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The central challenge of our time in South Africa is to ensure that the constitutional transformation of our country is also reflected in a fundamental transformation of socio-economic conditions for our people. It is essential that the advances that we have made in building an inclusive democratic state should also be manifested in tangible improvements in the day-to-day lives of the millions of South Africans who still live in conditions of unacceptable poverty.

To achieve this, the Government must adopt a comprehensive and co-ordinated approach. A11 of its major policies and approaches must be inter-locking and directed toward the achievement of our national priorities.

The Government of National Unity understands and accepts this and has directed most of its efforts during the past two years to the promotion of :

stability national reconciliation and nation building as the essential basis for development;
dynamic and sustained economic growth, as the essential engine for development; and
growth supporting socio-economic reform - based on the Reconstruction and Development Programme.

The RDP is the centre-piece of the policy of the Government of National Unity. It envisages a broad interlocking programme that will address the total spectrum of socio-economic needs - from the creation of jobs to the provision of housing primary health care, water, electricity and improved education. All of the parties in the government support its main provisions. They have also reached agreement that it will be funded ;and managed within the constraints of available resources, fiscal discipline and sound macro-economic policies. The success of the Government of National Unity and, indeed, of our new constitutional dispensation - will be judged by the degree to which the RDP succeeds in improving the living conditions of millions of South Africans.

Just as the Government must ensure that it has a comprehensive and inter-locking policies to achieve its national priorities, it is equally important that
all branches of government should share a common and co-ordinate approach to the implementation of such policies.

This is particularly true with regard to South Africa's development goals. The reality is that the Provinces and local authorities will be the main delivery mechanisms for our national developmental programmes. It is accordingly of the greatest importance that central government, the provinces and local authorities should co-ordinate their activities effectively in achieving our most important national priority - our fight against poverty and our struggle to bring tangible benefits to the daily lives of millions of our countrymen.

Our resources are limited and the needs are great. In this great endeavour we can accordingly not afford wastage and bureaucratic inefficiency. We a11 have an absolute duty to ensure that the most needy receive real value for every rand that is spent on social programmes.

It is the purpose of this Conference to promote the exchanges of view and interaction between our key levels of government to make all of this possible. It is a pleasure for me to be able to open this Conference in the expectation that our deliberations here will soon be translated into concrete improvements in the daily lives of millions of South Africans.

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