By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Gauteng Premier David Makhura says the creation of jobs and growing the economy are the top two priorities for the Gauteng Provincial Government.
Makhura was delivering the State of the Province Address during a sitting of the Gauteng Provincial Legislature on Monday.
The Premier said the economy of the province – much like the rest of the country – is reeling because of the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Makhura said this has spurred the provincial government into action to change the lives of those living in the province.
“[We] are boldly shifting our main focus and energies to tackle unemployment through economic recovery and reconstruction. The economy has been devastated and the democratic gains in the quality of lives of the people have substantially been eroded.
“After so much death and destruction of lives and livelihoods, it is time to rebuild and do so with the greatest sense of urgency, single-mindedness and coordination demonstrated during our emergency response to COVID-19,” he said.
The Premier told the provincial legislature that the province’s unemployment “emergency” is being addressed through means of a provincial war room comprising of both government and the private sector.
“Through the war room, we are working with the captains of industry on programmes that will unleash growth by matching public policy support and government action with consolidated commitments by sector leaders on investments and jobs.
“We are doing so with a strong and deliberate emphasis on creating jobs and economic opportunities for the people of Gauteng, especially the youth and women. We are opening up value chains, building competitive local content production, promoting commercially meaningful enterprises, supplier development, SMMEs and township enterprises,” he said.
Makhura said the work of the war room is already starting to bear fruit including:
- Gauteng provincial government partnering with the University of Johannesburg to turn the province’s mounting e-Waste problem into an economic opportunity and protecting the environment where the youth will be inspired and trained to recycle and create something meaningful from discarded devices and appliances.
- A Gauteng Air Access partnership to attract more passenger and cargo airlines to operate from OR Tambo International and Lanseria Airports being built with the aviation industry and the tourism and hospitality sector.
Supporting small business
Makhura reiterated the provincial government’s commitment to assisting the growth of Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) in townships despite the extreme challenges brought on by the pandemic.
“We know that many township businesses collapsed under the weight of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, this will not shake our determination to fundamentally change the township economic landscape.
“In response to the immediate challenges faced by businesses, the Gauteng Provincial government and partners [have] set up a fund which already raised R500 million, R100 million of which is earmarked for supporting the recovery and rebuilding of township businesses affected by both COVID-19 and the July unrest,” he said.
The Premier highlighted that the Township Economic Development Bill tabled in the provincial legislature will also be key in assisting these SMMEs.
The bill seeks to:
- Create new developmental regulations and by-laws that will make it simpler, easier and cheaper to formalise more than 90% of informal businesses, thus enabling these businesses to access financial and non-financial support from the government and the private sector.
- Set up an institutional and legal mandate for the creation of the Township Economy Partnership Fund which will pull both public and private sector resources to fund township-based businesses.
- Create a legal framework for provincial government and municipalities to support the development of township real estate, turning taxi ranks into business hubs and providing infrastructure in township high streets or commercial nodes.
“Our ongoing work of supporting township businesses is borne out by the inspiring stories of township entrepreneurs that have triumphed over the COVID-19 pandemic.
“In the past year alone, 56 township businesses were incubated successfully at the provincial government eKasiLabs,” Makhura said.
Youth
Premier Makhura said the provincial government’s flagship youth development initiative – the Tshepo programme – will be undergoing change.
According to the Premier, over the past five years the programme has created “learning, earning and entrepreneurial” opportunities to at least 718 000 youth in the province.
“We are repackaging the Tshepo flagship programme into a bigger and wider integrated youth development intervention that brings all youth civil initiatives into one youth development focal point.
“In preparation for this new phase of a rebooted Tshepo programme and integrated initiatives, I will soon appoint a civil-society led Youth Advisory Panel which will be supported by the Youth Directorate in the Office of the Premier. Young people must be at the centre of helping government to respond to the current youth unemployment emergency,” he said.
Corruption
Makhura says the provincial government will take action against any officials implicated in corruption and maladministration.
“Conducting forensic investigation for alleged cases of corruption is meaningless if action is not taken by departments to resolve these allegations. We are determined to take appropriate actions based on the outcomes of the investigations of corruption cases.
“Another vital consideration is that the resolution of cases brings credibility to the anti- corruption process,” he said.
Makhura said in order to strengthen government’s hand in the fight against corruption, Treasury has been approached to take stock of “its efficacy lest loopholes exist which may go undetected”.
“This is not so much because of any detected weaknesses in the internal systems of the Treasury, but because we believe to defeat crime we must stay ahead of the game. After the hard lessons of the COVID-19 PPE corruption practices, we have resolved to strengthen our prevention, detection, investigation and resolution of procedures to maintain clean governance.
“Following the PPE saga, we instituted fraud detection reviews on all contacts that are above R10 million, where we pick up irregularities, we will terminate such contracts with immediate effect,” he said.
The Premier revealed that several investigations are pending into different departments in the provincial government.
Crime and safety
The Premier said the provincial government is adding more weight to its crime fighting initiatives on various fronts.
“Last year, we committed to employing 400 additional traffic police officers, over the next three years, to increase visibility and enhance road safety in the province. To date, a total of 264 officers have been appointed.
“We have procured and branded 45 high powered vehicles and 3 mobile police stations have been assembled and are currently being branded. In addition, we have trained 221 CPF members, patrollers included, and 10 of these patrollers have been deployed per ward level,” the Premier said.
Gender Based Violence
Makhura said gender based violence is also receiving singular attention with the establishment of brigades in wards all over the province.
“[We] have deployed GBV brigades in all wards and 30 dedicated GBVF social workers were appointed. The Department of Community Safety has also managed to rope in 610 safety volunteers participating as GBV Brigades.
“The brigades play a critical role in enhancing community awareness on the Green Doors, Ikhaya-le-Themba, and the victim’s empowerment centres (VECs) at police stations, shelters, to support survivors of GBV,” he said.
The Premier said the provincial government has heeded lessons from the COVID-19 induced hard lockdown and a war room on crime has been established.
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Video Courtesy of GPL.