Radical measures needed to drive new investment and job creation in SA - Centre for Development and Enterprise
More than 12 million South Africans cannot find employment.
Many of the residents of the small mining town of Marikana are unemployed, and try to make money by doing small jobs around the community or selling fruits and vegetables. Picture: Xanderleigh Dookey Makhaza/Eyewitness News
Stephen Grootes speaks to Ann Bernstein, executive director of the Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) about the findings and recommendation of a new CDE report that proposes radical measures to turn South Africa's Special Economic Zones (SEZs) into powerful instruments driving new investment and job creation.
Listen to the interview in the audio player below.
The Centre for Development and Enterprise (CDE) is proposing fresher, more radical ideas to drive new investment and spur on job creation in South Africa.
The report by the CDE proposes measures such as turning the country's Special Economic Zones (SEZs) into instruments that drive new investment and create jobs.
SEZs are geographic zones where regulations differ from the rest of the economy, such as less restrictive labour laws and regulations.
The Coega SEZ is an example of this, which has attracted over R30 billion worth of investment since it was established in 1999.
Speaking to Stephen Grootes on The Money Show, Ann Bernstein, executive director of the CDE says radical measures are needed now to get South Africa out of the economic slump it finds itself in at the moment.
"Zones around the world, many of them fail. There are some spectacular successes. South Africa's current zones, I think would have to be described as failing."
- Ann Bernstein, executive director - CDE
"If you look at China, if you look at Asia and a number of other countries, there are successful zones and you've got to make this place special. Different from the rest of the economy."
- Ann Bernstein, executive director - CDE
"This zone can't be a success if you move away from some basic rules, that we say have to be established for us to be competitive. South Africa's desperate for foreign direct investment, especially for manufacturing that's not high skill."
- Ann Bernstein, executive director - CDE
Scroll to the top of the article to listen to the full interview.