Quote

A global human society, characterised by islands of wealth, surrounded by a sea of poverty, is unsustainable

Thabo Mbeki

Change background

T
T
T

Change font

TAGS & TOPICS

Thabo Mbeki
Age: 82
Born: 1942
Born: June 18
Economist
Politician
South African Politician
Thabo Mvuyelwa Mbeki
Human
Islands
Humans
Global
Sea
Poverty
Wealth
Vision
Characterised
Society
Unsustainable
Future
Surrounded

More quotes by Thabo Mbeki

Image
The problems that are arising at Johannesburg International Airport are because of the growth of volume, not because of inefficiencies at the Airport. But, the growth in movement of goods by air means that cargo capacity needs to be improved. And I am quite certain that we will do it.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
We should never become despondent because the weather is bad, nor should we turn triumphalist because the sun shines.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
We have a series of regular meetings with South African business. Big business. Black business. Agriculture. As well, of course, with the trade unions. A whole series of meetings like that which engage issues that these South African social partners need to address.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
You can't abandon people there and say, go and find a job, when you know they are not going to be able to find one, and therefore starve to death. So we have got to address that matter, but we have got to address it systematically.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
I come back to what I had said earlier: the policies might be there but are people benefiting from the policies? You do find that in many instances, though the policies exist, they are not having the necessary impact. That is a particular challenge in local government, because that is where all the services get delivered.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
Сertainly to the extent that we talk about not just procurement in the sense of acquiring goods from the rest of the economy, even to the extent that it is possible to bring Black players in areas where we say we need to raise the capacity of these organisations to deliver services, it is a very important part.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
You might indeed be able to provide this money that people need to start a business, but can they run a business? This new consolidated agency [National Empowerment Fund] focuses on that matter of preparing people so that they can run business successfully.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
I think that probably the most important thing about our education was that it taught us to question even those things we thought we knew.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
The people who steal cars, there's somebody there who is the master, who orders the cars, or just takes a car when it is brought? I am saying the law enforcement authorities have a pretty good idea about a lot of these kind of persons. We want it to pool all that knowledge and all those resources, so that they focus on these people.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
The Communal Land Rights Bill then said, since there would be those collectives set up in terms of the other legislation, there was no need for them to set up other structures to deal with the land issues.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
South Africa was to evolve into the most pernicious example of the criminal practise of colonial and white minority domination.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
If we don't move forward with regard to creating a non-racial society in South Africa and we allow this legacy of apartheid to persist, these divisions between black and white in wealth and income and so on, in the future you would indeed have an ugly upheaval.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
We can't treat the matter of black economic empowerment as just the redistribution of existing wealth. It really has to focus on new investment, on growth, on development of employment and so on and so on.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
I think anybody who knows anything about South Africa and the South African economy would know that one of the big constraints to growth and development is skills shortages. So all of us, need to come at this thing as vigorously as is possible and, of course, the private sector has the capacity to take it on board.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
Clearly, we are very, very concerned about the situation, for instance, that has been going on in Gaza.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
Many of our own people here in this country do not ask about computers, telephones and television sets. They ask - when will we get a road to our village.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
I don't imagine Heads of Government would ever be able to say I'm not an economist therefore I can't take decisions on matters of the economy I'm not a soldier I can't take decisions on matters of defence I'm not an educationist so I can't take decisions about education.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
We need to increase the capacity we need to improve performance so that we are more effective at lending that kind of support.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
With me, as a town clerk or city manager, there are certain things that I'm supposed to do - if I don't do them, then I don't deserve to continue in this post.
Thabo Mbeki
Image
Our experience over the last 20 years has shown that indeed people must themselves become their own liberators. You cannot wait for somebody else to come and rescue you.
Thabo Mbeki