Wiese accuses government of policies that cut growth

CHRISTO Wiese, South Africa’s richest man, has accused the government of implementing ill-considered policies that curb economic growth and undermine efforts to reduce poverty.

Examples included the introduction of new visa rules that have deterred tourism and bureaucratic procedures that made it costly and timeconsuming for people to access title deeds to properties where they had lived for decades, according to Wiese, who is worth about $7 billion (R95.6bn), says the Bloomberg Billionaires index.

“The one industry where South Africa consistently outperformed the world since 1994 was tourism,” Wiese, 74, said in Cape Town last week.

“Then we impose new visa regulations that no one can explain and the effect is immediate. We shoot ourselves in both feet and then claim unintended consequences.”

The visa rules introduced earlier this year require tourists to apply in person at a visitor centre for travel documents and for all children to carry a birth certifi- cate with full details of both parents. The government is reviewing the requirements after the number of visitors to the country slumped 5.9 percent to 2.29 million in the first quarter from the same period last year.

Most South African business leaders have been reluctant to take the government to task over policy shortfalls that have contributed to a 25 percent unemployment rate and an economic contraction in the second quarter, preferring to raise their concerns behind closed doors. Besides Wiese, others to have spoken out include Johann Rupert, the billionaire chairman of Richemont and Remgro, and Simon Susman, the chairman of retailer Woolworths Holdings.

Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa defended the government’s policies yesterday, telling Parliament in Cape Town that it had a clear plan to boost the growth rate to 5 percent by 2020.

While South Africa’s leadership was lacking at times, the problem was temporary and the country could resolve its challenges, Wiese said. – Bloomberg