The Missing Leitmotif

The public debate on which economic policy South Africa should follow

, is certainly not boring. But it can"t be any different given the widely divergent ideological points of departure of those taking part in the debate.

The relative uniformity of the dialogue during the Mbeki era has made room for a cacophony of voices all trying to outshout one another. The one-sidedness of debate during that era and the preference for those sharing the same views above critical voices were probably taken too far, but perhaps the new-found openness has likewise caused the pendulum to swing too far.

Is it too much to ask for someone to take the lead by establishing a central leitmotif so that the debate could be more ordered? Does leadership mean nothing more than giving everyone the opportunity to have their say and then trying to effect a compromise between the opposing parties? Isn"t leadership about someone taking the lead and showing the way, even if it means being unpopular? Compromises are often not the optimal solution "" although they do help to keep the peace, they could mar policy effectiveness.

Leadership also implies resoluteness, a vision for the future. Getting stuck in the policy debate on ideas that originated more than 50 years ago, as if nothing has happened in the interim, is to deny the current reality and the ensuing economic path.

So, what should the leitmotif in the policy debate be?

It is widely recognised that the biggest challenge South Africa is facing is the dehumanising poverty among such a large section of its population. The problem of extreme inequalities is only a side-effect thereof. It is not the result of a large number of people finding themselves at the top end of the income distribution, but precisely because a much larger number are at the bottom end.

The solution to the inequalities in society therefore does not lie in measures to impede the movement of people into the top end, but to enable those at the bottom end to escape from their circumstances.

The solution to the problem of poverty is job creation, and in particular job creation in the formal sector of the economy. South Africa"s employment statistics want to suggest that job opportunities in the informal sector are of equal value, but this is an illusion. In this regard I sympathise with the wish for "decent jobs", but what can be done if competing countries are quite happy to create "indecent jobs"?

Although economic growth is not the only requirement for job creation, without economic growth large-scale and sustainable job creation is impossible. In other words, the promotion of economic growth must unavoidably be the leitmotif for the economic policy debate in South Africa.

by: Anneliese Thomas

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