POLITICS

Economy exits recession with 2,2% GDP growth - ANC

Party believes this is a vindication of the tireless efforts of govt led by President Ramaphosa

STATEMENT BY THE AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESS ON THE ECONOMY EXITING RECESSION

4 December 2018

The African National Congress welcomes the news that the South African economy has exited recession. This follows the announcement by Statistics South Africa that the economy has reported a 2.2% growth for the third quarter of this year.

The ANC has always been optimistic about the country's long-term economic prospects deriving from our sound economic policies. We are confident that our macro-economic fundamentals remain solid and will continue to stand us in good stead in the face of possible market volatilities and uncertainties.

The ANC believes that the latest developments are a vindication of the tireless efforts of the ANC government led by our President, Cde Cyril Ramaphosa. President Ramaphosa and his collective in government have placed economic stability, growth and job creation right at the center of government policy agenda. While we welcome this positive news, we remain concerned that our economy is not growing fast enough. However, we are of the view that if we continue along the same trajectory, we should be able to meet our National Development Plan (NDP) targets, and thus emancipating the majority of our people from poverty and unemployment.

We remain confident that our economy is on an irreversible upward trajectory, thanks to the deliberate interventions by the ANC government such as the investment drive led by the President as well as renewed commitment by social partners to work together to address the economic challenges that confront the country.

We call on government, business and labor to continue to work together in order to help sustain this positive momentum already generated by the Investments and Jobs Summits.

Statement issued by the African National Congress, 4 December 2018