The relationship between government and business needs to be strengthened in order to take the country’s economy, particularly the green economy, forward. This was said by the Chief Executive Officer of the National Business Initiative (NBI), Ms Joanne Yawitch. She was speaking at a stakeholder engagement session that was hosted by the Department of Trade and Industry (the dti) on the green economy in Sandton today.

The purpose of the session was to stimulate debate on the green economy in order to ensure that there is a collaborated effort towards industrialisation and inclusive economic growth.

“We are currently sitting with a situation where the relationship between government and the private sector is not fantastic. But if we are going to successfully address the challenges that we face as a country in relation to the economy, society and the environment, it requires an ability for government, business and the rest of society to pull together in one direction,” said Yawitch.

She added that despite the differences and the gap that exists between business and government, there was a huge willingness amongst both sides to collaborate and cooperate for the benefit of the country, society and the economy.

“We need to build much closer relationships and collaboration between business and government. The only way that we can be able to do that is to build sufficient and deep understanding of each other. We will need to create platforms and processes through which the relationship between government and business can be strengthened in order to move the economy, society and the environment forward, and align ourselves with each other’s needs and influence,” added Yawitch.

Yawitch said the green economy was potentially a huge growth sector for the country presently and in the future. 

“We need to treat the green economy in the same way as we treat anything else in the economy if we are going to make a success of it. It must be supported adequately by an enabling government framework in order to be competitive and generate revenue for the country,” emphasised Yawitch.

The Director of the Green Industry at the dti, Ms Ntombifuthi Ntuli said the development of environmentally sustainable green products and services, including renewable energy technologies, provided unlimited opportunities and will contribute to the creation of jobs in niche markets where South Africa has or can develop a competitive advantage.

Issued by The Department of Trade and Industry