Opportunity Issue 87 - July-Aug 2018

www.opportunityonline.co.za 

Exploring business prospects in southern Africa 

Wind of 

change 

SA takes the 

BRICS helm 

Fearlessly forging 

KZN’s future 

Premier Mchunu and DG Mkhize 

leading a winning team 

RSA R29.95 

JUL/AUG 2018 • ISSUE 87

The National Energy Regulator (NERSA) makes 

a valuable contribution to the socio-economic 

development and prosperity of the people of 

South Africa, by regulating the energy industry 

in accordance with government laws, policies, 

standards and international best practices in 

support of sustainable development. 

NERSA is a regulatory authority established 

as a juristic person in terms of Section 3 of the 

National Energy Regulator Act, 2004 (Act No. 

40 of 2004). NERSA’s mandate is to regulate the 

electricity, piped-gas and petroleum pipelines 

industries in terms of the Electricity Regulation 

Act, 2006 (Act No. 4 of 2006), Gas Act, 2001 

(Act No. 48 of 2001) and Petroleum Pipelines Act, 

2003 (Act No. 60 of 2003). 

Jacob Modise 

Chairperson 

Maleho Nkomo 

Deputy Chairperson 

NERSA’s mandate is further derived from written 

government policies as well as regulations issued 

by the Minister of Energy. NERSA is expected 

to perform the necessary regulatory actions in 

anticipation of and/or in response to the changing 

circumstances in the energy industry. 

Chris Forlee 

Full-Time Regulator 

Member and Chief 

Executive Officer 

Yusuf Adam 

Part-Time Regulator 

Member 

Nomfundo Maseti 


Member: Piped-Gas 

and Electricity 

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Energy Regulator, comprising Part-Time (Non- 

Executive) and Full-Time (Executive) Regulator 

Members, including the Chief Executive Offi cer 

(CEO). The Energy Regulator is supported by staff 

under the direction of the CEO. 

Kulawula House, 526 Madiba Street, 

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P O Box 40343, Arcadia, 0007 

Tel: (012) 401 4600 • Fax: (012) 401 4700 

E-mail: info@nersa.org.za 

Website: www.nersa.org.za 

@NERSA_ZA 

@NERSAZA 

Muzi Mkhize 


Member: Petroleum 

Pipelines 

Fungai Sibanda 

Part-Time Regulator 

Member

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SOUTH AFRICAN CHAMBER 

OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

4 BRICS shine bright 

6 Ordering a new world 

CONTENTS 

8 A winning team 

Lessons in leadership from Dr. Nonhlanhla Mkhize, 

Regional Director-General of KwaZulu-Natal 

14 Business confidence simmers 

Coega gives the green light for Agni Steel SA 

16 Helping others get ahead 

Fuel hauler aims to "pay it forward" after securing 

enterprise funding 

17 Energy on demand 

Microgrids can fulfill energy needs reliably and 

sustainably 

18 Untapped potential 

Where to invest in Africa 

20 A common voice 

Ministers lay BRICS foundation for July summit 

22 Enabling intra-Africa trade 

Unbelievable growth and prosperity on the cards 

24 Economic lift-off 

Atlantis Special Economic Zone receives official 

designation 

26 Deepening collaboration 

Brand South Africa hosts talks with EU Investors 

28 Exciting times for Transnet 

Linking African economies 

30 Optimising the supply chain 

Sustainability comes from delivering value for all 

32 Innovation and support 

Industry 4.0 impact on organisations, leadership and 

management 

34 Thriving amidst disruption 

It's time to put African people at the heart of change 

36 Projects in the pipeline 

New Development Bank unveils key updates on 

technology-backed development 

38 Unlimited 

What China’s President Xi’s extended tenure means 

for Africa 

40 Under pressure to deliver 

The role of the municipality in securing economic 

development outcomes 

42 The impact of image 

A good reputation is priceless 

44 A world without plastic 

Radical imagination and leadership is required 

46 Blueprint for the ocean economy 

Outlining the Comprehensive Maritime Transport 

Policy for South Africa 

48 Exchanging control 

Measures for a more robust Rand

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FOREWORD 

BRICS shine bright 

Alan Mukoki,SACCI CEO 

4 | www.opportunityonline.co.za

FOREWORD 

South Africa will take over the chair of BRICS in 2018. 

This adds to the positive upswing we have witnessed in 

the first quarter of this year. Yes, business confidence 

has remained stable and GDP growth faltered slightly, but this 

should not deter us from our focus on a brighter future for the 

nation. 

Taking over from China, as the outgoing chair of BRICS, 

South African business, government and society can take this 

opportunity to foster important gains for our economy and 

international relationships. We are provided the opportunity 

to forge strong relationships through South-South cooperation 

and learn from our partners in terms of trade relations with 

the US and Europe. 

Foremost on the agenda for the summit to be held in Durban 

at the end of July will be the focus on the creation of a gender 

and women forum and a strategic partnership with BRIC partners 

on the fourth industrial revolution—a focus of our local 

Jobs Summit, Investment Summit and NEDLAC Summit this 

year. All partners are working towards building the economy 

in a way that creates leverages for growth, innovation, job 

creation and investment—as well as curbing things like corruption 

and mismanagement of public money, and political 

instability that has muddied our reputation in the past. 

The focus on gender equality and growth through industrialisation 

have both been key focuses of business for many 

years. This year, the BRICS chair affords South Africa the 

opportunity to put in play all that it has been working towards 

since the development of ASGISA over 10 years ago. 

Many ask the question, should we focus on the minimum 

wage? Or should we focus on developing the services sector? 

Or beneficiation? Or job creation? Or industrialisation? The 

answer, quite simply, is yes to all of these. As far as I know, 

everyone I meet has aspirations for this country and its 

future. We all want a better outcome for future generations. 

And the only way we are going to achieve this is to keep 

on keeping on and working towards better outcomes and 

policies for each and every business sector, labour and individual. 

We may never reach agreement on each and every 

detail of the plan before we can begin to implement it. We 

are human… and that is the nature of us. We can, however, 

all work towards common overarching goals of improved 

lives, improved access, more jobs, more investment and 

inclusive growth—working out the details as we walk the 

path together. 

In the lead-up to the Summit, it is important that we remain 

steady in managing the financial concerns of our state-owned 

enterprises to keep the lights on and communication lines running. 

That we continue our robust engagement with business, 

government and labour on the importance of policy certainty 

and alignment so that nothing and no one falls through the 

cracks. And that we continue to boost the brand of South 

Africa as a good investment for foreigners and locals. 

And yes, as South Africa, we also see benefits for the rest of 

the continent through our chairmanship. But first, let’s make 

this count in ways that brighten our future. 

