Productivity SA Chief Executive Officer (CEO), speech at the KZN workplace challenge programme milestone workshop, 11 october 2022

Programme Director, Acting Executive Manager: Region 3, Productivity SA, Mr Phila Ngcobo

The dtic Director: Skills for the Economy in the Spatial, Industrial, and Economic

Transformation Branch, Ms Shanaaz Ebrahim

Department of Employment and Labour

Representatives from Business, Labour and Academia.

Colleagues from Productivity SA and the dtic.

Members of the media, all invited guests, Ladies and gentlemen.

Good morning! Sanibonani nonke, Ezweni loShaka .

Programme Director, Ladies and Gentlemen, I am delighted to be here among you in the kingdom of KwaZulu as we celebrate Productivity Month (October), and on this occasion of the Workplace Challenge Programme Milestone Workshop. One does feel the vibe and energy of KwaZulu’s powerful cultural heritage. It is the energy that I would like us all to galvanize ourselves into as we mark this WPC Programme Milestone event, 2022.

Ladies and gentlemen, your presence here today means a lot to us as Productivity South Africa. We appreciate that you have taken time out of your busy schedules to join us as we reflect on the many challenges we experienced, particularly over the past two years, but above all, how far have we gone on honouring the commitments that we as strategic partners (EDTEA, TIKZN, the dtic, SEZ/IDZs and Industrial Parks, SAFLEC, Districts and Metros, etc) made to the people of this Province.

We do this taking a leaf off Productivity SA’s Theme for 2022: Adapting and growing stronger, together.” This theme highlights the need for adapting to new ways of doing business and leveraging on collaboration and partnership for growth. The theme emphasizes collaboration of multi-disciplinary partners to rebuild a sustainable economy and tackle inequality, unemployment, and poverty.

The key word is Change. The word is short, but it is long and meaningful in so many ways. Winston Churchill once said: “to improve is to change, and to be perfect it is to change more often. What it simply means, is that a person can change his future by simply changing his attitude”. We all know that every day the clock resets, it lets us all learn to take some time to reset in everything that we do. Let us reset and change the way we do things, let us strive to be the best in everything we do by simply changing how we go about our day-to-day business.

In line with this year’s theme, let us hold hands and grow together, and continue to build our nation as we implement the Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan towards achievement of the National Development Plan by 2030.

Ladies and gentlemen, the strategic partnership and alliance with KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism & Environmental Affairs (EDTEA), TIKZN go a long way in assisting us as Productivity SA and the dtic to collectively implement the Enterprise Development and Support Programmes like the Workplace Challenge Programme. This partnership is a confirmation of government working together (Joined-up- Government) with social partners to create an enabling environment conducive for entrepreneurship and sustainable enterprises, which will create wealth and profits for the entrepreneurs, income for workers and wellbeing of the communities in which they operate.

The Programme Interventions, including the WPC give us as a Province and the country an opportunity to reflect and take advantage of the emerging opportunities flowing from the collective global response and proposals on how to deal with the changing nature of our societies and the Future of Work.

Today is about reflecting and celebrating the VALUE OF PRODUCTIVITY, and by extension the improved performance of the enterprises we supported (with Natpro Spicenet, Sabie Switchboards and The Blinds Syndicate sharing the experiences, which I believe many entrepreneurs share).

We do this understanding that Productivity improvement is the most effective way of ensuring long-term competitiveness, long-term business success, economic growth and, consequently, tackling the challenges of unemployment, poverty, inequality, and exclusion. Productivity leads to growth, which leads to income levels and improved well-being. The more productive the economy, the more its enterprises become competitive and sustainable as well as grow to preserve existing jobs and create new jobs.

