2023 STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS
By Neville Motlhabakwe
This is the shortened version of president Cyril Ramapahosa’s “State of the Nation” address delivered at the opening of the South African parliament on 9 February 2023.
New jobs: Between the third quarters of 2021 and 2022, around one and a half million new jobs were created in our economy. The Presidential Employment Stimulus has provided work and livelihood opportunities to more than one million people.
Matric results: Last year, our matriculants defied the effects of the pandemic to achieve a pass rate of 80 per cent and we congratulate them for that great achievement. We see this spirit of determination in our artists, musicians, actors, authors and sportsmen and women, who are making waves at home, on the continent and beyond our shores.
Arts/Football: Banyana Banyana made us proud when they won the Women’s African Cup of Nations to become the champions of Africa. Zakes Bantwini, Nomcebo Zikode and Wouter Kellerman have made us proud at the Grammy Awards for their collaboration, Bayethe.
Energy crisis. In July last year I announced a clear action plan to address the energy crisis. This was to address the electricity shortfall of 4,000 to 6,000 MW.
Five key interventions:
- First, fix Eskom’s coal-fired power stations and improve the availability of existing supply.
- Second, enable and accelerate private investment in generation capacity.
- Three, accelerate procurement of new capacity from renewables, gas and battery storage.
- Four, unleash businesses and households to invest in rooftop solar.
- Five, fundamentally transform the electricity sector to achieve long-term energy security.
Engineers: We are rebuilding the skills that have been lost and have recruited skilled personnel at senior levels to be deployed at underperforming power stations. The Engineering Council of South Africa has offered to give as much assistance as required by deploying engineers to work with the management teams at power stations.
Eskom’s debt: National Treasury is finalising a solution to Eskom’s R400 billion debt burden in a manner that is equitable and fair to all stakeholders, which will enable the utility to make necessary investments in maintenance and transmission.
Diesel: Government will support Eskom to secure additional funding to purchase diesel for the rest of the financial year. This should reduce the severity of load shedding as Eskom will be able to use its diesel-run plants when the system is under strain.
Buy excess power: Eskom has launched a programme to buy excess power from private generators and has already secured 300 MW from our neighbouring countries.
SAPS at power stations: The South African Police Service have established a dedicated team to deal with corruption and theft at several power stations that have contributed to the poor performance of these stations.
Intelligence-driven operations at Eskom-related sites have so far resulted in 43 arrests.
National Transmission Company: The restructuring of Eskom is proceeding. The National Transmission Company will be soon operational with an independent board. Later this year we will table the Electricity Regulation Amendment Bill to transform the energy sector and establish a competitive electricity market.
Rooftop solar: As indicated in July last year, and with a view to addressing the load shedding crisis, we are going to proceed with the rollout of rooftop solar panels.
Private generators: We will allow private developers to generate electricity. There are now more than 100 projects. They are expected to provide over 9,000 MW of new capacity over time.
Disaster declared: The National Disaster Management Centre has consequently classified the energy crisis and its impact as a disaster. We are therefore declaring a national state of disaster to respond to the electricity crisis and its effects.
Minister of Electricity: I will appoint a Minister of Electricity in the Presidency to assume full responsibility for all aspects of the electricity crisis response, including the work of the National Energy Crisis Committee.
Port Elizabeth Automotive Terminal: There has been great success in repositioning the Port Elizabeth Automotive Terminal which has more than doubled its capacity and has already seen an increase in exports.
Water infrastructure: The Department of Water and Sanitation is investing in major infrastructure projects across the country. After being delayed for several years, full-scale construction works for the Lesotho Highlands Phase Two project will commence this year.
Invest in infrastructure: South Africa has been allocated R600 million for project preparation. By January this year, projects worth R232 billion were under construction and projects worth nearly R4 billion had been completed. The completed projects include new human settlements in Gauteng, road upgrades and the development of small harbours.
SANRAL: The South African National Roads Agency – SANRAL – has been awarded road construction contracts worth R18 billion over the last three months. The construction of the Msikaba Bridge and Mtentu Bridge will be finished and make travel in the Eastern Cape much better.
Investment conference: On the 13th of April this year we will hold our 5th South Africa Investment Conference. We will mobilise more than R2 trillion in new investment by 2028.
Hemp/cannabis production: The Department of Agriculture Land Reform and Rural Development and the Department of Health will address existing conditions for the cultivation of hemp and cannabis to allow outdoor cultivation and collection of harvests from traditional farmers.
Black industrialists: The inaugural Black Industrialists conference in July last year showed the successes of black South Africans in producing food, car parts, furniture, clothing, steel, chemicals and mining products, creating many thousands of jobs and adding to our gross domestic product. We now have almost 1,000 black industrialists participating in the black industrialists programme.
Post bank: The Postbank is reviewing its service offerings so that it can provide a viable and affordable alternative to the commercial banks.
Skills fund: This year the National Skills Fund will provide R800 million to develop skills in the digital and technology sector through an innovative model that links payment for training to employment outcomes.
We reiterate our call to companies, departments and SOEs to remove the requirement for work experience for young people seeking entry-level positions.
Home Affairs: The Department of Home Affairs has appointed the first cohort of 10,000 unemployed young people to digitise more than 340 million paper-based civic records..
Education: Access to quality education for all is the most powerful instrument we have to end poverty. The number of children who receive the Early Childhood Development subsidy has more than doubled between 2019 and 2022, reaching one-and-a half million children.
Student funding: Government plans to finalise the Comprehensive Student Funding Model for higher education, particularly for students who fall outside current NSFAS criteria; reaching those who are known as the ‘missing middle’.
Zondo Commision: The recommendations of the commission are being implemented according to the plan that I submitted to parliament in October last year. The National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council is in place to advise on suitable mechanisms to stem corruption. This year the Investigating Directorate will be established as a permanent entity within the NPA.
SOE’s: We will implement the recommendation of the Presidential SOE Council to establish a state owned holding company as part of a centralised shareholder model that will ensure effective oversight of SOEs. Separately, I have instructed the Presidency and National Treasury to work together to rationalise government departments, entities and programmes over the next three years.
Municipalities: Too many of our municipalities, 163 out of 257, are dysfunctional or in distress due to poor governance, ineffective and sometimes corrupt financial and administrative management and poor service delivery.
Government is implementing a number of interventions. These include enhancing the capacity of public representatives and officials, maintaining and upgrading local infrastructure, and invoking the powers of national government to intervene where municipalities fail to meet their responsibilities.
Gift of the Givers: South Africa expresses its deepest condolences to the government and people of Türkiye following the devastating earthquake earlier this week. We are immensely proud of the efforts of Gift of the Givers to help those affected by the earthquake.
SACU: South Africa, together with our neighbours in the Southern African Customs Union, will soon finalise our industrial offer on the African Continental Free Trade Area.
The Continental Free Trade will provide an unprecedented opportunity to deepen African economic integration, grow national economies, and open up new frontiers and markets for South African companies.
Madiba: This year it will be 10 years since we bid farewell to Nelson Mandela. It will also be 105 years since his birth. As we honour his great life, let us draw inspiration from the words he spoke at his inauguration in 1994, when he said: “Out of the experience of an extraordinary human disaster that lasted too long, must be born a society of which all humanity will be proud”.
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