The government and the business sector, led by the Business for South Africa (B4SA) organisation have launched Phase 3 of their joint initiative, which has a really ambitious target of reaching economic growth of 3% by 2030 and the creation of one million jobs.
B4SA has roped in the input and resources of over 120 CEOs of the biggest companies in South Africa since the partnership became operational in 2020. It has brought together the capabilities and resources of government and business in a unique delivery model that it says is focused on implementation, accountability, and measurable outcomes.
The seemingly cozy relationship between government and big business has not been without criticism - various commentators and analysts have argued that the business-state partnership sometimes puts an overly positive spin on systemic state failures and structural economic crises, rather than enacting adversarial accountability.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said at the launch of Phase Three that the partnership has shifted from crisis management to driving inclusive growth, boosting investment, and creating jobs. He said that the real test of government reform is not the number of policies announced, but the tangible difference they make in the daily lives of ordinary South Africans.
He reminded delegates that neither the government, business, labour, nor civil society can build the economy alone, but working together can drive economic growth above 3% and reduce high unemployment.
The new targets are ambitious because the country has been stuck in a low growth rut for a long time, with only 1.1% GDP growth in 2025, and well below 3% in 2022, 2023, and 2024, and in most of the years after that until 2022.
Meanwhile, unemployment rose to 33.6% in the second quarter of 2026 from 32.7% in the first quarter - that’s 8.48 million people jobless, and with most economists predicting a continuation of the low growth scenario for at least the short term, there does not seem much hope of improvement in the job market.
While growth has improved over the past two years, it remains too low to meaningfully expand employment. Any economic growth below 3% means that new entrants to the job market outpace job creation; while above 3%, jobs compound.
B4SA, acting as the implementation arm of Business Unity South Africa (BUSA), claims some successes in its Phase 1 and Phase 2 partnerships to tackle some of the country's most severe economic and structural constraints. It mobilised private sector expertise and resources to help solve rolling blackouts, it supported energy sector reform implementation, which aided private-generation investments and grid expansion preparations.
In an effort to break transport and logistics sector logjams brought on by weak state management, it partnered through the National Logistics Crisis Committee to implement the Freight Logistics Roadmap, and there have been major operational turnarounds at ports like Durban, and secured rail-access agreements with private train-operating companies.
To help reduce crime, corruption, and build financial integrity, B4SA supported initiatives coordinated through the Joint Initiative to Fight Crime and Corruption, and it assisted technical efforts that contributed to South Africa successfully exiting the Financial Action Task Force greylist. There have also been youth employment expansion into growth sector initiatives.
Phase Three, says B4SA CEO Martin Kingston, involves a shift from focusing on certain struggling parts of the economy to actively driving growth, investments, with job targets in tourism, agriculture, mining, and infrastructure. He said South Africa is showing signs of improvement – including six consecutive quarters of growth, sovereign rating upgrades by S&P and Fitch, an improved Moody’s outlook, a stronger Rand, declining inflation, and other significant green shoots.
But GDP growth was just 1.1% in 2025. He said unemployment at the current level “is a national crisis, and it will not be resolved at current growth rates."
Phase 3’s first pillar will be focused on South Africa's economic growth enablers and comprises the Energy and Transport and Logistics workstreams. These remain fundamental to improving competitiveness, attracting investment, and driving growth across the economy.
The second pillar focuses on four new growth drivers: Mining, tourism, infrastructure, and agriculture and agro-processing. These workstreams focus on sectors where South Africa has strong competitive advantages and where targeted interventions can unlock investment, expand output, and create jobs.
They were selected through an evidence-led assessment of materiality and size, potential to scale and impact on both rural and urban areas, and the ability to absorb large numbers of lower-skilled workers, with a particular focus on the youth.
The third pillar focuses on confidence multipliers: Crime and corruption, which has been part of the partnership since earlier phases; addressing challenges in local government, including the city of Johannesburg (after the elections), and Youth Employment; and building an evidence-based national growth narrative, says Kingston.
Adrian Gore, BLSA chairperson and co-convenor of the Partnership, said in a statement: "Phase 3 has been meticulously designed to unlock that potential through targeted interventions in areas where South Africa can compete globally and win."
Gore said detailed delivery plans and metrics for each focal area would be announced in the fourth quarter of this year.