Current issue news: September 2010 Back to previous

First Free State Economic Council to be established

• Editorial staff

Following the Free State Economic Summit held on 20 and 21 May 2010 and following from that the huge amount of work put in by nine sectoral think tanks, an historic agreement was signed on 31 August at Bloemfontein between the Free State government, the business sector, labour and civil society.

The gist of this agreement is a practical framework of cooperation between the social partners in developing the province economically with a view to socio-economic upliftment across the spectrum of society. One of the salient features of this framework, is the establishment of the Free State Economic Council (FSEC) as an over-arching consultative body to drive the process concerned.

Currently, economic planning is undertaken by government only in accordance with its mandate, but there is often inadequate coordination in planning, resulting in relatively inadequate implementation in some cases. At the same time, each government department determines its own priorities.

The proposed FSEC mechanism will afford organized labour, organized business and organized community the opportunity to input to the planning process and to effectively support policy prioritization as well as monitor implementation.

Thus the FSEC is to be a type of provincial Nedlac, but not quite, because there are policy and statutory differences.

Be as it may, the agreement signed on 31 August 2010 between the four social partners definitely heralds a new unprecedented era in the Free State and hopefully one that soon will live up to its vast potential for development.

Pictured, present at the signing event of the Free State Economic Programme of Action on 31 August 2010 at the CUT, were from left, Dr. Ray Ncgobo (Process facilitator), Mr. Sam Mashinini (general secretary Cosatu Free State), Mr. Raan Naudé (BCCI), Ms. Nancy de Sousa (president BCCI). Messrs. Serekego Molelekoa (DTEEA), Mhlopegi Mloja (president NAFCOC Free State), Ben Deysel (president AHI Free State), Xolise Qayiso (president Cosatu Free Sate) and Stoffel Meyer (IDC Free State).