Madam Chair, first and foremost I would like to thank all the hon members who participated in this debate. I think some of the inputs are worth mentioning. First and foremost my colleague, Mr Singh, what you said regarding the public sector and the reports of the Auditor-General is extremely relevant. My colleague, Tim Harris, said that the sectors that are doing well are those that have minimal interference from government, and this is also noteworthy. I think this is very important.
Madam Chair, the fact remains that we are part and parcel of the global village. We cannot negate the importance of that. We need trade. At the moment we have profound problems in this country. We have an unemployment rate of almost 30%. All political parties here and the private sector must join hands. We have to solve this particular problem.
The hon Mr Ntuli said that we have a narrow tax base. I agree with him. We only have about five to six million people that pay tax. Our social grants are getting out of hand, and these sorts of things. There is a generation of 30% which is unemployed and which also has a low skills level, and so forth. We cannot carry on the way we are doing at the moment.
Some people have said we are the most sophisticated country in Africa, but the latest report of The Economist says the chances are that Nigeria may overtake us within 10 years from now regarding GDP.
Madam Chair, these particular things require very strong political leadership. The question that we have to ask ourselves is whether we are getting that particular political leadership. I'm afraid we are not getting it, and I think we are going to reap the fruits of that. Madam Chair, I thank you for allowing me to participate in this particular debate. Thank you. [Applause.]