‘The budget for Gauteng is R500-billion. That 500 billion must help us create jobs, improve our economy, and achieve all sorts of things [in the province]... It’s not mission impossible, it’s mission possible. A mission that requires courageous men and women who are not lazy but committed.”
This is what Gauteng MEC for finance and economic development Lebogang Maile told the media at a briefing on Sunday, 14 July to outline the next steps by the Gauteng treasury and economic development portfolios.
With the long and arduous negotiation to form a government of provincial unity finally over, Treasury and Economic Development are hitting the ground running. In addition to increasing revenue collection, Maile and his portfolios have set their sights on establishing a provincial state bank, promoting the township economy and addressing high unemployment in the province, among other things.
Addressing the media at the Gauteng Infrastructure Financing Agency’s offices in Sandton, Johannesburg, Maile said the Gauteng Department of Economic Development was intensifying efforts to finalise the establishment of a provincial state bank. The bank’s chief objective would be to invest in projects that are “characterised by low private sector investment and high social return”.
Establishment of a provincial state bank was one of the long-term sustainable initiatives the department was considering to raise the province’s revenue. On how the department plans to turn the ambitious plan into reality, Maile said they were looking at different options, including buying an existing bank.
“We are serious about it. For us, it’s also about getting partners who have the money, the knowledge, the systems and the skills to run a bank. So we are not going to take chances. There’s no room for trial and error. We need to get a properly functioning bank and partner with people who know what they’re doing, so that we can… compete with other places,” he said.
Township economy to receive more attention
In a bid to make Gauteng’s economy more inclusive, the provincial Department of Economic Development has vowed to focus on promoting the township economy.
According to Maile, there are about 3.3 million micro and informal businesses in South Africa.
“Almost 20% of the country’s total employment is through the township economy. The township economy is critically important because it can unlock growth, inclusion and long-term social stability,” he said
The finance MEC vowed to take measures to facilitate the provision of suitable infrastructure, including websites, social amenities, information centres and common-use facilities necessary for the development of township-based enterprises.
The department would also invest in the manufacturing capacity of township enterprises to minimise reliance on procuring goods from major retailers.
“It is unjust for such concentrated populations of the township population to be so underproductive with minuscule economic output.”
Nasi Ispani lives on
Maile and his team’s plan to address youth unemployment goes hand-in-hand with his ambition to turn Gauteng into a green economic hub by focusing on projects such as the National Green Hydrogen Plan for 2035, which seeks to create 180,000 jobs by 2035 through the production of green hydrogen.
Maile added that unemployed young people would be targeted for skills development in the green economic sector.
Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi’s Nasi Ispani programme was criticised by NGOs and opposition parties, which deemed it nothing more than a glorified electioneering campaign for the 2024 polls. Maile, however, assured that the programme would not only continue in the seventh administration, but also mainstreamed.
Read more in Daily Maverick: ‘Political stunt’: Mixed reactions to Gauteng jobs campaign and what it means for healthcare
Maile said that just more than 400,000 jobs were announced recently and that the Unemployment Insurance Fund had made R8.5-billion available to facilitate the training of half a million unemployed young people.
“So [the programme] is continuing. It was not a gimmick, it was not an election campaign plot. We are genuine,” Maile said.
NPOs get some recognition
Maile also touched on the funding challenges nonprofit organisations have been facing in Gauteng, many of which have been forced to close or trim down their services.
He said he had met the new social development MEC, Faith Mazibuko, and other senior department officials last week, and it was agreed that the organisations that were supposed to receive funding should be paid by Friday.
Read more in Daily Maverick: Gauteng non-profits face closure after province cuts funding
“The NPO sector is very important in the ecosystem, and it must not be treated like a stepchild or an orphan. We are not doing them a favour, they are our partners. We have got the responsibility of the state to help the NPO sector because it’s complementing the work of the government,” Maile said.
He added that the department was looking at reviewing how it financed NPOs and considering instituting three-year funding agreements as opposed to one. DM