Riyaz Patel
Deputy President David Mabuza says the work being done in stimulating the so-called township economies need to be expanded to include economic activities in rural communities and villages.
Mabuza was speaking during discussions with the National Planning Commission team focussed on revitalising that sector.
The deputy president said townships and villages presents new growth points of the economy, and said he was encouraged by the interventions put forward to stimulate economic growth in these areas.
The National Development Plan’s Vision 2030, anticipates that economic participation in rural areas will rise from 29% to 40% as a result of land reform policies, support to farmers, expanded social services, higher agricultural output, mining, social investment and tourism.
Mabuza underlined that these are some of the interventions that will need to be considered in order to transform this segment of the economy.
“In including the rural economy, we acknowledge the contradictions and configuration of our country’s political economic history and thus commit ourselves to shaping policy processes and outcomes that will result in the successful realisation of radical economic transformation” Mabuza said.
The DP advised the team to draw lessons on what strategies were working and what were not in the roll out of strategies across the nine provinces.
He called on the delegation to look at the models in relation to comparative advantages that each province or district presents for potential economic growth.
The NPC delegation was led by Dr. Thami Mazwai, the project leader on the township economy, accompanied by other commissioners, sector specialist academics, and senior executives from the African Development Bank.
