Chairperson, Ministers, Deputy Ministers, members of this august House and the public in the gallery, this debate takes place when we will be celebrating the Golden Jubilee of the Organisation of African Unity, OAU, next week. This organisation was instrumental in mobilising the international forces that waged a continental and global assault on the apartheid regime.
The founding members of the OAU, such as Kwame Nkrumah, believed that the fight against colonialism involved the unification of Africa, politically and economically. In the 1964 summit of the OAU, he said the following, and I quote:
By far the greatest wrong which the departing colonialists inflicted on us, and which we now continue to inflict on ourselves in our present state of disunity, was to leave us divided into economically unviable States which bear no possibility of real development ...
This clarion call of President Kwame Nkrumah was to agitate the African states to make common policies in development, trade and industrialisation.
It is a remarkable achievement that the ANC-led government, which is only 19 years old, is involved in the programmes that promote industrialisation, intra-African trade and continental unity, and Africa-wide developmental institutions. The sterling work of this government is realising the dreams of the founding fathers of the OAU.
The Department of Trade and Industry, through its programme of industrial development, is ensuring that South African companies are able to add value to our resources and trying to minimise the export of raw materials. Since the Department of Trade and Industry is the custodian of the Industrial Policy Action Plan of the ANC-led government, what is important is that strides are being made every day in ensuring that agricultural goods and mineral resources have value added before they are exported.
In 2009 the ANC made the clarion call that "working together, we can do more". This is now evidenced by the fact that national and provincial departments, local municipalities, and state-owned enterprises are working together to fight the triple challenge of unemployment, poverty and inequality.
Hon Minister, the Industrial Policy Action Plan is working. In the past development took place only in the big cities. Today I want to focus on the rural areas, because I am a boy from the Free State, which is an agricultural province.
Let me give an example of how the Ipap works in those small towns. In the past few years the maize farmers all over the country have been faced with a surplus of 500 million tons of maize. The co-op, Vrystaat Koperasie Beperk, in the Free State worked together with the provincial government, the three local municipalities of Phumelela, Nketoana and Mafube, and the IDC to launch a R624 million broiler project known as Grain Field Chickens project. This project was divided into three subprogrammes.
An abattoir was erected in Reitz with the capacity of processing 160 000 chickens a day. This led to the creation of 622 jobs in Reitz. These jobs have been created through Ipap. [Applause.]
In the town of Vrede a chicken feed factory was erected. This chicken feed factory is the place where the excess maize is being beneficiated, after which it is taken to the international market. The value of maize would otherwise have gone down and put its farmers out of work. As we say in the Free State, "'n boer maak 'n plan" [where there is a will, there is a way]. We did make a plan. [Inaudible.] We are dealing with that! [Applause.]
What is very important is that the provincial government also came to the party. When the provincial government came to the party, it ensured that all the roads connecting these towns were upgraded so that there could be a free flow of commodities - the chicken feed factory is in Vrede, the hatchery is in Frankfort, and the abattoir is in Reitz. [Applause.] The provincial government committed R300 million to improving the roads. Now, as I speak, these roads are in good condition. That is what we call unity in action. [Interjections.]
What is also very important is that around those towns - that means in the three municipalities - a total of 65 broiler houses were erected. Sir, 65 broiler houses were erected, and these broiler houses are managed mainly by the black farmers - emerging black farmers! It shows that you can have samewerking [co-operation] in the Free State, where the white farmer and the emerging businessman can come together and work and build this country. [Applause.] That is what is happening. These are the results of the Industrial Policy Action Plan.
What is critical here is that the provincial government came to the party. The provincial government provided R10 million for these projects to ensure that the emerging black farmers were able to build their own broiler houses. That is what we call black economic empowerment, BEE. BEE is not a swear word. Hon Hill-Lewis, BEE is not a swearword or horrible! [Laughter.] It is not a swearword.
What is critical here is that we as South Africans have no choice but to work together to build this country. If we don't work together, we will sink together. [Interjections.]
What is very important in the process is that the Industrial Development Corporation, which is a state-owned enterprise, went straight to Reitz and bought R15 million's worth of shares in that abattoir so that the workers there could become owners at the same time. That is what we call unity in action to fight poverty. [Applause.] What is also very important with regard to the capital investment is that the IDC was able to put in R85 million as its own shareholding. [Interjections.]
