[DEBATE] : (Fwd) Insights into the chief's thinking

[Patrick Bond]

(To urban-biased me, it sounds like modernisation theory warmed over: 
"the key to eradicating poverty in our country lies in building the 
rural economy. The Department of Rural Development and Land Reform will 
promote changes in attitudes, policies and practices among the different 
social sectors so that efforts to overcome poverty are more effective." 
And this is curious: "You may be curious about other departments, for 
example why we changed Foreign Affairs to the Department of 
International Relations and Cooperation, (DICO). The responsibility of 
DICO is to promote international relations and cooperation. We wanted to 
keep names simple and focused on the business of the Department.")

www.iol.co.za

Address by President Jacob Zuma at Unizulu
22 May 2009, 13:50

Address by President Jacob Zuma, at the graduation ceremony of the 
Faculties of Commerce, Admin and Law, and Science and Agriculture of the 
University of Zululand, King Bhekuzulu Hall, KwaDlangezwa, Empangeni, 20 
May 2009.

The Rector and Vice Chancellor, Prof Gumbi,

Chairperson of Council, Mr BM Ntuli

Deputy Speaker of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature Mr Mtholephi Mthimkhulu 
and all MPLs present,

Deans and all other members of the academic community,

Presidents of Convocation and the SRC,

The Guest Speaker, Mr Don Mkhwanazi,

Graduates and their families and friends,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Good morning to you all.

I am delighted to be here during this joyous celebration.

Last month millions of you voted into power our fourth democratically 
elected government.

We have decided to make hard work, excellence, and achievement a 
cornerstone of our new administration.

I am therefore honoured to have this graduation, which is a celebration 
of hard work, as my first public engagement since the inauguration and 
the announcement of our new Cabinet.

As the Chancellor of the University of Zululand, I have the privilege of 
praising parents, students and the academia for their hard work, 
patience, and the sacrifice that has culminated in this graduation 
ceremony today.

Your achievements bear testimony to your courage, your tenacity and your 
spirit. Your achievements make us optimistic about the future, given our 
objectives and plans for this country. South Africa is positioning 
itself as a developmental state, meaning that key state institutions are 
geared towards economic and social upliftment.

The effectiveness of this will depend on whether or not we are able to 
achieve economic development and improved standards of living for the poor.

To achieve those goals, we need education and skills development to be 
at the center of our national plans.

When we say we want to halve unemployment and poverty, and substantially 
reduce and eventually eradicate social and economic inequalities, we 
rely on you, our graduates, to help us achieve those goals.

You are our soldiers on the frontline of the battle against poverty and 
unemployment.

We also encourage you to expand your horizons and look beyond your 
current fields of study or workplace. You must view yourselves as 
important players in the bigger scheme of building a successful and 
prosperous country.

Unless we make a visible impact on the lives of the poor, we cannot call 
ourselves truly developmental.

To become truly developmental and to improve our policymaking and 
implementation, we have reconfigured the structure of government. We 
merged certain government departments and created new ones in other areas.

This was all with good reason.

As you are aware, the former Department of Education has been split into 
the Department of Basic Education and the Department of Higher Education 
and Training.

Those who live in rural areas know that the dream of a better education 
remains elusive in many areas, as resources are still skewed in favour 
of urban areas.

Some urban schools in historically black areas also still lack 
facilities, there are no qualified teachers in many, and come December 
people wonder why matric results do not improve.

We have seen it fit to establish a separate Department of Basic 
Education so that the Minister responsible can focus only on our schools.

The Department will ensure that we improve our schools infrastructure 
and facilities in addition to learning and teaching.

We want to see our schools having electricity, water, proper sanitation 
and decent conditions generally, especially in neglected rural areas.

Our higher education department also has its work cut out for it, to 
ensure access to quality tertiary education for our youth, and the 
promotion of a strong academic and scholarly ethos in our country.

Our graduates will notice that the reconfiguration provides opportunities.

Students graduating from the Faculty of Commerce, Administration and Law 
have a bright future ahead of them.

We are set to improve government's economic policymaking through the 
establishment of a department of economic development.

The traditional department of Trade and Industry will then concentrate 
on the implementation side, promoting domestic and foreign investments, 
and to create a conducive climate for business to take place.

We have also created an independent Department of Tourism, to underline 
the seriousness with which we view the tourism industry.

Since the dawn of democracy in South Africa, the tourism industry has 
been growing at unprecedented rates. More than 9 million people visited 
South Africa last year, which represents an eight percent increase since 
2006 and almost twice the growth enjoyed by the global industry. We had 
to dedicate a full Department to tourism to enable this sector to create 
much-needed jobs for our people.

We live in a country alive with possibilities and it is up to our 
graduates to seize those opportunities.

Those from the Faculty of Law will realize that we have taken a no 
nonsense approach to the fight against crime.

We are sending a clear message to criminals that improved policing will 
be a critical part of our fight against crime.

That is why we changed the name from the Department of Safety and 
Secretary to the Police Department.

The function of this Department is policing to ensure safer communities. 
No fancy words, just plain policing to protect our people and their 
properties from crime.

Those from the Faculty of Science and Agriculture also have an important 
role to play in our society. We have just created a new Department of 
Rural Development and Land Reform.

This is in keeping with our belief that the key to eradicating poverty 
in our country lies in building the rural economy.

The Department of Rural Development and Land Reform will promote changes 
in attitudes, policies and practices among the different social sectors 
so that efforts to overcome poverty are more effective.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

You may be curious about other departments, for example why we changed 
Foreign Affairs to the Department of International Relations and 
Cooperation, (DICO). The responsibility of DICO is to promote 
international relations and cooperation. We wanted to keep names simple 
and focused on the business of the Department.

We also decided to create a stand alone Energy department, a realization 
of the need to ensure that we focus on the energy sector.

Unless we focus on developing our energy capacity we cannot meet our 
socio-economic development goals.

Homes, schools and other facilities need to be electrified for our 
people to see the fruits of freedom, and to drive economic development. 
As is well-known, we have decided to establish a National Planning 
Commission, which will develop a National Plan for the socio-economic 
development of our country. These are truly exciting times.

We will expand on our programme in action in detail in the State of the 
Nation address next month.

Ladies and gentlemen, during the inauguration on the 9th of May we 
emphasized the need to promote unity amongst all our people.

Our Constitution guarantees human rights and outlines the kind of 
society we envisage.

It seeks to heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based 
on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights.

We urge you to make the values enshrined in the Constitution part of 
your daily lives. We must build a society, which promotes unity, 
cooperation and progress amongst all, regardless of political or other 
differences.

Ladies and gentlemen, let me take this opportunity to wish all South 
Africans a Happy Africa Day on the 25th of May. In the coming years this 
day must be known and celebrated in every corner of our country.

As part of the renewal we promote, we must make all our people proud of 
their African-ness, and inculcate the drive to make this continent 
prosperous.

We must all know and sing the SADC and African Union anthems with pride. 
Our children, black and white must know what it means to be Africans and 
to be part of the African continent.

The 25th of May also marks the beginning of Child Protection Week in our 
country.

This will culminate in the marking of International Children's Day on 
the 1st of June. We call on all South Africans to use the coming week to 
highlight the rights of the child, and strengthen the culture of 
protecting South African children.

To our graduates, whatever you do in your professional lives, please 
strive to protect children. Policies and programmes you develop must be 
designed to make the world a better place for children.

Parents, graduates, and the academic community - congratulations on your 
success!

We wish you all the best in your careers as you work to build a better 
and prosperous country with your new skills.

I thank you.