jobs. I'm sure that the investment drive contributed to the improved job figures which we saw released by StatsSA just today. For those who didn't see them, the 4th quarter figures of job creation report an increase in the employment of 149 000 quarter on quarter and 358 000 new jobs year on year.
This has taken a number of people employed in South Africa to 16,5 to 9 million people and has reduced unemployment by 0,4% to a still too high 27,1% but nevertheless for the first time in a long time, a move in the right direction.
In addition to its direct impact, investment also gives us much stronger bases to pursue structural transformation in our economy necessary to place it on a higher and more inclusive growth path. It provides us with a much better environment to improve the application of policy including those relevant to the pursuit of industrial policy.
Mr President in the state of the nation address, you indicated that one of the "drivers of a higher level of more inclusive economic growth had to be measures to increase local demand through, among other things increasing the proportion of local goods and services procured both by government and the private sector". Localisation has indeed been a policy tool deployed