Issued by: Gauteng Provincial Government
SANDTON 9 NOVEMBER 1999
Chairpersons of the Commonwealth Business Forum
Government Ministers
Business leaders
Distinguished guests
Ladies and gentlemen
On behalf of the Gauteng Provincial Government and its people, I welcome you all to our province of gold. It is an honour and privilege for the Gauteng Province to host this august and auspicious Commonwealth Business Forum.
Despite being the smallest province in the country, Gauteng has a population of 8 million people and contributes 38% of South Africa's Gross Domestic Product. In this regard it is no exaggeration to say that the economic hopes and aspirations of many people in our country rest on the shoulders of our province.
Gauteng is, therefore, not only the economic engine of this country but also makes a significant contribution to South Africa's role as the economic gateway to the continent.
In three days time the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting will take place in Durban. This forum is assembling here today on the eve of the CHOGM as part of many initiatives whose aim is to influence the policies and practical actions of our governments through amongst others the recommendations that will be adopted at the end of the meeting.
In the 1991 Harare Commonwealth Declaration, the leaders adopted as one of their priorities the need to promote sustainable development. This was given concrete expression in 1997 with the adoption of an economic declaration, designed to promote shared prosperity. In addition, specific measures on trade, investment, development and the environment were adopted.
The question facing our leaders as they meet in a democratic South Africa is to what extent can they say with confidence that they have been able to translate these resolutions in a manner that benefits all citizens -poor and rich, men and women, business and workers.
In this regard I welcome your theme - Making Globalisation Work: Economic Advance with Social Development - which goes to the heart of the solutions that must be found in ensuring a balance between the economic benefits of globalisation and its social impact.
There is a growing perception among developing countries, that the opening of world markets is a global phenomenon only to the extent that the economies of the North are growing in leaps and bounds because of their unfettered access to the economies of the South. Proponents of this view also argue that globalisation is having a devastating effect on the lives of ordinary and poor people all over the world. Accordingly, most of humankind may be condemned to a long winter of poor socio-economic conditions if governments and international capital do not commit themselves to the project of linking the benefits of globalisation to the imperative of creating a better life for billions of people on this planet.
What is the response of this forum to this view other than dismissing it as coming from a lunatic fringe? To what extent are our practical actions within the Commonwealth feeding into this view? If we are convinced that globalisation can help promote sustainable economic development, we have to act in a manner which makes it possible for all member state to say with one voice that indeed we are making an impact in the daily lives of our people.
Unless globalisation is seen to be having the effect of changing the material conditions of ordinary people for the better, the content of an article in Business Week will be greeted with cynicism even as it asserted that, "a global market economy can promote not only growth but individual freedom as well as a cleaner environment".
Unless globalisation is seen to be creating conditions for the eradication of poverty, the advancement of world peace and the promotion of a safe environment, the poverty-stricken people of the world may be persuaded into believing that the economist, J.K. Galbraith is reflecting reality when he says that, "Globalisation is not a serious concept. We have invented it to disseminate our politics of economic entry into other countries".
The Commonwealth is a microcosm of the inequalities and economic disparities, which reflect the state of humankind today.
Fifty of the fifty-four countries, which constitute the Commonwealth, are developing countries. This means that they are yet to reap a rich harvest from the season of globalisation.
Our people say that motho ke motho ka batho ba bang in the same way that it is said that no man is an island. Because we are our brothers' keepers, the work of the Commonwealth must be infused with a spirit which recognises that the Commonwealth cannot succeed in its mission unless all its participants achieve socio-economic success.
It is for this reason that we must emphasise the need for cooperation and the vigorous pursuit of common interests. As we approach the beginning of the next round of World Trade Organisation discussions in Seattle this month, our practical actions and our contribution to these trade negotiations need to be governed by the spirit of human solidarity.
This noble spirit must, however, take us beyond this particular round of trade negotiations into the new millennium. This is a millennium during which globalisation will be driven even more by knowledge and the significance of communication technologies. It is estimated that 700 million people will have access to these technologies in the year 2001 and almost all of them will be based in the advanced economies. Since communication and information technology has the potential to play a decisive role in ameliorating the lot of those who are plagued by poor social and economic conditions, the Commonwealth has the additional responsibility of ensuring that all its members have access to such tools.
All this is well nigh impossible unless we deepen the dialogue between our governments and the private sector to advance both our unique and common interests in the interests of multilateral trade relations between all countries, which constitute the Commonwealth. The same goes for business and labour. You can and must advance our common interest in development. I hope that this third Commonwealth Business Forum will become the practical manifestation of the cooperation, which in time should deliver a better life for all denizens of the Commonwealth.
Once more, on behalf of the people of this country and province, I welcome you all to our province of gold in the hope that you will have fruitful deliberations.
Issued by Thabo Masebe
Spokesperson for the Premier
Gauteng Provincial Government
Tel: 082 632 6476