(Budget vote debate in parliament: Trade, Industry and Competition)
The FF Plus welcomes the admission by the Minister of Trade, Industry and Competition, Mr Ebrahim Patel, regarding the detrimental impact of poor governance, corruption and state capture on the industrialisation of South Africa.
In 2017, the Minister submitted a report to Cabinet detailing the impact of corruption on infrastructure development with the supposition that a payment of 10% would represent an amount of R1 billion due to corruption.
The FF Plus asked the parliamentary Committee on Trade, Industry and Competition whether a third focus area should not be added with specific reference to poor governance, state capture and corruption as hindrances to the achievement of the Department's industrialisation objectives.
That is above and beyond the Department's focus on domestic economic growth, which is unfair as a result of previous discriminatory policy and structural challenges.
As guardian of Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE), the Department is unable to build an inclusive economy and promote participation, which will empower all South Africans. As long as certain groups are excluded through BBBEE and the exclusive empowerment of black industrialists enjoys preference, the economy will not grow.
BBBEE will only succeed if South Africa's economic growth is successful in all areas. The redistribution of resources ultimately comes down to the redistribution of poverty.
Any programme implemented by the South African government and the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition with the aim of bringing about growth – that is not based on sound business principles – will end up being a heavily subsidised welfare programme inevitably financed by overburdened taxpayers.
The FF Plus welcomes the Department's programme aimed at stimulating domestic and regional production and, thus, promoting industrialisation in South Africa, but regional economic development relies heavily on the prerequisite that district municipalities and local government must support the growth plan locally.
This will not realise seeing as local government has already collapsed in South Africa.
The provincial and local governments' inability to provide basic services, like roads, water, sanitation and electricity, hinders the Department's plans to stimulate local economic development, particularly with regard to small and medium enterprises, to create more job opportunities.
Having less municipalities under ANC control after the local government elections will help remedy the situation.
The implementation of the overly zealous Covid-19 regulations also had a negative impact on the economy, particularly on the alcohol and tobacco industries.
Another serious cause for concern is that even more must be done with the Department's current allocated budget, which increased with 0,7% (R70,9 million) in real terms despite a predicted decrease in the real budget for the upcoming financial year.
Of the sixteen entities that report to the Department only four are self-funded. The South African Bureau for Standards (SABS) has been under administration since 2018 and its three-year turn-around strategy failed.
If these entities are not turned around very soon, the Department will not be able to fulfil its mandate to grow the South African economy for the benefit of all its people.
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