Honourable House Chairperson,
While the APP of DTIC reflects commendable intent to align departmental priorities with the evolving policy landscape of the seventh administration, the ACDP remains concerned by persistent structural inefficiencies and underperformance across key indicators.
This Department’s mandate, to drive inclusive industrialisation, support enterprise development, and enhance trade competitiveness, is critical to South Africa’s economic recovery.
However, the quarterly reports reveal troubling trends: underspending in catalytic programmes; delays in infrastructure-linked incentives and poor uptake of localisation initiatives. These shortcomings are exacerbated by fiscal constraints imposed by National Treasury, which serve as a barrier, and is counterproductive to industrial growth.
The ACDP calls for urgent reform in performance monitoring and interdepartmental coordination. Research from the CDE warns that fragmented industrial policy and weak implementation undermine investor confidence and job creation. Moreover, the Committee’s own deliberations highlight the need for rationalising DTIC entities to ensure they are fit-for-purpose and resource-efficient.
We further urge the DTIC to prioritise beneficiation and support for high-potential sectors such as agro-processing, green manufacturing, and the creative industries, including the proposed industrial film strategy, as sectors offering scalable opportunities for youth employment and export diversification.
The ACDP supports the Committee’s recommendation for deeper engagement with DTIC entities; robust oversight must be matched by measurable outcomes. Furthermore, we recommend that SARB and Treasury collaborate to ensure economic synchronisation in addressing our poor GDP growth and unemployment.
As Kingdom builders, we reaffirm our commitment to economic justice, transparent performance evaluation and beneficiation as a low hanging fruit of unemployment redress.
