South Africa’s official opposition Democratic Alliance (DA) says that with less than 48 hours to go to the start of the Growth and Development Summit, every indication is that it will be a non-event.
Opposition trade and industry spokesperson Mark Lowe said that 10 years into African National Congress (ANC) rule “with 1-million jobs lost and nearly 42% unemployed, the ruling party has yet to come up with one solution to our country’s greatest crisis”.
“Saturday’s summit looks to be yet another expensive non-event. A blanket of silence has descended over what should be a clear, concise plan of action to get South Africa back to work.”
Critical issues like HIV/Aids and Gear had been omitted, culminating in the Council of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) already threatening not to sign any pre-arranged jobs pact with government and business.
“Even in Wednesday’s debate in the National Assembly on the growth summit, the ANC showed its ambivalence towards the crisis. Not a single solution to the job crisis was forthcoming.”
The DA said the following should be done:
Abolish exchange controls to attract far greater foreign direct investment;
Amend inflexible labour legislation to favour job creation over capital-intensive growth;
Attract and develop key skills; and
Focus intensely on small business development.
But President Thabo Mbeki told Parliament during question time on Thursday afternoon that the issue of unemployment would be key at the summit.
“The government will present its own programmes with regard to that matter; we hope that business and labour will come with their own programmes.”
Skills development and equity were among the goals to be discussed, he added.
“We are in a fortunate position that the partners of the government with regard to this have all agreed on the approach to this matter; we need to come with common determinations of what needs to be done.”
“The issue of black economic empowerment is agreed among all the partners; empowerment in a comprehensive way and that includes ensuring that micro-credit are addressed and become part of the process of empowerment and impact on poverty and unemployment.”
He said that none of the partners had brought any complaints about the manner in which the government had handled exchange controls.
Mbeki said that labour legislation went through Nedlac and was agreed to with business and labour.
“I don’t think these matters will arise in the growth summit. The partners are focused on the matters of growth and development; they are not coming to the summit to look for controversies.” – I-Net Bridge