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We must unlock the potential in rural economies

A strategic economic focus into rural economies and an integrated public transport system will fire up the ailing economy, writes Jordan Griffiths.

South Africa is in technical recession so we desperately need to get back to thinking about how we grow our economy.

The Guptarisation of the state has seen a total lack of focus on how we take our country forward.

When thinking about the economy, one of the biggest economic challenges facing South Africa is the economic upliftment of rural communities. The legacy of apartheid spatial planning remains entrenched in our cities. This, combined with a government that has been unable to create business confidence and strengthen economic growth, means that citizens in outer lying districts are often trapped in poverty.

When it comes to rural economies, the general maxim preached by government is that we must draw industries into these areas. Politicians will stand up and say things like: “We will create the environment which will see business invest in these areas”.

Unfortunately, there is a hard economic reality that no one likes to talk about. In practise, it is very difficult to draw in targeted investment into rural areas because in some cases they might not have the necessary infrastructure to support a particular industry.

Currently one of the best success stories in this area has been in the City of Cape Town. The city has focused attention on targeting Atlantis to be a green technology manufacturing hub. In fact, the city is working on getting the area declared a special economic zone. Recently the Investment Agency Wesgro also landed a R1.3bn fabric manufacturing deal, which is also coming to Atlantis. With this kind of economic focus, government can reinvent and revitalise township economies.

However, this is another economic truth which politicians shy away from when discussing job creation. It is far easier to bring people to jobs than it is to take jobs to where people live.

Attracting investment and getting major businesses to set-up in your city can take years. You then also have to convince them to build their factory in a rural district as well. In doing all of this we sometimes forget the vital role that public transport plays in facilitating economic growth. Again, the City of Cape Town has recently taken the lead on this front. The City has announced that it will subsidise free bus rides for those who are unemployed. This speaks to an administration that is actively working to support people trying to find jobs.

This write-up is not meant to be a sweetheart piece praising Cape Town for their work, but it does point out some best practises in driving a working economy. Saying that you are city that is open for business, and being a city that is open for business are two different things.

One of the key strategies to unlock growth in our country is going to be through the creation of integrated transport networks that facilitate the transfer of people.

Take my city for example, Tshwane, the third biggest metropolitan city in the world after New York and Tokyo. It terms of land mass, Tshwane is huge. It stretches from the West of Atteridgeville all the way to the east in Bronkhorstpruit. From the North of Hammanskraal to the south of Centurion. Hammanskraal is approximately 50kms from Pretoria CBD and Pretoria East.

 If workers in Hammanskraal want to get to the city to start work at 08:00, they catch a bus at 04:00 in the morning, because the journey often involves changing to a different bus or then being forced to catch a taxi at some point depending on where they need to go. To get home the journey is just as long. In Tshwane we also have various different bus services; there is the BRT line, the actual Tshwane bus service and then various long distance operators. Currently, one of the long term strategic objectives of the DA administration is to focus on creating an integrated transport network.

If you want to grow rural economies, you need to make sure that the people, who live in these areas and are working in the city, are able to go home with as much money as possible.  If they are spending a significant part of their salary paying for transport costs, they are trapped in a cycle of merely working to survive. Thus the levels of saving in rural areas remain low and citizens in these communities are unable to invest in possibly furthering their education or even starting their own business.

If we think about the future of our economy we must unlock the potential in rural economies. To do this requires economic focus, it means identifying what competitive advantage the city of Tshwane has over Cape Town and Johannesburg and then using that advantage to drive investment into rural areas.

It also means confronting the fact that not all residents in rural areas will be employed in a factory that is in that area, so what can we do to better facilitate their economic path. We make it easier and cheaper for them to travel around the city, so that they can not only find jobs but then also have enough disposable income to plough back into their communities.

*Jordan Griffiths is a City Councillor for the Democratic Alliance in the City of Tshwane. He is a member of the Portfolio Committee for Economic Development and City Planning. He is also the head strategist at Basemedia. He writes in his personal capacity.

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