Hon Speaker and hon members, 3% growth is not enough to reduce poverty rapidly. We need considerably higher economic growth. This is why we have introduced the new growth path for public discussion and for implementation. Nevertheless, we are also well aware that even if we achieve higher levels of growth, this would not in itself be enough to eradicate poverty and inequality.
The key strategies to reduce inequality and poverty are to provide better quality education and health care and better infrastructure services in poor regions. These activities are at the top of our agenda. In addition, we need to improve the environment for investment by the private sector in labour-absorbing businesses.
Furthermore, government's plans to reduce poverty are spearheaded by the Comprehensive Anti-Poverty Strategy. This strategy has been used in the War on Poverty campaign to identify 1 128 of the most deprived urban and rural wards where poor households will be identified, their needs assessed, a database of their profiles developed, and their needs referred to government and its social partners for appropriate services to be delivered.
Beyond this, we have several well-known poverty-reduction initiatives. These include the social grant programmes, especially the child support grant, which are among the most comprehensive poverty alleviation programmes in any developing country. They are well designed and, largely, well administered. There are similar programmes in other middle-income developing countries like Mexico and Brazil, but in relation to the size of our gross domestic product and our population, ours is one of the very largest.
We also have the Expanded Public Works Programme and the Community Work Programme. The Expanded Public Works Programme has many elements including an infrastructure programme and environmental programmes. These programmes are well known.
The newest targeted programme is the Community Work Programme, CWP. Though it is a relatively new programme, it now reaches more than 100 settlements and more than a 100 000 people. We expect that the CWP will be one of our major tools to alleviate and, as far as possible, reduce poverty in our poorest settlements.
In order to realise the 3% or more growth, government has taken the following proactive steps: investment promotion, increasing productivity, promoting savings, and increasing spending both in the social and economic sectors. These are not only directed at achieving economic growth, but the direct spin-offs on poverty eradication are evident in the provision of basic services, human capital development and, most importantly, the creation of jobs. I thank you for your attention.