The need for a coherent long-term plan to provide clear and consistent policies necessitated formation of the National Planning Commission (NPC). Kuben Naidoo, the acting head of the NPC Secretariat, said the Commission – located in the presidency and overseen by Minister Trevor Manuel – was an advisory body in the main, with neither executive authority nor decision-making powers.

“Cabinet remains the seat of decision-making and our task is to advise Cabinet on issues impacting on long-term development, and suggest a vision for the long term and identify impediments in achieving that objective.

“Because of the advisory role we will play, we cannot be seen as usurping the powers of Cabinet, the Reserve Bank or the Treasury,” Naidoo said in response to a question about the NPC’s authority.

“The president has asked us to be independent, critical, honest and cross-cutting in making recommendations to Cabinet. We are tasked with developing a draft vision statement and development plan within 18 months of the appointment of commissioners (May 2010 to October 2011).

“We are also asked to, on an ongoing basis, report on cross-cutting sectoral or thematic areas that impact on our long-term development,”
he explained.

“Furthermore, we can on an ad-hoc basis respond to a specific Cabinet request.”

The Commission is a permanent one, appointed to serve a five-year term. Commissioners are all part-time and are appointed on account of their expertise and experience in their field.

The establishment of the NPC is an embodiment of government efforts to improve long-term planning, and rally the nation around a common set of objectives and priorities to drive development over the longer term, according the Revised Green Paper on formation of the NPC.

The first output of the NPC is to draft a Vision 2025 and a long-term strategic plan, which will be an articulation of the type of society all South Africans would want to see in 15 years.

Why do we need a vision and a long-term strategic plan?

• The mobilisation of society around a commonly agreed set of long-term goals is a key aspect of a successful developmental state.

• Greater coherence in the government’s work between departments and across spheres can only be achieved if there is a common understanding in enough detail of the long-term objectives and direction of our society.

• Longer term planning provides longer term certainty, improving the quality of decision making for all parts of the government – from national to local, and for the private sector – from big businesses to small. A national vision that is widely understood and agreed upon will encourage a longer term view from all key institutions, allowing them to invest with greater confidence in buildings, equipment and their employees.

• Providing a basis for trade-offs between competing objectives and facilitating sensible sequencing of major decisions.

In this context, South Africa Vision 2025 will spell out where South Africa wants to be as a society in 2025:

• How far will we have reduced poverty and inequality?

• How many people will be employed, in what kind of jobs, and how will we care for the remaining unemployed?

• How much lower will the rate of violent crime be, and how will we have achieved that objective?

• How will our health be cared for, and how low will tuberculosis and HIV/Aids infection rates have fallen?

• How many children will finish school, and how many will go to colleges and universities?

• How many of us will need private vehicles to get to school and to work, and how will our public transport system operate?

• Where will we be living? How much more urbanisation do we expect and plan for?

• By how much do we expect the output and wealth of our rural areas to improve?

Composition and functions of the NPC

According to the Revised Green Paper, the National Planning Commissioners serving on a part-time basis for a period of five years will have the following functions:

• Lead the development (and periodic review) of a draft Vision 2025 and long-term national strategic plan for approval by Cabinet;

• Lead investigations into critical long-term trends under the supervision of the Minister in the Presidency for the National Planning Commission, with technical support from a Secretariat and in partnership with relevant other parties;

• Advise on key issues such as food security, water security, energy choices, economic development, poverty and inequality, structure of the economy, human resource development, social cohesion, health, defence capabilities as well as scientific progress;

• Assist with mobilising society around a national vision and other tasks related to strategic planning;

• Contribute to reviews of implementation or progress in achieving the objectives of the National Plan; and

• Contribute to development of international partnerships and networks of expertise on planning.

The Commissioners

Members of the NPC are the following: Trevor Manuel (chair), Cyril Ramaphosa (deputy chair), Bobby Godsell, Elias Masilela, Jerry Vilakazi, Noluthando Gosa, Jennifer Molwantwa, Mike Muller, Mariam Altman, Chris Malikane and Vivienne Taylor.

Others are: Marcus Balintulo, Vuyokazi Mahlati, Malekgapuru Makgoba, Joel Netshitenzhe, Anton Eberhard, Bridgette Gasa, Thandabantu Goba, Phillip Harrison, Ihron Rensburg, Jerry Coovadia, Karl von Holdt, Mohammed Karaan, Tasneem Essop, Pascal Molobi and Vincent Maphai.

The NPC Secretariat

The NPC will have a Secretariat based in the Presidency, tasked with supporting the work of the Commission and the minister.

This Secretariat will be composed of capable people who can manage complex research processes, consultative processes and who are skilled enough to help draft reports.

The Secretariat will be working with key centres of excellence in planning, such as the Human Sciences Research Council, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, universities, research institutions as well as think tanks.

The typical person employed in the Secretariat may not be a career bureaucrat, but instead the Secretariat may include people who are brought in for limited periods of time (public sector, including secondment from government departments, agencies and universities) to work on the outputs that the Commission is tasked with producing.

David Mwanambuyu

Source: Revised Green Paper on formation of NPC