President Cyril Ramaphosa presented a brave face as he delivered his first GNU State of the Nation Address on Thursday night, saying the country would not be “bullied” while he made ambitious undertakings for the next five years.
Ramaphosa was delivering his speech as his government took pressure from both international players — US President Donald Trump and Rwandan President Paul Kagame in particular — and internally, from critics of the GNU.
“In the face of these challenges, we are witnessing the rise of nationalism and protectionism, the pursuit of narrow interests and the decline of common cause. This is the world that we, as a developing economy, must now navigate. But we are not daunted. We will not be deterred.
“We are a resilient people. We will not be bullied. We will stand together as a united nation. We will speak with one voice in defence of our national interest, our sovereignty and our constitutional democracy."
Ramaphosa said by staying true to “our values, by harnessing our unique strengths and endowments, and by forging a common purpose” SA can turn the trying circumstances to its advantage and propel the country forward.
“As South Africans, we stand for peace and justice, for equality and solidarity. We stand for non-racialism and democracy, for tolerance and compassion. We stand for equal rights for women, for persons with disability and for members of the LGBTQI+ community. We stand for our shared humanity, not for the survival of the fittest,” he said.
He said the vision of the country was guided by the Freedom Charter. He said South Africans wanted a nation with a thriving economy that benefits all.
To achieve that, Ramaphosa promised investment in infrastructure, tourism, energy, water, jobs, professionalising the public service and revitalising port and rail services.
He also promised an overhaul of municipalities.
Infrastructure:
“Government will spend more than R940bn on infrastructure over the next three years. This includes R375bn by state-owned companies. This will revitalise our roads and bridges, build dams and waterways, modernise our ports and airports and power our economy.
“Through the Infrastructure Fund, twelve blended finance projects worth nearly R38bn have been approved in the last year. These are projects in water and sanitation, student accommodation, transport, health and energy,” he said.
Water:
“We are investing heavily in expanding our water resources. To date, the Infrastructure Fund has secured R23 billion for seven large water infrastructure projects. We have ended delays in major water infrastructure projects like Phase 2 of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project and the uMkhomazi Dam.
"Work is under way to prepare for construction of the Ntabelanga Dam on the uMzimvubu River to supply additional water for domestic use and for irrigation in the Eastern Cape. Within the next year, we will complete the establishment of the National Water Resource Infrastructure Agency to unlock much greater investment in water projects."
Public Service:
"We need a government that works for the people ...to achieve these objectives we are strengthening the role of the Public Service Commission in the appointment of the key people who direct the affairs of our state ...we will introduce a graduate recruitment scheme so that we may attract the best and the brightest into the public service."
Municipalities
“Starting this year, we will work with our municipalities to establish professionally managed, ring-fenced utilities for water and electricity services to ensure that there is adequate investment and maintenance.
"We will undertake extensive consultation to develop an updated White Paper on Local Government to outline a modern, fit-for-purpose local government system.
"We will review the funding model for municipalities as many of them do not have a viable and sustainable revenue base.”
Health:
“This year, we will proceed with the preparatory work for the establishment of the NHI. This includes developing the first phase of a single electronic health record, preparatory work to establish Ministerial Advisory Committees on health technologies and health care benefits, and an accreditation framework for health service providers ... Our most immediate priority is to strengthen the health system and improve the quality of care.”
Although he was encouraged by progress made in the fight against HIV and AIDS he said they were concerned about the potential impact of the decision by the United States government to suspend some of its funding for HIV and TB programmes in African countries for 90 days.
Energy:
After more than 300 days without load shedding since March 2024, “the return of load shedding for two days last week was a reminder that our energy supply is still constrained", he said.
"But we remain on a positive trajectory. We now need to put the risk of load shedding behind us once and for all by completing the reform of our energy system to ensure long-term energy security."
Ramaphosa began his speech by paying tribute to the 14 fallen SANDF soldiers who were part of peacekeeping forces in the Eastern Congo.
Closing his speech, Ramaphosa committed the country to continue being involved in peacekeeping efforts in the region.
“For Africa to thrive, we must silence the guns on the continent .... the presence of South African peacekeepers in the eastern DRC is testament to our continued commitment to the peaceful resolution of one of the world’s most intractable conflicts, which has cost millions of lives and displaced millions of people.
“We call on all parties to embrace the current diplomatic efforts to find a peaceful resolution, including honouring the Luanda Process. We will attend the Joint Summit between SADC and the East African Community scheduled to take place in Tanzania this weekend, where we will reiterate our call for a ceasefire and a resumption of talks to find a just and enduring solution,” he said.
Daily Dispatch
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