The content on this page is not written by Polity.org.za, but is supplied by third parties. This content does not constitute news reporting by Polity.org.za.

Dear ANC Members,

The 1st of September, marks the beginning of a month dedicated to the promotion of tourism and heritage in our country. It is a time when we reflect on our diverse heritage and history and the potential to grow our tourism industry, by inviting the rest of the world to share in our heritage and to experience our cultural diversity.

This year's tourism theme is "Tourism Linking Cultures", while heritage month will celebrate the heroes and heroines of the liberation struggle.

September is a month dedicated to promoting the country, its achievements, culture and values to one another and to the world. This year, September is also a month of supporting the Springboks as they prepare to defend our national pride in New Zealand.

We will be celebrating our national heroes and heroines with good reason this month. We have come a long way as a country. We owe our achievements to the foresight, dedication and sound leadership of the ANC's founding fathers and mothers. The ANC has over the decades produced leaders who had clarity of vision, who had unwavering commitment and dedication to the cause of freedom, and who understood very well, the political conflict in South Africa and how it could be resolved.

ANC President, Sefako Makgatho, the educationist, theologian and editor of the Good Shepherd journal, outlined the mission of the ANC as follows in 1919:

"The African National Congress was established in response to the race clauses of the South Africa Act, 1909, and the race laws enacted under that Act. The ANC aims to unite Africans, not just in South Africa but also in Lesotho, Botswana Swaziland in particular; to fight the imperialism generated by the General Assembly of Berlin, 26th February 1885; to spearhead common struggle for freedom and determination, to destroy racism and to create on its ruins a non-racial South Africa with traditional democratic rights that would be available to all, irrespective of race, colour, religion, sex, possessions, formal education and so on".

That mission of building a united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous society continues.

We also remain guided by the goals expressed in our 2007 Strategy and Tactics, in which we said we are striving to realise:
a united state based on the will of all the people, without regard to race, sex, belief, language, ethnicity or geographic location.
a dignified and improving quality of life among all the people by providing equal rights and opportunities to all citizens, and
the restoration of the birthright of all South Africans regarding access to land and other resources.
After the attainment of political freedom in 1994, the ANC has worked with the people to achieve the goals of social and economic transformation. While more people have access to basic services, we know that many more are still waiting and are frustrated. We know too, that poverty, inequality and unemployment still afflict scores of our people, young and old. They want jobs, they want to be self-reliant and they tell us this whenever we visit communities.

That is why in our January 8, 2011 statement, the National Executive Committee declared 2011 as the year of economic transformation and job creation. This decision was informed by amongst others, our economic transformation resolution from the 52nd national conference.

Delegates at Polokwane acknowledged that while had made substantial progress in transforming the economy to benefit the majority since 1994, serious challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality remain. "Therefore, we are still at the beginning of the historic transformation of the economy called for in the Charter", our economic transformation resolution states.

The ANC's response to the challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality is to accelerate economic growth which would help us create decent work. While acknowledging that we have not yet succeeded in achieving the economic liberation of our people, at the same time, through the policies of the ANC, South African society has become more prosperous.

An example is the considerable growth of the middle class and especially, the black middle class, which numbered 2.6 million in 2007. The challenge is to narrow the gap between this group and those who are still trapped in poverty, primarily black South Africans and most notably black rural women and the youth.

We are, through the ANC government, implementing what we said in the January 8 statement. As part of the practical response, we launched the New Growth Path last year. The plan is designed to help our economy to create jobs in sectors such as infrastructure development, mining, agriculture, tourism, green and knowledge-based sectors, rural development, infrastructure development projects on the continent, the services sector as well as the social economy and the public sector.

Other marching orders from the January 8 statement were that public procurement must be used to support the domestic manufacturing sector, which should lead to more jobs being created in this sector. Cadres were told that the social economy must be supported to create many jobs through co-operatives, burial societies, stokvels and community trusts, and that ANC branches must be integral parts of such community initiatives.

A directive was also issued in January to the ANC government to continue exploring ways of further unlocking the country's mining sector potential and to align the sector firmly with our economic transformation and development goals.

This month, let us promote our country as a tourist destination, as part of implementing our economic growth objectives. Let us celebrate the dynamic relationship between heritage, tourism and active citizenship. By celebrating and sharing our culture and heritage, sharing our natural warmth and hospitality, we can contribute towards ensuring a better life for all South Africans.

The ANC government is aiming at gaining some five million foreign tourist arrivals and three to four million domestic tourists which will have a positive impact on the local economy. We can all play a role in boosting the tourism sector. We encourage South Africans to explore their country and visit parts of the country they have never visited before. And we must all promote our country as we did during the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup, to encourage more and more people to visit South Africa.

The sector aims to create 177 000 direct and indirect employment opportunities by 2020 and another 48 000 directly linked to government programmes, totaling 225 000 jobs by the year 2020. This is an achievable goal. We should remain focused on the goals of the movement, to make this a year of economic transformation and job creation, in everything we do.

Happy Tourism Month and Happy Heritage Month to all!