South Africa has possibly the largest infrastructure build programme on the African continent, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa said.
He said for the economy to grow and create jobs, South Africa was increasing its investment in infrastructure, especially in water, energy, public transport and freight logistics.
He said work has already begun to implement some of the key measures described in the NDP.
He told the Muslim community that President Zuma had recently launched the black industrialist programme, which seeks to unlock the potential of black entrepreneurs.
Government was also undertaking measures to reduce red tape and regulatory obstacles for small businesses, while providing support for them to become sustainable and profitable.
“Among other things, this includes efforts to add more value to the mineral resources we extract through greater beneficiation,” he said.
This would help reduce South Africa’s dependence on the export of unprocessed commodities, boosts domestic manufacturing and create jobs.
“Our public institutions will need to be better managed, resources will need to be distributed more efficiently, wastage will need to be reduced, and corruption and mismanagement will need to be punished and eradicated.
“Government will need to be more accountable, more responsive to the needs of the people, more transparent, and more effective at drawing on the resources and capabilities that exist outside government,” he said.
Auwal Socio-Economic Research Institute (ASRI) Executive Director Muhammad Cajee said: “Our country needs our active participation to be successful with any policy implementation, our communities need to be active in continuous engagements with government in order to have our voices and opinions heard in a meaningful, patriotic and organised way.”
