Ramaphosa to Address South African Economic Problems

On Thursday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said the government is making efforts to address "deep" and "structural" problems in economy, including electricity crisis, inefficiency of railways and ports and reluctance to invest.

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The government is accelerating the implementation of "far-reaching structural reforms" to modernize and transform these industries, unlock investment, reduce costs and increase competitiveness and growth, Ramaphosa said during his annual State of the Nation Address.

Several new energy generation projects will come online over the next few years to offset the electricity supply shortfall of around 4,000 MW, he said, adding that the country is implementing fundamental changes to the structure of the electricity sector.

Amendments to the Electricity Regulation Act have been approved on Wednesday to enable a competitive market for electricity generation and the establishment of an independent state-owned transmission company.

The efforts to deal with functioning of South African ports is currently focused on improving operational efficiencies through procuring additional equipment and reducing congestion.

The president also announced that South Africa will unlock new spectrum for mobile telecommunications for the first time in over a decade, commencing the public auction of high frequency communications spectrum after about three weeks.

Other methods include attracting skilled immigrants by streamlining and modernizing the visa application process; prioritizing institutional reforms in water sector to ensure water security, investment and maintenance; unleashing the potential of small, micro and informal businesses; and reducing red tape to improve the business environment for companies.