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IOL News
3 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Construction industry sees green shoots of growth off a low base - BER's Lemboe
South Africa's construction sector, long mired in stagnation and underperformance, is beginning to show green shoots of recovery off a low base, South Africa's construction sector, long mired in stagnation and underperformance, is beginning to show green shoots of recovery off a low base, according to Craig Lemboe, the deputy director at the Bureau for economic Research (BER) speaking at Construction Industry Business Breakfast held on Wednesday. While the industry remains well below pre-pandemic output levels and continues to suffer from weak capital investment and low business confidence, recent survey data suggests that "green shoots" may be taking root. Lemboe said for most of last year, saw the non residential sector was starting to show a little bit more growth and more potential than the residential sector. However, this was from a more eroded base as it's 50% smaller than what than what it was 10 years ago. "We also see from our civil contractors survey that activity, particularly among large contractors, is doing quite well. So there is this idea that we are starting to see some larger infrastructure projects to come on board, and that the contractors are starting to see this, both in terms of the current activity, but also in terms of the activity going forward," he said. South Africa was starting to see some larger infrastructure projects to come on board. Despite these promising indicators, Lemboe cautioned that systemic barriers persist. Long delays in municipal approvals, chronic late payments by public entities, and uncertainty around infrastructure funding continue to hamper sustained recovery. The Western Cape province stood out as a bright spot, with above-average construction activity and stronger investor sentiment. Still, nationally, overall building sector confidence remains low, with 75% of residential builders expressing dissatisfaction with prevailing conditions. Another positive to support growth ahead, was the Budget 3.0 announcement of R1.03 billion allocated for infrastructure. However, Lemboe said while it "is a welcome announcement, there are a number of caveats that we are very weary of at the BER." A large chunk of this spend is being filtered through state-owned enterprises, but there isn't a lot of clarity on where the income is going to come from, where the capital is going to come from, in order to find these projects. Also a portion of the funds comes through provinces and municipalities, and municipalities are known to be weak on capital expenditure. Ramokgopa Meanwhile, Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Maropene Ramokgopa, also speaking at the event, said South Africa is accelerating plans to transform the country into a "construction site" through a sweeping infrastructure drive that aims to tackle unemployment, stimulate inclusive growth, and reduce the high cost of living, . Ramokgopa pointed to the government's Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) for 2024–2029, which commits to deliver n the established investment pipeline. "Increasing public infrastructure spending requires stimulating private sector investment that will enable industrialisation and supporting job creating in the country," she said. The government has committed over R943.8 billion to public infrastructure over the medium term, with a strong emphasis on crowding in private investment through public-private partnerships. However, public infrastructure spending currently accounts for just 3.8% of GDP, well below the 10% target set. Ramokgopa said South Africa's national development was linked to that of the African continent. "Infrastructure must drive regional integration, promote and support industrialisation across Africa as a region. We are advancing collaboration and partnership in accelerating regional infrastructure projects through an African Union's presidential infrastructure champion initiative," she said BUSINESS REPORT
Eyewitness News
26-05-2025
- Politics
- Eyewitness News
Mbeki says African leaders must put shoulder to the wheel in addressing continent's challenges
JOHANNESBURG - Former President Thabo Mbeki said African leaders need to put their shoulder to the wheel in addressing a range of challenges faced by the continent. Mbeki made the renewed calls at the 15th Thabo Mbeki Africa Day Lecture in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania at the weekend. Mbeki was joined by other former heads of state from Africa and policy leaders in a packed hall. Social cohesion, democracy, economic rebuilding and growth, and the positioning of Africa as a significant player in geopolitical affairs are among priorities Mbeki said still need to be addressed urgently. READ: MTDP a vision that lacks necessary steps to bring it to life, says Mbeki 'To do this thing that all of us wish for, this rebirth of the African continent, practically what do we do, we have the vision, we think we know where we want to go but what do we do practically?' Mbeki said, despite his exit from active politics, he continues to be part of leaders heeding the calls for transformation on the continent. "Other things being equal, I should have retired as President of South Africa in 2009 but other things being unequal, I retired in 2008. Before that, my colleagues, other heads of state at the time, said, 'When you retire, you must continue to focus on these African challenges.'"
