Government has created more than 2.3 million jobs through various incentives in the past five years, says the Department of Trade and Industry (dti).<\/p>\n
Presenting the dti\u2019s 2015\/16 Annual Report to the Portfolio Committee of Trade and Industry in Parliament on Tuesday, the department\u2019s Director General Lionel October said most of the jobs were created in the community and social services sector.<\/p>\n
This, October said, is due to a direct reflection of the work of the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) and Community Works Programme (CWP).<\/p>\n
\u201cGiven the youth bulge in the economy, 3.2 million — mainly young — job seekers entered the labour market, thereby reducing impact on unemployment,\u201d said October.<\/p>\n
October said the automotive and manufacturing sectors continued to strengthen the economy on the back of government support measures, despite the negative global and domestic trading conditions.<\/p>\n
The manufacturing sector continued to cushion the economy against a possible technical recession by growing at a positive rate of 0.6%.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe dti has spent almost 100% of its allocated budget of R9.5 billion, comprising mainly incentives schemes, where disbursement to private companies accounted for R7 billion of the total allocated budget of the department,\u201d said October.<\/p>\n
Improved audit outcomes<\/strong><\/p>\n October said the portfolio\u2019s overall audit outcomes have improved due to the commitment of leadership and management.<\/p>\n The National Credit Regulator, National Credit Tribunal and South African Bureau of Standards, which fall under the department, achieved clean audits, as they did the previous year.<\/p>\n The Companies Tribunal, National Gambling Board and National Lotteries Commission also achieved clean audits for the 2015\/16 financial year.<\/p>\n \u201cMinister Davies has embraced the concept of clean audits and endeavours to strive towards continuous improvement,\u201d said October.<\/p>\n This is how many domestic workers in South Africa have lost their jobs in 2016<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Bleak outlook as South Africa sheds half a million jobs<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\nMore on employment<\/h3>\n