The Speaker and Deputy Speaker of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature;
Honourable Premier
Members of the Executive Council;
Members of the National Assembly and National Council of Provinces;
Members of the Northern Cape Provincial Legislature;
Heads of State Security Services;
Chairperson of the South African Local Government Association (SALGA), Mayors and Leaders in our system of Local Government;
Our Honoured Traditional Leaders and Veterans of our Liberation Struggle;
Heads of State institutions supporting our constitutional democracy;
The Director General, Heads of Department and Leaders of the Public Service;
Goodwill Ambassadors of the Northern Cape Province;
Government Officials;
Distinguished Guests;
Fellow citizens of the Northern Cape;
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen
We congratulate, and marvel at the excellence with which the Premier found the primary pulse for a Radical Economic Turnaround of our Province.
It was comprehensive, wide-ranging and candid. It provided an honest appraisal of the performance of the 5th ANC administration in our province; highlighting its successes and achievements and acknowledging its weaknesses. More significantly, the Premier signposted the direction that the ANC government will take over the next two years. There is clarity of purpose and clear programme of action.
This is consistent with the view of the ANC, shared by its Alliance partners. We say this fully aware that there are those who are hell-bent, and have made it their pre-occupation and a point of daily obsession, to mount ridicule and slander, to find fault in what that the Premier has said. Today again will be no exception when the prophets of doom, those so called leaders who by admission of their own are treated as the employees of the white puppet masters. The script has been written and theirs is to follow, against their own conviction, the instruction how frivolous in nature it might be, that which of the master desires.
In the year that we celebrate the legendary Oliver Tambo I am reminded of the great unifying role the leader of the mighty African National Congress played. It was a dream he had and this was so eloquently encapsulated at a speech he delivered at Georgetown University on 27 January 1987 when he said and I quote. We seek to create a united Democratic and non-racial society. We have a vision of South Africa in which black and white shall live and work together as equals in conditions of peace and prosperity. Using the power you derive from the discovery of the truth about racism in South Africa, you will help us to remake our part of the world into a corner of the globe on which all -- of which all of humanity can be proud. "It is our responsibility to break down barriers of division and create a country where there will be neither Whites nor Blacks, just South Africans, free and united in diversity."
This was the dream of Reginald Tambo, Nelson Mandela and others who sacrificed life and limb to ensure that we are truly emancipated and lifted from the dark depth of Apartheid. It is this vision that our compatriots from the opposition benches and echoing the puppet masters find hard to comprehend and accept. We as Africans should remain in the doldrums of the past and they feel threatened by the radical pace at which we seek to transform our economy.
Honourable Speaker
The National Development Plan has identified education as an apex priority. This administration is in the process of implementing a variety of initiatives and interventions to ensure that the future of our country’s children is nurtured to the fullest.
In 1993, there were only about 150 000 black students who could enter tertiary institutions and there was no financial aid for tertiary students. In 2016, there were in excess of one point six million black youth who were in institutions of higher learning.
The African National Congress is focused on providing quality, accessible, affordable, and diverse post-school education. We are committed to ensuring that academically capable and financially needy South Africans can access post-school education and training.
We as the African National Congress joins the Premier by extending our congratulations to the class of 2016.which achieved a pass rate of 78.7%. The pass rate indicates a considerable increase of 9.3% from 69.4% to a staggering 78.7%, which is the highest percentage increase in the country.
We commend these dedicated young people who heeded the call to make education a priority and who took up every opportunity provided by government to make it over the last hurdle of their schooling career. The Northern Cape 2016 National Senior Certificate results has recorded the highest improvement nationally, and provincially, the highest pass percentage compared to the last 10 years and it is a feat worthy of celebration.
Honourable Speaker
The African National Congress remains focused on providing quality, accessible, affordable, and diverse post-school education. We remain committed to ensuring that academically capable and financially needy South Africans can access post-school education and training.
The progress with our own University, the Sol Plaatje University needs to be reiterated. Premier, I echo your sentiments that indeed the first group of graduates made us immensely proud. In 2016 the University produced its first group of around 65 graduates in the IT Diploma and Retail Management Diploma Programmes. They have managed to sustain the very good student performance in 2016 where students achieved just over 90% course-pass rate. Added to this success; the university has this year enrolled a total of 1 030 students, which is a remarkable increase in student numbers admissions from a mere 124 in 2014.