Alan Mukoki, CEO, SACCI 

www.opportunityonline.co.za | 5

ED’S NOTE 

Ordering a new world 

Greg Penfold 

greg@capemedia.co.za 

This year is a significant milestone for South Africa as it prepares to take over 

the chair of the BRICS group at the BRICS 2018 Summit in July. 

Expectations are high that this year, Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa 

will begin to pull together economically in a way that increases the prosperity of 

their respective populaces while reinforcing their individual sovereignty. 

A particularly important aspect of this process is the establishment of a financial 

sphere that supports the BRICS economy without fear or favour. 

For this to happen, it is essential that member countries have transparent and 

irreproachable financial relations internally and externally. 

South Africa faces a tough challenge in gettings its financial house in order, with 

loss-making institutions that have been pillaged over the years, bringing the country 

to the brink of collapse through increasingly violent service delivery protests by a 

population sick and tired of empty political rhetoric. 

For South Africa to be able to benefit truly from the historical opportunity that 

BRICS 2018 represents, all stakeholders at every level need to do their utmost to 

ensure that transparency and good faith become the cultural bedrock on which the 

economy of the future will be built. 


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COVER STORY 

A winning team 

Premier Willies Mchunu and Director-General 

Dr. Nonhlanhla Mkhize are poised to ignite growth in KZN 

First Female Director-General for 

KZN, Dr. Nonhlanhla Mkhize 

Under the leadership of 

Premier Willies Mchunu, 

who is supported by the 

dynamic Director-General Dr Mkhize, 

the province of KwaZulu Natal is set 

to become an economic powerhouse 

positioned to put South Africa on a path 

of rejuvenated growth and development. 

New growth path 

Deployed by the ANC to be the Premier 

of the Province of KwaZulu-Natal in 

September 2016, Mchunu has embarked 

on a programme aimed at putting the 

province on a new trajectory of socioeconomic 

development. 

Mchunu says the focus of government 

is on building a stronger KZN socially 

and economically. 

Premier Mchunu drives service 

delivery in KwaZulu Natal through 

Operation Sukuma Sakhe, a programme 

that delivers government directly to the 

beneficiaries enabling them to take decisions 

regarding their own communities. 

Operation Sukuma Sakhe is a multisectoral 

structure in which stakeholders 

identify problems at local level and 

together with government isolate possible 

solutions. 

In turn, Operation Sakhe is alinged to 

KZN's Provincial Growth Development 

Plan. 

Growth and development 

The National Growth and Development 

Plan remains the only document since 

the adoption of the Freedom Charter 

that will unite people of this country for 

many more years to come. 

When KZN's own Provincial Growth 

Development Plan (PGDP) was developed, 

it was deliberately aligned to the 

NDP in order to unite the people of 

KwaZulu-Natal behind a common goal 

of creating a prosperous province for 

future generations. 

The PGDP is essentially a 20-year plan 

to grow the economy of the province for 

the improvement of the quality of life of 

all people living there. 

As stated in the PGDP, the vision 

of the province is succinct: "By 2035, 

the province of KwaZulu-Natal should 

have maximised its position as a 

gateway to South and Southern Africa, 

as well as its human and natural 

resources so creating a safe, healthy 

and sustainable living environment. 

Abject poverty, inequality, unemployment 

and the current disease burden 

should be history, basic services 

must have reached all of its people, 

domestic and foreign investors are 

attracted by world class infrastructure 

and a skilled labour force. The people 

shall have options on where and how 

they opt to live, work and play, where 

the principle of putting people first 

and where leadership, partnership 

and prosperity in action has become a 

normal way of life.” 

In February 2011 the KwaZulu-Natal 

Provincial Executive Council tasked the 

Provincial Planning Commission (PPC) 

to lead the way in realising this vision 

by developing and advising it on matters 

related to: 

• A long term strategic development 

perspective and vision of the 

province, 

• Ensuring coherence in policy 

development and planning across 

Provincial Government; and 

• Strengthening performance monitoring 

and evaluation to assess 

the pace required to deliver on the 

desired outcomes by 2035. 

The PPC comprises nine commissioners, 

eight part-time commissioners 

and a full-time chairperson appointed 

by the premier to serve for a period 

of five years. The PPC seeks to 

complement the National Planning 

Commission (NPC), advises and makes 

recommendations to a Planning Sub- 

Committee of Cabinet on matters 

related to: 

• A long-term strategic development 

perspective and vision of the 

province; 


COVER STORY 

Premier TW Mchunu 

• Ensuring coherence in policy development 

and planning across the 

Provincial Government; and 

• Strengthening performance monitoring 

and evaluation to assess 

the pace required to deliver on the 

desired outcomes. 

When tasked with the development 

of the PGDP, the PPC first undertook 

a detailed Strategic Analysis of the 

Province, which details the status quo 

regarding each of the province’s sectors 

of growth and development and seeks 

answers to various questions including 

questions like: 

• How and where do we create sustainable 

jobs that build on our growing 

integration into Southern Africa, 

Africa and the world? 

• How do we ensure that our people, 

and in particular our youth, have the 

education and skills to take up these 

job opportunities? 

• How do we address social ills and 

restore pride in communities that are 

prepared to work hard at improving 

their quality of life? 

• How do we reduce crime, violence 

and corruption? 

After a broad consultation process, the 

PGDS (Provincial Growth Development 

Strategy) was adopted in principle by 

the Provincial Executive Council in 

August 2011, noting the need to prepare 

a detailed implementation plan in 

the form of the PGDP. It was also emphasised 

that the PGDS and the PGDP 

should be fully aligned to the National 

Development Plan. 

From the very first version of the 

PGDP the focus has been on identifying 

the indicators that will be used 

to measure progress of movement 

towards the Vision, and the setting of 

targets to be achieved by 2015, 2020, 

2025 and 2035. The PPC has been 

facilitating and supporting the lead 

departments to develop these detailed 

trajectories to ensure that the roadmap 

is and remains absolutely clear on what 

is required to achieve the 2035 Vision 

for KwaZulu-Natal. The PGDP further 

identifies specific interventions and 

catalytic projects which is intended to 

propel the province towards achieving 

the set targets. 

The first version of the PGDP was 

subsequently adopted at the August 

2012 Executive Council Lekgotla with 

an instruction for all departmental work 

plans to be aligned with the PGDP. The 

PPC was also tasked to ensure that the 

PGDP is refined as it is implemented 

and that refined versions be presented 

to PEC Lekgotla, usually convened in 

February and August each year. 

According to the PGDP, KZN by 2035 

should be a prosperous province with 

a healthy, secure and skilled population, 

acting as a gateway to Africa and 

the world. 

