Expanded Public Works Programme should not be a substitute for sustainable job creation
15 November 2022
Note to editors: Please find attached soundbite by Samantha Graham-Maré MP.
The attempt by the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI), through its new Expanded Public Works Programme Policy, to reposition temporary public employment programmes as a substitute for the ANC government’s failure to grow the economy and create real jobs is not the answer to South Africa’s unemployment crisis and should be rejected.
In response to a request for public comments on the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) Policy by the DPWI, the DA made a formal submission yesterday in which we called for a forward looking EPWP policy that leverages on the private sector to create value for participants through skills development.
The proposed business case for this new EPWP policy, while rightly anchored on ‘tackling the triple challenges of poverty, inequality and unemployment’, remains inward looking and redistributive in its orientation. Instead of pivoting outside the public sector to create value for EPWP participants, the policy envisages a programme that revolves around an expansive role of the state in job creation, raising the risk of crowding out private enterprise participation in short-term Public Employment Programme (PEP) initiatives.