Programme Director,
Minister of Small Business Development, Ms Stella Ndabeni,
Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Mr Velenkosini Hlabisa,
Acting Premier of Gauteng, Ms Nomantu  Nkomo-Ralehoko,
Ministers and Deputy Ministers,
MECs,
President of the South African Local Government Association, Cllr Bheke Stofile,
Chairperson of the National House of Traditional and Khoisan Leaders, Kgosi Thabo Seatlholo,
Executive Mayors, Councillors and local economic development practitioners,
Representatives of development finance institutions,
Representatives of business, academia and civil society,
Representatives of the SMME sector,
Officials,
Guests,
Ladies and gentlemen, 

It is a great pleasure to attend this crucial summit on re-engineering local economies with small business growth at the centre. 

This summit is taking place two weeks after we held a successful sixth South Africa Investment Conference, where we were able to showcase the many opportunities for investment in our country. 

The conference secured a record R890 billion in investment pledges across all provinces.

When investors build their business in our country, they don’t set up factories or open call centres on the lawns of the Union Buildings or in front of the Houses of Parliament. 

This investment takes place in metros, cities, towns and villages. 

Just as local government is the engine room of development, metro, district and local municipalities must see themselves as incubators of economic activity.

When an entrepreneurship culture is strong and supported in cities and towns, it contributes to job creation and small business development. 

South Africa has a burgeoning entrepreneurial sector that continues to increase its contribution to economic activity and job creation.

Yet the entrepreneurship ecosystem as a whole still faces challenges with funding, skills training, bureaucratic barriers and integration into larger value chains. 

It also faces challenges within local government that constrain economic opportunity and potential. 

The Auditor-General’s report on local government highlights persistent weaknesses that directly undermine service delivery and constrain local economic development. 

These include weak financial management and revenue collection, failure to maintain infrastructure, ineffective supply chain management, irregular and wasteful expenditure and weak consequence management.

These challenges translate into unreliable electricity, water insecurity, poor roads, poor service delivery and unsafe trading environments. 

Without fixing governance, we cannot fix service delivery and without fixing service delivery, we cannot unlock local economic development. 

The task of this summit is to shift the discussion from the problems to the solutions.

As my contribution to the deliberations of the summit, there are four sets of actions that I would like to put forward. 

The first of these is to unblock service delivery constraints at local government level, especially with regards to basic infrastructure. 

Energy security, water provision, roads and rail lines are the foundation of growth. 

We have made much progress in tackling load shedding and improving the efficiency of our logistics sector.

This summit must now translate national progress into local success. 

Municipalities must be the frontline in unblocking infrastructure constraints, ensuring that the local industrial park has the power it needs, that tourists can enjoy clean and safe beaches, and that township businesses have streetlighting to trade safely beyond daylight hours.

It is a major concern that we have not adequately prioritised infrastructure maintenance. 

National Treasury Guidelines require municipalities to budget 8 percent of the carrying value of property, plant and equipment. 

Many municipalities are budgeting less than 1 percent. 

To correct this, we need to improve debt collection and revenue management systems. We need to leverage private investment for infrastructure. 

The second set of actions I would like to see emerge from this summit revolve around the ease of doing business. 

Cutting red tape is crucial both to attract large scale investments and also to enable informal traders and small township entrepreneurs to succeed. 

Some of our cities and municipalities have done well in improving the ease of doing business. 

They have systems and targets for zoning approvals, issuing construction permits, connecting businesses with water and electricity, issuing trading and business licenses, including using e-registration systems. There is regulatory certainty. 

However I worry that these municipalities are the exception rather than the rule. 

More often than not, bureaucratic delays at municipal level prevent local investments from getting over the line. 

There are backlogs in issuing business licenses, which, among other things, prevent micro enterprises accessing government support. 

This must change. 

As we finalise the Business Licencing Bill and roll-out the Red Tape Reduction Framework, we call on local government to drive its own red-tape reduction reforms. 

We would also like to see continuous engagement with local business associations and forums, so that we may understand their frustrations and address their concerns. 

Investment will always gravitate towards municipalities that make it easy to do business.

The third set of actions I would propose focus on what could be called the Operating System of Growth. 

For too long, local economic development has been treated as an isolated municipal project function. 

But economic growth is an outcome of a functioning operating system. 