The plan outlines: job creation, 

human resource development, human 

and community development, strategic 

infrastructure, environmental sustainability, 

governance and policy and spatial 

equity as strategic goals that need to be 

achieved. The goals and objectives are 

to be implemented within an enabling 

institutional framework with support 

from civil society, organised business 

and labour groups. 

In essence the PGDP is about the systems 

put in place to achieve the 2035 

Vision for the Province by: 

• Creating jobs through developing 

and optimising opportunities in the 

various sectors of the KZN economy; 

• Developing the skills of people in the 

province to ensure that it is them 

who will benefit from the jobs the 

province hopes to create; 

War on poverty: the origins of 

Operation Sukuma Sakhe 

8 February 2008: Then South 

African President Thabo Mbeki, 

in his State of the Nation Address 

announced the National War on 

Poverty Campaign 

2008: KZN launched War on 

Poverty in uMsinga 

2009: KZN launched KZN 

Flagship Programme which was 

using the War on Poverty 

approach, focusing on three 

components: 

• Fighting diseases in particular 

HIV and AIDS and TB and 

Poverty 

• Food Security 

• Empowerment of Women and 

Youth and driving an aggressive 

behaviour change against social 

ills: Teenage Pregnancy, Genderbased 

Violence, HIV and AIDS, 

Substance Abuse, Crime, Road 

Accidents. This commenced 

in uMzinyathi, eThekwini and 

uThungulu and subsequently to 

the whole Province. 

PTTs, DTTs and LTTs were established 

in all districts. Households 

were profiled and immediate services 

provided; in some instances 

houses were delivered. 

April 2011: Re-launched Flagship 

programme as Operation Sukuma 

Sakhe which was embracing the 

community partnership. 


COVER STORY 

• Ensuring that the human and social 

environment is conducive to a healthy, 

safe and secure living environment 

for all people living in the province; 

• Promoting the development of strategic 

infrastructure to support social, 

economic and environmental development 

in KZN; 

• Ensuring that sustainable development 

practices are adhered to at all 

times; 

• Promoting good governance practices 

and policy alignment to support 

this growth and development trajectory 

for KZN; and 

• Facilitating spatial equity to ensure 

that all geographic regions of the 

province receive attention and are 

optimally developed. 

A woman of great responsibility 

She is indeed a lady of many "firsts". 

In almost all the different levels that 

Dr. Nonhlanhla Mkhize had to find 

herself, she was either pioneering or 

heralding change, whether as a Chief 

Director within the public service or 

as a Director-General. Other than this, 

she boasts extensive experience as an 

academic in the area of languages. On 

1 August 2017, Premier Willies Mchunu 

of KwaZulu Natal announced her as 

the first woman Director General since 

the dawn of democracy in 1994 in 

this province. 

Her career in the public service has 

taken her into different regions of the 

two spheres of government (the national 

and the provincial). She has served in 

her home province of KwaZulu Natal and 

in Mpumalanga province at the national 

government level. 

She was the first Director-General in 

the Ministry of Women, Children and 

People with Disabilities. 

She did a lot of pioneering work 

in facilitating the drafting of the 

Geographical Names Council Bill, and 

coordinating its legislative process until 

it became an Act. While heading the 

National Language Services under the 

auspices of the then Department of Arts, 

Culture, Science and Technology, she initiated 

and facilitated the implementation 

of telephone interpreting services for 

South Africa, which was piloted in all 

national depatments. This was after the 

government had moved away from the 

policy of bilingualism (which showed 

a bias towards Afrikaans and English), 

and moved towards multilingualism 

(inclusive of all the 11 official languages 

of South Africa). 

Because she is such a language fundi, 

she was central in the establishment 

of the Pan South African Language 

Board (PANSALB), the South African 

Geographical Names Council, and the 

Provincial Language Policy Desk. 

After this stint in the national set-up, 

she came back to her home province 

in KwaZulu Natal. "During this period 

we experienced so many losses in the 

family, I lost more than one family 

member. This, even though I am not firstborn, 

necessitated that I return home to 

assume familial responsibilities. I like to 

take responsibility," she says. 

While back in the province she established 

the Human Rights Directorate 

within the Office of the Premier. Its 

duties entailed an oversight role on 

issues affecting senior citizens, women, 

people with disabilities, the youth and 

children. She later became the Chief 

Director on Policy and Governance 

within the same Office. 

Executive Council of KZN Premier 


COVER STORY 

How Operation Sukuma Sakhe works 

Step One 

• Community caregivers visit a set number of households 

where a key informant, usually the household head, 

provides information on individuals, household and 

community needs; 

• The Household Profiling Tool is completed by the caregivers 

and the baseline is identified; and 

• Youth ambassadors meet with the youth at households, 

schools, churches and clubs to jointly identify the needs 

and challenges of the youth. 

Step Two 

• Caregivers and youth ambassadors take the baseline 

information to the war-room each week; 

• War-room members assess the needs and priorities are 

identified; and 

• Youth ambassadors work with the youth to address their 

needs and challenges. 

Step Three 

• War-room discusses the needs and submits information 

to referral focal point person in each department for 

action; 

• Weekly baseline data is consolidated and submitted to 

the local task team and to the relevant departments for 

action; 

• Departments provide services via the war-room; 

• Caregivers provide feedback to households; 

• At ward level, solutions are discussed with government 

and other partners to embrace the youth; 

• Programmes implemented; and 

• Youth ambassadors provide feedback to the youth. 

Sukuma Sakhe encourages the co-ordination of comprehensive 

services among government departments, state-owned 

enterprises and civil society, as it views the delivery of 

anti-poverty programmes as a collective responsibility. The 

strategy is to integrate services so that they collectively 

enable the communities to deal effectively with eradicating 

poverty. Integration is a systemic approach, which means 

that systems will be implemented to ensure that communities 

are assisted to access the required services. Sukuma 

services are divided into three priority levels; immediate, 

medium and long-term, defined as follows: 

• immediate (non-negotiable services which must be 

resolved within 90 days); 

• medium-term (which must be resolved within 91 to 180 

days); and 

• long-term (longer than 180 days). 

Having an integrated approach means that all spheres of 

government (national, provincial and local) play a clearly 

defined role. It ensures that the different government 

departments work together in a cohesive manner and 

that an integrated planning tool is used. Co-ordination 

does not end merely with the provision of services from 

service providers. Communities are engaged to ensure 

that they contribute to their own development and that 

they are able to get out of the poverty trap when they exit 

the Sukuma system. 

The overall strategic objective of Sukuma is to integrate, 

co-ordinate and facilitate transversal services to communities. 

To achieve this, the programme has six sub-objectives: 

1. Create and maintain functional task teams at provincial, 

district, local, and ward levels to deliver integrated 

services to individuals, households and communities; 

2. Create fully efficient and competent human capital 

structures across all levels of Sukuma Sakhe 

implementation; 

3. Understand and identify pockets of poverty and social 

ills within wards; 

4. Provide comprehensive, integrated, transversal services 

to communities; 

5. Advocate for involvement from all stakeholders through 

marketing and communication; and 

6. Monitor, evaluate, provide feedback and track service 

delivery. 

