‘In essence, South Africa’s post-apartheid economy is unable to deliver on the social contract enshrined in the Constitution. In its current form, the political economy of the country simply cannot address the discrepancies between the society envisioned in the constitution and the lived reality of citizens rapidly enough. South Africa’s choices are not between clear and simple “left” versus “right” economic ideologies. Rather, its future rests on an intricate set of inter-dependencies that match opportunities for capital with inefficiencies in the national development system. And South Africa needs a new economic regime that, over time, dynamically matches the structure of its labour market as skills are developed. But neither the social capital nor the institutional mechanisms exist to bring this about. As far as I can see, the only path out is for the sleeping giant of civil society to awake to this reality’.
Why South Africa can’t deliver on the social contract set out in the Constitution: 22.11.2016 Marius Oosthuizen, Full time faculty, Gordon Institute of Business Science, University of Pretoria. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.