South African President Kgalema Motlanthe warned today that the global financial crisis posed a serious threat to jobs in Africa's largest economy, where manufacturing and mining have shed thousands of jobs in recent months, according to DPA. Delivering the president's annual State of the Nation speech at the opening of parliament in Cape Town, Motlanthe warned South Africans against underestimating the local fallout of recession in leading markets. "The global economic meltdown does pose serious dangers for our economy, in terms of job losses and the quality of life of our people," he said. While South Africa was less severely affected than many other countries, falling demand for exports was forcing a cutback in production and retrenchments in some sectors, he noted. "As such, we have been forced to tone down our forecasts in terms of growth and job creation," he said.
