Gov: No need to change BEE

Pretoria - There was no need to change South Africa's Broadbased Black Economic Empowerment (BBBEE) system, Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mpahlwa said on Friday.

"We don't think we are at a stage of changing, we should rather focus on implementation," Mpahlwa told journalists in Pretoria.

He was speaking after a meeting which included representatives from Business Unity South Africa and the Black Management Forum.

The minister stressed that BBBEE was important to government and that it could not be allowed to be "relegated in order of priority".

Some of the concerns voiced at the meeting included the possibility of reviewing the system.

There was also need for better communication and implementation of the policy.

"A clear message for us [is that] we need to be focusing on implementation. The clear (signal) we've got to send out is that work needs to continue," he said.

- Sapa