2022: Free State premier Sisi Ntombela promises economic recovery and jobs after Covid-19 battle

FREE State Premier Sisi Ntombela has outlined her plans for economic development and job creation post-COVID-19 pandemic, saying she intends “to transform the Free State to be the growth frontier of the country.” 

Ntombela, who is also the Deputy President of the ANC Women’s League, said the province was emerging from the impact of Covid-19 that saw millions lose jobs as the pandemic battered an economy that was already on its knees.

Ntombela is serving a second term as premier of the Free State after taking over the reigns in 2018 from Ace Magashule when he vacated the post to assume his duties at Luthuli House as ANC Secretary General.

She has previously served as MECs for Social Development and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs in the Free State.

“As we emerge from the devastation caused by this pandemic, our greatest responsibility is to reconstruct and rebuild our economy,”” said Ntombela. 

“We are eager to transform the Free State to be the growth frontier of the country. This is the time to change.”

Ntombela said her priority would be to uplift young people in the Free State, including women and people with disabilities.  

Ntombela has said in the past that “‘most of my nights are sleepless nights because 48, 5% of the youth in the Free State are unemployed, we are in trouble.”

She has also invited investors to explore the different parts of the Free State in order to establish successful businesses which will increase the rate of economic growth which creates much needed jobs.

She has also made a call for the business community to make a serious effort towards absorbing young people in their numbers in the fight against poverty. He urged everybody to ensure that value is added to Free State products for the benefit of its people.

Youth unemployment in the Free State is estimated at about 55 percent, while the official expanded unemployment rate for all age groups in the province stood at 45.8 percent in the third quarter of 2021.

“Our priority is the masses of our young people, women and persons with disabilities. We want to see them thriving and successful. For our young people, we need to unlock their potential. To create opportunities, and instil a sense of value and responsibility in them,” said Ntombela.

“Our YES initiative with Standard Bank is beginning to do this. 60 unemployed youth were offered their first job opportunity.””

She said through the YES initiative, these young people will go on to become entrepreneurs and change-makers in full control of their present and future aspirations. The YES Initiative stands to benefit youth and businesses alike. Specifically, black, Coloured and Indian youth between the ages of 18 and 35 are encouraged to apply to join the YES Initiative.

She further revealed that R10 million was spent to support 30 businesses in the Free State through the Industrial Support Incentive Programme. 

“13 of these enterprises that benefited from this Incentive Programme were women owned and six were youth owned,” said Ntombela. 

“The type of support included rental subsidies, provision of equipment and setup costs for emerging and established manufacturers.”

The premier said other initiatives to grow the economy in the Free State include support with tax compliance matters, funding, business plans, completion of bid documents and tender opportunities.

So far, said Ntombela, 164 jobs have been created in the Maluti-a-Phofung Special Economic Zone, which is planning to attract over R2 billion worth of investments. 

“These investment plans are hampered by vandalism. If anything, vandalism robs the people of the Free State of their livelihoods. This worsened by poor electricioty and water supply,” said Ntombela. 

“We will never fold our arms when the hopes of people are destroyed. We will therefore work with relevant authorities to address these issues.”

Ntombela vowed to place agriculture at the forefront of her economic recovery plans beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Ntombela said the Free State Province’s location provides opportunities for agricultural growth. It is therefore not surprising that 14.5 percent of South Africa’s commercial farming activities take place in the province.

“This is an advantage need to fully harness,” she said, adding that the dominant land use in the Free State comes with great potential for job creation, food security and rural development.

“We are humbled by the fact that on the 14th of January 2022, the Integrated Vrede Dairy Project, which sits on a massive two thousand and ninety-four hectares of land, was handed over to its sixty five rightful beneficiaries as part of growing the sector,” said Ntombela. 

“This project is now 51% owned by the Vrede Integrated Farming Trust and five hundred and eighty-three dairy animals and nine horses have been allocated to the beneficiaries.”

The remaining 49% will be advertised to attract investors. 

The project was established in 2012, by the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD), to empower black farmers with the knowledge and skills of operating a successful dairy farming enterprise, which would contribute to the local economy and improve the livelihoods of its communities. 

However, the local community didn’t end up benefitting from this project, as they should have.

She said Free State would also develop its own development strategy to grow the cannabis industry during this financial year.

“We are repositioning the Free State as the cannabis hub of the country. Six sites have been identified in Kroonstad, Viljoenskroon, Bethlehem, Ficksburg, Wesselsbron and the farm in Glen will be used as a research site.”

Free State is also committed to the acceleration of the Expanded Public Works Programme. Thus far, the province has created 54 080 jobs by the third quarter of the 2021/2021 financial year. 

“Figures show that we continue to prioritise the most vulnerable. A total of 74% of women, 34% of youth and 1% of persons with disabilities benefitted from this programme.”

“In the coming year, we will create 50 000 job opportunities through the Expanded Public Works Programme.” 

• – Inside Politics