Discuss in detail the following South African growth and development policies and strategic initiatives (Growth and development)

Discuss in detail the following South African growth and development policies and strategic initiatives. They include measures like market deregulation, reforms in labour and product markets, promotion of competition, etc. Well-designed structural policies can spur innovation, boost productivity, foster competitiveness and thereby drive economic growth and development

Discuss in detail the following South African growth and development policies and strategic initiatives (Growth and development)

INTRODUCTION
Different growth and development strategies have been implemented in South Africa since 1994, each aimed at addressing particular needs at the time of introduction. 🗸🗸
[Any other relevant introduction]
[Max 2]

BODY-MAIN PART
The Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP)

• The RDP was an integrated, coherent socio-economic policy framework that was implemented directly after our first democratic elections in 1994. 🗸🗸
• It seeked to mobilise all our people and our country’s resources toward the final eradication of apartheid and the building of a democratic, non-racial and non-sexist future. 🗸🗸

The RDP was based on six principles.

1. an integrated and sustainable programme. 🗸🗸
2. a people-driven process focusing on the needs of the population. 🗸🗸
3. peace and security for all, aimed at a non-violent society that respects all human rights. 🗸🗸
4. nation-building, focusing on the needs of all members of society. 🗸🗸
5. linking reconstruction and development. 🗸🗸
6. democratisation of South Africa in all aspects, including decision-making processes on all levels. 🗸🗸
   • The RDP consisted of many proposals, strategies and policy programmes.
   • All of these could, however be grouped into five major policy programmes that were linked to each other.

The five key programmes were:

1. meeting basic needs. 🗸🗸
2. developing our human resources. 🗸🗸
3. building the economy. 🗸🗸
4. democratising the state and society. 🗸🗸
5. implementing the RDP. 🗸🗸

The Growth, Employment and Redistribution Programme (GEAR)

• The GEAR built upon the strategic vision set out in the RDP, i.e. 🗸🗸
• The importance of all the objectives of the RDP was reaffirmed but it recognized the implementation and macroeconomic problems that the government had been experiencing in implementing the RDP. 🗸🗸
• The RDP placed much more emphasis on disciplined economic policy. 🗸🗸
• While still recognizing that there were very serious needs that had to be addressed. 🗸🗸

The Accelerated and Shared Growth Initiative for South Africa Programme (AsgiSA).

• AsgiSA resulted from government’s commitment to halve unemployment and poverty by 2014. 🗸🗸
• The Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition (Jipsa) was established to address the scarce and critical skills needed to meet AsgiSA’s objectives. 🗸🗸

AsgiSA identified six important factors that prevented growth:

1. the relative volatility of the currency. 🗸🗸
2. the cost, efficiency and capacity of the national logistics system. 🗸🗸
3. shortages of suitably skilled labour, and the spatial distortions of apartheid affecting low-skilled labour costs. 🗸🗸
4. barriers to entry, limits to competition and limited new investment opportunities. 🗸🗸
5. the regulatory environment and the burden on small and medium enterprises (SME’s). 🗸🗸
6. deficiencies in state organisation, capacity and leadership. 🗸🗸
   • AsgiSA was not intended to be a government programme. 🗸🗸
   • But rather a national initiative supported by all the key groups in the economy. 🗸🗸
   • Namely business, labour, entrepreneurs and government and semi-government departments and institutions. 🗸🗸

Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisitions (JIPSA)

• It is the skills development arm of ASGISA. Focus is on skills development, especially through the SETAS. 🗸🗸

Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP)

• It is a nationwide government intervention to create employment using labour-intensive methods, and to give people skills they can use to find jobs when their work in the EPWP is done. 🗸🗸

The New Growth Path (NGP)

• The New Growth Path (NGP) was released in November 2011. 🗸🗸
• This plan is designed to serve as a framework for economic policy, and to be the driver of the country’s job strategy. 🗸🗸

The New Growth Path therefore proposes certain strategies to ensure adequate demand:

• Deepening the domestic and regional market by growing employment. 🗸🗸
• Increasing incomes and undertaking other measures to equity and income distribution. 🗸🗸
• Widening the market for South African goods and services through a stronger focus on exports to the region and other rapidly growing economies. 🗸🗸
• On a macroeconomic level the NGP entails accommodating or looser monetary policy combined with stricter fiscal policy to limit inflationary pressures and enhance competitiveness. 🗸🗸
• Government spending will be prioritised with the objective of long-term sustainable employment opportunities. 🗸🗸

The microeconomic measures to control inflationary pressures include the following:

• A competition policy to supervise monopoly pricing on products and services. 🗸🗸
• A review of administered prices to ensure that they do not increase above inflation without compelling reasons. 🗸🗸
• Interventions in the case of rapidly rising prices of essential products and services such as private🗸🗸
• Healthcare and basic food items. 🗸🗸
• The microeconomic package involves ten programmes to control inflationary pressures and inefficiencies combined with more proactive strategies to support an inclusive economy:
  1. Active industrial policy. 🗸🗸
  2. Rural development policy. 🗸🗸
  3. Competition policy. 🗸🗸
  4. Stepping up education and skills development. 🗸🗸
  5. Enterprise development: promoting small business and entrepreneurship; eliminating unnecessary red tape. 🗸🗸
  6. Broad-based Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE). 🗸🗸
  7. Labour practices. 🗸🗸
  8. Technology policy. 🗸🗸
  9. Developmental trade policies. 🗸🗸
  10. Policies for African development. 🗸🗸

CONCLUSION

• The different growth and development strategies that have been implemented in South Africa since 1994. 🗸🗸
• Have all contributed to making our country more prosperous and to address problems created by inequalities of the past. 🗸🗸
• However, problems such as a low level of education, unemployment and unequal distribution of income persist. 🗸🗸
• The current NGP is a comprehensive policy that is focused on addressing all of these problems.
  [Any other relevant higher order conclusion]
  [Max 2]