What is critical here, hon Minister, is that the municipalities also came to the party. They ensured that they made the land available, that water was always available, and that electricity was always supplied timeously so that it was not interrupted. This is because these operations operate 24 hours a day. Those are the results of the Ipap. If the Ipap can work in such small rural towns, how much more can we not achieve if we work together as a team?
In the process, this project is facing a threat. There are a lot of chickens coming from the European Union and Brazil. I think that this department must do its job to ensure that such emerging enterprises are protected from this type of dumping. I think this department must really work on that. [Applause.]
Hon McIntosh, with regard to the issue of free enterprise, no country is industrialised without the protection of infant industry. You can go to America, England and South Korea, and you will find it's the same story. Infant industries were protected so that they could grow. This is not a new thing.
This project actually proves that the economic policy of the ANC, of creating a developmental state which is based on a mixed economy, is correct. The Polokwane resolutions, which stated that the state had to lead an industrial and developmental trade policy, were correct.
This project also has a sister project in Namibia. This very project is being replicated in other SADC countries, because we have to develop together as a region. As I said, this project also has a sister project in Namibia where the IDC, which is our very own state-owned enterprise, plus Bank Windhoek and the Development Bank of Namibia have partnered in a similar project, which is known as Namib Poultry Industries. Firstly, this project sourced R150 million's worth of equipment from South Africa. Secondly, it sourced R20 million's worth of raw materials. Thirdly, 20 tons of maize from South Africa will be shipped straight to Namibia annually.
It shows that the threat which the economy was facing has been turned into an advantage because of the Industrial Policy Action Plan. This has turned a rural project into a regional one, and this would not have been possible without the co-ordination of policies in the region and Africa as a whole, where the DTI is leading in the alignment of these policies on the continent. The Freedom Charter states that we are striving for a better South Africa, a better Africa and a better world. That is what is happening. [Applause.]
The Economist of 27 April to 3 May 2013 had a very bold front page title: "Generation Jobless". That is The Economist - it is not a South African journal, but an international journal, and it states, "Generation Jobless". The editor of The Economist stated that in the countries that are members of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD, 26 million youths in the age group, 15 to 24 were unemployed and out of school. In emerging economies like Africa 262 million youths are unemployed and economically inactive. The same report indicates that youth unemployment has increased by 30% worldwide since 2007. This shows that the unemployment problem among the youth is an international phenomenon. [Applause.]
The issue of youth unemployment and poverty was eloquently summarised by the former President of South Africa, Dr Nelson Mandela, when he said, and I quote:
Every country in the world faces challenges. One of our challenges here is to ensure that we deal with poverty ...
... unemployment and ...
... lack of education.
This is critical. The issue of education was linked to unemployment and poverty. We know very well that the years of Bantu education have caused South Africa to have high structural unemployment. [Interjections.] If we are going to try to solve this, the issue of fighting unemployment has to be better handled. One of our challenges is to ensure that we deal with poverty, unemployment and lack of education.
The International Labour Organisation study and the OECD report indicated that the youth that have university qualifications in the fields of natural science and technology are less likely to be unemployed. This issue of fighting unemployment is better handled when the state and the private sector work together to create opportunities for youth entrepreneurs. Working together is manifested in a town known as Sasolburg, where the Metsimaholo Municipality and the Sasol Group are able to work together to create opportunities for young entrepreneurs. What is happening is that the Department of Trade and Industry has provided R26 million in seed funding, and the Sasol Group has come with R80 million, and they have created ChemCity Eco Industrial Park, where young entrepreneurs are being nurtured, so that they can grow. What is very important here is that the municipality has provided the land, the infrastructure, and incentives. This means that up to 2018 there will be preferential rates for those areas so that more people are able to get work. That is an example of unity in action. [Applause.]
What is also very important is that we cannot ignore the issues that have been raised here. As far as the issue of the National Development Plan is concerned, it is the ANC's policy! [Applause.] Why do I say this? Listen carefully. In Polokwane in 2007 the ANC resolved that the state must create, and I quote:
... an institutional centre for government-wide economic planning ... to prepare and implement long and medium term economic and development planning.
That is the resolution of the ANC. What does that mean? It means that the National Planning Commission was a resolution of the ANC. [Applause.] What happened after that was that, at the Mangaung conference, the work of the National Planning Commission was blessed by the ANC, because in Mangaung the ANC was able to adopt the National Development Plan as its official policy. I repeat, this is the official policy of the ANC! [Applause.]
When it comes to implementation ... [Interjections.]