Without policy reform, Cabinet reshuffle will change nothing, Mr President – IRR

Appointing new ministers without reforming their policy mandate will do nothing to reduce South Africa’s 60% youth unemployment, lift the growth rate above the paltry average of 1% or raise fixed investment from the current 15% of GDP to anywhere near the world average of 26%.

So says the Institute of Race Relations (IRR) in a letter to President Cyril Ramaphosa on his recent Cabinet reshuffle.

IRR Economic Policy Analyst and Research Coordinator Anlu Keeve argues that South Africa has rotated a great many individuals through its ministries over three decades, while the transformation agenda guiding their policy has remained constant – and debilitating.

New ministers operating under the old policy mandate will simply produce the old outcomes.

Fixed investment has remained below 15% of GDP against a world average of 26%, growth since 2008 has averaged little more than 1%, and youth unemployment stands at 60%.

"Competent administrators executing a poverty-perpetuating policy framework will still perpetuate poverty," Keeve says.

Drawing on the founding paper of its Blueprint for Growth series, the IRR calls on the President to measure his new ministers against five growth-oriented benchmarks: secure property rights; free markets over state direction; labour markets open to employment; a depoliticised and capable state; and economic growth as the overriding policy priority.

Says Keeve: "The President may reshuffle his Cabinet as often as he judges necessary. But a reshuffle that leaves the current policy architecture untouched will produce the same results, only with different signatures on the same documents."

The IRR asks the President to apply a single test to his Cabinet: whether the policies each minister pursues are calculated to raise investment, employment, and growth.

The full letter is available on request.

Media contact: Anlu Keeve IRR Economic Policy Analyst and Research Coordinator Tel: 071 929 9516 Email: anlu@irr.org.za

Media enquiries: Michael Morris IRR Head of Media Tel: 066 302 1968 Email: michael@irr.org.za