M Mdladlana: National Economic Development and Labour Council
summit

9 September 2006

Taking stock, fruits of social dialogue, challenges of social dialogue and
sustainable development

Programme Director
Honourable Deputy President, Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka
Honourable Ministers present
Government officials
Nedlac Executive Director, Herbert Mkhize
Leaders from all the Nedlac constituencies
Distinguished guest
Ladies and gentlemen

I am honoured to address this auspicious summit as an enthusiastic proponent
of social dialogue, which is the most effective weapon in our arsenal to
address the challenges of sustainable development in our country.

The International Labour Organisation adopted a resolution on tripartism and
social dialogue at the 90th session of International Labour Conference in 2002.
Programme Director, the importance, power and fruits of social dialogue are
aptly captured in the resolution which states that, "social dialogue and
tripartism have proved to be a valuable and democratic means to address social
concerns, build consensus, help elaborate international labour standards and
examine a wide range of labour issues on which the social partners play a
direct, legitimate and irreplaceable role and recalling the essential role of
the social partners in stable economic and social development, democratisation
and participative development and examining and reinforcing the role of
international co-operation poverty eradication, promotion of full employment
and decent work, which ensure cohesion of countries."

In South Africa institutionalised social dialogue occurs at many levels but
the principal institution in which it occurs is Nedlac. It is the heart and
pulse of socio-economic policy formulation in the country. I take this
opportunity to commend the various constituents, their representatives and the
staff of this institution for their excellent work in making Nedlac a
resounding success and moreover, I salute them for their immense contribution
in ensuring that the country is viewed as a shining example of social dialogue
amongst heavyweights internationally.

Social dialogue has transformed a hitherto adversarial industrial relations
landscape under apartheid into one that is relatively stable and harmonious.
This characterisation is borne out by the fact that the number of strikes and
person days lost in our economy has been substantially reduced, relative to the
situation under the apartheid regime. A stable economy boosts a country's
attractiveness and investor appeal, leading to augmented levels of foreign
direct investment, which in turn has potential to address development
deficits.

In recent times, Nedlac reached a milestone in its young history for its
instrumental role in the landmark Growth and Development Summit Agreement that
was signed in June 2003. The summit brought together government and other
social partners in an enduring partnership anchored on a shared and common
understanding and commitment to tackle unemployment, poverty, social
development and economic growth.

Despite the achievements in relation to social dialogue, there are many
challenges that need to be addressed in order to optimise the fruits of this
powerful practice. One of the key challenges relates to the perceived
inefficiency and ineffectiveness of Nedlac from certain quarters. Criticism has
been scathing particularly with regard to the monitoring capacity of Nedlac. In
light of developments and new challenges since Nedlac came into existence, the
Cabinet came to a conclusion that a Nedlac review should be conducted. I am
informed that the International Labour Organisation (ILO) has been commissioned
to do this and that soon they will be reporting on their findings. Whatever
their findings will be, one thing certain is that social dialogue remains at
the centre of our hearts to better the lives of South African citizens.

As social partners, we should raise awareness of Nedlac to the broader
public amongst government departments who do not utilise it. In terms of the
operation of Nedlac, the institutional capacity needs to be addressed so that
there is a well resourced secretariat capable of adopting a more proactive role
in implementing decisions by the social partners.

Social dialogue is the most effective mechanism to address the challenge of
sustainable development. Since its birth in 1995, Nedlac has positioned itself
as the premier institution of social dialogue and it has kept the vibrant flame
of social dialogue burning bright. There have been challenges, and there will
be more, but it is my strong conviction that the developmental challenges
facing this country will not be solved without recourse to robust and effective
dialogue amongst social partners.

I wish that this summit engenders fruitful deliberations and adopts
appropriate declarations.

Thank you.

Issued by: Department of Labour
9 September 2006
Source: Department of Labour (http://www.labour.gov.za)