By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The ANC’s national executive has identified a number of measures aimed at increasing growth and enhancing job creation, says president Cyril Ramaphosa.
In his keynote address at Cosatu’s four-day central executive committee meeting ending on Thursday, the president said that this will cover a range of issues including the introduction of grants and access to broadband.
Universal access to broadband
The increased role of digital platforms is expected to persist even beyond the pandemic, as more and more social, economic, governance and supply chain interactions move to the digital sphere, Ramaphosa said.
“Enabling universal access to broadband should be the approach to the release of the spectrum and other digital technologies so that the development of the digital economy is inclusive and sustainable,” he said.
Grants
There continues to be significant demand on the government to continue with and expand income support measures for those living in poverty, Ramaphosa said.
“Further work needs to be done towards the achievement of Comprehensive Social Security to ensure that all South Africans can live in comfort and dignity.”
This necessarily requires better alignment and linkages between social security policies and labour market policies so that beneficiaries of social support can move more readily into employment, Ramaphosa said.
“Subject to long-term affordability, serious consideration should be given to extending further support to the unemployed, and those who are structurally marginalised, possibly in the form of an extension of the Covid-19 SRD grant, targeted food-poverty-line support. We should also consider a combination of all this with mass employment for people.”
Red tape
Ramaphosa said that the government is taking steps to reduce the regulatory burden on small, medium and micro-enterprises.
“This includes ensuring that informal traders are not subject to undue and unfair regulatory requirements. Our fiscal constraints mean that we must set clear priorities, focusing on measures which will have the greatest social and economic impact,” he said.
Energy
Ramaphosa said that transitioning to a low-carbon, ecologically friendly and socially sustainable economy presents opportunities to create jobs, inclusion and growth in the following sectors:
- Renewable energy;
- Grid construction;
- Manufacturing of renewable components;
- Battery storage;
- Green vehicles;
- Green hydrogen while assisting us to further our environmental protection objectives.
Infrastructure
“Infrastructure development is the backbone of economic progress. We must therefore aggressively expand social and economic infrastructure to meet the needs of the economy and the South African people at large,” Ramaphosa said.
This includes new investments in renewable energy, mining, water and sanitation, roads and bridges, human settlements, health and education, digital infrastructure and public transport, he said.
“Our infrastructure investments must anchor the One-Plan approach of the District Development Model and prioritise critical network infrastructures such as rural roads and bridges, water, energy and digital infrastructure.”
We must expand infrastructure development to meet the demands of the economy in mining, water and sanitation, [building of] roads and bridges, health and education, and public transport,” said Ramaphosa.
Cosatu’s involvement in these initiatives would be crucial as “the voice of workers must inform our strategies to put our country on a higher growth strategy”.
Cosatu is a key ally of the ANC and has supported the governing party in all elections since the dawn of democracy. The better life for all, which the ANC has promised in previous elections, depended on improving the state to be “efficient, developmental, rid of corruption, malfeasance and wastage that continues to dog our state”, Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa said the upcoming municipal election on November 1 should been seen as a watershed moment for SA’s democracy as candidates who would be elected would be required to lead “clean, efficient and service delivery-focused structures that are committed to servicing the people”.
He expected those that would be elected to be leaders of unquestionable integrity, who were capable and qualified to serve the people and improve service delivery in all municipalities across the country.