NATIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION: Mr Speaker, Mr President, Deputy President, hon members, ladies and gentlemen, on the subject of mice and men, happy Valentine's Day to all of you! [Interjections.] [Applause.]
I think it is very important that we listen to what the three leaders who have spoken before me have said. In broad measure, I think we have to take this as a measure that there is very little disagreement with the content of the state of the nation address, and that is a positive that we must take from it, because that is the platform on which we must build in this country. [Applause.]
Early on in the speech last week, the President framed a reference to the draft National Development Plan, NDP, which we released on 11 November last year. To better understand the context in which the NDP fits into the state of the nation address, I am going to share a few more details of this plan today. Indeed, the plan sets out the kind of country we want to build by 2030. The vision statement contained in the plan envisages - and it sounded like the hon Leader of the Opposition has read this, which is very good -
Now in 2030 we live in a country which we have remade. We have created a home where everybody feels free yet bounded to others; where everyone embraces their full potential. We are proud to be a community that cares.
It speaks of a country that is capable of transforming itself, and that is fundamentally important. So, clearly, what we want by 2030 is to have created a country in which we value one another, in which we value life and in which we value our communities. We value doing the right thing. We want to have created a home where everybody feels free yet bound to others. This plan is about what binds us together.
What binds us is a new story, a story for a better South Africa for all of its people, a story to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality, a story that changes the life chances of our people, particularly young people and women; a story that draws on our history, our experience and our traditions. And so, the plan sets out the high-level objectives of where we want to get to by 2030, as well as how the commission believes that we can remake our country in the vision of our Constitution between now and that date - not on that date, but between now and that date.
The plan also provides a great deal of detail on, for example, where we think a railway should be built, how to finance it and how to ensure that it functions optimally. We believe that these are critical end points to improve the life chances of our people.
When the commission was inaugurated in May 2010, the President gave it a licence to be bold, honest and critical. He explicitly stated that he did not want a commission that merely slapped his back. His faith was tested when the commission released a diagnostic document in June last year which presented a sharply honest and critical appraisal of our performance since 1994 and our failure to overcome poverty and inequality.
The draft plan that we unveiled in November is similarly bold and honest. If we do not strike out bravely, the cleavages in our society will simply deepen. The two main objectives we arrived at in the plan are that we want to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality. Consistent with the diagnostic report and the views of thousands of people who were consulted, increasing employment and improving the quality of education form our highest priorities in the plan.
In summary, the plan is as follows: a united country, where all citizens are active participants in their own development; a capable state that drives development, promotes ethics and serves the citizenry; a dynamic and growing economy that is more labour absorbing, providing opportunities for all, and supported by adequate infrastructure; an education, skills and innovation system that can develop the capabilities of our people and our country; and leaders who work together to confront and overcome our problems.
These five key themes run through the 13 chapters in the plan that covers the economy and employment, the economic infrastructure, a transition to a low-carbon economy, the rural economy, South Africa in the region and the world, spatial settlement planning, education, skills and innovation, health, social protection, citizen safety, a capable state, fighting corruption, and then: social cohesion, nation-building and transformation.
In crafting the plan, we also took into account a number of other factors, such as demographic and global trends that are profoundly changing our world. Our Constitution provides a basis for our policies. It states that South Africa belongs to all who live in it and that all are equal before the law. How do we make the Constitution a reality for South Africans? This should be the first question we ask ourselves every single day. How do we ensure that opportunities for each person are not determined by who they are or where they were born, but by their hard work, effort, skill, talents and opportunities that are open to them?
Ek wil vir die agb lid, mnr Lekota, s hy het mooi gepraat. Hy kan maar nou vir Dexter terug huis toe volg. Dit is reg. [Gelag.] [Allow me to tell the hon member Mr Lekota that he spoke well. He may follow Dexter back home now. All is well. [Laughter.]]
In all our encounters with thousands of people across the country the message has been clear: South Africans love their country. They are proud of their achievements since 1994, have faith in their democratic institutions and want to see greater success for their country. They are prepared to commit themselves to building a better South Africa. Our challenge is to make it possible for them to contribute to the South Africa that they want by 2030.
This plan is not a sermon from the mount. It is about identifying how people can be empowered to enable change. We need to reshape the expectations we have of government. We need to forge an active citizenry that takes ownership of the solutions to our problems. I want to say to the hon Leader of the Opposition that it is not just about dreams; it is about living out those dreams. It is about making sacrifices. [Interjections.] There is a great philosopher named Peter Tosh who once said, "Everybody wants to get to heaven, but nobody wants to die." [Laughter.] [Applause.] You have to be prepared to make the sacrifices.
The plan is about achieving this shift - I have done it, and I will do it again. [Interjections.]