23 October 2007
The Department of Trade and Industry welcomes the recent debate regarding
the place of sector charters in the light of the publication this year of the
Department of Trade and Industry (dti)'s BEE Codes of Good Practice. Indeed the
dti welcomes debate generally regarding issues of economic transformation, as
well as our various interventions to grow and change the structure of the South
African economy.
While the dti has led the construction of the policy framework under which
transformation strategies such as Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment
(BBBEE) occur, this does not mean that there is no place for independent,
private-sector driven strategies for change that work in harmony with
departmental and government policy. It is in this context that we see a role
for, and encourage, BBBEE Sector charters. It is our understanding that these
charters are not meant to pull in a different direction from the codes, but
rather represent the sector-specific efforts of each industry to achieve the
goals set out in the codes.
In this regard, Section nine of the BBBEE Act empowers the Minister to issue
guidelines for stakeholders in the relevant sectors of the economy to draw up
transformation charters for their sector, and to undertake any other actions
necessary to achieve the objectives of this Act. It is also worth remembering
that the codes set universal minimum standards to be met in the push to
encourage transformation and greater inclusiveness. The codes may therefore not
always be sensitive to the dynamics and nuances of each industry. Where any
given industry, because of its internal dynamics, is able to go beyond the
minimum requirements set out in legislation, then that is to be encouraged.
Indeed it would defeat the ultimate purpose of transformation if all businesses
in all industries were held to the same minimum standards, even if they were
capable of going further.
While the dti will always encourage public engagement on these and other
issues, we would urge all who take part in such debates to recall the ultimate
goals of all our interventions: job-creation and defeating poverty, eradicating
the legacy of exclusion, improving the efficiency and competitiveness of South
Africa, and encouraging faster and more shared growth in order to better the
lives of all South Africans. These goals are far more important than the
nuances in the architecture of our interventions, and the vision that underpins
these goals will outlast any set of codes or charters.
For further comment contact:
Vukani Mde
Ministerial Spokesperson
Cell: 079 885 4443
Issued by: Department of Trade and Industry
23 October 2007
