Nine out of eleven Operation Vulindlela reforms completed: Gungubele

Government’s Operation Vulindlela aimed to accelerate economic reform has been hailed as a major success. The Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele says nine out of its 11 reforms have been completed.

Gungubele and Minister of Finance Enoch Godongwana released Operation Vulindlela’s second-quarter report on Friday. The ministers say since its inception, critical interventions have been fast-tracked.

The plan comprises of five objectives, energy, digital communications, water, transport and visa reform.

Operation Vulindlela was established in October 2020. This initiative is aimed at fast-tracking the delivery of structural economic reforms to unblock economic growth.

Gungubele says Operation Vulindlela is of utmost importance for the country’s economy. He says following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s Energy Action Plan, work has already begun.

“Gas and battery storage will super charge our efforts to modernise and transform the electricity sector, most importantly these changes will create the conditions for a boom in the private fixed investment in the economic years which will lift our economic growth overall,” says Gungubele.

Briefing the media on a virtual platform Godongwana says since its inception the operation has assisted in the successful completion of nine projects.

Godongwana has acceded that 11 others are still in progress as some reforms continue to face challenges. He says Eskom and digital migration have been identified as some of the reforms with difficulties.

“A minority of these reforms, such as improving Eskom’s energy availability factor and completing digital migration are not on track. As demonstrated with the formation of Necom, however, we are taking decisive action to get these reforms on track as quickly as possible,” says Godongwana.

Operation Vulindlela also aims to reform the visa regime to attract skills and promote tourism growth. Government says this will place the country on a new trajectory of high and sustainable growth.

VIDEO: Government’s Operation Vulindlela hailed:

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