The National Development Plan (NDP) may be a dream deferred without structural growth in the economy, the World Bank says. The lender, based in Washington DC, expects SA’s growth to accelerate to 1.4% in 2018 from a previous estimate of 1.1%, but it does not expect economic growth to rise beyond 2% in the medium term. To achieve the goals set out in the plan SA would need 8% growth, it said last week. The NDP is a detailed blueprint of SA’s plans to eliminate poverty and reduce inequality by 2030. It has been gathering dust since 2012, but President Cyril Ramaphosa has said it will be resurrected. "The NDP GDP target would need to be 8% now, which is impossible," World Bank programme leader for SA Sebastien Dessus said. The plan calls for 5.4% growth and a 6% decrease in unemployment by 2030. But Dessus said even 5% growth was unrealistic in the near term. "Long term, we don’t see growth going to 5%. You need higher investment, higher innovation and broader participation," he said. ...
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