Isilo samabandla
Your Majesties, kings and queens of our land, princes and princesses, traditional leaders of our people
Honourable Minister of cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Mr SiceloShiceka
Honourable Deputy Minister of Higher Education, Mrs Hlengiwe Mkhize
Honourable Members of Parliament, Mrs Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, Mr Dilizintaba Patekile Holomisa
The honourable Mayor of Polokwane, Mr Freddy Greaver
Trustees of the various rural upliftment trusts and other trusts
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
At the time when multitudes of our people are faced with dire poverty and hunger due to the vagaries of the global economic climate, it is heartening to see our business leaders and traditional leaders and kings coming together to share views on what need to be done to change the situation. It is encouraging when the collaboration between business and traditional leaders is not about self-enrichment but the upliftment of the poor in our rural communities.
The rural areas of our country are the most economical depressed as the result of poor investment in development initiatives. Many of these communities are robbed of the economic-active and skilled people by the alluring glitter of urban life. The province in which this meeting is taking place is the big culprit when it comes to this. Most of the young men and women who are competent in various areas of economic management and development find the prospects of living in Gauteng irresistible. They leave rural areas in search of golden opportunities. This has an undesirable effect of stunting rural growth and development.
However, the fact is that the growth and development of our urban centres is intertwined with the socio-economic fabric of our rural areas. As long as our towns and cities continue to draw labour from the rural areas, the country will always be faced with the challenge of impoverished rural communities which holds dire consequences for the country.
The country, more than ever before, requires a fresh approach to development. This developmental approach should be the one that places at the centre rural growth through sound investment. It is through investment in the rural infrastructure such as roads and healthcare centres as well as the sustainable job-creating projects, amongst others, that we can begin to reverse the mobility of economic active individuals to the cities and towns. The integrated rural development plan pursued by government is the right step to this end. But for this plan to have impact, strong social compact must be formed; business, civic organisations and government must collaborate.
It is in this context that initiatives such as this one led by business and traditional leaders is highly commended. The vision of businessman, Mr Motsepe, is appreciated. It is through his vision that five rural upliftment trusts were established and share in African Rainbow Mineral allocation of dividends. We are told that other trusts involving unions and churches were also allocated shares. These dividends are utilised by various trusts to promote and implement development projects in their respective communities. These projects include, amongst others, farming and agriculture, building and renovation of schools, as well as building of boreholes and allocation of bursaries.
What the country need now is a replication in great numbers of such development initiatives. But it is also important to stress the need for proper coordination and management of these initiatives so that we do not end up having a myriad of intervention projects which focus on the same areas of development and are unsustainable. There should be a proper environmental scanning that will point out clear areas of need and therefore intervention. This will help in the effective investment of resources because the focus will be on the most critical areas of development guided by the framework of needs and priorities provided by communities.
We need one another for this country to prosper and deliver shelter, jobs, food, water and proper sanitation for all. It is leaders like you that can turn South Africa into a glorious country that cares for her people.
Lastly, I hope that the agenda for sustainable rural development will be injected with renewed energy that will foster tangible change. I trust that the communities that we lead will always be at the centre of our endeavours. Their plight and aspirations, I believe, will drive us to speed up their development and growth.
Dankie, ngiyabonga.
