AP

Light moment: President Jacob Zuma with Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe before Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan delivered his Budget speech on Wednesday. The writer says while the Budget was good, the government must work to make sure it delivers on its promises. Picture: Schalk van Zuydam, AP

For some, the 2012 Budget, delivered by Minister Pravin Gordhan on Wednesday, marked the end of the State of the Nation address period that was opened by President Jacob Zuma on February 9.

I would argue to the contrary. It marks the beginning of the work.

Two weeks ago, Zuma outlined a bold and ambitious programme to, among other things, develop infrastructure across the country that will deal with the triple challenge of unemployment, inequality and poverty.

The president was very clear, simple and yet profound in the vision he put on the table: “We want to see cranes, we want to see workers on every corner, we want to see dams, bridges, roads, railway lines mushrooming around the country.

“We want to see infrastructure that enables the rural areas to have water, electricity and roads. We want to see an improved quality of life for all.”

While we appreciate the president’s transformative plan, it is its implementation, more that the articulation thereof, that will impact on the lives of ordinary people and change the landscape of the country and economy. Hence, I say the work has just begun. The real test is going to be in the implementation, lest we reduce the State of the Nation to a hollow national ritual, during which promises are made but never implemented.

Over the years we have seen our government come up with good policies, programmes and plans, but it has failed badly to implement those plans.

It was with this in mind that I listened to Minister Gordhan’s Budget speech on Wednesday. Many of us were waiting to hear where the money was going to come from to realise the country’s ambitious infrastructure plans.

The minister outlined various ways in which the country’s major infrastructure projects will be funded. These will include the fiscus and internally generated surpluses and borrowing by our state-owned enterprises.

It was a stroke of genius that the burden of funding these infrastructure projects was not passed on to citizens directly through higher taxes.

Of course, public entities like Eskom may need to increase tariffs to generate revenue to repay their debts over time – the president’s request to Eskom in this regard notwithstanding.

But where I would like to particularly welcome the Budget is in its continued people-centred approach. Out of a national expenditure of R1.06 trillion, about R615.7 billion will go towards social services – education, health, social protection, housing and community amenities. This should be welcomed.

The national Budget should be used as an instrument to alleviate poverty and encourage a more balanced growth through strengthening our social security system, increasing and improving housing and community amenities, implementing a basic national health-care system and enhancing food security.

Indeed, the Budget should cushion the vulnerable among us against harsh socio-economic conditions. That would establish a firm foundation for human development.

Our people need shelter, education, health and food for them to fully realise their potential. SA has lost many potential doctors, engineers, accountants, lawyers and skilled workers because the majority of its children were deprived these basic social rights.

Full points to the minister for continuing to target those areas with the greatest social and, in the long run, economic return. While I appreciate the big spending on big projects, it was the Budget’s focus on the “softer” areas that particularly appealed to me.

This includes the R105bn to social grants paid out to about 16 million South Africans.

The critics will argue that we are encouraging a nanny state.

I will counter by saying this is the price we are paying for apartheid policies. Had people been given education opportunities and skills, we would not have an army of able-bodied young men and women who depend on the state for survival. Yes, in the long run, we must get them off the welfare system by equipping them with skills so that they can fend for themselves. But, for now, they are our collective responsibility.

I was also particularly pleased with the priority Gordhan placed on early childhood development. The R1.4bn allocated over the next three years for early childhood development through an in-house and community-based programme should mainly be welcomed by the religious community, for there lies an opportunity to partner with the government in assisting orphans and child-headed families. About 10 000 youth workers will be employed in this programme.

Talking about the youth, I observed how emphatic the minister was every time he touched on the plight of our young people.

I fully agree with him when he says: “We cannot view the fact that 42 percent of young people between the ages of 18 and 29 are unemployed as merely a statistic.

“Young men and women in cities, informal settlements, towns and villages may not have jobs, but have skills in life. They possess the awareness and the ability to learn, they drive fashion and inspire with their music, yet they know their local traditions. And they have hope, and look to us to give meaning to that hope.”

In this regard, the issue of the R5bn youth employment subsidy must be finalised by the partners at Nedlac. We cannot have the employed standing in the way of hundreds of thousands of unemployed youth. And the youth themselves, not just the unions and business, must be heard on this matter.

On the whole, a good State of the Nation address by the president and a good Budget by the minister, but the proof of the pudding will be in the implementation.

Therefore, we call upon all government spheres to ensure that the work starts now – the time for promises and talking has long passed. Our people can no longer wait for services to be provided to them. People have being waiting for too long and it is time to deliver the services to our people.