Pretoria – Although employment and private investment are slowly showing signs of growth following the economic meltdown, job creation should be prioritised in economic policy, says Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe.
“Both the economic trends and the experience of social dialogue point to the need to prioritise employment creation in economic policy,” the deputy president said on Monday.
Motlanthe was speaking at the opening session of the Department of Economic Development’s Annual Development Conference hosted by Minister Ebrahim Patel. The conference was also attended by organised labour, business and civil society.
“Only in the past six months have we seen a return to job creation, with formal-sector employment gains in particular. Still, employment remains about five percent lower than it was two years ago – a situation South Africa can ill afford, given high joblessness even before the downturn,” said Motlanthe.
He charged South Africans to find ways to make growth more sustainable. “We cannot continuously create employment in the upturn, only to have massive job losses in downturns wipe out the gains.”
If the country is to achieve its goal of five million new jobs by 2020, more needed to be done to support increased domestic savings in order to ensure development.
Motlanthe emphasised the importance of the New Growth Path, which provides direction for South Africa’s economic policies.
“It is critical because it shapes a twinned emphasis first on equity and inclusion, and second on sustainable economic growth and development … that is increasingly green, efficient, diversified and regionally integrated.”
Efforts to improve quality education and skills development have been intensified, while also committing to high levels of public investment and a commitment to reducing red-tape.
“On the one hand, the state must support a more efficient economy overall, with a capacity to react rapidly to changing conditions and ensuring adequate infrastructure systems, education and social services. On the other hand, the state must intervene systematically and consistently to transform exclusionary economic systems and structures that reproduce joblessness and inequality,” he explained.
The Deputy President also encouraged more labour intensive sectors.
“In that context, we will support new forms of ownership that empower our people on a mass scale small and micro enterprise but also collective and social ownership,” he said.
Rural development, access to skills and overcoming inequalities in education as well as strong support for agriculture, light industry and productive services are important in order to achieve these aims.
“Our discussions here should have real implications for all participants in terms of how we take forward our common project. They should help us overcome differences in interests and ideology in order to achieve our common long-term aim of an equitable, strong, and dynamic economy,” said Motlanthe. – BuaNews