Our municipalities contribute most effectively to growth not through isolated grants or projects, but through reliable basic services and predictable infrastructure maintenance.

They contribute through transparent and time-bound development approvals and effective urban management.

Municipalities contribute to growth by using procurement and ensuring supplier payment discipline to support local small businesses. 

This summit seeks to reposition the municipal contribution to growth as an operating system outcome, not a project function. 

To achieve this, we are formalising the District Development Model’s One Plan as a binding economic transformation compact. 

These compacts will be implemented through specific Area Compacts targeting priority nodes and corridors with sequenced investment in transport, bulk services, and enabling business infrastructure. 

These DDM One Plans need to clearly articulate local growth drivers and how these can be supported, aligned to our country’s broader industrial policy.

Functional economic regions do not stop at municipal boundaries. 

We need to shift from competition between neighbours to structured regional economic partnerships. 

These will align the planning pipelines of state-owned companies and national departments with local priorities. 

These regional economic partnerships must consider how small enterprise, township and village economies can be better integrated into markets and value chains.

This must include the broader African market, which we are unlocking through the African Continental Free Trade Area. 

We need to build regional eco-systems where government, universities, incubators, traditional leaders and the private sector all work together to unlock local growth drivers.

The fourth and final set of actions that I suggest be reflected in the summit outcomes deal with the critical question of capacity.

Specifically, how do we equip local government and communities to fully realise these coordinated plans?

The answer lies in professionalising our municipalities and ensuring that our governance structures are capable, accountable and inclusive. 

We must professionalise the local economic development function. 

Appointments must be made based on merit, relevant skills, experience and qualifications, while holding people to strong ethical standards. 

The scale of the challenge before us requires a national compact for Local Economic Development. 

All stakeholders have a role to play.

For state-owned entities, this means that their infrastructure investments must drive local economic participation. When infrastructure is built, we must see local suppliers, local contractors and local jobs. 

Our development finance institutions must help to de-risk municipal infrastructure and develop blended finance solutions that turn plans into bankable projects, and projects into delivery. 

We need a stronger compact with the financial sector to expand MSME financing, especially in townships and rural areas. 

We call on established businesses to partner with municipalities, develop local suppliers, invest in skills and open value chains. 

We must leave this summit with a programme of action that binds us to clear deliverables and timelines. 

We must ensure that the collaborative blueprint we draft here over the next two days contributes to a new reality for every South African, for every business, in every municipality, in every corner of our land. 

South Africa is a country of entrepreneurs. 

Our task is to unleash their potential and, in so doing, to build an inclusive economy that creates opportunities for all.

I thank you.

Programme Director,
Members of the National Intelligence Co-ordinating Committee (NICOC),
Acting Coordinator for Intelligence,
Leaders of our intelligence and security services,

Today is not a ceremonial indulgence. It is a reaffirmation of mandate, of law, and of responsibility.

We gather under the authority of the National Strategic Intelligence Act 39 of 1994, specifically Section 4, which does not merely constitute a committee, but establishes the Republic’s central nervous system for intelligence coordination. NICOC is where the fragmented becomes unified, where information becomes insight, and where insight must become action.

The coins I present to you today, bearing the insignia of the National Centre for Intelligence Coordination (NCIC), (which is in all intents and purposes, the Office of the Coordinator for Intelligence), are not tokens. They are markers of duty.

Each element on this coin reflects the mandate you carry. The five stars represent you, the statutory members of NICOC, drawn from the core intelligence disciplines of the Republic. Domestic intelligence, Foreign intelligence, Defence intelligence, Crime intelligence, and the coordinating authority vested in the Office of the Coordinator.

You are not parallel structures. You are one system, defined in law and bound in purpose.

At the centre stands the secretary bird, not a passive observer, but a decisive hunter of threats. It does not merely watch. It identifies, engages, and neutralises. This is the standard expected of our intelligence community, not reaction, but anticipation and disruption.

Beneath it lies the protea, the enduring symbol of our nation, resilient, diverse, and sovereign. It is not the state alone that you serve, but the constitutional identity and integrity of the Republic. The protea reminds us that intelligence exists to protect the people, the Constitution, and the future of South Africa.

Encircling all of this is the mark of NCIC, the Office of the Coordinator, where your efforts converge, where national priorities are defined, and where coherence must prevail over fragmentation.

