The role of industrial policy is to unleash private investment and energise the state to boost economic growth and inclusion. This is an essential part of building investor confidence and the platform for job-creation.

Industrial policy during the Sixth Administration was characterised by innovation within the confines of an increasingly complex context, characterised by global instability and system-level shocks and trends. Important lessons have been learnt that will inform the next phase of industrial policy development, with a strategic focus on aligning South Africa with the global green economic and technology revolutions and coupling its trade policy to Africa’s positive economic development and growth story, while continuing to strengthen government institutional capability and its productive partnerships with the private sector.

The opportunity to deliver a more effective and focused industrial policy over the past five years derived from:

• Fundamental changes to the way sector plans are developed and implemented;
• New approaches to investment and export promotion;
• The landmark development of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA); and
• Major evolutions in the conduct of competition and tariff policy.

Report by the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition