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Leaders need economics 101

SOUTH African government leaders, it must be admitted, are not always the people who are most most engaged with the country’s economic issues, though they have all sorts of action programmes. It's a sad truth.

At this moment South Africa’s economy is about to crash and burn, making it all the more necessary for more government leaders to perk up and pay attention.

If they don't, the economy will be in serious trouble before we know it.

READ: SA economy in serious trouble - DA

You may ask why they should be engaged in economic issues. Well, the reason is because government policies do not seem to alleviate poverty, create enough jobs and improve the general economic conditions of all South Africans. And government leaders seem to be sitting pretty, hoping this will change by itself.

On Wednesday Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene - one of the few government leaders who seem to be working flat out in a bid to fix the ailing economy - painted a gloomy picture of the state of affairs.

But it is my belief that fixing this should be an all-hands-on-deck exercise, with other government leaders playing their part too.

Nene said some government departments are overspending. These departments would not be doing this if their leaders understood that they need to be part of fixing the country’s economic problems.

On Wednesday, Nene said economic growth will be slower and the budget deficit bigger this year than forecast. He warned that the economy is not making sufficient progress in reducing poverty and creating jobs, and is at the cusp of deepening inequality.

READ: Nene: Economy at turning point

South Africa's economy, recently overtaken by Nigeria as the continent's biggest economy, has been battered by waves of labour unrest that have stymied output in many economic sectors.

Government leaders' lack of engagement in economic issues becomes evident when one considers that they have failed to urge the ruling ANC’s alliance partner Cosatu to ask its affiliate unions to put a halt to all forms of strike action, as this is detrimental to the economy. Instead, government leaders have left this issue to self-correct.

Additionally, the fact that the economy was toppled from its top spot as Africa's economic powerhouse should have brought some sense of urgency to these leaders. But that has not been forthcoming.

More government leaders need to become more engaged because the economic issues facing this country are complicated. There are no easy answers.

But if, as the continent’s most advanced economy, South Africa is to come out of its current doldrums, government leaders would have to show responsibility by staying abreast of the economic issues affecting the country so that they can navigate them successfully.

Relinquishing that responsibility inevitably seems to grant other less advanced economies a chance to attract investors that should have been headed our way.

This is a hard truth to swallow in the rainbow nation. My heart hurts for the poor and jobless because their problems, it seems, are not about to be fixed anytime soon.

Sometimes the best we can do, as the media, is to maintain constant pressure, so that we slowly force government leaders to become more engaged. Whatever their politics, government leaders must at least make an effort to know enough about economic issues to take a position.

NOW READ: Budget in a nutshell

 - Fin24

*Mzwandile Jacks is an independent journalist. Opinions expressed are his own.
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