The closing ceremony of the Presidential Social Sector Summit will feature a keynote speech by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday. The event will take place at the Birchwood Conference Centre in Boksburg, Gauteng.
The theme of tomorrow’s inaugural Presidential Social Sector is “Fostering Social Cohesion to enable Socio-Economic Participation in Communities.”
The Presidency noted in a statement on Wednesday that President Ramaphosa called for a social compact in his 2018 State of the Nation Address, which is a shared national agenda and commitment that will direct all facets of society in creating the South Africa envisioned in Vision 2030 of the National Development Plan.
“In line with the National Development Plan’s advancement of active citizenry, the Summit will bring together stakeholders from a wide range of constituencies to work with government to address socio-economic challenges and mobilise resources for civil society, among other objectives,” the Presidency said.
To plan and guarantee the inclusivity of the Social Sector Summit, the Department of Social Development established a National Task Team made up of important departments, civil society organisations, the National Lotteries Commission, and the NEDLAC Community Constituency.
According to the presidency, discussions between provincial governments and social partner organisations took place in every province as part of preparations for the summit.
“The summit will consider dialogue reports from the nine provinces covering challenges that have been raised.
“These challenges include access to funding, regulatory issues; transformation of the social sector with a view to fostering a state-civil society partnership to address challenges related to poverty, inequality, and employment, and the deepening of democratic participation,” the Presidency said.
About 600 delegates from different Civil Society Organizations (CSO) from all across South Africa are anticipated to attend the summit.
According to the Presidency, these organisations contribute significantly to society through their work in the areas of human rights, advocacy, sports and recreation, economic empowerment, and welfare.
“President Ramaphosa will underscore the role of civil society organisations in the realisation of the National Development Plan,” the Presidency said.