The Sukuma Sakhe methodology is to gather information, 

develop a database of the identified needs and 

take the information in a stepped approach to the ward, 

local, district and provincial task teams. At ward level, 

after caregivers provide immediate interventions where 

appropriate, the needs are assessed and prioritised, then 

forwarded to the designated focal referral persons at the 

different departments for action, and escalated to a higher 

level where necessary. The most important part is to monitor 

the progress of the prioritised needs taken forward, 

with the designated focal referral persons to ascertain the 

progress made with the cases and to provide feedback to 

the communities at ward level. 

(Source: Mail & Guardian) 


COVER STORY 

Dr Nonhlanhla Mkhize's career 

in brief 

Dr Mkhize was born on 16 December 

1964. In her time, she has served in 

the following positions: 

• Director General: Office of the 

Premier in Mpumalanga Province 

(2012 September to 30 November 

2015) 

• Director General: Department of 

the Status of Women, Children 

and People With Disabilities 

(2010 November to 30 August 

2012) 

• Acting Deputy Director General: 

(Policy and Governance) Office 

of the Premier in KwaZulu-Natal 

(2009 March to October 2010) 

• Chief Director: (Human Rights) 

Office of the Premier in KwaZulu- 

Natal (2005 June to February 

2009) 

• Director: (Human Rights) Office 

of the Premier in KwaZulu-Natal 

(2002 March to May 2005) 

• Director: (National Language 

Services) Department of Arts, 

Culture, Science and Technology 

(1998 January to February 2002) 

• Senior Lecturer and Head of 

Department (African Languages): 

University of Zululand (1995 

February to December 1997) 

• Lecturer and Researcher: 

University of Zululand (1987 

February to January 1995) 

Dr Mkhize's academic qualifications 

include the following: 

• Doctorate: D Litt et Phil in 

Education and Intra-Culturalism 

(May 1998) 

• Bachelor of Education in 

Educaitonal Planning and 

Management, Educational 

Psychology and Philosophy of 

Education (November 1993) 

• Masters of Arts (November 1989) 

• BA Honours (November 1987) 

• Bachelor of Arts (November 1986) 

• Secondary Teachers Diploma 

(November 1985) 

She was then appointed as the first 

woman Director-General in the province 

of Mpumalanga. When asked her 

as to whether it was right to stereotype 

the province of KwaZulu-Natal 

as being steeped in patriarchy and 

misogyny, relating to her appointment, 

she says, "I do not want to 

be seen as the affirmative action 

appointee. If we are capable and 

have the expertise, then we must be 

given opportunities. The women in 

the province of KwaZulu-Natal are 

happy that the Executive Council 

took the decision to empower women 

by appointing the Director-General 

based on the criteria of capacity and 

experience. We are also happy that 

the KwaZulu-Natal provincial government 

is serious and committed to 

ensuring that there is 50/50 gender 

parity representation.” 

Knowing that she was one of the 

pioneers in the Geographical Names 

Council, we could not resist the chance 

of seeking to establish her stance in 

reaction to the wide-held belief that 

KwaZulu-Natal is not up to speed with 

the principles of name correction and 

name changing. 'While I am not in that 

space,” she asserts, “the processes 

involved in this project sometimes 

render unexpected results and sometimes 

hinder progress regarding this 

program. It is, for example, the distortion 

of history that renders the desire 

to change names. The inappropriately 

named Mangosuthu Highway is a case 

in point.” 

As to the deficits within the Office of 

the Premier, the DG chooses to be very 

technical and diplomatic. "My take is 

that generally what the public sector 

needs is its professionalisation, and 

by professionalisation we do not only 

mean the professionalisation of the 

public sector. The government needs 

to create a conducive environment for 

professionalisation to exist and thrive. 

There must be less politicisation of the 

institutions. Capacity and capability 

ought to be guiding forces, and these 

must be coupled by good progressive 

policies. These progressive policies 

must be implemented so as to change 

the lives of the people. All these are 

impossible if there is no consequence 

management, and the absence of an 

accountability chain is palpable. The 

accountability chain must never be 

broken; it must not matter how senior 

one is. It must be an imperative that all 

should be held accountable, and this 

must include accounting for public 

funds," she asserts passionately. 

When officially announcing the 

appointment of Dr. Mkhize to this 

august office on 1 August 2017, 

Premier Willies Mchunu emphasised 

that the DG would be central to the 

ensuring of the goals of the National 

Development Plan (NDP). The province 

already has a structure that is aligned 

to the NDP goals. The KwaZulu-Natal 

Provincial Planning Commission 

heads the Provincial Growth and 

Development Strategy Plan. 

The Fourth Industrial Revolution is 

one of the significant pillars to this end, 

and conscious of this fact, KwaZulu- 

Natal is already polishing and refining 

its ICT strategy. "As a matter of fact, 

we are working with the Department 

of Postal and Telecommunications 

Services (DPTS) and the Council for 

Scientific and industrial Research 

(CSIR). The review of the strategy shall 

assist in assessing the status of ICT in 

the province, identifying the necessary 

ICT infrastructure, and the need for 

optic fibre, so as to be able to address 

the needs specific to the province of 

KwaZulu-Natal. Our ICT strategy must 

speak to the National Health Insurance 

(NHI) programme, and it must include 

government programmes, buildings 

and schools," she emphasises. 

She asserts that as a build-up to the 

World Telecoms ITU Conference to be 

held in Durban, in September of the 

current year, specific events have been 

put in place. While these would be 

seen as engagements, they shall serve 

as programme activations. Districts of 

the province shall be clustered so as to 

reflect geographical proximity and different 

sectors of the community shall 

be part of this process. 

An event for Women and Youth in 

Business is planned in July. People 

living with disabilities shall also form 

part of this, as will business people 


COVER STORY 

within this sector. There is another special focus on 

women in August. 

During the ITU World Telecom Conference itself, 

there shall be a South African Village, and KZN has 

been allotted a large space for Small, Medium and Micro 

Enterprises (SMMEs) in the ICT space. 

Other than this, in its pursuance of the goals of the 

NDP, youth empowerment and specifically the Fourth 

Industrial Revolution, the Office of the Premier shall be 

launching Youth Mobile Offices in partnership with the 

National Youth Development Agency (NYDA). These are 

fully equipped with satellite internet and all forms of 

technology. They shall serve as information-providing 

centres for the youth looking for different opportunities; 

these could be in business, job-seeking, and for those 

looking for study opportunities. "We have noted that 

young people's dreams are stifled and buried because 

they do not have access to centres that facilitate the requisite 

information," she states with optimism. While the 

NYDA shall provide one of these centres, the province 

shall provide eleven. 

