Infrastructure is a key driver in job-creation and development

Limpopo Premier Chupu Stanley Mathabatha outlines his administration’s priorities in welcoming potential investors to the varied economy that is already receiving interest from China and elsewhere.

We are fresh into the 6th Provincial Adminis tr atio n after our most successful national and provincial general election. This was an election which was fought on the

Chupu Stanley Mathabatha, Premier of Limpopo

promise of growth and development of the economy for jobs and a decent quality of life. This is a promise which we intend to keep, working in partnership with all our social partners and stakeholders.

Our collective focus is on the creation of jobs, the need to end poverty and the urgency of building a better life for all. This requires greater focus and determination, and our set targets and objectives can only be realised through working together as government, business, organised labour and other groups and organisations.

As we prepare to implement the manifesto priorities of the ruling party, we move from a premise that over the past 25 years the lives of the people of South Africa have changed for the better. Millions of people have houses, electricity and access to clean drinking water. Children from poor communities have access to free education. In the past five years the number of HIV-positive people on antiretroviral treatment has doubled while the overall rate of new infections is decreasing. Over 17.5-million of our most vulnerable citizens receive social grants. We advanced the cause and rights of workers to organise, collectively bargain, refuse dangerous work, and to strike.

Our work is guided by the conviction that without ignoring our collective achievements, so much more can and must still be done.

Infrastructure One of the key drivers of employment creation in the province is the government’s deliberate investment in infrastructure projects. By the end of the 2018/19 financial year, provincial infrastructure expenditure stood at above R5.5-billion. We look forward to spending more of the province’s infrastructure grants on capital infrastructure projects which will help to stimulate the economy and create jobs for the people of Limpopo.

Several new mining projects are in the pipeline that will boost the Limpopo economy, Image: Des Jacobs

Significant progress has been recorded with regard to the delivery of certain key projects in this province, which we can be proud of. The Musina-Makhado Special Economic Zone (SEZ) programme is beginning to take shape. This SEZ initiative is expected to revitalise Limpopo’s industrial economy by utilising our local mineral resources and integrating the industrial chains of both the upstream and downstream activities. Several plants will be constructed under this SEZ project. These include a coal washery, a coal-fired power plant, a coking plant, a stainless-steel plant, a high-carbon ferrochrome plant and a silico-manganese facility. Supporting administrative services such as houses, hotels, shopping malls, healthcare facilities and schools will also be constructed.

This project is expected to create no fewer than 20 000 jobs for the people of this province. The recent mission which I led to the People’s Republic of China has given even more impetus to our Musina-Makhado SEZ programme. Through this mission, Limpopo Province was able to attract a total investment commitment of R100-billion, which will go a long way to creating much-needed jobs and other economic opportunities, especially for the youth.

Mining and tourism are dynamic sectors Mining is the biggest contributor towards the Provincial Gross Domestic Product (PGDP) at 24.5%. Jobs in this sector increased from 71 000 in 2013 to 103 000 in 2017/18. With new mining projects in the pipeline, these figures are expected to increase by a further 3 000.

Mining in Limpopo yields significant quantities of coal, copper, diamonds, gold, iron ore, nickel, platinum group metals, rare earth minerals and tin to South Africa’s mineral industry. Limpopo has 147 mining projects that are currently operational, and we envisage a further eight new projects in the Capricorn and Sekhukhune Districts.

These projects are expected to attract investments worth R2.5- billion and create around 3 000 jobs.

We are also excited about the new investments in the Ivanhoe Mine in Mokopane. The current investment in this mine is at R4.5- billion. We are looking forward to the mine going into full operation by 2024. This mine is expected to create well over 25 000 jobs.

The other job driver in the province is the tourism sector. The good news is that our domestic tourism sector has also been doing well over a sustained period of time. According to the latest available figures from StatsSA, Limpopo has since 2014 received over 27. 5-million domestic travellers. During the same period, our province was able to attract 7.8-million international tourists. We intend to build on these figures as we position our tourism sector to become a major job creator in the province.

Together, let’s grow Limpopo and bring to life the dream of a better life for all.