4 November 2000
Chairperson;
Fellow Ministers and other practitioners;
Researchers and scholars here present;
Ladies and Gentlemen
I am unable to find appropriate words to convey the full measure of our appreciation for the honour you have done us. Nothing can give us greater satisfaction than the rare privilege of being asked to host this important summit.
The 1994 democratic breakthrough has created the imperative for the people of South Africa to rise to the challenge of overcoming the legacy of underdevelopment and to create conditions for just and sustainable socio-economic development. Gathered in Cape Town today are men and women who are diverse in their experience. You are gathered here today to deploy the finest attributes of the human mind towards illuminating our strategic path to a better life. This summit therefore holds out the promise of deepening the theoretical thrust of our ongoing efforts at making the world a better place to live in.
Chairperson, there is growing recognition of the centrality of local government in promoting sustainable development and addressing poverty alleviation . Mindful of this, we put into motion a process of restructuring our local government sphere. The process has been unfolding since 1995. Tomorrow the people of our country will be at the polling-stations to participate in an election which brings to a close, the negotiated phase of local government transition. The election constitutes yet another milestone in our democracy's movement away from infancy. Thus, we see your descending on our shores as an anthem to our ascending dream.
As I said earlier, the left-overs of the grim period of Apartheid pose immense challenges. The scope and magnitude of these challenges have been determined by various reputable studies. In a study soon to be released by the Government (i.e. the Municipal Infrastructure Investment Framework) it is estimated that:
The study also makes the following observations:
Infrastructure is the economy's skeleton. On it hangs almost all commercial and government activity. For instance, the availability of water and sewer determines human health and prospects for increased agricultural production. As the World Bank puts it: "There is a binding link between growth and innovations in basic infrastructure". Needless-to-say, the paucity of infrastructure strangles prospects for the overall growth of our economy.
Apartheid-era distortions have bequeathed to our generation, a co-existence of useless overbuilding and serious shortages of infrastructure. A deliberate policy of racist misallocation of resources produced within cities and towns, areas which have bloated and often wrongheaded infrastructure. On the peripheries of these very cities and towns, as well as in the rural hinterlands of our country, there is very little if any, public and productive infrastructure. Of course, our situation is emblematic of worldwide patterns.
Ladies and Gentlemen, the situation which I have just described is grave indeed. Its gravity speaks to the difficult challenges faced by the Government and the people of South Africa. It calls for innovations which include the articulation of a national agenda which has the possibility to propel various sectors of our society into a collaborative effort towards developing and growing our economy.
Top-most on the agenda of the South African government is the provision of support to previously marginalized sections of society. It means finding ways of engaging with the poor so that their needs can be reflected in the policies and programmes of government. The resources which government commands for these purposes are severely limited. We are therefore keenly interested in finding the best possible way of creating an environment which is congenial to private sector participation in the process of addressing the massive infrastructure and service delivery backlogs.
We are acutely aware that such partnerships need appropriate legislative, administrative, political and social environments. We are also aware that international opinion is diverse and sometimes divided on the key policy and operational lessons deriving from existing public-private partnerships. There are many instances where these partnerships have raised profound and fundamental policy questions for government, organized labour and the private sector. These are questions such as:
In the course of your deliberations you will no doubt provide answers to these and other related questions. I hope that your answers will also reveal dimensions of the debate that need further elaboration and research.
Ladies and Gentlemen, you come from many parts of our diverse world. You are gathered in this emerging global city of Cape Town in search of a solution to the twin-problems of underdevelopment and poverty. Those who are afflicted by these problems are expecting this summit to deliver a rich harvest. You dare not disappoint them!