There are also fifty million rands that have been set 

aside by the Office of the Premier in order to establish 

the Youth Empowerment Fund. Known as seed funding, 

it seeks to assist upcoming and aspiring young business 

people. It shall also cater for those that are already 

in business and are experiencing minor setbacks in 

the running of their business. The tenets of “Sukuma 

Sakhe” shall inspire how this functions. Sukuma Sakhe 

is the motto on the crest of the provincial government 

of KwaZulu Natal. It has biblical origins, echoing the 

words of the Prophet Nehemiah who seeks to rebuild 

a city that has been destroyed. As stated on the 

KwaZulu-Natal provincial government website, “The 

origin of Masisukuma Sakhe, which is the motto on 

the crest of the Provincial Government of KwaZulu- 

Natal, is taken from the Prophet Nehemiah 2:18, where 

he yearns to rebuild a city that has been destroyed. 

Operation Sukuma Sakhe then is a call for the people 

of KwaZulu-Natal to be determined to overcome the 

issues that have destroyed the communities such as 

poverty, unemployment, crime, substance abuse, HIV/ 

AIDS and TB.” 

In response to concerns as to whether this was not a 

duplication of some of the programmes that have failed 

in the province, Dr. Mkhize is quick to retort. "We have 

identified areas that are weaknesses, and these are 

mostly around implementation. We have to decrease the 

number of projects that we are investing in, so that we 

have less projects that are sufficiently budgeted for so 

that they have an impact." 

With 11 months in office, Dr Mkhize still has many 

tasks ahead of her, and the drive, passion and integrity to 

achieve them. The people of KwaZulu-Natal are praying 

hard that this senior servant will be the one to deliver the 

key to prosperity and the South African dream. 

A lifetime of service 

Before becoming adopting his current position, 

Premier Thembinkosi Willies Mchunu had an illustrious 

career. Born in Durban on 11 May 1948, he 

grew up in Ladysmith and Chesterville but spent 

his adult life working mainly in KwaZulu and in 

other parts of the country. 

He honed his political skills in political structures 

of the mass democratic movement both of 

which were central in the fight against apartheid. 

Between 1973 and 1978 Premier Mchunu gradually 

moved through the ranks of the trade unions 

and civic structures ultimately becoming the full 

time Organiser of the Metal and Allied Workers 

Union in 1978. 

In 1980, he was recruited into the underground 

structures of the ANC which at the time was a 

banned organisation in South Africa. 

At the height of violence that engulfed KwaZulu 

Natal which intensified in the late 1980’s Premier 

Mchunu was in 1988, deployed as the First 

Co-ordinator of the Joint Working Committee of 

the United Democratic Front & Congress of South 

African Trade Unions that was tasked with establishing 

peace with the Inkatha Freedom Party. 

Premier Mchunu has used his legendary negotiating 

skills to bring together warring factions 

in KwaZulu Natal and to pursue peace and end 

violent conflict. 

As the people’s organisations were unbanned, 

some for the first time since 1961, Premier 

Mchunu was in 1990 elected the first chairperson 

of the ANC in the Northern Natal Region. 

He has served in the ANC’s provincial executive 

committee of the ANC since 1995 including 

as Deputy Chairperson of the province. He is 

currently a member of the Provincial Interim 

Committee. 

In 2004, Mchunu was deployed as a Speaker, a 

position he occupied until his deployment as the 

MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional 

Affairs in 2009. 

In the same year, he was deployed as MEC for 

Transport, Community Safety and Liaison a position 

he held until May 2016 when he assumed the position 

of Premier of KwaZulu Natal. 

As MEC for Transport, Community Safety and 

Liaison Premier Mchunu is credited with driving 

the infrastructure revolution involving the 

construction of transport networks throughout 

KwaZulu Natal. 


SPECIAL ECONOMIC ZONES 

Business 

confidence simmers 

Coega gives the green light for Agni Steel SA 

Steel recycling and processing 

plant Agni Steel SA, located 

in Zone 6 of the Coega SEZ, 

recently received authorisation for its 

Phase 2 and 3 expansion plan from the 

Department of Economic Development, 

Environmental Affairs & Tourism 

(DEDEAT). In 2009, DEDEAT authorised 

Agni Steels SA Phase 1 development 

with amendments done in 2011. 

Phase 1 consisted of the installation of a 

set of induction furnaces for reclaiming 

of scrap metal. The induction furnaces 

had a capacity of 25 tonnes and produced 

90 000 tonnes of mild steel 

billets per year. Phase 2, which was just 

approved in June 2018, includes the 

addition of two sets of furnaces and a 

ladle-refining furnace. 

The two additional furnaces will perform 

the same function of the current, 

running alternately with one being used 

for melting whilst the other is prepared 

for the melting process. 

The additional furnaces will thus 

double production and produce 180 000 

tonnes of steel billets per year. 

The additional 

furnaces will double 

production and 

produce 180 000 

tonnes of steel 

billets per year 

In addition to the furnaces, a ladlerefining 

furnace (LRF) will also be 

installed. Once all three phases are completed, 

Agni Steels SA will be deployed 

using modernized rolling mill to locally 

convert the steels billets produced into 

reinforced steel for local and regional 

export consumption. 

The authorisation by DEDEAT’s sets 

out environmentally safe conditions 

which Agni Steel SA will need to comply 

with whilst undertaking their expansion 

which is in accordance to the objectives 

of the Environmental Management Act, 

Act 107 of 1998. 

Business Development Manager 

for Metal Projects, Sadick Davids, 

expressed enthusiasm for the approved 

expansion commenting on its investment 

and job creation opportunity. 

“The authorisation for their expansion 

means Agni Steel SA will be investing 

an additional R100 million and creating 

an additional 150 jobs. This is 

consistent with CDC’s view that those 

investing in the SEZ not only grow but 

thrive as well,” he said. 

Marketing, Brand and 

Communications Unit Head, Dr. 

Ayanda Vilakazi, applauded the 

DEDEAT’s decision to grant approval 

for Agni Steel SA’s expansion plans, 

saying: "We appreciate the endless 

support the department has given us 

[as Coega SEZ). It shows their commitment 

to supporting our vision and 

mission, which is to create jobs and 

responsible investment opportunities. 

It also shows how the department is 

invested in the growth and development 

of the SEZ itself and we are 

looking forward to their support in 

future”, he said. 


OIL AND GAS 

Helping others 

get ahead 

Fuel hauler aims to "pay it forward" 

after securing enterprise funding 

A 

new black-owned logistics 

company servicing the KwaZulu- 

Natal and inland fuel depot route 

is being aided by some of the newest tech 

in logistics, as it goes toe to toe with big 

transport companies. 