Let me be clear, coordination is not a bureaucratic exercise. It is a strategic function. Where coordination fails, threats are missed, signals are ignored, and the State is exposed.

Conversely, where coordination succeeds, threats are pre-empted, resources are aligned, and the Republic is secured without noise.

NICOC must never become a forum of reports. It must remain a centre of decision, integration, and direction.

As you receive this coin, you are reminded that intelligence must be timely, actionable, and relevant. Rivalry between structures must give way to national interest. Silence in the face of threat is failure. Coordination without consequence is complacency. This coin binds you not to symbolism, but to performance.

Let it be a reminder to all of us that you operate in an environment defined by complexity, characterised amongst other, by transnational criminal networks, espionage and foreign interference, economic sabotage, as well as emerging technological threats.

These are not abstract risks. They are active, evolving, and deliberate. Your duty, as constituted under law, is to ensure that the Republic is never blind, never surprised, and never unprepared.

Let me conclude by stating that today, as I hand you this NCIC coin, I do so with a simple expectation:

That you will embody the unity it represents,
That you will execute the mandate it reflects,
And that you will protect what it stands for, the sovereignty, security, and constitutional order of South Africa.

This coin does not grant authority. It reminds you of the authority you already carry, and the responsibility that comes with it.

I thank you.

Programme Director,
iNkosi Zanoxolo Meji, our esteemed traditional leader,
Dr. Peyana, District Director: O.R. Tambo Coastal,
Councillor Cebisa Mazuza, Mayor of Majola,
Mr. Majola, Principal of Gcinibandla Primary School,
Mr. Hakata, Chairperson of the School Governing Body,
Ms.  Sigwavu, representing SADTU,
Mrs. Ahmed, representing parents,
Mr. Mukwevho, HWPL Southern Africa Branch Manager,
Distinguished guests, educators, parents, members of the community, and most importantly, the learners of Gcinibandla Primary School,

Good morning.

It is both a privilege and a deeply humbling experience to stand before you today in this beautiful part of our country, as we gather to mark an important milestone for Gcinibandla Primary School and the broader community of Port St Johns. Today is not merely a ceremonial occasion it is a moment that signals progress, possibility, and a shared commitment to the future of our children.

We are here to hand over laptops as part of establishing a technology lab at this school, but more importantly, we are here to plant a seed. This is the beginning of an ongoing programme one that will continue to grow and evolve over time. What we are launching today is not the end, but the start of a journey towards building a fully equipped digital learning environment. While today we place laptops in the hands of learners and educators, tomorrow we envision a fully developed lab with large digital screens, enhanced connectivity, and expanded resources that will transform how teaching and learning take place in this school.

Programme Director,

As highlighted in today’s programme, “in the digital age, learning ICT is not an option, but a necessity”. This statement captures the urgency of the work before us. The world is changing rapidly, and the skills required for success are evolving just as quickly. If we are to prepare our young people for meaningful participation in the economy and society, we must ensure that they are digitally empowered.

For too long, many rural and under-resourced schools have been left on the margins of technological advancement. Today, we are taking a decisive step to change that reality. This initiative is about closing the digital divide. It is about ensuring that a child in Gcinibandla has the same opportunity to learn, explore, and innovate as a child anywhere else in South Africa or indeed, anywhere in the world.

To the learners gathered here today, this is your moment. These laptops are not just devices they are tools of empowerment. Through them, you can access knowledge, develop skills, and unlock opportunities that were once beyond reach. I urge you to use them with discipline, curiosity, and purpose. Let them inspire you to dream boldly and to work hard towards those dreams.

The future belongs to those who are prepared, and today, we are helping you to prepare.

To the educators and the leadership of this school under Mr. Majola, we recognise and appreciate the critical role you play. Technology alone does not transform education — it is the dedication of teachers that brings learning to life. We trust that you will embrace these tools, integrate them into your teaching, and use them to enrich the educational experience of every learner in your care.

Programme Director,

This initiative would not have been possible without strong partnerships. We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to our partners, Sentech and Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL), whose support and collaboration have made today a reality. Your contribution goes beyond infrastructure you are helping to shape futures and build hope in communities that need it most.
This is a powerful demonstration of what can be achieved when Government, the private sector, and civil society work together towards a common goal.

