Author: Busi Mavuso
The withdrawal last week of proposed new visa regulations that would have eased the way for skilled workers to come to South Africa was an inadvertent illustration of how little public consultations matter in many parts of government. The regulations were withdrawn because the minister of home affairs had inadvertently published them a day before the period was meant to close for public comment on the drafts. This might seem like merely an administrative error, but I think it reveals how little attention policy makers pay to public comment. Clearly, from the minister down, the public commentary simply did not…
The annual Edelman Trust Barometer last week provided some interesting insights into the public’s view of business and government. What stood out in the South African results was the relatively high trust in business compared to government. The gap between the two is the largest in the world. Business has a trust rating of 62 (out of 100) while government is rated at 29. It was also striking that 61% of South Africans believe partnerships between business and government can lead to more trustworthy management of technology-led changes. This perception has rocketed in the last ten years, among the highest…
The water crisis appears to be growing, although it is difficult to get a grip on the extent of delivery failure across the country. That is because water services are a local government responsibility and the degree to which municipalities are meeting their constitutional duty to provide water varies widely. Among the 257 municipalities there are no doubt examples of success and failure, but it is hard to get a consolidated picture of how well they are doing, at least in the short term. But the anecdotes of failing water infrastructure reported in the media are too frequent – from…
We are facing a new blow to energy availability in our economy, with a cliff in natural gas supply just over two years away. Many industries rely on gas as an energy source, from glass making to beverages. The current main source of supply, two gas fields in Mozambique operated by Sasol, will not supply South African clients from mid-2026 since Sasol will fully utilise the remaining gas itself. As with electricity, there have been warnings for some time that this was coming. But through a combination of policy inaction and an inability to commit to the large-scale investment needed…
It is depressing reading of retrenchments taking place in the resources sector as commodity prices slide, but also because mining companies are unable to get output to their markets. Stockpiles have been building up because of problems with the rail and port services that Transnet provides, but they can’t grow any more. The only option is to reduce production, which means there is excess workforce. The logistics crisis is a very serious challenge for the economy, and that is why business and government have pulled together with unprecedented speed to work on solutions. Through Business for South Africa, we have…
The mining sector is facing unprecedented challenges. The rapid deterioration of Transnet’s ability to move output across the country and through the ports has meant a considerable decline in earnings. Richards Bay coal exports last year were at a 30-year low thanks to falling rail volumes, with Transnet delivering 48-million tonnes against a contracted volume of 60-million. Volumes of iron ore have also been falling dramatically with Transnet exporting 51-million tonnes against a target of 60-million, also a historic low. National Treasury estimates the economic cost of rail inefficiency last year was about 5.5% of GDP. This has hit the…
The World Economic Forum last week focused attention on the risks facing the global economy. Extreme weather events driven by climate change and risks related to artificial intelligence all featured strongly. More immediately, the wars between Ukraine and Russia, and Israel and Hamas were top of mind, as well as the wave of elections this year as more than half the world’s population go to the polls. The global lodestar is a lack of certainty. I always find the event, which several BLSA board members attended, a reality check on how the issues that preoccupy us South Africans are overshadowed…
As we conclude 2023, I am struck by both the progress and the setbacks that we have faced in our efforts as organised business to help put South Africa on track to deliver the economic growth we desperately need. A highlight has been the new partnership established between organised business, represented by Business for South Africa, and the government, represented by the Presidency. This has established three workstreams to deal with the energy crisis, logistics crisis, and crime and corruption. Certain initiatives within those streams are now making good progress. I think the clearest win is that the electricity crisis…
The National Health Insurance charade continues despite its absurdity. I can assure you that it will end up in no improvements to healthcare quality in South Africa, in fact, the risk is precisely the opposite. As I have written in a previous letter, if government is serious about delivering an improvement in healthcare, there are far better ways to do it, involving partnerships with the private sector that have been demonstrated to work. Instead, we continue with this make-believe in which the apparent upsides of the NHI – access to quality health care for all – can be talked about without…
Any reduction in load-shedding is welcome but we must not let it lull us into complacency. Our electricity system remains unable to deliver for our economy. As we go deeper into winter the pressure on it will increase and load-shedding is very likely to reach record levels. But I am pleased with the urgency and focus that both government and business are putting into dealing with the electricity crisis. We have an effective working relationship already in place based on the Energy Action Plan, which is being spearheaded by the National Energy Crisis Committee (Necom), with which business is very…