South Africa is abundantly endowed with natural resources, which must be harnessed to a greater level to boost economic growth and job creation, says President Cyril Ramaphosa.
“South Africa has got huge and wonderful natural resources, which we need to exploit to a higher level. Being here has given me and the Ministers who have been here with this visit, an opportunity to see that we can grow our economy enormously and make South Africa a hub as far as the ocean economy is concerned,” President Ramaphosa said, following a guided tour of the Port of Ngqura’s operations on day one of his oversight visit to the Eastern Cape on Tuesday.
He was joined by Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy, and Cooperative and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa.
The delegation toured the Ngqura Container Terminal, which is a state-of-the-art transhipment hub, servicing traffic from the Far East, South America and East and West African markets.
The President also boarded a tugboat named ORCA which is used to assist in docking and sailing ships in and out the port.
The President described the visit as “most impressive,” noting the plans in place to upgrade Ngqura, the country’s deepest water port. He said enhancing the port’s operations will enable it to attract more international ships and position the country as a key maritime hub.
“We are on an inspection visit just to see how the port is operating and what the developmental opportunities are, to take this port to a much higher level. Also to engage with the executives of Transnet, together with the Minister, to hear what their plans are with regards to this port, as well as the SEZ [Special Economic Zone] here in Ngqura,” the President said.
President Ramaphosa praised South Africa’s extensive coastline and network of ports, which include Durban, Cape Town, Saldanha Bay, Richards Bay, and Ngqura, saying these are strategic assets that should be leveraged through the Oceans Economy Master Plan.
“So, as a country surrounded by almost 2 800 kilometres of sea water, we are well endowed,” he said.
He highlighted the importance of both government and private sector investment to fully unlock the potential of the ports and surrounding SEZs, such as the one located in Ngqura.
“Obviously, we have to bring in a lot of investments, and it is to this end that the government will play its own role in investing, as well as attract the private sector to come and invest quite a bit of their money as well.
“And in the end, we want to see this contributing to job creation. Already, a number of people are employed here, but we want to double or even triple the number of people who are employed here,” he said.
The President also commended Transnet CEO Michelle Phillips and her team for the work being done at the port.
“This has been a wonderful visit, and good work is being done here by the CEO of Transnet, Michelle Phillips, and all those that she works with. The Minister is giving good guidance, and the Deputy Minister as well. So, it’s been a good visit, a very good day at the office,” he said.
President Ramaphosa and his Cabinet will today meet with Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane and his executive council to discuss conditions and opportunities in the province as part of strengthening intergovernmental cooperation, collaboration and consultation.
The national and provincial executives will discuss various approaches to improving service delivery at local government level.
The President’s visit seeks to tighten alignment between provincial priorities and those of the 7th Administration, in line with the joined-up development approach adopted by government in the District Development Model (DDM).
The DDM aims to improve the coherence and impact of government service delivery with focus on 44 districts and eight metros around the country as development spaces that can be used as centres of service delivery and economic development, including job creation.
This visit is the fifth engagement between the national executive and provincial governments following recent interactions between the President and the provincial governments of Mpumalanga, KwaZulu-Natal, Limpopo and Gauteng. – SAnews.gov.za