As Government, we remain committed to building a capable and inclusive society one in which every child has access to quality education and the tools needed to succeed in the modern world. Initiatives such as this are aligned with our broader vision of equipping young people with the skills required for the Fourth Industrial Revolution.

But we are also mindful that this work requires continuity. Today’s handover must be followed by sustained support, ongoing development, and continuous improvement. This is why we emphasise that this is only the beginning. We will continue to work with stakeholders to expand and strengthen this programme, ensuring that the vision of a fully resourced digital lab becomes a reality.

In closing, let us remember that the true value of what we do today will be measured not in the equipment we hand over, but in the impact it has on the lives of these young learners. Let this school become a centre of excellence in digital learning. Let it inspire other schools and communities to follow this path.

And let us continue, together, to walk this journey of progress Sohamba Ekukhanyeni we walk in the light.

I thank you.

Deputy Minister in The Presidency, Nonceba Mhlauli, together with the CEO of HONOR Technologies Africa, Mr Zou Lefeng, will hand over laptops to learners at Kaalfontein High School in Ebony Park on Wednesday, 15 April 2026.

The handover forms part of a collaboration between Government and the private sector aimed at advancing digital inclusion and enhancing access to technology for learners. Through this initiative, learners at Kaalfontein High School will receive laptops to support teaching and learning, and to empower students with the tools needed to thrive in an increasingly digital world.

This partnership shows a shared commitment to bridging the digital divide, fostering innovation in education, and equipping young people with critical skills for the future economy.

Event Details are as follows:

Date: Wednesday, 15 April 2026
Time: 11h00
Venue: Kaalfontein High School, Ebony Park

RSVP & Media Enquiries: Ms Mandisa Mbele, Office of the Deputy Minister in The Presidency, on 082 580 2213 or mandisam@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

Programme Director, DDG Zungu;
Honourable Minister of Higher Education and Training, Mr Buti Manamela;
Minister in the Presidency for Women, Youth and Persons with Disabilities, Ms Sindiswa Chikunga;
Deputy Minister of Labour and Employment, Ms Judith Sithole;
Ministers and Deputy Ministers present;
Premier of Mpumalanga Province, Hon Mandla Ndlovu;
Gert Sibande District Executive Mayor, Cllr WM Mngomezulu;
Principal of Gert Sibande TVET College, Ms Zine Beku-Matlala;
Leadership of the College Council and Management;
Representative of SASOL, Ms Thabile Makgala;
Representative of FESTO, Mr Brett Wallace;
Chairperson of the NYDA, Dr Sunshine Myende;
All Representatives from Industry and Organised business present;
The Students, Academics and Members of the community;
Distinguished Partners and Donors;
Community Leaders;
Ladies and Gentlemen;

Good Afternoon!

It is a great privilege and an honour to stand before you today as we gather to mark the launch of this Artificial Intelligence (AI) laboratory.

The establishment of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) Digital Innovation Lab, along with the Centre of Specialisation for artisan training, represents a significant advancement in our efforts to cultivate a capable, skilled and competitive South Africa.

These centres connect education with industry, empower young people with forward-looking skills, and position Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as a driver of economic growth and social transformation.

The work beginning here will ripple outward, motivating communities, empowering youth, and strengthening South Africa’s voice in the global dialogue on technology and human progress. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is reshaping cognition, operations, and problem-solving at a pivotal moment in history. 

However, this transformation is uneven. Access, opportunity, and ability are not equitably distributed. The benefits of AI remain concentrated in centres of excellence, while rural schools, township innovators, and many communities remain excluded. 

If AI is to serve humanity, it must be inclusive, bridging divides, empowering the many, and ensuring South Africa’s voice is influential in shaping global progress.

The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2025 projects that by 2030, tasks will be nearly evenly divided between humans and machines. AI may displace 92 million roles but create 170 million new jobs globally, a net gain of 78 million. 

For South Africa, however, unemployment, inequality, and poverty, compounded by the digital divide, risk deepening exclusion. New jobs will arise in skilled sectors, leaving unskilled workers vulnerable to automation. Access to digital tools, affordable internet, and advanced skills remains inconsistent, limiting adaptation.

Please hear me with an open heart. I do not speak of AI to discourage its use, but to elevate the importance of readiness for the transformation already upon us. 

