Chairperson, firstly, as a start, the committee supports the budget. Secondly, let me congratulate the department for being recognised as one of the best in regard to information and communications technology. This proves the huge investment that was made in ICT is bearing fruit. Keep it up!
The department aims to lead and facilitate access to sustainable economic activity and employment for all South Africans. It also aims to catalyse economic transformation and development. That is why we said in 2007 in Polokwane that this department - both these departments - must act as agents in the transformation of the economic sector. The critical question is how far we have come in achieving that, especially since the aim was accelerated economic growth, employment creation and equity by 2014, and now 2014 is just around the corner.
Globally, the department and the country as a whole have left some footprints. We are now a member of Brics - and we hope to see the fruits of that very soon - and Ibsa, among other international bodies. We appreciate this. However, locally is where we still need more to face the "triple challenge". We still need to do better and improve in helping SMMEs to establish businesses and to develop them. We still have to make available more resources to assist rural SMMEs. In fact, we have said this before and we want to stress it. We want to see the budget speaking to backlogs. In most developing countries SMMEs contribute more to the gross domestic product and we want to see that happening.
In the NCOP our biggest interests are in the provinces. In one province in particular, a province that was mentioned by both Ministers, namely the Eastern Cape, there are rural communities who are trying to engage in business but cannot get financial support. They deal in leather, wool and canned fruit. The department has pumped millions into the Eastern Cape to support companies, even those that were in distress. However, some SMMEs have not benefited. The very same Eastern Cape has two very big IDZs, which have been supported heavily by the department. Sectors like the automobile sector, which has been mentioned, have been supported with billions. But when all is said and done, the Eastern Cape remains one of the poorest provinces. A minute or two after you have left the IDZ, you see 100% poverty. We need to reconcile the two and see where the gap is.
I am happy that the Minister will soon be presenting the amendments to the Co-operatives Act. We believe that co-operatives are key drivers of economic employment and development. As has been mentioned, KwaZulu-Natal is the best province in promoting co-operatives and it is waiting for this Bill to be presented because it wants to concentrate on manufacturing. The small towns of Ladysmith, Estcourt, Mandeni and Newcastle, which used to be hives of manufacturing, need to be revived.
We need to look at the turnaround time of the development finance institutions and cut the red tape and bureaucracy. I won't talk much about other topics because my colleagues will deal with them.
Recent indicators for 2012-15, taken from the last survey, show that growth in imports will increase but real GDP growth will also increase, from 3,6% and 4,3% to 4,4%. The scary part is that the growth in domestic expenditure will also increase, from 4,4 and 5,1 to 5,3. This is a situation one does not want to see.
Hon Ministers and Deputy Ministers, I wish to make a special plea from this committee: We need to revisit the issue of blacklisted people. In fact, we ask for a full amnesty. This, we believe, can and will change the lives of many people. The commitment by government to helping people own houses - those who earn between R7 000 and R15 000 - will not yield results because most of those people are blacklisted. We have seen prisoners getting remissions on their sentences and years ago we saw quite a number of people getting amnesty for firearms, cars and the like. Let us get amnesty for people who are blacklisted.
The other issue is the programme of the department that is taking the DTI to the people. This programme is bearing fruit and the department needs to increase its spread and activities to each and every corner of South Africa.
Regarding other issues of economic development, the department has done well so far, since its establishment in 2009. It now has a greater and more serious responsibility for infrastructure. It has identified areas with potential for new jobs and decent work, such as infrastructure development, the green economy, the manufacturing sector, agroprocessing the continental and regional economy, and many more.
Another challenge for the department is that it must be accessible on the ground. It must be known by the people and vice versa. It must turn around the perception that communities had of the Industrial Development Corporation - "cooler in summer". Now that there is a new agency, it must hit the ground running.
Good work has been done by the Competition Commission, despite the fact that some of the cases had to be settled through the courts.
One of the important elements of the New Growth Path is the green economy. The job potential for the green economy is significant, from green manufacturing operations to ecotourism and waste management. However, we also need to identify opportunities in the deep rural areas and to support small business funding in the green economy.
Because the department is new, it needs to be strong on research and development. I know that this was a decision that was taken when the department was established, but now that we are going to be concentrating on the green economy, more research needs to be done.
Lastly, the people of South Africa have the hope that these departments will deliver jobs - decent jobs - and that the people will hold on to them. This committee will monitor the departments to make sure that these things happen. [Applause.]