President Optimistic About NHI Implementation, Along with Other Priorities in Transport and State-Owned Enterprises

In his Opening of Parliament Address, President Cyril Ramaphosa, said that one of the important tasks of the government of national unity (GNU) in the next five years would be to reduce the high cost of living by ensuring that everyone in South Africa has equal access to affordable quality healthcare.

To this end, the President announced that the GNU will focus on strengthening healthcare infrastructure, improving training of healthcare personnel and using technology to improve healthcare management. He also acknowledged that while there is much contestation around the NHI, there is broad agreement that "we must draw on the resources and capabilities of both the public and private sectors to meet the health care needs of all South Africans equally".

In implementing the NHI, he said: "We are confident that we will be able to bring stakeholders together, and that we will be able to resolve differences and clarify misunderstandings. With so many people living far from economic opportunities and services, transport costs take up a large part of people's income and drive up the cost of living."

Transport

On this issue of rail transportation, the President said that an immediate priority for the GNU is to complete the recovery of the country's passenger rail network across the country to enable people to travel from outlying areas to city centres. "Around 80 percent of commuter rail corridors are now back in operation, and nearly 300 vandalised stations have been refurbished, providing safer and more efficient services to commuters," he added.

Public administration

He said building of a capable, ethical and developmental state is the third strategic priority of the GNU. "We will proceed with the work already underway to professionalise the public service, ensuring that we attract into the state people with skills, capabilities and integrity," he promised.

State-owned entities

President Ramaphosa said the GNU will continue to fight corruption and prevent undue political interference in the administration of the state. "In this administration, we will complete the work to restore the financial position and operational performance of our state-owned enterprises. We will complete the implementation of a new centralised ownership model for SOEs. This will improve accountability, transparency, governance and oversight, while reducing inefficiency and the potential for corruption."

The establishment of a state-owned SOE holding company will give the state greater capacity to build a sovereign wealth fund. "This has been done successfully by other countries whose sovereign wealth funds have built up capital from the high performance of the state-owned enterprises rather than from the fiscus," the President said.

Crime fighting

On crime fighting and prevention, President Ramaphosa acknowledged the need for capable, sophisticated and independent law enforcement agencies that can fight complex and organised crime.

"We will deploy modern technology to assist crime fighting," he said. "A data-driven approach will be used to identify violent crime hotspots and inform the allocation of policing resources alongside prevention measures. We will continue to tackle priority crimes like illegal mining, gang violence, cash-in-transit heists and the construction mafia through specialised police units," the President continued.

President Ramaphosa assured Members of Parliament that the GNU will continue to implement the National Strategic Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide, and expand victim support services, like the Thuthuzela Centres and GBV desks in police stations.

Mava Lukani

23 July 2024

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.