Thaindian News

Pretoria, Dec 20 (IANS) The year 2011 was a challenging one for South Africa, but the government has made strides in creating and maintaining a better life for all, President Jacob Zuma has said. He said around 100,000 more jobs will be created in the next three years in the construction of electricity plants, rail and road upgrades and water management.

In his end of year message, Zuma said 2011, though dubbed “The Year of Job Creation”, was hit by difficult economic conditions, state-run news agency BuaNews reported.

The Expanded Public Works Programme saw the provision of income for a total of 280,000 people, while more than 80,000 were provided jobs under the Community Work Programme.

The president said the government has implemented a programme to monitor the experience of citizens when obtaining services from the government. The results of monitoring will be regularly presented to the cabinet, with the aim of putting in place focused improvement initiatives. The measures have been designed to improve the performance of the state.

A draft National Development Plan has been finalised by the National Planning Commission and released for public comment. The plan puts emphasis on growth and prosperity as the best way to fight poverty and unemployment, and in involving individuals and communities in their own development.

A landmark achievement for the country was the 50 percent reduction in transmission of HIV from mothers to children between 2008 and 2010, from eight percent in 2008 to 3.5 percent in 2010.

Within the range of challenges the country faced, Zuma said there were plenty of moments that gave South Africa an opportunity to grow and prove its mettle.

“Let use the new year, 2012, to build on the good record we’ve established collectively as a nation,” he said.