AI is not here to reduce human dignity, but to expand human potential. It is a partner in progress, a catalyst for creativity, and a bridge to new horizons. The question is not whether AI will transform society, but how and who will benefit.

AI must be seen as a driver of economic development, enhancing productivity, fostering innovation, and creating opportunities. 

This laboratory therefore matters because it allows us to shape outcomes rather than react to them. It creates a platform for the institution to evolve into a hub of inclusive innovation, where research addresses societal needs and the future of work is shaped around people.

Ladies and Gentlemen, technology is a valuable tool, but it cannot lead development alone. Genuine advancement requires integration with human agency, cultural context, and moral leadership. Individuals, policies, and leaders are essential. 

History warns us of transitions unmanaged that led to industries collapsing, communities left behind, jobs lost, trust broken. 

We cannot afford to repeat those mistakes. This transformation must be guided by wisdom, compassion, and responsibility, ensuring technology becomes a bridge to inclusion, not a barrier to dignity.

The success of AI will be judged not by efficiency alone, but by its ability to strengthen social cohesion, expand opportunities, and restore confidence in our collective future. That obligation lies in places like this lab, where we must ask:
• How do we build AI systems that help people, not just businesses?
• How do we ensure workers gain new skills instead of being replaced?
• How do we close the digital gap so all may benefit?
• How do we share AI’s benefits widely across society?

These are moral, financial, and human questions requiring collaboration.

I must indicate that South Africa’s successful adoption of AI will depend less on algorithms than on building a workforce skilled in data literacy, cloud computing, ethical governance, and applied AI integration. We must embed 4IR technologies into artisan training to ensure graduates are industry-ready. 

Our Government is developing a comprehensive response through the Draft National Artificial Intelligence Policy, released for public comment in April 2026. Once approved, it will establish national priorities, norms, and sector-specific strategies across manufacturing, energy, infrastructure, transport, and trade.

The policy introduces interventions for capacity building and digital infrastructure, integrating AI into all levels of education to create a pipeline of talent. It envisions AI hubs and super-computing facilities to empower startups and small enterprises, democratising access and distributing benefits across communities.

In Addition, last month, I challenged federations to draft a Digital Workers’ Charter, a covenant entrenching the Right to Retraining, Data Sovereignty, and Digital Dignity, and safeguarding the principle of Human in the Loop. The Charter should ensure technology serves workers by:
• Mandating consultations with workers on automation decisions.
• Establishing binding transition plans with impact assessments.
• Creating reskilling funds supported by an automation levy.
• Targeting rural investments to combat inequality.

Higher education institutions must partner in preparing people for jobs in the AI-driven economy. Those displaced must have pathways to retraining, strengthening resilience. 

AI must also serve as a transformative force in rural industrialisation, evolving traditional economies into modern, diversified hubs. Integrating AI into agriculture, manufacturing, and services can enhance productivity, elevate product value, and expand market access. This is how we make the digital future equitable, inclusive and considerate. 

We also need to make ethical oversight a top priority so that conscience, openness, and responsibility drive innovation. This AI laboratory, as an innovation centre, will be a catalyst to improve learning and productivity but also form part of our path into an inclusive digital future.  

Through the 4IR Digital Innovation Lab and Centre of Specialisation, we declare that AI will be harnessed to empower, not erode; to strengthen, not weaken; to ensure all stand as beneficiaries of transformation, not casualties of change.

To the students here today: you are not just preparing for the future; you are being called to shape it. Use this laboratory to experiment, to question, and to lead.

To the researchers and faculty, your role in guiding this transformation is critical. The knowledge you produce here has the potential to influence not only industries but lives as well.

To the leaders and partners: your investment demonstrates foresight and responsibility. Its true return will be measured in impact, not just innovation.

Let this LAB be a sign of South Africa's readiness, a site where we tell the world that we are ready for this transformation. To more of such transformative and futuristic initiatives!

I thank you, Inkomu.
 

President Cyril Ramaphosa will tomorrow, Wednesday, 15 April 2026, address the two-day National Local Economic Development (LED) Summit, which takes place at Birchwood Hotel, Johannesburg.

The summit is convened by the Department of Small Business Development, in partnership with the South African Local Government Association (SALGA) and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.