It is for this reason that as we host this milestone workshop, we call upon the leadership (both political and administrative) of the Kwazulu-Natal Economic cluster departments at provincial level, divided into one metropolitan municipality (eThekwini Metropolitan Municipality) and 10 district municipalities (Amajuba District Municipality, Ilembe District Municipality, Sisonke District Municipality, Ugu District Municipality, uMkhanyakude District Municipality, uMgungundlovu District Municipality, uMzinyathi District Municipality, Uthukela District Municipality, Uthungulu District Municipality, Zululand District Municipality.), which are further subdivided into 50 local municipalities to work with us to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of their economies and enterprises, particularly those in the priority productive sectors, to work with us to improve the competitiveness and sustainability of their economies and enterprises, particularly those in the priority productive sectors.

Our partnerships here in KZN have yielded positive results.

• The Establishment of the KZN Export Competitiveness Enhancement Programme (KECEP), a customised programme initiated by KZN Department of Economic Development, Tourism & Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) aimed at stimulating the province’s competitiveness was officially launched in October 2018. The programme is driven and funded by EDTEA, and is being implemented in partnership with Productivity SA, SEDA and TIKZN. It started with 20 companies (6 months for 15 emerging exporters, 12 months for 5 large exporters). The new SLA was signed during 2020/21 at a value of R1,9 million. The projects have undergone monitoring, evaluation, and impact analysis. Companies benefitted through: Exporters Programme, Benchmarking and Kaizen Training.

• TRANSNET/ TIKZN

Establishment of Transnet Kaizen Programme. 2021/22 SLA was signed at R730 00. The objective of the Programme is to increase competitiveness and sustainability of the companies supported by Transnet. The programme benefitted through Kaizen Implementation, Benchmarking, Monitoring and Evaluation.

Support for enterprises within SEZs/IDZs/Industrial Parks

Support for enterprises within SEZs/IDZs/Industrial Parks have received important support, The Acting DDG-Spatial Industrial Development & Economic Transformation provided letters to seek support and cooperation from SEZs, IDZs and IPs – strengthening sector and firm level support. Letters were forwarded to CEOs and Industrial Parks Managers. Productivity SA is busy conducting follow-ups.

Value of partnerships in delivering on our value proposition remains critical

Introductory brief was provided to Ithala & KZN Officials in August this year. An MoU was concluded with SAFLEC to provide Kaizen Programme (5 companies), and Green Programme (5 companies), as well as Emerging Business Programme (5 companies) – with co-funding via Ethekwini Footwear and Leather Cluster.

City Support Programme provided introductory brief last month to officials responsible for Revitalization of Industrial Spaces (Jacobs Industrial Park, eThekwini).
2 officials are attending the milestone workshop (Mr Takalani Rathiyaya and Ms Ravesha Govender)

KZN ANNUAL PERFORMANNCE PLAN

For the past 6 years, we have implemented WPC In 84 enterprises, with 3728 employees, 246 productivity champions,486 Supported enterprises and 686 supported entrepreneurs

WPC contracts have been signed with 4 of the 11 districts/metros in the KZN:
Champions have been trained in 4 of the 11 districts/metros in the KZN

Capacity Building has been provided physically in 5 districts as well as 12 online sessions.

This confirms that, working together we can do more. As we work towards facilitating economic growth, it is important to note SMMEs are still facing numerous challenges and issues which include but not limited to legislative compliance, economic constraints, and access to finance for their survival and growth. Most are relatively stagnant, employing mostly unskilled/semi-skilled workers, struggle to transform their informal operations into established businesses. I’m confident that this is all work in progress, from here, we aim to do more and achieve more.

I want to take this opportunity to thank you all for allowing the much-needed change and moving towards the new way of doing things. Given the Change we want to see, we must all adapt to new ways of doing business and leveraging on partnerships and collaboration of multi-disciplinary partners to rebuild a sustainable economy and tackle inequality, unemployment, and poverty.

Whether in business or life, change takes time to get used to. It is time to stop being afraid of what could go wrong, and start being excited about what could go right, after all to quote Albert Einstein “Nothing happens unless something is moved’.

I thank you all.