Page 2 - SA is open for business

2 SOUTH AFRICA INVESTMENT CONFERENCE
The economic story so far
DURING HIS STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS, PRESIDENT CYRIL RAMAPHOSA
SET OUT SOUTH AFRICA’S ECONOMIC FUTURE IN THREE PARTS
Where we are now
1 “Our most grave and most pressing challenge is
youth unemployment. It is therefore a matter of
great urgency that we draw young people in far
greater numbers into productive economic activity.
“Young South Africans will be moved to the
centre of our economic agenda.
“We will launch the Youth Employment Service
initiative, which will place unemployed youth in paid
internships in companies across the economy.
“Together with our partners in business, we have
agreed to create a million such internships in the
next three years.”
2 “One of the initiatives will be to convene a Jobs
Summit within the next few months to align the
efforts of every sector and every stakeholder
behind the imperative of job creation.
“The summit will look at what we need to do to
ensure our economy grows and becomes more
productive, that companies invest on a far greater
scale, that workers are better equipped and that
our economic infrastructure is expanded.
“We will expect this summit to come up with
practical solutions and initiatives that will be
implemented immediately.”
3 “We will make a major push this year to encourage
significant new investment in our economy.
“To this end, we will organise an Investment
Conference, targeting both domestic and
international investors, to market the compelling
investment opportunities to be found in our
country.”
Results
Government’s business-led employment initiative,
the Youth Employment Service (YES), launched its
first community hub on June 28 in Tembisa,
YES aims to establish 100 hubs, which are smart
Gauteng.
infrastructure solutions that aim to address youth
unemployment challenges by bringing opportunities
to the doorsteps of underserved communities,
across the country.
The hubs form part of YES’s small, medium and
micro-sized enterprise (SMME) development
strategy to employ one million people in three
years’ time.
The jobs summit was held on October 4, where
the country’s social partners, comprising business‚
labour‚ government and community constituencies,
signed an agreement that contained several
proposed solutions to the country’s unemployment
crisis.
The framework will include ambitious and
realisable solutions following months of intensive
engagements between the social partners at the
National Economic Development and Labour
Council (Nedlac) on how to create and retain jobs.
The Investment Conference is taking place this
week in Johannesburg on a platform to showcase
growth and investment prospects in an economy
with vast potential and enormous resources.
This opportunity will be used to engage with
investors and for government to share with
investors the progress it is making in its journey
towards political and economic renewal,
strengthening the credibility of public institutions,
and unlocking the latent potential and innovative
spirit of South Africa’s economy.
25-27 OCTOBER 2018
Short, demand-led learning programmes will be
hosted at the hubs. Training will be invested in
critical areas, such as the hospitality, tourism and
The skills training is centred on areas such as
automotive sectors.
digital skills, business literacy and administration,
business innovation and industry-specific training.
Over the next three years, YES – led and
supported by the private sector – will incentivise
businesses to employ young people, giving them a
chance at a life-changing first work experience.
Initiatives and agreements coming out of the jobs
summit will lead to 275 000 jobs a year.
A presidential jobs committee made up of
business‚ labour and community leaders will also
be established to monitor the implementation of
agreements made at the Jobs Summit.
. Britain has agreed to support South Africa with
an investment of more than R850 million.
. China has committed to R193 billion in
investments in sectors such as oceans and the
green economy, science and technology,
agriculture, environment and finance.
. Saudi Arabia has committed to invest
R133 billion in the energy and power creation
sectors.
. The United Arab Emirates has announced plans
to invest R133 billion in key sectors of the
economy.