WATCH: Zuma bumbles on CCTV News

13 September 2016 - 09:01 By BD Live

In an interview conducted during the G-20 summit with China's CCTV News, President Jacob Zuma gave what many have called his most cringeworthy interview to date. Zuma, who was in Hangzhou with a number of South African delegates, including Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan, was given the opportunity to explain how South Africa - the only African country in the G-20 - would represent the rest of the continent and what Africa's role in the G-20 was.In the interview with Chinese journalist Tian Wei, he gave vague answers.Asked by Wei what the positive and negative connotations of industrialisation in Africa had been, Zuma said there had been only positives."So what do you think is the approach that African countries, including yours, should adopt in order to have industrialisation," Wei asked, to which Zuma responded: "Well, there are many things we need to do. The question of industrialisation in our own continent has one side only, does not have a negative side."Wei then asked Zuma how he planned to improve the country's low economic growth but the president provided little clarity. "Well, this is part of what we've been discussing as the G-20, as to what do we do to boost up the economy, to if you want, 're-ignite' the economy, what is we can do. And I think the proposals coming from China through the president were very clear, that we need to break and look at innovation as a critical driver of the economic growth and you must have inclusive economic growth. There are many other kinds of things that people are looking at. How do we do the situation, how do we create jobs?"He said the government was aware investors were hesitant and his government was looking at ways to get them to pump more money into South Africa.Zuma said the party continued to follow policies shaped by Nelson Mandela. "He was part of shaping the policies of the ANC and the ANC has not changed policy. So its leaders will always be there. But times are moving and Mandela's legacy will always be remembered." ..

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