Date: 28/08/2004
Source: KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
Title: S Ndebele: Launch of Expanded Public Works Programme
ADDRESS AT THE LAUNCH OF THE EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME IN KWAZULU-NATAL BY THE HONOURABLE PREMIER OF KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCE, S'BU NDEBELE, 28 August 2004
Programme Director
Honourable Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa: Deputy President J.G Zuma
National Minister of Public Works: Minister S. Sigcau
Members of KwaZulu-Natal Cabinet
Amakhosi present
Members of Provincial Parliament
Mayor of Ilembe District Council
Mayors present
Councillors present
Heads of Departments present
Senior officials from both National & Provincial Government Departments
Distinguished guests
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen
Government has set itself the goal of halving unemployment and poverty by 2014. The Expanded Public Works Programme is one of Government's most important strategies specifically designed to support the objective of job creation for poverty alleviation.
Today's launch of the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) in KwaZulu-Natal marks the beginning of a comprehensive commitment by all spheres of government, State owned enterprises and parastatals to review their budgets and their business plans to meet the objectives of the EPWP.
The objectives of the EPWP are to create a significant number of new work opportunities which will engage the unemployed in productive activities and, at the same time, equip them with the skills that will allow them to find continued employment outside of the EPWP.
Here I must be very clear. The EPWP is not just about creating jobs, it is also about skilling our nation and creating a platform for increased growth and development. In other words, job seekers who enter the EPWP must exit it better equipped to find work elsewhere.
Implementing the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal is a challenge to us all. The challenge to halve unemployment and poverty in our province by 2014 will require a serious commitment to redefining the parameters on how we allocate and spend public monies.
The magnitude of this challenge has been highlighted in the recently released Census 2001, which records that KwaZulu-Natal has the second highest unemployment rate (48,7%) in South Africa. The reality here is that KwaZulu-Natal is the most populous of all provinces in South Africa. An unemployment rate of 48,7% means that if we are to meet Government's goal of halving unemployment and poverty by 2014 then we will have to create well in excess of one million new jobs. That is based on today's unemployment rate and population and not that of 2014.
Statistics on unemployment in KwaZulu-Natal highlight that we have a worsening condition - on an annual basis - because our formal economy has not grown at a sufficient rate to absorb new market entrants. We know that every year in KwaZulu-Natal more than 200 000 youth will leave school. Only some 20% of school leavers will enter higher education institutions and only a small proportion of new market entrants will actually find work.
When we cite unemployment statistics in KwaZulu-Natal w are dealing with every large number of citizens who have not yet found place in our KwaZulu-Natal economy. The majority of unemployed concern our black population, particularly youth, women and those who reside in rural communities.
However, as I have previously noted, the objective of eh EPWP is not just to create new job opportunities but to exit people from the programme better equipped and better skilled to find work outside of the EPWP. Here it is pertinent to note that Census 2001 records that KwaZulu-Natal has almost two million adults aged 20 or older who have not completed primary school or who have no schooling at all. The task of skilling and absorbing illiterate and innumerate adults into our mainstream economy is fundamentally more challenging than that of skilling matriculants and university graduates through leanership programmes. It is for this reason that my MEC for Education, Ms Ina Cronje, has called for all 6000 schools in KwaZulu-Natal to be used as Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) centres.
The goal that we have set ourselves to halve unemployment and poverty by 2014 demands that we recognise that different sectors of our population have different vulnerabilities and potential. It is precisely for this reason that I have emphasised the need to redefine our parameters.
We must be bold enough to link the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal to a marshal plan - a strategic plan - that create the conditions for sustainable livelihoods for all sectors of our population. In other words we must use the EPWP budget allocations to fundamentally restructure our KwaZulu-Natal economy.
Our urban renewal programmes must go beyond meeting infrastructure backlogs and commit to securing additional transfers from our developed economy, which will result in the establishment of new industries and the promotion of hospitality, tourism, recreation and other facilities in resource poor communities. Our commitments to urban renewal must not be allowed to perpetuate community disadvantage.
Similarly, our commitment to provide access and improved services to isolated rural communities must be contextualised within a programme to secure an agrarian revolution. This, in turn, will secure sustainable rural livelihoods and bring millions of rural people into the growth and development of our mainstream economy. In his budget speech my MEC for Agriculture and Environmental Affairs, Prof. Gabriel Ndabandaba, committed his department to the objective of an agrarian revolution in KwaZulu-Natal, which will be spearheaded through the Siyavuna programme and the establishment of Siyavuna Farmer's Associations.
I am therefore linking the launch of the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal to our commitment to bridge the gap between our first and second economies. In this we need to recognise the interdependence of our first and second economies for sustained growth and development. The growth and development of our first economy is, in many ways, dependant on increasing demand in our domestic economy. Increasing demand in our domestic economy is inextricably linked to creating income, wealth and savings among the poor. This will not be secured by the EPWP alone. Bridging the gap between our first and second economies will necessarily require a commitment from the private sector to transfer resources and expertise.