Daily Maverick
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Daily Maverick
South Africa is at a critical juncture — the government is rising to the challenge
Daily Maverick's Managing Editor for News and Maverick Citizen, Ms Zukiswa Pikoli, penned an opinion piece published on 19 May 2025, lamenting a perceived lack of monitoring and evaluation in the country's governance. While Ms Pikoli is entitled to her views on the 'state of things' as she sets out, her opinion piece shows a misplaced understanding of the work of the Department of Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation (DPME), and the interventions of the department in efforts to deepen the state's capacity. South Africa, like many democracies facing complex developmental challenges, is at a critical juncture. While concerns about departmental and institutional performance are legitimate, the idea that the state is teetering on the edge of complete failure misses the real, measurable progress being driven in key areas of government, particularly by the DPME. The DPME is not an inspectorate or a police force for other government departments. Rather, the department promotes coherence in government through the institutionalising of planning, developing a robust evidence-based and integrated monitoring system to monitor the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP) Vision 2030 and the recently approved Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP), evaluating critical government programmes, and producing research outputs to inform evidence-based decision-making in government. Fostering a performance-driven culture across the public service is not optional, but essential. The commitment to building a capable, ethical and results-oriented state is reflected in a comprehensive effort to transform how government plans, delivers and accounts for its work. At the heart of this transformation is the development of an integrated planning system grounded in the MTDP and its Results Framework. The MTDP is the five-year programme of action that is guiding the work of the 7th administration. The DPME has played a critical role in coordinating the finalisation of the MTDP and will continue to do so in its implementation. In an unprecedented time in our nation's democracy, we engaged and consulted extensively with the Government of National Unity (GNU) partners, national departments and all spheres of government and stakeholders, to translate the strategic priorities of the GNU into measurable outcomes and sector-specific targets which are set in the MTDP. Through the MTDP, the DPME is playing an important role in transforming South Africa's planning system to consist of measurable priorities and a results-based implementation framework. This ensures that government departments are not just drafting plans for compliance, but also align their strategies with national priorities and measurable development outcomes. A new Policy Framework on Integrated Planning provides further guidance and structure, ensuring that strategic plans (SPs) and annual performance plans (APPs) are assessed for quality, consistency and alignment with regular consultations to strengthen coherence across departments and spheres of government. Monitoring Planning is only one side of the coin. To monitor and measure progress, the DPME has developed a robust Integrated Monitoring Framework, which enables the tracking of key performance indicators in real time. In a significant move towards transparency and citizen empowerment, we are spearheading the launch of a public-facing digital performance dashboard. This platform will allow South Africans to monitor government performance online, ensuring that departments are held accountable, and that citizens are informed participants in democratic governance. In addition to these system-level reforms, the DPME continues to conduct frontline monitoring and provide targeted intervention support to identify and resolve service delivery challenges on the ground. These efforts are about more than just oversight. They are about improving outcomes where it matters most, at the point of contact between citizens and the state. The DPME is strengthening partnerships and collaboration to achieve development priorities and build capacity in the state through enhancing planning, monitoring and evaluation. In advancing a whole-of-society approach to meet government's strategic priorities, we continue to engage and deepen collaboration with the private sector, civil society, research institutions and academia, governments and multilateral institutions, to strengthen policy development, implementation support and independent accountability in the state. The DPME's work and approach recognise the levers that must be pulled to drive meaningful change in the public sector. Government's comprehensive 30-Year Review of South Africa's Democracy 1994-2024, which was led by the DPME, highlights the extent to which government policies have succeeded in improving people's lives since South Africa's transition to democracy, and the lessons towards achieving the country's development goals. We have worked hard to ensure that the building blocks are firmly in place with planning, monitoring and evaluation systems becoming more integrated, transparent and citizen-focused than ever before. South Africa is not without challenges, but it is through this kind of clear-eyed, system-wide reform that is grounded in planning, driven by data and accountable to the people that we can build a state that works. We are resolute in our interventions, which are repositioning the DPME as a strategic centre of government, committed to results and integrity. DM
The Citizen
24-04-2025
- Business
- The Citizen
SA's expanding safety net: Millions more to receive social grants by 2030