The theme for the event is  “Re-engineering Local Economies: A Collaborative Blueprint for Small Enterprise Growth and Ease of Doing Business.”

The summit serves as a high-level national platform that brings together government, the private sector, academia, development finance institutions and other key stakeholders to advance coordinated and practical solutions for inclusive local economic growth.

The gathering takes place at a critical juncture as government seeks to reposition local economic development as a central pillar of South Africa’s developmental agenda. 

This focus aims to accelerate economic growth, support job creation and strengthen the resilience of local economies, particularly in townships and informal sectors such as rural areas.

Deliberations will focus on strengthening the implementation of local economic development, improving intergovernmental coordination through the District Development Model, and unlocking opportunities for small, medium, and micro enterprises (MSMEs). 

Details of President Ramaphosa's participation are as follows:
Date: 15 April 2026
Time: 09h00
Venue: Birchwood Hotel & OR Tambo Conference Centre

Media enquiries: Vincent Magwenya Spokesperson to the President - media@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria
 

The Deputy Minister in The Presidency, Ms Nonceba Mhlauli, in collaboration with Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light, will officially hand over a fully equipped Technology Lab to learners and educators at Gcinibandla Primary School in the Eastern Cape Province.

This initiative is part of Government’s efforts to bridge the digital divide, enhance access to technology in rural schools, and empower learners with critical digital skills for the future.

The handover details are as follows:

Date: Tuesday, 14 April 2026
Time: 10h00
Venue: Gcinibandla Primary School, Majola, Port St John’s, Eastern Cape

RSVP & Enquiries: Ms Mandisa Mbele, Office of the Deputy Minister in The Presidency, on 082 580 2213 or mandisam@presidency.gov.za

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

The Deputy Minister in the Presidency, Nonceba Mhlauli, in collaboration with Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light, will officially hand over a fully equipped Technology Lab to learners and educators at Gcinibandla Primary School.

This initiative is part of government’s efforts to bridge the digital divide, enhance access to technology in rural schools, and empower learners with critical digital skills for the future.

The handover details are as follows:
Date: Tuesday, 14 April 2026
Time: 10:00
Venue: Gcinibandla Primary School, Majola, Port St John’s, Eastern Cape

Media enquiries & RSVP's: Mandisa Mbele, MandisaM@Presidency.gov.za / 082 580 2213

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

The Office of the Deputy President welcomes the Public Protector’s findings that cleared Deputy President Paul Mashatile and Transport Minister, Barbara Creecy, of any alleged wrong doing regarding the appointment of outgoing South African Airways (SAA) CEO, Professor John Lamola.

According to the Public Protector, an investigation found no evidence that Deputy President Mashatile and Minister Creecy improperly interfered in the recruitment process or breached the Executive Ethics Code.

This ruling confirms and reiterates the Deputy President’s assertion that the media reports regarding the matter were misguided, misleading and mischievous to suggest that Deputy President Mashatile and Minister Creecy held “private interviews” outside of the formal selection process for the position of SAA CEO.

The Office of the Deputy President remains committed and supports any internal recruitment and appointing processes of qualified candidates for any positions in the SEOs.

Media enquiries: Mr Keith Khoza, Acting Spokesperson to the Deputy President, on 066 195 8840

Issued by: The Presidency
Pretoria

Minister of Electricity and Energy, Dr Kgosientso Ramokgopa;
Premier of Mpumalanga, Mr Mandla Ndlovu;
Chairperson of the Eskom Board, Mr Mteto Nyati;
Group CEO of Eskom, Mr Dan Marokane;
Executive Mayor of Nkangala District Municipality, Cllr Thomas Ngwenya;
Executive Mayor of the Emalahleni Local Municipality, Cllr Vusi Nhlapo;
Leaders of organised labour;
Representatives of business and industry;
Traditional leaders and Amakhosi present;
The staff and leadership of Kusile power station and all Eskom employees;
Distinguished guests;
Ladies and gentlemen; 

It is a pleasure to be here to bear witness to the great strides Eskom has made towards restoring our country’s energy security. 

In September last year, the final unit at Kusile was brought online. 

This is now a fully operational station contributes a total of 4,800 megawatts to the national grid. 

Kusile means “the dawn has come”, which speaks directly to this moment in our national journey.

Kusile’s performance benchmarks are impressive. 