In launching the EPWP today we are making a commitment to fast track the growth, development and transformation of the KwaZulu-Natal economy. At the same time we will use the EPWP to prepare our province for the demands and benefits of Soccer World Cup 2010. We will work hard to integrate government and private sector investments so that by 2014 we have not only succeeded in halving the number of unemployment and poor in KwaZulu-Natal but have also:
* Stimulated the economic growth and restructuring of KwaZulu-Natal's second economy
* Created the foundations for the growth and development of KwaZulu-Natal's second economy
* Addressed pressing social issues such as TB and HIV/AIDS, illiteracy, innumeracy and socio economic backlogs such as access roads, housing, sanitation, electricity and water which are part of KwaZulu-Natal's apartheid and separate development legacy
To this end we have taken the decision that the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal will be co-ordinated by our Department of Transport, Safety and Security. Our decision is based on the track record of this Department in implementing an EPWP over the past decade. Their record in pioneering grassroots black economic empowerment and gender affirmative initiatives such as the Zibambele and Vukuzakhe programmes is unmatched anywhere in South Africa.
Nobody present here today can doubt the fact that "Ten Years of Democracy" has fundamentally transformed South African society and given hope to the millions of poor and previously disenfranchised. Our next ten years of democracy must fundamentally transform the South African economy by bridging the gap between our first and second economies. In KwaZulu-Natal we propose to tackle our crises of unemployment by embracing an Expanded Public Works Programme that not only focuses on job creation and skills development, but on assisting beneficiaries to save and to invest their savings into productive enterprises that create sustainable employment.
We will actively promote eh graduation of savings clubs into production and marketing co-operatives, which will become the foundation of a genuine broad based black economic empowerment movement in KwaZulu-Natal. To this end we will target those sectors whose full growth and development potential has not yet been realised. These include sectors such as agriculture, tourism, hospitality and transport, all of which have scope for massive expansion.
The commitment that we make today is to apply ourselves to the challenge of reconstruction and development in KwaZulu-Natal by embracing the principles of the EPWP.
Thank you.
For more information contact: Jeff Cele
Cell: 082 884 1872
Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
28 August 2004
Source: SAPA
Source: KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
Title: S Ndebele: Launch of Expanded Public Works Programme
ADDRESS AT THE LAUNCH OF THE EXPANDED PUBLIC WORKS PROGRAMME IN KWAZULU-NATAL BY THE HONOURABLE PREMIER OF KWAZULU-NATAL PROVINCE, S'BU NDEBELE, 28 August 2004
Programme Director
Honourable Deputy President of the Republic of South Africa: Deputy President J.G Zuma
National Minister of Public Works: Minister S. Sigcau
Members of KwaZulu-Natal Cabinet
Amakhosi present
Members of Provincial Parliament
Mayor of Ilembe District Council
Mayors present
Councillors present
Heads of Departments present
Senior officials from both National & Provincial Government Departments
Distinguished guests
Members of the Media
Ladies and Gentlemen
Government has set itself the goal of halving unemployment and poverty by 2014. The Expanded Public Works Programme is one of Government's most important strategies specifically designed to support the objective of job creation for poverty alleviation.
Today's launch of the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) in KwaZulu-Natal marks the beginning of a comprehensive commitment by all spheres of government, State owned enterprises and parastatals to review their budgets and their business plans to meet the objectives of the EPWP.
The objectives of the EPWP are to create a significant number of new work opportunities which will engage the unemployed in productive activities and, at the same time, equip them with the skills that will allow them to find continued employment outside of the EPWP.
Here I must be very clear. The EPWP is not just about creating jobs, it is also about skilling our nation and creating a platform for increased growth and development. In other words, job seekers who enter the EPWP must exit it better equipped to find work elsewhere.
Implementing the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal is a challenge to us all. The challenge to halve unemployment and poverty in our province by 2014 will require a serious commitment to redefining the parameters on how we allocate and spend public monies.
The magnitude of this challenge has been highlighted in the recently released Census 2001, which records that KwaZulu-Natal has the second highest unemployment rate (48,7%) in South Africa. The reality here is that KwaZulu-Natal is the most populous of all provinces in South Africa. An unemployment rate of 48,7% means that if we are to meet Government's goal of halving unemployment and poverty by 2014 then we will have to create well in excess of one million new jobs. That is based on today's unemployment rate and population and not that of 2014.
Statistics on unemployment in KwaZulu-Natal highlight that we have a worsening condition - on an annual basis - because our formal economy has not grown at a sufficient rate to absorb new market entrants. We know that every year in KwaZulu-Natal more than 200 000 youth will leave school. Only some 20% of school leavers will enter higher education institutions and only a small proportion of new market entrants will actually find work.
