Pretoria - The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Sacci) has wished President Jacob Zuma well ahead of his delivery of the State of the Nation Address (SONA) later today.
In a statement on Tuesday, Sacci CEO Neren Rau said they look forward to the SONA as an important opportunity for the President to respond to economic concerns.
“South Africa has to urgently deal with several challenges that threaten economic stability and the business community is anxious to assist government in findings solutions to these challenges,” said Rau.
Some of the challenges that need to be addressed include protracted strikes, electricity supply and the credit downgrade.
Last week, National Treasury said it had noted the decision by rating agency Standard and Poor’s to revise down the country’s outlook. Also last week, Fitch Ratings revised the country’s outlook from stable to negative.
Government said it was aware of the growth challenges facing South Africa.
“Government is alive to the growth challenges South Africa faces. It has, therefore, prioritised the accelerated implementation of the National Development Plan, with reforms that are aimed at unlocking South Africa’s growth potential,” said Treasury.
Government said National Treasury will redouble its efforts to improve the regulatory environment, reduce the skills shortage and accelerate its infrastructure investment programme so as to reduce the bottlenecks constraining growth.
“Sacci wishes President Zuma good luck in delivering the SONA in such a challenging time and looks forward to continued cooperation between business and government,” said Rau.
President Zuma will deliver his first SONA in his second term as President of South Africa at 7pm in Parliament today. - SAnews.gov.za