'One of the commitments in the National Development Plan Vision 2030 is to eradicate food poverty by 2030,' stated Hendricks. Al Jama-ah's Ganief Hendricks at the 2024 state of the nation address (Sona) at Cape Town City Hall on 8 February 2024. Picture: Gallo Images/Ziyaad Douglas South Africa is set to significantly expand its social welfare system over the coming years, with ambitious targets to increase coverage across multiple vulnerable groups. The Department of Social Development has announced plans to extend older persons' grants to 5.4 million beneficiaries by the end of the five-year term in 2030, up from a mid-term target of 5 million by 2027-2028. Similarly, child support grants are projected to reach 14.1 million children by 2030, while disability grants aim to support more than 1.1 million people by the same year. Department unveils strategic plan amid budget constraints The department recently unveiled its strategic plan for 2025-2030 and annual performance plan for 2025-2026, with a focus on poverty reduction, empowering resilient communities, and creating an integrated social development sector. These plans align with national development priorities while acknowledging that the department must 'do more with less' due to budget constraints. 'The strategic priorities of the Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) are to reduce levels of poverty and vulnerability to social ills, empower resilient individuals, families and sustainable communities, and create a functional, efficient and integrated sector,' explained a department representative during the presentation. The MTDP, which serves as an implementation framework for the National Development Plan (NDP), focuses on three key strategic priorities: inclusive growth and job creation, reducing poverty and tackling the high cost of living, and creating a capable, ethical, and developmental state. ALSO READ: New ID verification process for Sassa grants: Here's who's affected Understanding the planning framework The department operates within multiple planning timeframes that work together. The strategic plan covers a five-year period, while the annual performance plan addresses the immediate fiscal year ending in March 2026. The Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) is a three-year rolling budget planning tool used by the National Treasury to allocate resources based on priorities and fiscal constraints. The NDP Vision 2030 serves as South Africa's long-term socio-economic development roadmap for the period up to 2030. Meanwhile, the MTDP serves as an implementation framework for the NDP, typically spanning 3–5 years and encompassing specific targets and commitments. This multi-layered approach allows the department to balance immediate fiscal realities with longer-term development goals while maintaining alignment with national priorities. Historic legislation on the horizon Deputy Minister of Social Development, Ganief Hendricks, told the portfolio committee that a policy on social development would be presented to Cabinet by October. Hendricks emphasised the historic significance of such legislation, noting that '30 years in our democracy, South Africa will have an Act of Parliament for social development'. The push for legislative reform extends beyond the department itself, with calls from various sectors for specialised legislation. 'There have also been calls from the disability sector for their own Act of Parliament to give them the power that they need,' the deputy minister explained. The Central Drug Authority has also requested legislation to address substance abuse, which Hendricks characterised as 'becoming a threat to state security'. ALSO READ: Sassa confirms Old Age Grant will not be cancelled Ambitious vision for poverty eradication by 2030 The department has identified reducing poverty and tackling the high cost of living as key priorities, directly aligned with the broader strategic focus areas of the Government of National Unity (GNU) formed after the May 2024 elections. 'One of the commitments in the National Development Plan Vision 2030 is to eradicate food poverty by 2030,' stated Hendricks. He outlined a vision where, by 2030, 'those who don't earn or work will get a guaranteed R760, but I believe R1,000 in their pocket every month.' This commitment, according to Hendricks, would 'send waves throughout the world that South Africa does care about the most vulnerable people.' With 28 million social grant beneficiaries, the department faces significant challenges in improving support. 'We have to do something to increase their food basket,' Hendricks explained, though he acknowledged that immediate increases would be more modest than hoped: 'Unfortunately, it looks like instead of a R150 increase, they're only going to get R120.' ALSO READ: Defence alleges witness interference in Sassa fraud case Nine portfolio commitments to address social challenges The department has identified nine portfolio commitments aligned with the MTDP, reflecting a more focused approach as the 2030 deadline approaches. 'I think the message is that as we move towards Vision 2030, we need to begin to cut the cloth according to size. We need to begin to reprioritise and not attempt to do everything,' a department representative stated. Key commitments include increasing access to nutritious food for vulnerable individuals, with mid-term targets of reaching 1.5 million people through food security programs by 2027-2028, and optimising social protection within available fiscal resources. Addressing substance abuse and Gender-Based Violence The department continues to implement the National Drug Master Plan with targets to help over 135,000 service users access substance abuse disorder treatment by mid-term (2027-2028), and nearly 273,000 by term end (2030). For gender-based violence, the department aims to provide psychosocial services to 224,549 victims by mid-term and 449,048 by the end of the term in 2030. 'We also have the intervention as part of the MTDP commitment to link social assistance with other forms of support to lift people out of poverty, so that our people don't only depend on social grants alone,' the department added. ALSO READ: A R1 billion U-turn: Scrapping the VAT increase leaves no winners, just absolute chaos Moving beyond social grant dependency Both Hendricks and the newly appointed Director-General, Fhumulani Peter Netshipale, emphasised the need to transition beneficiaries from dependence on social grants to sustainable livelihoods. 'The National Development Agency is expected to create sustainable livelihoods so that people rapidly move from social grants into sustainable livelihoods,' Hendricks explained. He added that the department was receiving pressure from Treasury, questioning it about its plans and actions for poverty alleviation. The department's poverty alleviation strategy targets 1.4 million households accessing sustainable livelihood initiatives by mid-term (2027-2028), expanding to 2.9 million by the end of the term in 2030. Enhanced monitoring and provincial oversight A key focus for the department going forward will be strengthened monitoring of service delivery at the provincial level. 