When we cite unemployment statistics in KwaZulu-Natal w are dealing with every large number of citizens who have not yet found place in our KwaZulu-Natal economy. The majority of unemployed concern our black population, particularly youth, women and those who reside in rural communities.
However, as I have previously noted, the objective of eh EPWP is not just to create new job opportunities but to exit people from the programme better equipped and better skilled to find work outside of the EPWP. Here it is pertinent to note that Census 2001 records that KwaZulu-Natal has almost two million adults aged 20 or older who have not completed primary school or who have no schooling at all. The task of skilling and absorbing illiterate and innumerate adults into our mainstream economy is fundamentally more challenging than that of skilling matriculants and university graduates through leanership programmes. It is for this reason that my MEC for Education, Ms Ina Cronje, has called for all 6000 schools in KwaZulu-Natal to be used as Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) centres.
The goal that we have set ourselves to halve unemployment and poverty by 2014 demands that we recognise that different sectors of our population have different vulnerabilities and potential. It is precisely for this reason that I have emphasised the need to redefine our parameters.
We must be bold enough to link the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal to a marshal plan - a strategic plan - that create the conditions for sustainable livelihoods for all sectors of our population. In other words we must use the EPWP budget allocations to fundamentally restructure our KwaZulu-Natal economy.
Our urban renewal programmes must go beyond meeting infrastructure backlogs and commit to securing additional transfers from our developed economy, which will result in the establishment of new industries and the promotion of hospitality, tourism, recreation and other facilities in resource poor communities. Our commitments to urban renewal must not be allowed to perpetuate community disadvantage.
Similarly, our commitment to provide access and improved services to isolated rural communities must be contextualised within a programme to secure an agrarian revolution. This, in turn, will secure sustainable rural livelihoods and bring millions of rural people into the growth and development of our mainstream economy. In his budget speech my MEC for Agriculture and Environmental Affairs, Prof. Gabriel Ndabandaba, committed his department to the objective of an agrarian revolution in KwaZulu-Natal, which will be spearheaded through the Siyavuna programme and the establishment of Siyavuna Farmer's Associations.
I am therefore linking the launch of the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal to our commitment to bridge the gap between our first and second economies. In this we need to recognise the interdependence of our first and second economies for sustained growth and development. The growth and development of our first economy is, in many ways, dependant on increasing demand in our domestic economy. Increasing demand in our domestic economy is inextricably linked to creating income, wealth and savings among the poor. This will not be secured by the EPWP alone. Bridging the gap between our first and second economies will necessarily require a commitment from the private sector to transfer resources and expertise.
In launching the EPWP today we are making a commitment to fast track the growth, development and transformation of the KwaZulu-Natal economy. At the same time we will use the EPWP to prepare our province for the demands and benefits of Soccer World Cup 2010. We will work hard to integrate government and private sector investments so that by 2014 we have not only succeeded in halving the number of unemployment and poor in KwaZulu-Natal but have also:
* Stimulated the economic growth and restructuring of KwaZulu-Natal's second economy
* Created the foundations for the growth and development of KwaZulu-Natal's second economy
* Addressed pressing social issues such as TB and HIV/AIDS, illiteracy, innumeracy and socio economic backlogs such as access roads, housing, sanitation, electricity and water which are part of KwaZulu-Natal's apartheid and separate development legacy
To this end we have taken the decision that the EPWP in KwaZulu-Natal will be co-ordinated by our Department of Transport, Safety and Security. Our decision is based on the track record of this Department in implementing an EPWP over the past decade. Their record in pioneering grassroots black economic empowerment and gender affirmative initiatives such as the Zibambele and Vukuzakhe programmes is unmatched anywhere in South Africa.
Nobody present here today can doubt the fact that "Ten Years of Democracy" has fundamentally transformed South African society and given hope to the millions of poor and previously disenfranchised. Our next ten years of democracy must fundamentally transform the South African economy by bridging the gap between our first and second economies. In KwaZulu-Natal we propose to tackle our crises of unemployment by embracing an Expanded Public Works Programme that not only focuses on job creation and skills development, but on assisting beneficiaries to save and to invest their savings into productive enterprises that create sustainable employment.
We will actively promote eh graduation of savings clubs into production and marketing co-operatives, which will become the foundation of a genuine broad based black economic empowerment movement in KwaZulu-Natal. To this end we will target those sectors whose full growth and development potential has not yet been realised. These include sectors such as agriculture, tourism, hospitality and transport, all of which have scope for massive expansion.
The commitment that we make today is to apply ourselves to the challenge of reconstruction and development in KwaZulu-Natal by embracing the principles of the EPWP.
Thank you.
For more information contact: Jeff Cele
Cell: 082 884 1872
Issued by: Office of the Premier, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Government
28 August 2004
Source: SAPA
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