Economic growth is the top priority for South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced while addressing the Government of National Unity (GNU) on Thursday.
“We have decided to place inclusive economic growth at the center of the work of the Government of National Unity and at the top of our national agenda. We have a clear intention to turn our country into a construction site, with roads, bridges, houses, schools, hospitals, and clinics being built, broadband fiber being laid, and new power lines being installed,” Ramaphosa told lawmakers in Cape Town.
He said that lowering poverty and the high cost of living would be the second goal of the GNU over the next five years. As part of this, the fuel price formula would be looked at to find places where food prices could be lowered.
"Our second strategic priority as the Government of National Unity is to tackle poverty and the high cost of living. Even at a time when many companies are making large profits, millions of South Africans are suffering as a result of rising prices. [...] We will look to expand the basket of essential food items exempt from VAT and undertake a comprehensive review of administered prices, including the fuel price formula, to identify areas where prices can be reduced. Asset poverty is one of the underlying causes of abject poverty, which exacerbates the high cost of living amongst our people."
Ramaphosa stated that the government plans to reindustrialize the country after years of declining manufacturing capacity in order to generate more employment.
“We will drive growth in labor-intensive sectors such as services, agriculture, green manufacturing, and tourism,” the president said. “We will also focus on processing our minerals so that we export finished products rather than raw commodities.”
Moreover, reforms to the nation’s visa system will continue, with a view to attracting more skilled professionals.
The third strategic priority of the GNU is to build a "capable, ethical, and developmental state."
"We will proceed with the work already underway to professionalize the public service, ensuring that we attract individuals with skills, capabilities, and integrity into the state."
As part of the plan, the GNU will set up a new model to manage state-owned companies.
“We will manage public finances with a view to stabilizing debt,” Ramaphosa said. “We are firmly committed to steadily reducing the cost of servicing our debt so that we can redirect funds towards other critical social and economic needs.”
The move will help enhance South Africa’s capacity to establish a sovereign wealth fund, Ramaphosa said.
"This will improve accountability, transparency, governance, and oversight while reducing inefficiency and the potential for corruption," the president added.
According to the president, special focus will also be directed to municipalities to become both providers of social services and facilitators of inclusive economic growth.
The GNU will continue to tackle priority crimes like illegal mining, gang violence, cash-in-transit heists, and the construction mafia through specialized police units, using "modern technology to assist crime fighting," he said.