President Cyril Ramaphosa said that to deal with high unemployment, South Africa's GDP growth must reach 3%.

The president made these comments during his 2025 State of the Nation Address in Cape Town's City Hall on Thursday night.

Ramaphosa said that South Africa will invest around R940 billion in infrastructure and this will be the driving force that will create employment.

This investment of close to a trillion rand was divested over 3 years, according to the President.

"We are engaging local international finance institutions and investors to unlock R100 billion in infrastructure financing," he said.

The government will also speed up revised regulations for public-private partnerships that will unlock private sector expertise and fund government projects.

Ramaphosa said the R940 billion on infrastructure would include R375 billion in funding to State Owned Enterprises that would revitalise the country's bridges and waterways.

"It will modernise our ports and airports and also power our economy through the infrastructure fund," he explained.

Ramaphosa emphasised working with international partners, in the hopes of creating new small harbours, such as the Boegoebaai Habour.

8 million unemployed

The South African economy has recorded a notable shift in employment, with the official unemployment rate decreasing to 32.1% in the third quarter (Q3) of 2024. There are around 8 million unemployed people in South Africa.

The Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) results that were released in November said that the number of employed persons increased by 294,000 in Q3 and there are 16.9 million people employed in the country.

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Watch VideoSONA 2025: Ramaphosa pledges R940 billion in infrastructure funding to address unemployment

SONA 2025: Ramaphosa pledges R940 billion in infrastructure funding to address unemployment