Afribusiness says President Jacob Zuma should have the courage to announce -- at the state of the nation address on Thursday evening -- changes to economic policy that
will benefit the country.
CEO Cornelius Jansen van Rensburg said in a statement that the economic stability of the country is being held hostage by a government ideology that creates a bad economic policy.
He said the low economic growth of the country, unemployment and the derelict infrastructure are mere symptoms of this.
Jansen van Rensburg said there were three things Zuma could do to turn around the economic situation: privatise the electricity supply industry, entrench property rights and expand them to all South Africans, and reconsider black economic empowerment in its entirety.
On Wednesday, President Zuma met with special guests for high tea ahead of his state-of-the-nation address.
He said government believes the opening of Parliament and the state-of-the-nation address is an event for all South Africans - which is why every year it invites special guests who've done the country proud.
Zuma's guests included Olympic swimming gold medallist Chad le Clos, winner of the 2014 agriculture female entrepreneur awards programme Ivy Nokwanele Mzamo, winner of the 2014 water conservation award Mapule Phokompe, and Banyana Banyana striker and sports star of 2014 Portia Modise.
Three pupils from Moletsane High School were also present. They won a competition to attend the G20 leader's summit in Australia in November last year.
