President Zuma meeting with the National Planning Commission

03 July 2013

President Jacob Zuma has today, 03 July 2013, concluded a successful meeting with the National Planning Commission (NPC) at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, the first since the Cabinet adopted its National Development Plan.

The President was briefed on the following:

• The support for the National Development Plan from various sectors of society and how it has contributed to raising the level of policy debate and managed to unite many people of this country across political divides behind a common set of goals.
• Integration of the Plan into programmes of government and progress with the drafting of the Medium Term Strategic Framework.
• How the various sectors such as business, civil society and youth have embraced the Plan and are working on mechanisms to implement the Plan and the need for ongoing dialogue.
• The areas of focus of the Commission for the remainder of its term which include: advising government on implementation of the Plan; using research to deepen understanding of the challenges and opportunities for implementation; mobilising ongoing support for the Plan; developing sectoral partnerships by bringing different parties together to contribute to the Plan; and report on progress and identifying blockages.
• How the different spheres, especially provincial and local governments, are engaging with the plan and gearing up for implementation.

The President was satisfied that significant work has been done to prepare for implementation.

"We understand that implementation is more difficult than writing the plan. In the next phase, we will need to meet more often to discuss the challenges and sharpen our approaches to implementation. I'm pleased that government has already begun to prepare the 2014 - 2019 Medium Term Strategic Framework, which is based on the National Development Plan. We are determined to ensure that we use the NDP to improve the lives of our people," President Zuma said.

Statement issued by Mac Maharaj, The Presidency, July 3 2013

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