Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

3-minute read
16 November 2023 | 17:34 CAT

Black economic empowerment was one of the measures intended to address the racialized inequality in South Africa (Reuters)

The latest unemployment statistics presented in Stats SA’s Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) are another reminder that race-based policies like BEE have failed and continue to do more harm than good for their intended beneficiaries, says the Institute of Race Relations (IRR).

There is a sense that the government is pushing for more BEE policies, the latest focusing on agriculture, as we get closer and closer to the 2024 national elections.

“The issue of BEE enforced in the agricultural sector has certainly garnered attention as the agricultural sector is one of the most important sectors in South Africa’s economy. We cannot allow the government to interfere and implement policies such as BEE which will destroy and burn it down to ashes,” IRR Campaign Manager Mlondi Mdluli told Radio Islam International.

“The ANC’s approach to addressing the failures of BEE by ramping it up to be ‘more aggressive’ – as recommended by Minister of Employment and Labour Thulas Nxesi – through the amendment of the Employment Equity Act (EEA) is no way to fix the serious problem of unemployment, poverty and inequality,” Mdluli stated.

According to the most recent IMF forecast, South Africa’s GDP will grow by only 0.9% in 2023, which is very low compared to comparable economies and far below the level of economic growth necessary to make a sustainable and real dent in this country’s high levels of poverty and unemployment.

According to Mdluli, for as long as Minister Nxesi and the government of which he is part continue to believe that more race-based laws will solve the country’s problems, unemployment will persist. The majority of South Africans will continue to suffer.

“The government will only be able to effectively address the unemployment crisis by having frank discussions with key stakeholders, such as the IRR, that have formulated pro-growth, non-racial policy alternatives,” Mdluli added.

Listen to the full interview on the Daily round-Up with Moulana Junaid Kharsany.