'Most of the time we used to come here, and you say what is happening in North West, but we are now called to make sure that we monitor services through all nine provinces,' Netshipale explained. 'The department needs to step up its own approach to strengthen the monitoring of services and report here in terms of what is happening in terms of the baselines that we have set.' This represents a shift toward greater accountability. 'We will be accountable to this committee time and again in terms of what we have delivered,' added Netshipale. Despite the significant role social grants play in alleviating poverty—currently supporting 45% of the nation—Committee Chairperson Bridget Masango expressed concern about what she termed 'dignity poverty,' particularly for young people living on the Social Relief of Distress (SRD) grant, a temporary assistance program for those in immediate need. 'If you have young people as young as 35 years old and younger or older living on the SRD, that is not dignified at all,' Masango stated. ALSO READ: Who really won the VAT fight? GNU shakes as parties cry 'deception' Budget allocations and constraints The department's budget presentation revealed that while there were no major budget cuts for the MTEF period as in previous years, there were also no significant increases, requiring careful resource management. 'There were no nasty surprises, luckily for the MTEF period, as we had in the previous years, where there were budget cuts, but we were also not favourable in terms of the operations of the budget,' the Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Fanie Esterhuizen, explained. The base year 2025/26 budget allocation of R294 billion includes funding for the Social Relief of Distress grant, which is only allocated for one financial year, explaining the drop in the 2026/27 fiscal year allocation. A significant budget challenge is that the department had to fund the 5.5% cost-of-living increase for public servants from its existing operational budget, reducing goods and services allocations. 'In the past, three years ago, National Treasury would grant us this amount. But any increases now have to come from our baseline, and the only place we could take it from was from goods and services,' Esterhuizen stated. NOW READ: VAT to remain at 15%, hike reversed, Treasury announces
IOL News
24-04-2025
- Business
- IOL News
KZN Premier announces R86 million funding for Zulu Royal House Trust
KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli stated that the KwaZulu-Natal Zulu Royal House Trust (ZRHT) will receive R86 million in the financial year (FY) 2025 and 2026 from the Office of the Premier (OTP) budget of R817 million. Image: Supplied The KwaZulu-Natal Zulu Royal House Trust (ZRHT) will receive R86 million in the financial year (FY) 2025 and 2026 from the Office of the Premier (OTP) budget of R817 million. This was revealed by KZN Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli who delivered his budget vote for the OTP on Thursday. Ntuli said the OTP has also embarked on developing a centralised Provincial Forensic Framework that will ensure that all Forensic Investigations Units in the Province are centralized under the KZN OTP. Ntuli said that currently, some departments have their own Forensic Units and this duplicates resources spent in the province while leading to a lack of objectivity in reporting. Ntuli said the Medium-Term Development Plan (MTDP) outlined three key priorities: to drive inclusive economic growth and job creation to reduce poverty and tackle the high cost of living to build a capable, ethical and developmental state Ntuli said his vision was for KZN to take its place as a leading province, with its people exhibiting unmatched excellence and exemplary leadership The structures of the OTP and budget allocation include: Administration (R237 million); Institutional Development (R362 million) and Policy and Governance (R217 million). The OTP provides active support to the ZRHT. Ntuli said they will continue to explore medium-to long-term revenue-generating projects prioritising property development to ensure the long-term financial sustainability of the Zulu Royal Family. 'The trust will consider public-private partnerships, but private-sector participation will be prioritised in raising funds for medium to long term. The trust will continue to explore opportunities in commercial farming and create partnerships with provincial entities specialising in agriculture. Ntuli said the planning and co-ordination of a fundraising event to celebrate Zulu cultural heritage is underway, and the event is expected to take place in the 2025/ 2026 FY. There will be a focus to strengthen the Premier's Coordinating Forum (PCF) as the uppermost Inter-Governmental Relations (IGR) structure of co-ordination of all spheres by the Premier. 'The Operation Mbo project will continue to be the priority area to ensure the speedy finalisation of disciplinary cases. This includes continuous deployment of a multi-disciplinary crack team, training interventions and constant monitoring and monthly reporting,' Ntuli said. Ntuli said the OTP will intensify the implementation of the results of the skills audit focusing on catalytic training programmes such as the digital skilling of public servants, as well as interventions to address gender disparities especially in management positions across all government departments. 'To bolster our efforts to position our province to be a smart province, enormous strides have been made in implementing key components of the provincial digital transformation strategy. A major milestone in this journey has been the automation of essential tools, such as Operation Sukuma Sakhe's case management system, household profiling and war room functionality audit, which has improved service delivery by streamlining case handling and response times,' Ntuli said. The Forensic Investigations and Integrity Management will receive R44 million. Ntuli said the OTP was committed to the fight against fraud and corruption and will embark on numerous initiatives to curb this plague. This will be done through an approved forensic investigations framework. 'There are plans to intensify collaboration with law enforcement agencies on matters under criminal investigation. Consistent liaison will be conducted to assess the progress of the top priority cases and criminal investigations within the province which emanate from provincial forensic investigations,' Ntuli said.
