Hon Chairperson and hon members, the ANC, in keeping with its general commitment to an egalitarian society, rejects the dictum that the poor will always be with us. It believes that poverty is created by society and can, therefore, be eliminated by society. People are the fundamental resource of the country since they have the capacity to develop personally and are central to the development of the economy, and the nation as a whole.
Eradicating poverty includes ensuring that the basic rights to shelter, food, health, employment, education and all those aspects that promote the physical, social and emotional wellbeing of all in our society are met. Eradicating poverty means providing a social safety net for those who are unable to care for themselves: the disabled, women, children, youth, families in need of care, the aged and those in chronic emotional distress.
In eradicating poverty, the ANC pursues this programme within the context of economic and social reconstruction, as well as the building of a national democratic society. The encouragement of economic growth and the development of economic policies that ensure equitable redistribution through social services that are not only seen as forms of consumption, but also as a means of social investment, are critical.
The developmental state plays a major role in meeting the legitimate and realistic expectations of all, especially the poor, the disadvantaged and the other vulnerable persons, in the light of the need to eradicate poverty. As we move away from a welfare state towards a developmental state trajectory that addresses the root causes of social problems as part of an integrated strategy of development on the one hand and ensuring a safety net on the other hand, we believe in the importance of the family, as it is understood within social and cultural norms, and promote the reconstruction of family life.
Our strategic approach in eradicating poverty and enhancing service delivery hinges on seven critical principles. These are equity, accessibility, democracy, community participation, accountability, equality and social services as a right. All those who require services should feel free to apply for such services without fear or favour.
The ANC, in government, has made unprecedented progress over the past five years, and also since Polokwane, to address the legacies of apartheid which reproduce patterns of development and underdevelopment in our society. This notwithstanding, South Africa is faced with severe social problems stemming from systemic developmental deficiencies. In large part, development is hampered by the interaction of complex factors which will take time to resolve. This includes rapid and ongoing urbanisation - the intensifying movement of people from rural to urban areas, which has fundamentally transformed the organisation of society and reconfigured the economy.
The relative decline in the primary economic sector coupled with reduced labour intensity has resulted in an employment bias unfavourable to a generally unskilled workforce. Pre-existing levels of abject poverty and the levels of deprivation have severe intergenerational impacts on affected individuals and families, with long-term social and economic consequences. In large part, this poverty stems from systemic factors limiting the natural expansion of formal employment. Both the causes and the consequences of poverty are challenges which need to be met.
The provision of public goods and services, as well as related interventions, form the cornerstone of responses to the nation's unbalanced development, with education, health, social security, basic services, social cohesion, youth and women development as key interventions.
Government's resilience in its efforts to develop social safety nets like improved health care, access to education, etc, continues to protect the most vulnerable South Africans from the adverse effects of the economic downturn since late 2008 and throughout 2009. The effective implementation of Polokwane resolutions also required appropriate allocation of responsibilities to relevant departments or Ministries, some of which have only come into existence in the current administration.
Overall, the ANC has focused on overseeing effective implementation of government's mandate which underscores the need to create a democratic, nonracial, nonsexist and prosperous society under the theme, "Now is the time together to do more, better".
The ANC's programme for social transformation must therefore ensure that it builds a better life by providing land and houses; comprehensive health and social security; basic services which include water and sanitation; human resource and capacity-building; clean and safe environments; food security; an improvement in the nation's health profile, including dealing with communicable and noncommunicable disease causes; mortality; and sport and recreation.
At our recently held national general council in September 2010, we recommended, amongst many other matters, the following: improving the alignment between plans and promises of all spheres of government and the abilities of local governments to fund and implement such plans and promises; ensuring that funding allocations from national and provincial governments address social infrastructure backlogs; undertaking a comprehensive assessment of the extent to which people fall through the cracks of public and private service delivery as a result of the application of income thresholds and ceilings that are aimed at targeting service provision, but are exclusionary and create poverty gaps.
For us, as southern Africans, the fight against poverty and unemployment; bridging the gap between the rich and the poor; and generally the need to improve the living conditions of our people, remain uppermost on our list of priorities. Our people want action on jobs, growth and poverty. We must build a new common purpose so that we can use all our talents, skills and resources to tackle our economic and social challenges. Ndiyabulela. [Thank you.] [Applause.]