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The government’s coronavirus recovery plan is not based solely on public employment programs, says Employment and Labor Minister Thulas Nxesi.
Responding to a recent parliamentary question and answer session, Nxesi said that while Public Employment Programs (PEPs) are vitally important, they will be used in conjunction with other programs.
“It must be emphatically pointed out that the nature of unemployment in our country is such that it is high, structural, systemic and deeply rooted,” he said.
Nxesi added that the nature of unemployment in South Africa is compounded by a lack of skills, as well as a lack of alignment between skills.
“Given this sad reality, a government focused, in contact, alert and with a vision of the future would bring among its interventions (such as) massive employment and the PEPs offer it.
“So, Public Employment Programs are tremendously important in the context of countries like ours, they are key. Are we solely dependent on them for job creation? Of course, no!”
Nxesi said that one of the key aspects of the economic recovery and reconstruction plan is the planned infrastructure program.
The minister said that infrastructure development has enormous potential, including “almost guaranteed job creation.”
“Whether you are talking about the transformation of cities, towns, rural areas or the creation of bulk water infrastructure, national highway improvement projects, school construction, network infrastructure such as ports, railways, highways, etc., everything this goes hand in hand with job creation. “
Nxesi said that South Africa’s economic recovery and reconstruction plan also includes plans for mass industrialization. This reindustrialization will create jobs and also grow businesses, he said.
“Job creation is one of the key objectives of the economic recovery and reconstruction plan. There is also the objective of reversing the decline of the local manufacturing sector, the revival of tourism, the capacity of tourism in terms of labor absorption must be known.
“There will also be uncharted terrain, especially as we delve into digital advancement, the space is full of possibilities, particularly when it comes to youth employment. This plan will invest in our human capital even in the future ”.
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