Using drones to create their niche in the 

complex business of fuel distribution, 

Crusade Logistics plans routes and 

monitors driver safety, providing 

customers with two-hourly updates on 

the estimated arrival time to the depots, 

ensuring that they are ready to receive 

the fuel. 

Currently bridging fuel for Chevron 

South Africa and the Caltex Brand in 

Kwa-Zulu Natal, the 51% black-owned 

and 30% black female-owned fuel 

hauler recently secured Enterprise and 

Supplier Development (E&SD) funding 

from Chevron South Africa to expand its 

business. Chevron South Africa’s E&SD 

programme is not only aimed at growing 

its base of capable and reliable partners, 

but also, improving opportunities for 

new Black-owned entrants to drive 

transformation through its value chain. 

Crusade Logistics has received 

industry accolades for driver safety, 

fuel efficiency and reliability. “We 

mark out the routes first with drones 

to give drivers visual cues and 

familiar landmarks on an electronic 

journey plan. We have seen a marked 

improvement in driver safety and it 

also reduces the risk of trucks getting 

lost with a full load of fuel onboard,” 

said co-owner of Crusade Logistics, 

Wesley Naidoo. 

“Start-up firms are held to the 

same exacting standards as more 

established suppliers and while there 

can be significant barriers to entry for 

new entrants, we are keen to enable 

their success by providing them with 

business opportunities within our fuel 

supply chain,” said Chevron South 

Africa’s Fleet Operations Manager, 

Noma Dumse. 

“Chevron South Africa supports 

innovative and affordable funding 

mechanisms for the participation of 

black entrepreneurs in the fuel supply 

chain. E&SD funding is one of the best 

methods to allow for the development 

of black-owned small and medium 

enterprises and their increased 

participation in the mainstream 

economy,” Dumse concluded. 

Naidoo added, “The interest free E&SD 

funding and the fuel bridging contract 

with Chevron South Africa have 

boosted our cashflow and improved 

our access to additional credit, allowing 

us to expand our fleet from two to 14 

trucks.” 

Chevron South Africa has identified 

a number of black-owned haulers 

which it is in the process of enrolling 

into its E&SD programme and bringing 

onstream. Other participants in the 

company’sE&SD programme include 

black-owned small and medium 

enterprises as diverse as advertising 

agency, Avatar; operational equipment 

cleaning business, Galion Laundry and 

Caltex service station owners who have 

successfully grown their businesses as a 

result of the funding received. 

Naidoo went on to say, “For us, one of 

the biggest benefits has been receiving 

mentorship fromChevron South Africa 

and integrating their best practice 

standards and culture into our business. 

We have been so inspired by how this 

programme has assisted us, that we are 

now helping other small black-owned 

businesses. In our own way, we are 

paying it forward.” 


RENEWABLES 

Energy on demand 

Microgrids can fulfill energy needs reliably and sustainably 

As the cost of sustainable energy 

sources has declined, the 

deployment of these sources 

of energy has grown rapidly. Once 

on the fringes of the energy industry, 

solar PV and wind are now mainstream 

technologies. The International 

Renewable Energy Agency predicts 

another 90 GW of solar power to come 

online in the next few years, which 

could drive down solar costs by an 

additional 60%. 

However, despite rapidly expanding adoption 

and support for renewables there 

remains one major barrier to a greater 

role across grid operations—the ability 

to store that energy for use on demand. 

Although rapid gains have been made 

in the maturity of storage technology, it 

is still in the early stages and utilities 

are cultivating a growing interest. More 

than half of U.S. respondents to Black 

& Veatch’s Strategic Directions: Electric 

Industry Report (56%) view the use of 

energy storage to increase solar PV as 

“very important” or “important”. 

Today, large vertically integrated electricity 

service providers are exploring 

how to embrace storage along with 

utility-scale and traditional rooftop PV 

applications. More than a quarter of 

respondents (27%) are either running 

or developing an energy storage pilot 

programme, almost half (45%) have it 

on their technology roadmap, and 28% 

are not planning for energy storage at 

this time. 

While still expensive, energy storage 

is declining in cost rapidly. Lithium-ion is 

the current dominant technology and is 

seeing cost declines similar to what the 

industry experienced with solar PV over 

the past decade. Lithium-ion batteries 

used on the power grid are the same as 

those in electric vehicles. As the electric 

vehicle market has grown, the scale-up 

of battery manufacturing capacity to 

support that market has support cost 

declines and innovation in the use of 

battery energy storage on the power grid. 

According to global research organisation, 

GTM Research, energy storage 

adoption in the U.S. has experienced 

dramatic growth since 2012 and is 

expected to reach 2.5 GW by 2022, 11 

times the size of the market in 2016, 

which totalled 231 MW. Furthermore, 

the energy storage market in the U.S. 

is expected to grow ninefold from 2016 

to $3.1 billion in 2022. Revenues from 

energy storage in 2017 are expected to 

grow by 43% over 2016, with a cumulative 

market revenue between 2017 and 

2022 to reach $10.4 billion. 

Battery producers like Tesla, Samsung 

SDI, Panasonic, BYD, LG Chem and more 

are ramping up capacity to address 

rising demand from electric vehicle 

production, as well as residential, 

commercial and increasingly, utilityscale 

storage applications. 

Changing the electricity landscape 

Distributed energy resources, such as 

microgrids, are driving change within 

the electric industry worldwide as both 

energy consumers and electric service 

providers are diversifying how power is 

generated and delivered. Spurred on by 

the public embrace of clean energy, falling 

prices and regulatory subsidies; solar 

photovoltaics, battery energy storage and 

microgrids are being deployed in more 

places across the electric system. 

This movement is requiring utilities 

across the globe to transform their traditional 

centralised networks into flexible, 

distributed and integrated power networks 

that are evolving from demonstration and 

pilot phases to solid, longer-term investments 

that play an important part in 

evolving new business models. 

As many of these efforts move 

forward, organisations are working 

through project complexities to achieve 

the most economical design and implementation 

for its distributed energy and 

microgrid customers, while at the same 

time seeking to maximise benefit from 

existing grid investments. 

Webb Meko, Business Development 

Director, Sub-Saharan Africa,Black & 

Veatch 


INVESTMENT 

Untapped potential 

Where to invest in Africa 

When thinking about investing 

in the Africa, many investors 

identify South Africa as the 

most important market on the continent. 

However, we believe other countries in 

the region also offer much untapped longterm 

potential. 

Among frontier markets globally, we 

believe Africa offers one of the most 

exciting investment stories. But we 

recognize that investors may need to 

be patient and understand some of the 

unique aspects of doing business in 

those markets, as well as the risks. 

