Deputy Minister in The Presidency Kenny Morolong has called for mining to be used as a catalyst for structural transformation.
“Mining must become the foundation on which we build a diversified and industrialised economy. The world’s most successful resource economies have used mining as a catalyst for manufacturing, engineering services, logistics hubs and research institutions,” Morolong said on Thursday in Rustenburg, North West.
Addressing the Bojanala District Economic Development Symposium, the Deputy Minister challenged the district to look beyond extracting raw minerals and sending them elsewhere for processing, manufacturing and export.
He noted that mining remains the dominant economic sector in Bojanala and continues to drive output, exports, investment and employment.
“Mining must become the foundation on which we build a diversified and industrialised economy,” the Deputy Minister said.
He said the economy that emerged under apartheid concentrated ownership, wealth and productive assets in the hands of a minority, while excluding the majority of South Africans from meaningful participation in economic activity.
“The discovery of diamonds in Kimberley in 1867 and gold on the Witwatersrand in 1886 transformed South Africa into one of the world’s leading mining economies.
“Mining became the foundation on which railways, ports, financial institutions, manufacturing industries and modern cities were built. However, this economic growth was not inclusive," the Deputy Minister said.
He said three decades later, inequality in South Africa remains stubbornly high.
"The challenge before us is therefore not merely economic growth; it is economic transformation. Transformation requires us to fundamentally change patterns of ownership, production, investment, skills development and economic participation,” he said.
Morolong emphasised that South Africa needs both growth and transformation.
According to the South African Reserve Bank and the International Monetary Fund, South Africa’s economy remains resilient, but growth is still too low to significantly reduce unemployment, poverty and inequality.
“We need to urgently industrialise our economy, deepen localisation and strengthen domestic backward linkages, especially in the mining value chain.
“We must expand opportunities for small, medium and micro enterprises (SMMEs), cooperatives, women-owned enterprises, youth-owned enterprises and black industrialists.
“We must strengthen municipal capability and improve infrastructure to ensure that economic growth translates into tangible improvements in the lives of ordinary South Africans,” Morolong said. -SAnews.gov.za
