health management are also addressed and in building a capable state, detailed recommendations are made on professionalising the public service. some areas of government, where improvements have occurred, such as the south african revenue bis central bankers ’ speeches service through an improvement in operational procedures, management and delivery systems should be emulated by other organs of state. an initiative worth mentioning in terms of already improved processes in the public sector is the introduction of an e - portal on 1 april 2015 that will reshape the south african government supply chain processes, particularly as it relates to government tenders. it is envisaged that the public will eventually be able to see all tenders, bidders and their prices quoted, as well as minutes of bid committee meetings. over and above the e - portal, a national database of all approved and compliant suppliers and an “ online shop ”, where government departments will place orders of less than r500 000, will be established. initiatives such as these are laudable and will contribute towards increased efficiencies in service delivery which is essential for improved growth prospects. the focus within the ndp on the eradication of corruption from the system is most welcome, in taking cognisance of the fact that for state officials to act in a corrupt fashion, requires a willing counter party from the private sector is necessary. the introduction of the government ’ s new tender process, as already mentioned, will go a long way in exposing and limiting possible corruption within the system. the ndp recognises the need for increased fixed investment in the economy and has set a target of raising the level of gross fixed capital formation from around 20 per cent of gdp currently, to as high as 30 per cent by 2030. inarguably, well - planned and appropriate infrastructural development is conducive to higher levels of economic growth and job creation. the ndp clearly distinguishes between investment that generates immediate financial returns, such as in airports and power stations and those projects where financial returns are far less measurable, such as in schools and hospitals. the role of business in increasing the overall level of fixed investment in the country will most appropriately lie in the area of fixed investment where financial returns are more evident, through public private partnerships. international experience has shown that private sector participation in infrastructure provision is most successful in the transport and energy sectors. the participation of the private sector contributes to effective cost containment through the profit motive, improves efficiency and leads to more sustainable jobs through more ambitious skills transfer

the markets, the rand could strengthen or weaken by over a percentage point in a day. in addition to these global factors, domestic growth has been weak because of our own owngoals. lengthy and sometimes violent strikes, electricity supply constraints, perceived or real concerns about economic policies and a slow breakdown in trust between major social partners have deducted from growth and investment. in 2012, the marikana strike and its consequences knocked exports as well as confidence ; confidence in our ability to manage our social stresses. in 2013, the motor industry strike and related strikes in the automotive component sectors and transport sectors knocked over 0. 5 percent off our growth. in 2014, the five - month - long platinum strike and the four week manufacturing sector strike knocked over one percentage point off our gdp growth. while electricity constraints have become more binding in recent months, the lack of supply capacity has cost us foregone investment for much of the past five years. national treasury estimates these costs to be about 0. 3 to 0. 4 percentage points of gdp a year, and this was before load - shedding resumed in december 2014. lower electricity capacity for the next three to four years is a major reason behind the bank ’ s downward revision to gdp growth for 2015 from 2. 5 percent to 2. 2 percent. we hope that business, labour and government can join together to manage the electricity constraint in a manner that does least damage to the economy. bis central bankers ’ speeches strike activity and a slow breakdown in trust between major social partners have impacted on business confidence and hence on investment. add to this weak consumer demand, and it appears as though the economy is in a rut : weak demand leads to low investment, weak investment means no growth in employment and household incomes. how does one break out of such a rut? there is little space for macroeconomic policy in this context. fiscal policy, having been used successfully to offset weak demand for six years has reached its limits. a failure to consolidate the fiscal position would leave the country vulnerable in the face of another global shock, and if the country ’ s credit rating is further downgraded, would raise borrowing costs for the entire economy. fortunately, in the 2014 mtbps, the minister of finance outlined a clear path towards fiscal consolidation in south africa. monetary policy is constrained by the fact that inflation has either been close to or above the target band for a significant period over the past two years. in the absence of macroeconomic policy space, which