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President Jacob Zuma will today, 6 October 2017, host a report back session for stakeholders on the implementation of the innovative delivery programme, Operation Phakisa Oceans Economy programme in Durban.

The Oceans Economy project brings together representatives from government, industry, labour, civil society and academia to collaborate in unlocking the economic potential of the country’s oceans.

Operation Phakisa was launched in 2014 by the President designed to find faster ways of implementing the National Development Plan priorities in various sectors.

“We chose the ocean economy with good reason. South Africa is uniquely bordered by the ocean on three sides – east, south and west.  With the inclusion of Prince Edward and Marion Islands in the southern ocean, the coastline is approximately 3 924 km long.  This vast ocean space is relatively unexplored in terms of its economic potential’, says the President.

In 2010, the ocean contributed approximately 54 billion rand to South Africa’s gross domestic product and accounted for approximately 316 thousand jobs.

An analysis was conducted of nine sectors that comprise South Africa’s ocean economy. The ocean has a potential to contribute to the Gross Domestic Product up to one hundred and seventy seven billion rands (R177 billion).

The ocean also has a potential to contribute between eight hundred and one million direct jobs. These growth levers reflect at least 4 percent annual growth in both Gross Domestic Product contribution and job creation.

Four priority sectors have been selected as new growth areas in the ocean economy, with the objective of growing them and deriving value for the country.

These are:
(a) Marine transport and manufacturing activities, such as coastal shipping, trans-shipment, boat building, repair and refurbishment;
(b) Offshore oil and gas exploration;
(c) Aquaculture and
(d) Marine protection services and ocean governance.

The Operation Phakisa project focuses on these four priority potential growth areas.

A key step in the Operation Phakisa approach is the Delivery Laboratories or intensive work sessions. Multiple stakeholders work full-time in one location for about five weeks. At the end of this period, they deliver complete and signed-off action plans for presentation to the Cabinet.

Delivery Labs create transparency and help to remove bottlenecks and resolve the most critical challenges facing a sector.

Today the President will brief stakeholders and the public on progress that has been made in the Oceans Economy segment. Operation Phakisa is also being implemented in other sectors such as health, basic education, agriculture, mining and tourism.

Issued by the Presidency