MD’S MESSAGE
Moving towards the
implementation of the
National Development Plan
T
he Banking Association South Africa, at its last Board
meeting in November 2012, agreed the industry
would concentrate its efforts this year in promoting
the National Development Plan (NDP). This decision
was in line with a broader business view that the
NDP is the one plan that has a broad base of support, and is the
most pragmatic and realisable vision for South Africa. The African
National Congress (ANC), at its Mangaung congress, also adopted
the NDP as the central instrument against which all policy will be
measured and that will guide government in fulfilling its governance
responsibilities.
The NDP is the product of broad consultation, consideration and
analyses of the critical issues we need to address as a country, if we
are to fulfil the tremendous potential we have and make real the
democracy we achieved in 2004. The NDP offers exciting thinking
on, inter alia, the following:
• A capable state
• Infrastructure development
• Governance
• Human settlements, including appropriate spatial planning
• Education
• Building trust
• Economic growth and development
• Health
The NDP stresses the importance of a state that has the capacity
and commitment to deliver services efficiently and care for those
who are indigent. The plan charts a role for the state that is
facilitative of private sector growth, but intervenes where markets
do not work. The NDP is very clear that the state, and other sectors
of civil society, needs to be ruthless in fighting corruption.
The plan also stresses the critical need for collaboration between
all sectors of society and government to achieve the outcomes we
need to improve the living conditions of all our people and address
the growing income gap between a minority and the vast majority.
The theoretical adoption of the NDP by a broad spectrum of
society and government must translate into real delivery, such
that the NDP moves from being a vision to a living strategy for
delivery. Government must ensure the Minister of Planning has the
necessary capacity and resources to drive the NDP through all facets
of government. The President must be emphatic that the Minister of
Planning will champion the NDP and will receive the collaboration
of all ministries. Business must now take the initiative in identifying
implementable projects cited in the NDP, collaborate on what role
business can play in implementing the projects and approaching
government to discuss its role. All critical stakeholders will have to
make sacrifices and compromises in the national interest. However,
such compromises must not result in poor quality, non-delivery or a
fracturing in the pact we need to build.
We must also be cognisant of the challenging economic times
within which we need to implement projects cited on the NDP.
The budget deficit for year-end 2013 will be 4,3% of gross domestic
product (GDP). We will need to allocate funds to the many
social programmes government has instituted. We will need to
ensure appropriate allocation of resources, and particularly the
efficient use of resources. This entails efficiency in state departments
and institutions and a zero-tolerance approach to corruption.
The private sector has a critical role to play in assisting in ensuring
sound government capacity, although government must satisfy
the private sector that it will do the basics to receive capacity in a
sustainable way.
Our country is, I believe, at a T-junction. We can choose to work
together to make the vision in the NDP concrete, or we can choose
to destroy all the potential we have and to some extent achieved, but
still have a great deal to do!
Can we be a winning nation? Do we need the BRICS Bank?
How can banks reduce the proportion of unsecured loans?
If you have an opinion concerning a Banker SA article,
e-mail us at [email protected].
Cas Coovadia
Managing Director, The Banking Association South Africa
Edition 5
BANKER SA
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