The Banking Association of South Africa (Basa) has urged President Jacob Zuma to address economic transformation in his State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Thursday.

Basa said in a statement that all sectors of society should introspect on their roles in economic transformation.

“We urge the President to unite our country under the banner of sustainable and progressive economic transformation, which will put the country on an inclusive growth path and enable the participation of small and medium-sized businesses, broaden access to financial services, increase employment, reduce poverty and build an equitable society,” Basa stated.

The association also urged Zuma to give impetus in his 2016 Sona to matters where not enough progress had made.

These include addressing remaining governance, management and mandate deficiencies in State-owned enterprises (SoEs), resolving the Minerals and Petroleum Resources Development Act Amendment Bill and other outstanding issues in the minerals sector, reducing political and policy uncertainty and ensuring the ongoing protection of key institutions.

It said that economic transformation, strengthening of SoEs, protection of key institutions and a united effort were all key ingredients in achieving sustained inclusive economic growth at a level that addressed poverty, unemployment and inequality.

Collaborative Efforts
In 2016 the benefits of collaboration between sectors was illustrated, Basa said. The Government/Business/Labour Initiative produced impressive results.

“We have avoided a ratings downgrade and started putting South Africa onto an inclusive growth path, albeit still at very low levels. We have raised R 1.7-billion from the private sector for a small and medium-sized enterprise fund, [implementation of which] will now start. We have been working hard to invest in low-growth industries and have exploited to the fullest investments in industries with high growth potential,” Basa said.

The association made progress in the banking sector with the establishment of a centre for excellence for the financial sector, which it committed to last year. Basa was also developing a robust agenda for transformation in the sector and will participate in hearings before the Standing Committee on Finance.

The sector has also made significant contributions to addressing the tertiary fees issue, through funding the pilot for the Ikusasa Student Financial Aid Scheme to fund and provide human capacity to make the National Student Financial Aid Scheme more efficient.

“We expect this Sona to consolidate this type of collaboration. The current narrative is about ‘radical economic transformation’,” highlighted Basa.