I took liberty to put the state of the nation address in this blog as delivered by President of the Republic, the honourable Mr. Jacob Zuma.

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STATE OF THE NATION ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY JG ZUMA,

PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

 

JOINT SITTING OF PARLIAMENT, CAPE TOWN

11 FEBRUARY 2010

 

Honourable Speaker;

Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces;

Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly and Deputy Chairperson of the NCOP;

Deputy President of the Republic, Honourable Kgalema Motlanthe;

Honourable Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa and all esteemed members of the Judiciary;

Isithwalandwe President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela;

Former President FW de Klerk;

Our father, Former President Kenneth Kaunda of Zambia;

Former Deputy Presidents;

Distinguished Premiers and Speakers of our Provinces;

Chairperson of SALGA and all local government leadership;

Chairperson of the National House of Traditional Leaders;

Heads of Chapter 9 Institutions;

The Governor of the Reserve Bank;

Special international Guests especially the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Mr Jean Ping;

Former political prisoners and veterans;

Members of the diplomatic corps;

South African and foreign media;

Fellow South Africans,

Dumelang, molweni, goeie naand, good evening, sanibonani nonke emakhaya!

Siyavuya ukuba nani ngobubusuku bubaluleke kangaka.

I stand before you this evening, 20 years since President Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela walked out of prison.

We have chosen this as the day to call this Joint Sitting of Parliament to deliver the State of the Nation Address, to celebrate a watershed moment that changed our country.

The release of Madiba was brought about by the resolute struggles of the South African people.

You will recall that the masses of this country, in their different formations, responded with determination to the call to make the country ungovernable and apartheid unworkable.

We are celebrating this day with former political prisoners who we have specially invited to join us.

We welcome in particular those who have travelled from abroad to be here, Helene Pastoors, Michael Dingake from Botswana, Mr Andimba Toivo ya Toivo of SWAPO in Namibia.

We are pleased to be joined by members of the legal team in the Rivonia Treason trial – Lord Joel Joffe, who is now based in London and Judge Arthur Chaskalson.

We also remember and pay tribute to Mr Harry Schwarz, who sadly passed away last week.

He was amongst other things, a member of the Rivonia defence team.

We extend our gratitude to our friends and comrades in the international community, for fighting side by side with us to achieve freedom.

We extend a special welcome to the Mandela family.

They became a symbol of the sacrifices of many who bore the brunt of apartheid.

We greet the leadership of the ruling party and Alliance partners, for whom this is an extra special occasion.

Compatriots and friends,

On this special day, we must also acknowledge the contribution of those within the leadership of the National Party, who eventually realised that apartheid had no future.

Allow me to mention the role played by former President PW Botha.

It was he who initiated the discussion about the possible release of political prisoners.

President Botha worked with the former Minister of Justice, Mr Kobie Coetzee, who was in turn assisted by Dr Neil Barnard and Mr Mike Louw.

They played a significant role in the process leading to the release of Madiba.

Honourable Members,

South Africa is yet to acknowledge in full, the critical role played by the former President of the ANC, Comrade Oliver Tambo, who laid the foundation for this country to become a shining example of freedom and democracy.

It was his outstanding leadership, foresight and clarity of vision that led the ANC to intensify the pursuit of a negotiated settlement.

His wisdom was also displayed in the Harare Declaration which he wrote and championed.

It was this that laid the groundwork for the historic announcements by President FW de Klerk, 20 years ago.

 

In this, President de Klerk demonstrated great courage and decisive leadership.

On this great day, let me also acknowledge the role played by the late Ms Helen Suzman.

She was for a long time, a lone voice in Parliament, calling for change.

We also recognise the role of the leader of the Inkatha Freedom Party, Inkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi, who also called for Madiba’s release, as well as that of other prisoners and the return of exiles.

We reiterate our heartfelt gratitude to the international community for its unwavering support to our struggle.

These moments in our history demonstrate our ability to come together, even under the most difficult of circumstances, and to put the country’s interests first above all other interests.

Deur saam te werk, kan ons meer bereik.

Honourable members,

During the course of this year, we will mark the centenary of the establishment of the Union of South Africa.

This created a unitary state.

Significantly, the exclusion of black people from this Union was one of the chief reasons for the formation of the African National Congress in 1912.

As we mark this centenary later in the year, we should reflect on how far we have travelled as a country.

Honourable Members,

We recall the words of Madiba on his release, when he said:

“I stand before you, not as a prophet but as a humble servant of you, the people.

Your tireless and heroic sacrifices have made it possible for me to be here today.

I therefore place the remaining years of my life in your hands.”

These words inspire us not to rest, until we achieve the ideals of a society free of poverty and deprivation.

In the two decades since the release of Madiba, our country has changed fundamentally.

President Mandela united this country behind the goal of a non-sexist, non-racial, democratic and prosperous South Africa.