It is clear, Speaker, that the money voted by Parliament for Higher Education and Training is going where it should – towards empowering our young people with the skills and knowledge to build a future for themselves. With this partnership and understanding we are moving the young people with great speed and efficiency to become active participants in our economy, society and communities.
The African National Congress government is convinced that by empowering our young people we would have done a great service for the future of this South Africa. The capacity that we are building by empowering our young people will stand them in good stead when they have to participate maximally and contribute meaningfully in the economic transformation of this country.
Honourable Speaker
In the State of the Province address, the Honourable Premier identified the creation of jobs and radical economic transformation as the catalyst for a better life for all. It was correctly asserted that Government programmes pertaining to radical economic transformation must be about doing things differently and effectively to ensure tangible delivery of services to our people.
The principal Objectives of radical economic transformation remain as identified, to:
– Accelerate inclusive economic growth;
– Achieve much higher levels of employment creation and decent work opportunities;
– Reduce inequality substantially; and
– Ensure meaningful black participation in ownership, control and management of the economy.
The Premier in her State of the Province Address made a very important statement and that is that we are currently and have been for some time a prime destination for Foreign Direct Investment in the mining and energy sector. We are indeed grateful for any and all investment that will create that better life for all our people. The Premier however expressed concern that with all the investment in the mining and energy sectors, local beneficiation still remains a cause for concern.
We share this concern and support wholeheartedly the call for greater local beneficiation and local procurement. Black owned business in the Province should be, and with our collective efforts, will be at the forefront of local beneficiation and procurement. Our comprehensive Provincial Growth and Development Strategy serves as a blueprint and guide to ensure that the economy of the Province which hold so much potential and promise is transformed in a way that benefits the people who work, live and earn in this Province. Local empowerment and greater spending on corporate social investment will remain central on our developmental agenda.
To radically transform the Northern Cape economy we will double our efforts to optimize localization to achieve rapid socio-economic transformation. As the African National Congress we support the collective leadership and will continue to give our full support to enable our local population and local entrepreneurs to be able to compete, own and be allocated work. Local procurement and supply will always remain our top priority. We are therefore continuing our efforts to unlock the potential of SMMEs, cooperatives and township and rural enterprises.
However we cannot do this alone and we need a deeper commitment from the private sector in not only transforming our economy, but also to create that opportunities for young people to become active participants and beneficiaries thereof. It cannot only be that Government should be the provider of work. The private sector and especially our mining and energy sectors need to come on board and be at the forefront of job creation, skills development and enterprise development.
Honourable Speaker
The Diagnostic Report of the Planning Commission asserts that South Africa has come a long way since the advent of democracy. Significant progress has been made since 1994, notably through the introduction of a democratic system, and constitutional and legal provisions, that promise people equal rights, protection against discrimination, and extended access to basic services.
Honourable Speaker
Progress has been made in addressing the challenges facing the most vulnerable sectors of our society but there is much more to be done. We are aware that the ideal of a better life for all cannot be achieved for as long as many of our people remain trapped in unemployment, poverty and inequality.
Therefore poverty reduction, economic growth, economic transformation and job creation must be our collective responsibility and the private sector has a major role to play in achieving these objectives.
This ANC-led Government is aware that although we have been able to improve access to education and skills development; we still have an unacceptably high number of young people who are not in education, employment or training.
Mainstreaming and integrating youth development into the work of state organs and the private sector needs to be optimised. Various interventions to improve the opportunities and skills of young require greater impact. We are however grateful that youth health and wellbeing has improved in the areas of teenage pregnancy, youth mortality and access to health facilities, but more needs to be done to reduce HIV prevalence and infection rates, substance abuse, violence and risky behaviour, and to improve nutrition and encourage healthy living.
However we are addressing these challenges, because as Oliver R Tambo said, “A nation that does not care of its youth has no future and does not deserve one”. We know the youth of our country are the most precious resource, without their energy, creativity and youthfulness, there can be no future.
For this reason we conducted research about the state of youth development in the Northern Cape and agreed on a range of recommendations in terms of addressing the systemic challenges facing young people. Amongst the recommendations were the centralisation of all internships, learnerships and bursaries. We agreed on the development of customised indicators for all Government Departments to ensure that all Departments are able to report on youth development in terms of a range of pre-determined objectives.