Commodity price volatility could 

drive reform 

As global demand for hard and soft commodities 

continue to grow, we believe 

Africa is in an enviable position with 

its vast natural resources. Many African 

markets not only boast significant supplies 

of oil, gas and hard commodities 

but also have the means to expand the 

production of soft commodities. 

In the past couple of years, volatile 

commodity prices have presented a 

challenge for African countries, particularly 

those dependent on oil revenue. 

Commodity exporters faced substantial 

challenges after the dramatic oil price 

declines in 2014 and depleting fiscal 

buffers, which impacted growth in 

many countries. 

However, that volatility could also be 

viewed as an opportunity, as these countries 

recognized the urgent need to reform 

and diversify their economies. It forced 

governments to become more disciplined 

and improve income collections. Volatility 

also encourages countries to find ways 

to expand their economy through more 

diverse ventures, rather than just through 

the sale of a single commodity. 

China’s growing influence 

We are seeing a number of large multinational 

companies establish a presence in 

Africa for the first time—particularly in 

countries with improving infrastructure 

and ease of doing business—to access its 

large, vibrant and youthful populations. 

The influence of China in particular 

is increasingly apparent, especially in 

financing the building of roads, ports, 

airports and tunnels. The Chinese are 

becoming local partners with African 

businesses. While Africa’s commodities 

are of interest to China, many business 

owners are staying in Africa and setting 

up their own retail outlets there. 

Kenya shines 

One market in which we’ve identified a 

number of opportunities is Kenya. 

Over the past decade, Kenya has made 

significant structural reforms that have 

driven economic growth. Kenya’s position 

on the fast-growing east coast of Africa 

allows it to act as a hub for trade and 

investment flows from the east into the 

rest of the continent. Exports, predominantly 

tea and horticultural products, 

have recovered strongly. The tourism 

sector is also seeing a strong rebound in 

the form of incoming foreigners. 

Despite slowing to 5.5% GDP growth 

in 2017[1] due to subdued credit 

growth, a prolonged political impasse 

and drought conditions, Kenya’s 

economy is expected to accelerate in 

2017 and 2018 to 5.8% and 6.1%,[2] 

respectively, with the adoption of 

prudent macroeconomic policies and 

strengthening consumption. The pursuit 

of progressive monetary, fiscal 

and exchange rate policies have helped 

stabilize and safeguard the economy. 

A diverse economy driven largely by 

services also provides resilience to 

exogenous conditions and the potential 

to be one of the strongest growth stories 

on the continent. 

Kenya’s infrastructure is also likely 

to benefit from China’s “One-Belt One- 

Road” (OBOR) initiative, which aims 

to transform Chinese economic and 

diplomatic interests. In 2014, China 


INVESTMENT 

established a special, multi-billion-dollar 

fund to finance a variety of infrastructure 

projects along the OBOR routes. In 

Africa, that includes the port of Nairobi 

in Kenya. 

Africa’s financial service revolution 

Kenya is also at the forefront of the 

mobile banking revolution that is overhauling 

financial services in Africa. 

A success story that is touted globally 

is a mobile phone-based money 

transfer and financing service in Kenya 

that has a growing subscriber base 

and has enabled unbanked and underbanked 

users to have a secure means of 

remitting and receiving funds. 

Users of the system grew dramatically 

to 28.6 million registered 

customers since its founding in 2007, 

with a corresponding exponential 

growth in the value of transactions. 

The value of transactions passing 

through this system equated to 

around 80% of Kenya’s gross domestic 

product (GDP) as at March 31, 2016. 

As a result, mobile banking has spread 

rapidly to many other countries in the 

region, substantially boosting financial 

inclusion. 

Beyond banking services, mobile 

phones are connecting users to 

other sectors of the economy such 

as retail, education and health care, 

leapfrogging the need for traditional 

brick-and-mortar assets and linking 

to the burgeoning population in 

emerging markets. 

The potential for long-term growth 

in consumer-related areas is also 

very attractive, and we’ve identified 

potential opportunities in the brewing 

industry in Kenya. General consumption 

patterns in East Africa suggest 

some attractive growth potential. 

The per capita beer consumption, for 

example, is lower than in South Africa 

or other emerging or developing markets 

but is expected to be one of the 

fastest growing markets over the next 

decade due to rising economic development 

and urbanization. 

Taking a broad view 

It’s understandable that South Africa 

should remain prominent in investors’ 

minds as they survey the opportunities 

across Africa. Recent macroeconomic 

indicators, including GDP growth and 

an interest rate cut in March, have been 

broadly positive. And we’re pleased 

to see the democratic process has 

remained intact. 

But, it’s not the only story in the 

region. Africa as a whole is expected 

to grow more than 5% annually in the 

next 20 years, due to an improving 

investment environment, better economic 

management and China’s rising 

demand for Africa’s resources. More 

than 100 African companies have revenues 

in excess of $1 billion. Africa also 

has impressive stores of resources, not 

only in minerals but also in food—60% 

of the world’s uncultivated arable land 

is found in Africa.[3] 

The potential for long-term growth 

in consumer-related areas is also very 

attractive, with around 1 billion inhabitants 

on the African continent.[4] 

More importantly, Africa is expected to 

account for 3.2 billion of the projected 

increase in the global population by 

2100,[5] with its working age population 

increasing by 2.1 billion. This 

demographic dividend not only provides 

the opportunity for transformative 

growth on the continent, but also has 

implications for consumption globally. 

We consider a number of African 

markets have the potential for strong 

economic growth, which should produce 

an environment favorable to corporate 

profitability and earnings growth. 

Bassel Khatoun, Managing Director, 

Director of Portfolio Management, 

Frontier and MENA, Franklin Templeton 

Emerging Markets Equity 


BRICS 

A common voice 

Ministers lay BRICS foundation for July summit 

The five major emerging economies 

in the BRICS group, namely Brazil, 

Russia, India, China and South 

Africa, have found a common voice on 

major issues on the international agenda 

ranging from increased BRICS cooperation 

and security to the economic, financial 

and sustainable development spheres. 

A communique issued after their second 

formal meeting, which was chaired by 

International Relations and Cooperation 

(DIRCO) Minister Lindiwe Sisulu, first 

reflected on the importance of this year 

marking a decade of BRICS Summits. She 

said it was a testimony to the fortitude 

of BRICS cooperation and reiterated the 

commitment to implement the outcomes 

and consensus of past BRICS Summits. 

The ministers recalled the BRICS 

tradition of outreach to extend its 

cooperation to fellow developing and 

emerging economies,” read the communique, 

issued at the end of the meeting, 

which was attended by Sisulu’s counterparts: 

China's Wang Yi, Russia’s Sergey 

Lavrov, India’s Sushma Swaraj and 

Brazil’s Marcos Galvão. 