It is now one of the most reliable stations in the Eskom fleet, achieving an average Energy Availability Factor of 74 percent, increasing to 90 percent on occasion.

With the final unit coming online last year, Eskom’s build programme is now complete. 

The build programme created nearly 40,000 jobs, with more than half of these directly linked to Kusile, and Eskom has invested heavily in surrounding communities. 

Eskom now operates and manages Kusile with a permanent workforce of over 600 full‑time employees, supported by approximately 1,000 contractors during major plant maintenance periods.

These are valuable jobs, skills and opportunities, supporting families, strengthening communities and building local economies.

This station, together with Medupi in Limpopo, is the backbone of South Africa’s electricity supply. 

When operating at full capacity, these two stations are capable of delivering 9,600 megawatts. 

Both of these stations are designed for an operational lifespan of 50 years and will remain key to South Africa’s electricity supply for many years to come. 

What has been achieved here at Kusile – and indeed across all Eskom’s power stations – is a testament to discipline, consistency and resilience. 

These achievements justify our decision to prioritise Eskom’s recovery in the National Energy Action Plan that we announced in 2022. 

At the time the plan was announced, our country was experiencing severe load shedding, which disrupted peoples’ lives, constrained economic growth and eroded business and investor confidence. 

Today, we are approaching 365 consecutive days without load shedding.

In the last financial year, Eskom’s Energy Availability Factor increased to 65 percent. 

South Africa’s improved energy supply is a welcome relief for millions of households and businesses across the country.

It is also part of a wider economic recovery that is bringing renewed confidence to investors, and part of our broader goal of achieving higher, inclusive growth that creates jobs. 

This restored capacity is now being put to productive use, supporting industry and safeguarding jobs. 

This power station is equipped with state-of-the-art technology to reduce harmful emissions, and will play a key role as part of a diverse and low-carbon energy mix alongside renewable energy technologies. 

All of this progress is the result of tough choices, rigorous maintenance and operational discipline across the generation fleet. 

It is thanks to the visionary leadership at Eskom and to the hard work of Eskom’s 40,000 employees, engineers, technicians, artisans, operators and support staff.

For this our nation thanks each and every one of you. 

We must also thank our social partners, who, among other things, have provided resources and expertise to support Eskom’s recovery efforts.

We must acknowledge that Kusile has had a difficult journey. 

Kusile has been plagued by challenges nearly throughout the project lifespan, including overruns, massive cost escalations, technical problems and issues with contractor performance. 

The State Capture Commission uncovered widescale corruption and looting at Kusile that nearly brought Eskom to financial ruin. 

I wish to acknowledge Eskom’s leadership for supporting the efforts of our law enforcement authorities to recover stolen money and hold those found guilty accountable. 

This experience has sharpened our resolve to ensure that projects of this scale adhere to the highest standards of governance, due diligence, proper financial controls and accountability. 

This is all the more critical at a time when we have embarked on the most ambitious infrastructure build in South Africa’s history. 

Over the next three years the state will be investing R1 trillion to build and maintain public infrastructure across the country. 

We are determined that all infrastructure projects deliver value for South Africans and are planned, financed, constructed and maintained in the strictest compliance with the law. 

Let us ensure that this power station and all our strategic assets are managed with integrity and foresight, so that they may serve the country into the future. 

Energy security is vital to the security and well-being of our nation. 

It underpins economic growth, job creation and social stability. It shapes the prospects of families and communities across our country.

That is why we are in the process of the most fundamental reform of our electricity sector in more than a century, which will modernise our energy system, enable significant new investment and lower the cost of electricity for all South Africans.

Eskom is at the heart of this transformation, providing reliable power to millions of homes and businesses while positioning itself for the energy system of the future.

As we undertake this reform process and as we introduce competition, we will ensure Eskom’s sustainability and the security of our electricity supply for future generations.

The completion of Kusile marks a new beginning. 

Exactly 120 years ago this week, Pixley ka Isaka Seme delivered his seminal speech on the ‘Regeneration of Africa’ at Columbia University in New York.

He said: “The brighter day is rising upon Africa.”

As we stand at Kusile, as we stand at this dawn, we are reminded of our shared responsibility to ensure that these first rays of light prove to be the beginning of a brighter day for all our people, for our country and for our continent.

I thank you.