We resolved on the review of all government youth development programmes, their nature and scale in order to identify the gaps and appropriate interventions to address the gaps.
Honourable Speaker
We are in the process of drafting the Northern Cape Integrated Youth Development Strategy. This will be the very first Youth Development Strategy for the Province aligned to the vision of the National Youth Policy 2020 that seeks to ensure “Integrated, holistic and sustainable youth development, conscious of the historical imbalances and current imbalances and current realities, to build a non-sexist, non-racist, democratic South Africa in which young people and their organisations not only enjoy and contribute to their full potential in the social, economic and political spheres of life but also recognise and develop their responsibilities to build a better life for all.”
This is also in line with the Radical Economic Transformation Agenda of Government, because the objective of our Integrate Youth Development Strategy is to consolidate youth initiatives that enhance the capabilities of young people to transform the economy and society. And we are mindful that we will only be able to achieve this if we address the needs of our young people; promoting positive outcomes, opportunities, choices and relationships; and providing the support necessary to develop all young people, particularly those outside the social, political and economic mainstream.
Honourable Speaker
This interventions are not interventions that we planned on our own, we engaged young people during the Provincial Youth Summit in June last year to ensure that we gauge their perception about Government and Government services and programmes aimed at young people. We are mindful that our young people are best placed to advise Government on their challenges and that our role is to ensure that we create space and opportunity for young people to develop their untapped potential for radical economic transformation.
The Northern Cape Youth Skills Development Programme, which is an artisan and technical training programme, will go a long way in addressing the technical skills shortages in the Province. South Africa’s National Development Plan (NDP) – which aims to ensure that all South Africans attain a decent standard of living through the elimination of poverty and reduction of inequality by 2030 - states that the country should produce more than 30 000 qualified artisans a year to meet its skilled labour demands.
Honourable Speaker
The success of young people in transforming our economy and to build inclusive, peaceful and prosperous communities start in the foundation phase. If nurtured correctly we have a greater chance of creating a vibrant generation willing and capacitated to become captains of industry.
We don’t only know, but we believe that through laying solid foundation in the lives of our young citizens, we will ensure that history will judge us in a positive way.
Honourable Speaker
The ANC’s commitment to ‘the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities’ is not the same as the ‘equal opportunity society’ envisaged by our supposedly liberal friends. In other words, equal opportunity without access is no opportunity at all. That is why unlike the DA, the ANC will not sanitise liberalism and the black experience by de-historicising the concept and practice of individual rights and freedoms.
The ANC’S understanding of the role of the state and its policies is differently from the DA’s market fundamentalism. Current struggles against racism and ‘racial liberalism’ in the universities exposes the fallacy of an ‘equal opportunity society’ as envisaged by the DA. If history is not fully acknowledged, racial liberalism is perpetuated and that this is not known to the friends in the blue benches, yet they proudly wear the badge of Liberalism. The reason for lack of knowledge is not because the DA has no political school. It is because liberalism-proper; cannot thrive without racism.
The ANC is often accused of having inconsistent economic policies however evidence shows that we have been pursuing consistent economic policy objectives taking in to mind that policy instruments and programs vary over time. Our objectives have always been to overcome unemployment, poverty and inequality. We have always said that we must achieve these objectives through changing the structure of our economy from its racist and colonial character in terms of ownership and control; and industrial structure.
If the ANC’s critics such as the DA expect an unchanging policy specifics and instruments, then they are living in an unchanging world. Countries throughout the world have been changing their economic policy instruments, that after the 2008/2009 global economic crisis, USA interest rate was 0.25% in 2009 compared to 8% in 1990.
The role of a currency in the economy is complex and dynamic and that the introduced Accelerated Shared Growth Initiative of South Africa (ASGISA) argument for weaker currency is not nuanced. It ignores the negative impact of weaker currency for importers – SA imports a lot of its capital good. Imports are cheaper if the local currency is stronger. Stronger currency also enables consumers to spend. The downside to the strong currency is that it encourages imports, thus undermine local manufacturing; and makes exports expensive.
Although all forms of racism persist in the 21st century, the people and particularly the youth of this country are vigilant. That they know that the price of freedom is eternal vigilance, and that the ANC, their movement, is ceased with the key tasks of transformation into a truly democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities’, indeed ‘a new civilization is that it shall be thoroughly spiritual and humanistic – indeed a regeneration moral and eternal.
Thank you
