BUILDING A BETTER LIFE


A CONSTITUTIONAL VISION: PLANNING TO SUCCEED


South Africa has made great strides since the end of apartheid in 1994. Now the Minister charged with realizing the social and economic hopes and dreams of all South Africans lays out the nation’s new plan to build a better life for all by 2030 in the first National Development Plan for South Africa tabled in Parliament in late 2012.


Mr Trevor Manuel, MP, in Cape Town. Mr Manuel has been the Minister in the Presidency responsible for the National Planning Commission since 2009. An African National Congress Member of Parliament since 1994 and former Minister of Finance and Minister of Trade and Industry, he has also been the Special Envoy on Financing for Development for two United Nations Secretaries- General. He chaired the Development Committee of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and has chaired or served on several intergovernmental panels and commissions.


building capabilities, enhancing the capacity of the state and promoting leadership and partnerships throughout society.


Mr Trevor Manuel, MP


Over a period of two years, the National Planning Commission listened to thousands of South Africans from all corners of the country, from all walks of life. We received comments from individuals and organizations and engaged with government departments, provinces, municipalities, state-owned enterprises and agencies. What we came up with is the National Development Plan. This a long-term project with a defined goal: to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality by 2030 by drawing on the energies of South Africa’s people, growing an inclusive economy,


18 | The Parliamentarian | 2013: Issue One - South Africa


South Africans speak out From this extensive consultation process we identified three broad messages from citizens. In the first instance, South Africans from all walks of life expressed a deep patriotic commitment to South Africa, a love for their country, a desire to see it succeed. There is an incredible amount of goodwill out there that needs to be tapped and harnessed. Secondly, South Africans expressed concerns – honestly and frankly but constructively – that there are problems in our country that need strong, focused leadership from all. They spoke of joblessness, children who could not read or count, services that functioned on rare occasions and public officials who could be cold and uncaring.


Thirdly, there was an


overwhelming sense of readiness from all, including organizations representing millions of people, to be part of the process of making South


Africa a better place and to take action to put collective interest ahead of narrow sectoral concerns. These are the real strengths of our South African-ness. We are humbled by this support and the efforts of South Africans who want to be part of the process of change by taking ownership of the National Development Plan (NDP) and displaying a willingness to play their part in implementing it.


The Commission made a special effort to listen to young people. Young women and men talked of the difficulties of finding work, of the frustration at not getting their foot into the door, of their pain at not receiving a regular income and of basic things in life that being jobless excluded them from, such as starting a family. They also spoke to us about the ravages of crime on their lives and their communities. They expressed concern that good policies are poorly implemented and therefore fail. These are the voices of our youth expressing their frustrations, stemming both from the inter- generational effects of apartheid and from shortcomings in our collective


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