for the financial year 2013/2014.”
“Since we attained democracy, this democratic government has used all organs of the state to ensure that citizens feel part of the process of the creation of a better life for all. The KwaZulu-Natal Legislature's role of legislation, oversight and representation are intended to provide the basis for the accountability to the constituencies.”
“I therefore want to take this opportunity to inform our social partners who are with us today that yesterday we reviewed the performance of government and reflected on a programme of action. We debated our strategies on how to get this province onto a path of socio-economic growth and prosperity.”
“As the executive council we have agreed that we need to build on the successes of the past and consult widely with our social partners in order to strengthen our programme of action. The most strategic priority for this government since we started this term of office in June relates, on the one hand, to the challenge of reconciling the immense opportunities that flow from our successes and, on the other hand, to the immense challenges arising from the country's development agenda.”
“Some of the most intractable and urgent challenges that we are facing include the need to eradicate poverty; ameliorate income inequality and create employment. By and large, government departments and public entities are at the centre of our efforts aimed at dealing with these challenges.”
“I want to single out few of these entities such as Ithala, Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone, Dube Trade Port Industrial Development Zone and provincial treasury. The report presented in the legislature yesterday show that it is possible to make KwaZulu-Natal an economic powerhouse over the next 30 years. I have a reason to congratulate Ithala Development Finance Corporation Limited on completing more than 20 years of glorious existence. “
“Despite the challenges that this organisation has been facing over the years, we have many reasons to celebrate its existence and successes. The successes of Ithala have caught the attention of the national government. This week, the Minister of SMME Lindiwe Zulu was quoted in the media saying Ithala should be replicated in other provinces.
“I want to salute my colleague, MEC Mike Mabuyakhulu, the Board, CEO of Ithala and her foot soldiers that have put their heart and soul into building the institution and seeing it through the teething phase.”
Over the past five years Ithala
- Created 16413 employement opportunities through lending activities.
- Extended loans to a total value of R2,03 billion to support both SMME development and home purchases;
- Assisted in the establishment of 1053 new business enterprises;
- Advanced funding to provide for 8994 hectares of agriculture land;
“In addition, Ithala recorded a profit of R133, 5 million for the 2013/14 financial year which represents an increase of 17% year-on-year. This is indeed a major milestone in the history of this government entity.”
“Ithala remains one of KwaZulu-Natal's unique facilities that have been critical in the transformation of province's economy. Through Ithala we have sought to address issues of wealth distribution and creation of wealth at the bottom of the pyramid. That is what the theme for this Summit is emphasizing.”
“It is my view that our big businesses must get bigger everyday but at the very same time, we want to see more successful small and medium business as they are the largest contributors to new employment opportunities.”
“Our targets in respect of SMME development over the next five years are to increase the number of small businesses that having been in operation for more than 2 years from the current 15000 to at least 22000. We want to increase the number of jobs through the establishment of SMMEs and Coops by at least 300000.”
“Given the important role of SMMEs in terms of job creation as government we want to ensure that an institution such as Ithala is strengthened. I invite big business to support us in our endeavours.”
“Governments and business need to work together to restore confidence in economic institutions.There is a need for mutual dependence between business, labour and government; a business sector cannot prosper if the society in which it operates is failing. In these times, we need responsible business leadership.”
“All of us in this partnership need to take actions to nurture and enhance this symbiotic relationship. Government must act to nurture this relationship by removing regulatory impediments and move towards appropriate responsible regulations and investment in the many public goods used by business.”
“The end of apartheid in South Africa ushered in the prospect of new hope for South Africa, as the country began a unique journey towards achieving the major parallels of transformation: social, political and economic.”
“The socio-political changes over the past 20 years have made South Africa a global model. We attribute this to the partnership between government, labour and big business.”
“On Wednesday, Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene presented the 2014 Medium Term Budget Policy Statement. He indicated that the economy of this country is expected to grow by 2, 7% this year and that it will reach 3 percent by 2017.”
“He has also singled out obstacles to our own developments: these include energy constraints, labour market disruptions, skills shortages and difficulties in our industrial transformation.”
“I believe that together as social partners we must deal with these issues highlighted by the Minister. Importantly we must discuss each other's roles, rights and responsibilities in order to ensure that we move in the right direction.”
“One issue which has been highlighted as a constraint to economic growth is skills shortage. In this province we have launched the Human Resources Development Council involving organized labour and the private sector.”
“The council should pay a strong focus on scarce skills such as engineering, science and technology, accounting, information technology, agriculture, health and social services. There are other key sectors for job creation such as the green economy.”
“Skills and knowledge are the key drivers of economic growth and it is therefore the responsibility of the KZN Economic Council and the HRD council to guide government and the province as a whole on how to produce a highly skilled workforce that will improve the global socio-economic status of KZN.”
“The energy crisis has also been cited as an impediment. It is true that KwaZulu-Natal, being one of the economic and industrialized hubs of South Africa would be greatly affected by the shortage of electricity. Since economic growth is dependent on the availability of electricity, this energy crisis is compounded by cable theft and municipalities including big business that fails to pay for electricity consumption.”
“This province has insufficient electricity infrastructure to meet the rising demands of both industry and household consumers due to the limited capacity of the current power stations to meet increasing demand. “
“KwaZulu-Natal consumes in excess of 6700 MW of electricity or almost two Eskom six-pack power stations in its peak demand period. Average growth in electricity demand, which closely tags economic growth rates, is predicted to be between 6 and 7%. This implies that KwaZulu-Natal requires between 400 MW and 470 MW more electricity each year to achieve and sustain its growth targets.”
“We need to work together as social partners to deal with this crisis which has the potential to cripple our economy. Overall there is limited funding for maintenance. Cable theft is worsening the situation. Consequently there will be increased power outages which will negatively impact on the growth and development of this province.”
“To deal alleviate the situation, we need to ensure that we pay Eskom for providing electricity. As things stand, as of 30 June 2014, Eskom was owed R50 million by certain municipalities. We are encouraging private companies to pay municipalities for their electricity consumption. This equally applies to water. About R191, 6 million was owed to Umgeni Water Board as at 30 June 2014.”
“I am highlighting some of the few practical things we can do together to deal with the challenges highlighted by the Minister on Wednesday. We need further collaboration to ensure that we use the infrastructure development as a means of addressing the triple challenge of unemployment, poverty and inequality and to drive industrial transformation.”
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