The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs is mandated to oversee the socio-economic transformation in the province. It therefore leads the policy and strategic initiatives directed at promoting development and growth in various sectors of the economy. However, to achieve its objectives, the Department has to co-operate with various stakeholders and social partners that include the private sector and civil society. National and provincial legislative, policy and strategic frameworks guide the operations of the Department. Some of the national acts that are critical to the operations of this portfolio are the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, particularly Schedule 6 which stipulates the competences of the provincial government on matters of economic development and the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) among other sector specific acts. The Department’s operations are also guided by a number of national policies and strategies, which include among others:
• New Growth Path (NGP)
• Industrial Action Plan (IPAP2)
• National Development Plan (NDP)
• Local Economic Development (LED) policy guideline;
• South Africa Trade policy framework
• Green economy framework
• Mining beneficiation strategy
• National Spatial Economic Development Perspective (NSDP)
• Special economic Zones (SEZs) Bill and policy, and
• A number of sector specific strategies. The provincial government has aligned to these acts and policies and the Department’s mandate is further guided by the following provincial acts and strategies, among others:
• Ithala Act,
• Tourism Act,
• Liquor Act, Business Act,
• Dube Trade Port act,
• BEE Act,
• Film Commission Act,
• Trade & Investment Act,
• Provincial growth & Development Strategy (PGDS),
• Provincial Spatial Economic Development Strategy (PSEDS),
• Export Strategy,
• Industrial Development Strategy (IDS),
• Investment Promotion Strategy,
• Green Economy Strategy,
• Airport Strategy,
• SMME strategy, Co-operative Developments strategy,
• Youth Economic Empowerment Strategy,
• Informal Economic Policy. The emphasis in most of the current policies and provincial strategies is the issue of addressing the triple challenges of poverty, unemployment and inequality. The main policy discussions currently are centred on the following:
• Job Creation,
• Special Economic Zones (SEZ),
• Beneficiation/Value Addition,
• Infrastructure Development,
• Rural Economic Development,
• Skills Development,
• Economic Transformation,
• Trade Policy,
• Spatial Economic Development. The above legislations, policies and strategies are critical to direct the vision and mandate of the Department. One of the primary focus areas of the Department in the forthcoming five-year strategic planning horizon should be effective implementation of the aforementioned policies and strategies. It is only through efficiency in the implementation of these legislations, policies and strategies that the organisation can meaningfully contribute to the fight against the triple challenges of development as mentioned above. For the Department to be able to cost-effectively implement is mandatory policies and strategies is made up of various programmes that constitute distinct but complementary functions that are related to the basic strategic mandate of the organisation. These include functions that are actively involved in the implementation of strategy and those focusing on the provision of corporate support services to ensure compliance and governance of the resources deployed for the delivery of services. Below is the list of programmes that give the complete profile of this portfolio:
The Department is a public organisation that is bound by the content of the Promotion of Access to Information Act to provide information to members of the public and other stakeholders wishing to use it to access details with respect to various services offered by this organisation and its public entities. However, certain protocols have to be followed when seeking specific information through the office of the organisation’s Chief Information Officer or designated senior official(s) that should act as Deputy Information Officer(s).
