President Cyril Ramaphosa warned on Monday that South Africa’s economic recovery will be difficult and will take time, not least because the country is still in the midst of the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

It will soon be one year since the first reported Covid-19 case in South Africa and in his weekly letter to the nation, Ramaphosa said the pandemic had come at a great cost to public health and the livelihoods of millions of people.

He stated that the country’s focus must be to create an enabling environment for businesses to recover, as well as economic growth that encouraged job creation and that attracted investment.

In March last year, government introduced the special Covid-19 social grant and the Unemployment Insurance Fund’s Covid-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme as relief measures, which Ramaphosa said must be seen as the means to get the country’s economy back on its feet.

He explained that while these relief measures were designed to be temporary, the economy would continue to feel the effects of the pandemic for some time.

“We need to make sure that these relief measures provide a firm foundation for a broader recovery without driving the country deeper into debt. Unless we can bring our national debt down to sustainable levels, no meaningful economic recovery will be possible,” said Ramaphosa.

He added that the country’s national consciousness must now move beyond relief and into recovery, and he called for a national effort in this regard.

“As government, hard decisions on public spending will need to be made and implemented this year. Companies will need to be innovative in driving methods and processes that secure their sustainability and profitability, with job retention being their foremost consideration. We must put our money back into our economy by buying local products, supporting local businesses and industries and procuring from local suppliers,” he said.