Pretoria - The task ahead for the recently appointed National Planning Commission is not an easy one, but the combination of skills, expertise and experience that each member of the commission brings will undoubtedly make the task manageable.
This is according to the Minister in the Presidency and Chairperson of the National Planning Commission Jeff Radebe. He was speaking ahead of the inaugural meeting of the commission at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Friday.
The commission, comprising 25 members including the chairperson and his deputy, come from various sectors of society. They were all appointed by President Jacob Zuma in September on the basis of their expertise and will hold office for a period of five years.
“I am very excited about the task that lies ahead and look forward to working with all commissioners in this National Planning Commission,” said the Minister.
Minister Radebe said South Africans were looking at the commission to find solutions to some of the pressing challenges facing the country.
“Our role is to advise the Cabinet and the President on matters relating to the development of our country as spelled out in the National Development Plan (NDP).
“We will spend the rest of this meeting discussing different aspects of our main mandate and make sure that we have a shared understanding so that when this work begins as of today, we all sing from the same hymn sheet,” said the Minister.
He said the meeting will receive a hand-over report of the previous commission, a presentation of the work of the different branches of departments, as well as a presentation from Statistics South Africa on its various products.
Economic challenges to be dealt with
Minister Radebe said South Africa was faced with a prolonged challenge of slow economic growth and it was part of the unfavourable global economic conditions.
“There are domestic factors that are affecting our economy as well, including decades of underinvestment in economic infrastructure, the energy and transport constraints, prolonged and often violent strike action and rising input prices, among others.
“As a commission, we need to apply our collective thinking and assist our country to overcome these challenges. The current energy challenges limit growth and also make us an unattractive investment destination. This should be the last time we face energy constraints as a nation,” said the Minister.
He said the commission must introduce a long term plan, engaging relevant authorities, for energy security for the next 50 years. A water plan should also be drafted.
The commission will also have to develop a National Spatial Development Framework, which will be in line with the NDP.
“Our country faces many challenges and there is always a temptation to address all of them at once. As a commission, we have an opportunity to think strategically and to prioritise areas that have a major impact on sectors. We have to resist the temptation of doing everything at once,” said the Minister.
Minister Radebe said the new commission must build on the work done by the previous commission, complete some of the unfinished projects and initiate new ones.
Part of the work that the commission is tasked with is to promote the implementation of the NDP across different sectors of South African society.
“We have to conduct regular engagements with various sectors of society on all matters pertaining to the long term development plan of the country. We have to facilitate stakeholder engagements that are aimed at forging a social compact towards more effective implementation of the NDP.
“We have to analyse implementation of short to long term plans with a view to recommend improvements to our government, as well as produce reports to inform policy and planning,” said the Minister.
He said the commission must also contribute to the development of international partnerships and networks on national planning. - SAnews.gov.za
