Address by President Jacob Zuma to the Annual Convention of the South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Gallagher Estate, Midrand, October 23 2014

The President of the SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the leadership present,
Honourable Ministers,
MECs and Mayors,
Business leaders,
Members of the diplomatic corps,
Ladies and gentlemen,

Good day and thank you for inviting me to share this important occasion with you.

You have chosen an important theme for this year's SA Chamber of Commerce and Industry convention.

Emerging markets have been under pressure over the past few years due to the global economic crisis as well as domestic factors. Our country has not been immune to these challenges. 

Our own domestic factors have also contributed to slowing down growth, as outlined by the Minister of Finance Mr Nhlanhla Nene, in the Medium Term Budget Policy Statement.

While the situation remains difficult, we remain optimistic because we have programmes in place that are designed to slowly inject life into the economy during a very challenging period.

The economy is performing below the level of growth that is required to deal with the country's triple challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality. Our collective responsibility is to get the economy to perform at its full potential.  

We have a programme in place that we are implementing to achieve the prosperous South Africa that we envisage.

That is the National Development Plan. It is now the country's socio-economic roadmap until 2030, enjoying the support of the overwhelming majority.

We are therefore on the same page as the country with regards to what should be achieved by the country over the next few years. 

Other instruments within the NDP are being utilized to transform the economy and drive growth and jobs. 

These include the National Infrastructure plan and the Industrial Policy Action Plan.

Our flagship infrastructure build plan is proceeding well, overseen by the Presidential Infrastructure Coordinating Commission.

The 2014/15 budget commits eight hundred and forty seven billion rand over the next three years for infrastructure investment, the bulk of which will be for power generation and freight logistics.

We have also been working with the financial sector to identify and clear blockages to enable the private sector to play a role in the financing of infrastructure. 

South Africa has a potential pipeline of more than three trillion rand worth of infrastructure projects, only a portion of which can be funded by the national fiscus. The bulk of this will require external funding.

There are other specific initiatives that we are undertaking to boost private sector investment, support small businesses and create jobs.

To further boost intra-Africa trade, we have simplified the trade and investment regime for companies that do business inside the continent. 

We have done this through further extending the simplified tax and foreign exchange framework for companies with operations on the continent to unlisted companies. 

The cap of such benefits for listed companies will be increased.

The package of industrial incentives has also been increased and adapted to cater for the varying needs of businesses, including process improvements, machinery upgrades, industrial finance and export promotion.

Ladies and gentlemen,

One of the most important ingredients on the path to growth, is working together. We are already working together as government, the private sector, labour and the community sector in implementing the NDP.

We are working intensively with the private sector in particular, to remove obstacles to investment so that we can achieve inclusive growth and create jobs.

I have convened a meeting of the Presidential Business Working Group tomorrow and a progress report will be provided on work that has been done thus far by work streams from business and government.

The task teams have been working on many issues such as the issuing of water licenses, environmental regulations, business financing, business registrations and many other issues that could be an obstacle to economic growth.

The important factor is that we are talking, and that we are looking for solutions together. This is a great achievement for our country in recent times.

A labour indaba bringing together the NEDLAC partners is also planned for early November, to be convened by Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa. Together we are moving South Africa forward in the true sense.

This collaboration has also been evident in our innovative new programme, Operation Phakisa.

I undertook a state visit to Malaysia last year and was impressed by their Big Fast Results methodology. We have adapted this delivery programme at home and have launched it as Operation Phakisa.  

We released delivery plans for Operation Phakisa One, which looks at unlocking the economic potential of the country's ocean economy.  

The uniqueness of Operation Phakisa is that we work together as business, labour, government, academic institutions and community organisations to develop plans that will take South Africa forward to prosperity.

Given the challenges facing our country, we have no choice but to work together.

The work done through Operation Phakisa in the Ocean Economy focuses on realizing the full potential of our oceans, including off-shore oil and gas, growing aquaculture businesses, boat building and a comprehensive framework for marine services.  

Next month we will launch Operation Phakisa 2, which will focus on building ideal clinics in our country.  

Teams from business, government, labour and academia will grapple with one key question for six weeks at their retreat on the outskirts of Pretoria - what constitutes an ideal clinic in our health system? 

At the end of six weeks we will release their findings to the public.

We have been requested to look at Operation Phakisa Mining and we are seriously considering that.

Ladies and gentlemen, 

The growth of our economy will be greatly enhanced by the success of economic transformation.

The black majority should play a critical role in our growing economy, not just as consumers but as entrepreneurs, industrialists and producers as well.

To this extent, in January 2014 I signed into law the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Amendment Act.

Among others, the Act provides for the establishment of the Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment Commission, which is meant to provide an institutional environment for the monitoring and evaluation of the BBBEE.

This includes promoting collaboration between the public and private sectors in order to promote and safeguard the objectives of Broad Based Black Economic Empowerment.

It also intends to make the BBBEE a success by removing obstacles, creating an effective and efficient environment for it, as well as instituting mechanisms for good governance and accountability. 

The process of setting up the Commission is at an advanced stage, and it is targeted for 31st March 2015, as the Minister of Trade and Industry Dr Rob Davies explained on Tuesday, following the meeting of the outgoing Presidential Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council.

We have an ambitious programme to graduate BBBEE beneficiaries to fully fledged industrialists.

In September 2012, I requested the BEE Advisory Council to advance the Black Industrialists Programme concept. A lot of progress has been made. The programme has been launched and we are also developing a strategy and policy on black industrialists. 

Our aim is to promote and enable the participation of black people in the manufacturing sectors of the economy to become giants, through support from government and other related institutions. 

With the support of big business, this transformative programme will succeed. The Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Mr Mzwandile Masina, leads the black industrialists priority project.

Indeed, we are forging ahead together to build the economy.

What is important for all of us to remember, is that we should put South Africa first in everything we do.

I want to believe that we all want to see a united and prosperous South Africa, as various political parties, business organisations or even social clubs. 

Where may differ on the methods.

We need to be careful about the methods we use as we push political or economic objectives. 

Let us disagree on issues but ensure that South Africa does not suffer in the process. We all have a duty to make our beautiful country succeed.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Let me remind you that South Africa is open for business.

We may be going through a rough period economically like most economies in the world. But we will survive if we work together and focus on implementing the National Development Plan.

Working together, we will move South Africa forward.

I thank you.

Issued by the Presidency, October 23 2014

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