By Simon Nare
Deputy President Paul Mashatile has committed the government to removing red tape to economic growth and expanding the economy by above 3% in the medium term.
Addressing the Biznews Conference at Hermanus in the Western Cape on Thursday, Mashatile said South Africa had no excuse not to grow its economy as it boasted a range of natural recourses with gold being the most significant.
It was also a country with vast agricultural land and property assets suitable for real estate development and all these options opened a window to investors to accumulate wealth.
“Government is committed to removing blockages to economic growth, lifting economic expansion to above 3% in the medium term and creating a cycle of investment, growth and jobs,” he said.
The deputy president said that in keeping up with the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the government was looking at specific investments and collaborations.
“In this regard, the National Digital and Future Skills Strategy provides a framework for inclusive collaboration between industry, labour, higher education institutions and society to develop new skills and capabilities for the nation,” Mashatile said.
He added that the government was focusing on implementing measures to increase productivity and develop necessary skills for a knowledge- and skills-based economy.
Through the Human Resource Development Council, which he chaired, Mashatile said the government has approved the Reconceptualised Human Resource Development Strategy 2024–2033.
Further, the Master Skills Plan 2024-2030 and its implementation plan 2024–2030 were approved in November last year.
The development plan was aligned to the National Development Plan’s 2030 vision.
It will focus on four priority goals, namely:
• Improving early learning and schooling outcomes
• Improving the employability of youth who are not in employment, education and training
• Improving the responsiveness of the Post-School Education and Training system to skills demand, and
• Improving governance, leadership and management in the public sector.
“These documents serve as blueprints for social partners to respond to human resource development challenges by developing skills needed to transform our country as an economy of the 21st century,” he said.
Mashatile also touched on the Expropriation Act and the strained USA-SA diplomatic relations in his address.
He said the government was working on stabilising relations with the world superpower considering the long-standing relations between the two countries and how critical the relationship was to South Africa’s economic development goals.
He urged the business community to unite behind the government in promoting the nation’s interests.
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