President Cyril Ramaphosa on state capture‚ Eskom and job creation

President Cyril Ramaphosa is at the World Economic Forum in Davos‚ Switzerland‚ to attract potential investors. The president’s goal is to raise up to R1-trillion in investments by 2023.

This week he gave a global update on the South African economy. Here are the key issues he focused on.

Job creation

“We have placed the task of inclusive growth and job creation at the centre of our national agenda. Around a third of working-age South Africans right now are unemployed. We recognise that we cannot create work on any meaningful scale unless we grow the economy.”

Skills development

“We want to vigorously develop skills of South Africans by developing the human capabilities of South Africans and make them ready to engage‚ to work in a technologically changing world on an ongoing basis.”

Progress in investment

“Last year we launched an ambitious drive to raise $100bn in the next five years. We were able to mobilise local and international business and raised $20bn in investment.”

On damage caused by state capture

“The positive thing is‚ while the truth comes out‚ it is adding to our resolve as a country and as a government and as a people to fight corruption‚ to bring it to an end and to make sure that those who have been complicit in acts of corruption are brought to book.”

On Eskom

“We are currently developing a response to the financial operation of our country’s electricity utility‚ which is Eskom. In the next few weeks‚ we will be announcing a set of measures to stabilise‚ as well as to improve‚ the company’s financial position.”