Pretoria – President Jacob Zuma will chair an Inter-Ministerial Committee on Investment that will coordinate 40 priority investment projects across government.
This is according to the Minister in the Presidency for Planning, Monitoring and Evaluation, Jeff Radebe, who briefed media in Pretoria on Monday following a Cabinet Lekgotla that was held last week.
The 40 projects include agro-processing and agri-parks, energy and infrastructure, manufacturing and services projects.
“These projects were selected based on having a high-scale economic impact linked to the Nine-Point Plan, being able to take-off within the next two years and able to crowd-in further investment and community benefits,” he said.
Minister Radebe said the Cabinet Lekgotla reflected on the implementation of the Nine-Point Plan to grow the South African economy.
With regards to resolving energy challenges in the country, the Minister said the Department of Energy will complete the Integrated Energy Plan and Integrated Resource Plan for Electricity.
Industrial Policy Action Plan
He also mentioned a couple of strategic decisions taken by Cabinet to secure higher impact implementation of the Industrial Policy Action Plan.
The Minister said the Department of Public Enterprises and National Treasury will consolidate procurement for locomotives into a single institution (Transnet) to ensure efficiency and compliance with the localisation requirements.
The Minister said the evaluation of financial incentives for businesses will be finalised to enhance more inclusive growth.
He said the South African Reserve Bank, National Treasury, South African Revenue Service (SARS) and Statistics South Africa will identify and hold illicit financial flows.
Another strategic decision, he said, is introducing legislative amendments to implement the 30% set-asides (a new Procurement Bill developed by National Treasury) by March 2017 and unlock the potential of Small, Medium and Micro-sized Enterprises (SMMEs), cooperatives and township and rural enterprises.
He said the new Preferential Procurement Regulations must also be implemented by the end of August 2016 as an interim measure to this radical intervention.
ICT Policy
Minister Radebe said the Information Communication Technology (ICT) Policy will be finalised and approved to fast track the implementation of the South African Connect Strategy to connect schools, health facilities and government offices.
“A Broadband War Room will be established to accelerate implementation,” said the Minister.
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