Sithembile Ntombela examines what the SONA speech means to South Africans, and the growth we can look forward to in the next few years.
Johannesburg - One of the most interesting things Team South Africa gathered at the World Economic Forum in Davos is that most countries are dealing with challenges similar to South Africa’s – economic growth, job creation, social cohesion.
However, while South Africa is grappling with these challenges, our global reputation – particularly as it pertains to the ability to attract inward investment – is strong and favourable.
The 2014 Institute for Management Development’s Executive Opinion Survey indicates that there are some unique features that make South Africa particularly attractive.
Interestingly enough, when compared with other reputation indices (such as the Nation Brand Index), as well as Brand South Africa’s international investor perceptions research, common attractiveness features include:
* Infrastructure – the IMD indicates that reliable infrastructure is an important attractiveness feature. This corresponds with findings in Brand South Africa’s international investor perceptions research that indicates investors have a positive perception of the country’s infrastructure.
* People – in the IMD open and positive attitudes are an attractive feature of South Africa, while in the Nation Brand Index the country typically fares well in terms of positive perceptions of both the country’s people and culture.
* Financing and corporate governance – in the World Economic Forum Global Competitiveness Report, South Africa performs particularly well in terms of access to financing, and corporate governance frameworks.
When one looks at the programmes announced by President Jacob Zuma in his sixth State of the Nation Address earlier this month, one realises that South Africa’s efforts to build a developmental state and reduce inequalities as envisaged in the National Development Plan will only be strengthened.
These programmes will further impact positively on positioning South Africa as a reliable investment and business destination, which will contribute to efforts to grow the economy by 5% by 2019.
I will focus on a few particularly pertinent programmes hereunder:
Energy security
This is a key programme to ensure business can operate efficiently and effectively.
The government will therefore support the rehabilitation of Eskom with a contribution of R23 billion in the next year.
Three new power stations – Kusile, Medupi and Ingula – are also expected to come online. This will add about 10 000MW of energy to the national grid.
With a view to ensuring that, 4 000MW of energy will be produced by Independent Power Producers, using renewable sources.
Our bilateral relations with the Democratic Republic of Congo will see South Africa source 48 000MW of clean hydro-electricity generated by the Grand Inga Hydro-electrical Project.
Manufacturing
This sector is a key driver of South Africa’s economic growth and is critical to positioning South Africa as a reliable investment destination.
In this regard, the president listed some key achievements, including that the value of exports from automotives and components in 2013 amounted to R103 billion while South Africa attracted R24.5bn in private sector investment in the Automotive Investment Scheme.
South Africa’s favourable investment climate has seen us double the value of our Foreign Direct Investment to R88 billion.
It is further expected that the R12.4bn committed by manufacturers in private sector investment will also contribute positively to South Africa’s commitment to job creation and employment opportunities.
Land reform
A key issue in South Africa’s journey towards redressing historical inequalities has been access to land. This is also critical to South Africa’s priority of ensuring food security for millions of citizens.
In this regard, 90 000 hectares of land will be allocated to smallholder farmers, farm-dwellers and labour tenants through the Land Reform Programme.
At the same time, 300 farmers in the Nwanedi Cluster in the Vhembe District Municipality in Musina are receiving support from the Limpopo Provincial Government to grow vegetables, while 2 500 jobs have been created by vegetable farmers in the Nwanedi Cluster in the Vhembe District Municipality in Musina.
Access to land also gives communities access to re-creational activities, thus contributing to the upliftment of quality of life.
In this regard, 27 of the poorest district municipalities will receive agri-parks or co-operatives and clusters this year, to transform rural economies, while R2bn of initial funding will be made available for the Agri-Park initiative.
Youth
It was pleasing to hear the president report to the nation that 765 youth-owned micro enterprises received funding from the National Youth Development Agency in the last financial year, and that a further R25m was disbursed by the National Youth Development Agency to youth-owned micro enterprises in 2014.
Youth are a critical constituency in South Africa and key to the growth and development of our country and we are pleased that their needs are being taken into account.
Infrastructure
This is also a critical driver of inward investment, and South Africa will focus on various elements in the next year to ensure that South Africans enjoy a better quality of life. This will include investment in the provision of housing, schools, roads, water and sanitation, and various other much-needed projects.
These initiatives will see South Africa move towards achieving its target of creating a million work opportunities a year over the next five years.
And what does all of this mean for you and I as active citizens?
In the year that South Africa commemorates 60 years since the adoption of the Freedom Charter, it is time that South Africa becomes the country where we all join hands on the side of growing our country to be the best that it can be.
By playing our part, we can each become the best we can be in our individual spaces. By working together and getting back to basics, each citizen can participate in moving the National Development Plan from a plan on paper to a programme of action for our country’s growth and development.
* Ntombela is Brand South Africa’s Acting Chief Marketing Officer.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
The Sunday Independent