The ANC will pressure big business to do its part in transforming the economy should it be elected back into power. President Cyril Ramaphosa said while presenting the party’s manifesto for the 2024 elections at FNB stadium that amongst others the party wants banks to relax requirements for loans in order to allow more black people to start businesses.
“We are going to tell the banks to relax their requirements so that it is easy for our people to get funding when they want to start companies because we want to create black industrialists,” said Ramaphosa at the liberation movement’s final rally. Ramaphosa said the ANC government was also aware of the high cost of data and airtime which he said made it difficult for talented youth to create enterprises.
“We will engage the telecommunications sector with a view of convincing them to lower the cost of data and airtime in order create an enabling environment for economic activity. The current prices are way too high for many of our people,” he said.
Ramaphosa also reiterated the ANC’s long standing objective to establish a strong manufacturing sector by beneficiating mineral resources that are currently being exported in raw form. While the ANC has resolved on this during successive conferences, there’s been little to no work in implementation.
“While out campaigning, some of our people made it clear to us that they don’t want us to continue exporting raw materials which later come back to South Africa as finished products that are expensive. So the ANC will insist that benefitiacian factories be set up in our mineral endowed areas to create jobs for our people and grow the economy, “ said Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa said the planned economic interventions would be implemented alongside an improved social security net which would include the introduction of a basic income grant to incorporate the poorest of the poor into the economy.