Strategic multi-stakeholder partnerships for achieving SDG 9 through the revival of South African township industries

Abstract

South Africa faces many socioeconomic ills which government cannot address on its own. Various stakeholders need to come together to address the issues of unemployment, poverty and inequality. Multi-stakeholder partnerships (MSPs) are broadly defined as participatory and collaborative forms of decision-making structures involving key stakeholders willing to cooperate with one another to attain set objectives. The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 17 (SDG 17) emphasises the importance of partnerships for achieving socioeconomic development. These partnerships cannot be successful without effective strategic communication. Thus, the purpose of this study was to explore the role of MSPs (SDG 17) in the revitalisation of job-creating industries in South African townships (SDG 9). Many industrial areas are forlorn and stranded following the withdrawal of the decentralised industrial policy. A generic qualitative study using semi-structured interviews was conducted in South Africa’s Limpopo province. Twelve respondents participated and thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. The study found that despite the withdrawal of incentives and subsidies, township industries’ occupancy rate is high, yet with little impact on job creation. The findings may assist policymakers in reviewing township industrial policies.