Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Performance, Monitoring, Evaluation and Administration Jeff Radebe
There is an "urgent" need for government, labour and industry to revive South Africa's flagging economy and the manufacturing sector can play a key role in achieving that goal, said Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Performance, Monitoring, Evaluation and Administration Jeff Radebe.
He was addressing delegates of the South African Institution of Mechanical Engineering seminar at the 2017 Machine Tools Africa trade show, on Tuesday.
"The need for growth in the manufacturing sector to support the reinvigoration of the country's economy broadly, along with the goal of achieving economic transformation is a top priority for government as outlined in the National Development Plan (NDP)," said Radebe.
He elaborated that the NDP called for the diversification of South Africa's economy away from its centuries-old reliance on mining to ensure the country's reindustrialisation, thereby creating new job opportunities.
Radebe stated that, for this to be realised, it was necessary to strengthen the local manufacturing industry and the tooling sector in particular. He noted that the machine tool sector was anticipated to grow substantially in the coming years, which provided local machine tool producers with "enormous opportunities" to capatilise on this forecasted growth.
He acknowledged the inherent challenges that faced the manufacturing industry, such as rising input costs and labour unrest needed to be addressed by all stakeholders, including government, industry and labour unions.
However, the Minister pledged to work with all parties to safeguard the sector and ensure the vision outlined in the NDP was realised.