As we celebrate Madiba’s release today, let us recommit ourselves to building a better future for all South Africans, black and white.

Let us pursue the ideal for which Madiba has fought his entire life - the ideal of a democratic and free society, in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.

 

Honourable Members,

 

We called a joint sitting in the evening so that the majority in our country, workers and school children, can be part of the occasion.

We are impressed by the enthusiasm of the youth about the occasion.

Two hundred and sixty six children from all provinces participated in the pre-State of the Nation debate on the role of the youth in the fight against poverty.

We congratulate the overall winner, Charlotte Le Fleur of Worcester Secondary School and all the participants for the hard work.

Compatriots and friends,

We are meeting against the backdrop of a global economic crisis.

Last year, we experienced our first recession in 17 years.

The crisis cost our economy about 900 000 jobs.

Many of those who lost their jobs were the breadwinners in poor families.

In February last year, government, business, labour and community representatives agreed on a package of measures to reduce the scale and impact of the crisis. We have put many of these measures in place.

We have implemented decisive anti-recession spending by government, especially on infrastructure.

To ensure a safety cushion for the poor, we brought social grant increases forward, and extended the child support grant to children over 14 years of age. In the next three years, an additional two million children from poor households, aged 15 to 18 years, will benefit from the child support grant.

The Industrial Development Corporation has put aside R6 billion to help companies in distress.

Government introduced a “training lay-off scheme” to allow workers the option of a period of training instead of retrenchment.

These efforts were enhanced by our public works programme.

 

The nation will recall that during the 2009 State of the Nation Address, I announced that the Expanded Public Works Programme would create 500 000 work opportunities, by December 2009.

Let me reiterate that these are not jobs in the mainstream economy.

These are job opportunities created to provide unemployed people with an income, work experience, and training opportunities.

 

 

Honourable Members, Fellow South Africans,

 

We are pleased to announce that by the end of December, we had created more than 480 000 public works job opportunities, which is 97% of the target we had set.

The jobs are in areas like construction, home and community based care, and environmental projects.

We have identified some areas of improvement which we will effect going forward, including ensuring more labour intensive projects.

We know that these and other measures cannot fully mitigate the effects of the recession.

We are grateful for the spirit of family, community and voluntary work that inspires many people to help those most affected by the crisis, through these difficult times.

 

 

 

 

Honourable Members,

 

Economic indicators suggest that we are now turning the corner.

Economic activity is rising in South Africa, and we expect growth going forward.

The labour statistics released on Tuesday, show that the economy is now creating jobs rather than shedding them.

It is too soon, though, to be certain of the pace of recovery.

Government will therefore not withdraw its support measures.

Now is the time to lay the groundwork for stronger growth going forward, and for growth that gives rise to more jobs.

 

Our long-term infrastructure programme will help us grow faster.

Our education and skills programmes will increase our productivity and competitiveness.

 

Our Industrial Policy Action Plan and our new focus on green jobs, will build stronger and more labour absorbing industries.

Our rural development programme will improve rural productivity, and the lives of people living in rural areas.

Underpinning our strategy for economic recovery and growth, is our capital investment programme.

 

Over the next three years government will spend R846 billion on public infrastructure.

On transport, we will maintain and expand our road network.

We will ensure that our rail network is reliable, competitive and better integrated with our sea ports.

To ensure reliable power supply, we have established an Inter-Ministerial Committee on Energy, to develop a 20 year integrated resource plan.

 

Among other things, this will look at the participation of independent power producers, and protecting the poor from rising electricity prices.

We will establish an independent system operator, separate from Eskom Holdings.

Eskom will continue to build additional generation capacity and improve the maintenance of its power stations.

To ensure the promotion of an inclusive economy, to aid growth and development, we have established the Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council, chaired by the President.

The most urgent focus of policy change must be interventions to create jobs for young people.

Unemployment rates for young people are substantially higher than the average.

Proposals will be tabled to subsidise the cost of hiring younger workers, to encourage firms to take on inexperienced staff.

A further expansion of public employment programmes is also underway.

This includes local infrastructure and literacy projects, home-based care, school maintenance and early childhood development initiatives.

 

 

 

 

Last year we launched the National Youth Development Agency.

We have directed the Agency to work faster to establish its structures, throughout the country, so that it can assist us to mainstream youth development programmes within government.

 

 

Honourable Members,

 

When this administration came into office last year, we undertook to work harder to build a strong developmental state.

We said it would be a state that responds to the needs and aspirations of the people, and which performs better and faster.

This year, 2010, shall be a year of action.

The defining feature of this administration will be that it knows where people live, understands their needs, and responds faster.

Government must work faster, harder and smarter.

 

We will expect the executive and the public service to comply with this vision.

We are building a performance-oriented state, by improving planning as well as performance monitoring and evaluation.

We also need to integrate gender equity measures into the government’