Chance to promote SA
T HE World Economic Forum on Africa gathers for the first time in Durban from today until Friday.
This important event is part of the timetable of global programmes held by the World Economic Forum (WEF), an NPO established in 1971 and based in Geneva, Switzerland.
The Durban Forum, the 27th in the WEF Africa (WEFA) series, is themed “Achieving Inclusive Growth” and is supposed to convene regional and global leaders from business, government and civil society to explore solutions and create economic opportunities for all.
WEFA Durban takes place at a time when our country faces great challenges.
A global economic slowdown, falling commodity prices, an increased shift towards insular and protectionist global politics, growing wealth disparity coupled with high unemployment rates and the recent ratings downgrade affect not just the national policy, but also every individual.
At the same time, South Africa is the only African G20 economy, has First World infrastructure, extensive business-friendly policies, high levels of skill and education and a young population.
Our country is championing reforms to eradicate extreme poverty and promote shared growth nationally, regionally and globally.
In the past few years, the importance of Africa as an emerging global economic powerhouse and a significant political player is being increasingly recognised.
The African continent is home to some of the world’s fastest growing economies.
Large companies in Africa generate more than $1.4 trillion in annual profits and the continent has 400 companies with revenue of more than $1 billion each.
While Africa is often portrayed as poor, spending by consumers and businesses on the continent totals more than $4 trillion.
Household consumption is expected to grow at 3.8% a year to reach $2.1 trillion by 2025 with business spending expected to reach $3.5 trillion by then.
Manufacturing production growth in Africa has grown 3.5% annually over the last decade, faster than the global rate, which means that Africa could nearly double its manufacturing output to $930bn by 2025, provided countries take decisive action to create an improved environment for manufacturers.
While intra-African trade accounts for 34% of manufacturing output, Africa’s share of global manufacturing exports remains less than 1%, compared with over 16% for East Asia.
The rewards of accelerated industrialisation could create 6 to 14 million stable jobs over the next decade.
A re-imagining of the potential of this growing consumer market by South African companies will create significant growth and employment.
The hosting of the WEFA in Durban is estimated to have a direct impact of hosting the event of at least R64 million with a total impact of over R155m.
It will not just be a chance to host such a prestigious global event in our city, but an opportunity to market our city as a business and tourism destination to a global audience through global media, thought leaders and top businesspeople, who are potential brand ambassadors for Durban.
The KZN provincial government with the city of Durban should use the opportunity to showcase and market the business potential of Durban and KZN.
This is the ideal platform to inform potential investors of the Dube Trade Port and Aerotropolis, the planned specialised industrial hubs in Ilembe, Hammarsdale, Newcastle, Port Shepstone and Cato Ridge, which will lead to inclusive economic growth of other towns in KZN and not just Durban.
At the same time, KZN should highlight and share the ongoing strategic plans that the province has embarked on that make Durban a regional air transport hub with direct connectivity to a number of African countries and Indian Ocean Islands, its role as a key component of a continental transport corridor and the development of special economic zones.
WEFA Durban is set to explore the challenges and opportunities and foster discussions towards achieving inclusive and sustainable growth in Africa.
Some of the significant issues that hinder the economic growth of Africa are regional co-operation, integrated transportation, harmonisation of policies and the adoption of more entrepreneurial ways of solving problems.
Co-operation between regional governments in the establishment of cross-border industrial and business centres will not only lead to increased GDP, but also a lowering of economic migration as more job opportunities are created in our less developed neighbours.
Harmonisation of policy will make it easier to do business by overhauling existing agreements that are often confusing and conflicting.
The idea of a Tripartite Free Trade Agreement that incorporates the SADC (Southern African Development Community), Comesa (The Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa) and EAC (the East African Community) countries could potentially lead to a Capeto-Cairo trade corridor along the East Coast of Africa.
We can stand to learn from global expertise on the 4th Industrial Revolution, which is rapidly changing the way business is done and will have significant impact on jobs, finance, education and society as technology becomes more powerful than politics.
To fully integrate into the global digital economy, Africa needs to significantly invest in ICT development.
Several African start-ups are on the verge of attaining the global distinction of being “unicorns” with a $1bn valuation mark.
Venture capital investments are taking off across the continent, particularly in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.
WEFA Durban is an ideal opportunity to promote South Africa’s position as contributing to the development of our region and continent by uniting South Africans in working together in addressing the challenges that face us.
But the irony is that while WEF Africa will be discussing inclusive growth, the event will be a rather exclusive one with invited guests, government leaders and top chief executives missing the chance to hear from and discuss with the most important component of inclusive growth – the ordinary citizens of our country. Ebrahim Patel is the CEO of Magellan Management and president of the Minara
Chamber of Commerce.