The Eastern Cape still has the highest unemployment statistics in the country.
Although the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey has shown that there has been a decline of 1% in the unemployment statistics for the Eastern Cape, down from 45% to 44% and 0.6 down for the expanded unemployment, from 53.2% to 52.6%, the unemployment remains stubbornly high in the province.
The ANC provincial government is failing to provide the right environment conducive to job creation, particularly at municipal level.
Residents are in for a torrid winter, with rolling blackouts, devastating increases in food and fuel prices, and higher inflation and interest rate hikes, making it harder than ever for people to make ends meet.
Sadly, this environment also makes the employment prospects a lot more arduous, as people struggle to feed their families.
We need a functional local government across the province, providing reliable basic services, and creating an environment for businesses to invest and grow.
We also need to identify opportunities where the Government can support our businesses, such as red tape reduction.
There is a huge onus on the Government to give leadership if it is to create the environment for businesses to stay, invest and create jobs so people can live a life of value.
We need a capable state that can arrest the decline of the province. Unless we have a capable state, unemployment will remain stubbornly high.