| The KwaZulu Natal Province has the highest concentration of people in South Africa, contributing to one-fifth of the total population. It is not surprising, therefore, that the province suffers from high levels of social need, reinforced by very high levels of unemployment (39%) and poverty, affecting some 63% of the population. This deprivation is predominantly concentrated in urban townships, informal settlements and within traditional rural areas. It is South Africa’s worst hit province in terms of the HIV/Aids pandemic affecting over a third of the population in 2000.
IMC is currently undertaking the KwaZulu Natal Local Economic Development support programme which aims to support the provincial Department of Economic Development and Tourism (DEDT) and a broad range of other stakeholders to more effectively implement LED that achieves equitable economic growth in the province. Its aim is to respond to the major market failures and human and institutional capacity limitations that operate to perpetuate the exclusion of the majority of the population from the mainstream economy. The programme will support LED initiatives from provincial and local actors.
In order to achieve this, the programme sets out to:
- Build sustainable partnerships between LED stakeholders in four ‘learning areas’, namely Umgungundlovu, Ugu, Umkhanyakude and Uthungulu
- Strengthen and cohere the enabling environment for investment and enterprise development, skills development, HIV/Aids and TB mitigation, and development of local government around projects that promote economic growth and poverty reduction
- Promote learning, knowledge exchange and replication
- Establish effective, adaptable and innovative LED management functions at the ‘learning area’ and provincial level
It is envisaged that the programme will achieve the following results:
- Stakeholders engaged in LED process and capacitated to develop effective strategies and projects
- LED enabling environment strengthened
- Establishment of mechanisms for learning, knowledge exchange and replication
Establishment of effective LED management functions
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