BRICS commitment to UN 

The deliberations, which Sululu 

described as “fruitful”, reaffirmed BRICS 

commitment to the United Nations, as 

the universal multilateral organisation 

entrusted with the mandate for maintaining 

international peace and security, 

advancing global development and to 

promoting and protecting human rights 

so as to build a brighter shared future for 

the global community. 

They recalled the 2005 World Summit 

Outcome document and reaffirmed the 

need for a comprehensive reform of the 

UN, including its Security Council, with 

a view to making it more representative, 

effective and efficient, and to increase 

the representation of the developing 

countries. This, the grouping believes, 

will allow the union to adequately 

respond to global challenges. 

This pushed the BRICS to commit to 

intensifying dialogue amongst the 

BRICS countries on the administration 

and budget of the United Nations, with 

a view to strengthening the organization 

and preserving its Member State-driven 

character. “We stand firm on the importance 

and promotion of multilateralism 

with the UN and its bodies, notwithstanding 

the reform thereof, at the 

centre,” Sisulu explained. 

In addition to this, the BRICS ministers 

reaffirmed their commitment 

to multilateralism and a rules-based 

international order and in this regard 

reaffirmed the centrality of UN, WTO 

and international law by pledging their 

support to efforts towards making 

global governance more representative 

with greater participation of emerging 

markets and developing countries. 

Free trade 

On trade, they underlined their firm 

commitment to free trade, and the 

centrality of a rules-based, transparent, 

non-discriminatory, multilateral trading 

system (MTS) as embodied in the WTO 

by opposing the new wave of protectionism 

and the systematic impact of 

unilateral measures that are incompatible 

with WTO rules, and undermines 

global trade, and economic growth. 

In this regard, they reiterated that the 

WTO Dispute Settlement System is a 

cornerstone of the MTS as it is designed 

to enhance security and predictability in 

international trade. 

Global economic governance 

“The Ministers reaffirmed their resolve 

to foster a global economic governance 

architecture that is more effective and 

reflective of the current global economic 

landscape, increasing the voice 

and representation of emerging markets 

and developing economies. They 

reaffirmed their commitment to conclude 

the IMF's 15th General Review of 

Quotas, including a new quota formula, 

by the 2019 Spring Meetings,” reads 

the communique. 

2030 Agenda, Climate change, global 

issues 

With regards to the 2030 Agenda for 

Sustainable Development, they reaffirmed 

their commitment to implement the 

tenets in an equitable, inclusive, open, allaround 

innovation-driven and sustainable 

development, in its three dimensions— 

economic, social and environmental in a 

balanced and integrated manner. 

They reaffirmed their commitment 

to tackling climate change. They 

welcomed the entry into force of the 

Paris Agreement under the United 

Nations Framework Convention on 

Climate Change. 

Turning to global issues on the 

agenda, the four ministers condemned 

terrorism in all its forms and manifestations 

and went on to urge concerted 

efforts to counter terrorism under the 

UN auspices. 

Furthermore, they recalled the 

responsibility of all states to prevent 

financing of terrorist networks and terrorist 

actions from their territories. 

They also raised the issue of the 

growing instability in the Middle East, 

amongst others, the Israel-Palestine 

situation, the crisis in Syria and 

Yemen, and the unfolding catastrophe 

in Afghanistan. 

10th BRICS Summit 

The meeting laid the foundation for the 

10th BRICS Summit taking place in 

July under the theme “BRICS in Africa: 

Collaboration with Developing Countries 

for Inclusive Growth and Shared Prosperity 

in the 4th Industrial Revolution”. 

The theme resonates with the core 

priorities of all BRICS members, notably 

to strive towards the creation of an inclusive 

society and global partnerships that 

will bring prosperity to all humankind. 

SAnews.gov.za 


BRICS BUSINESS COUNCIL 

Enabling intra-Africa trade 

Unbelievable growth and prosperity on the cards 

Africa is set for a decade of 

“unbelievable growth and 

prosperity”. 

This is according to Dr Iqbal Survé, 

chairman of the SA chapter of the 

BRICS Business Council, who will take 

up the annual rotating chairmanship 

of the overall BRICS Business Council 

(BBC) at the mid-term meeting which 

took place in Shanghai, China, in 

March. 

The BRICS membership is made 

up of Brazil, Russia, India, China and 

South Africa. 

Survé said the mid-term meeting 

was very important, coming as it did 

a few short months before the 10th 

BRICS summit in Gauteng July 25-27, 

with the BRICS Business Council set to 

meet in KwaZulu-Natal on July 22-23. A 

BRICS Business Forum meeting takes 

place on July 25 in Gauteng. 

Established in March 2013 during 

the fifth BRICS summit in Durban, this 

year will see South Africa become the 

first BRICS nation to hold the rotating 

chairmanship of the BRICS Business 

Council for a second time. The BRICS 

Business Council aims to facilitate cooperation 

between the five countries 

in various sectors, as well as promote 

trade and industry. 

Commenting on the growing 

momentum on the African Continental 

Free Trade Area which saw 44 countries 

sign the AfCFTA in Kigali, 

Rwanda, this week, while a number of 

others, including SA, signed the Kigali 

Declaration which committed to the 

establishment of the African economic 

community which aspires to the free 

movement of persons and goods to 

facilitate trade, Survé said: “This is 

absolutely the best thing to happen to 

Africa in a very long time.” 

The AfCFTA agreement is figured 

to have the potential to bring together 

1.2 billion people with a combined GDP 

of over US$2.5 trillion if successfully 

implemented. 

Survé said the AfCFTA would allow 

the BRICS grouping to attract further 

investment into Africa to create skilled 

jobs, while more importantly enabling- 

Business Council increased intra-Africa 

trade from a lowly 12% at present. 

“The global norm for intra trade is 

30% but Africa has not been trading 

with itself,” Survé added. “But Africa 

is now set for a decade of unbelievable 

growth and prosperity.” 

The BRICS nations make up more 

than 40% of the global population and 

according to Survé the formation of 

BRICS has proven to be hugely beneficial 

to Africa as a whole. 

“BRICS countries are now Africa’s 

biggest trade partners,” he said. 

“A number of our initiatives as the 

BRICS Business Council have been 

very successful to date, including the 

launch of the New Development Bank 

(NDB) also known as the BRICS Bank 

and the pending formation of the 

alternative ratings agency. The African 

Regional Centre of the NDB was 

launched in Sandton in August 2017, 

the first of the NDB regional centres to 

be launched. ” 

Survé also pointed to the deepening 

of inter-BRICS relations in areas such 

as financial services, skills development, 

manufacturing, and the easing 

of travel restrictions. 

“For Africa, of course, it is important 

that there is continued infrastructure 

investment and deepening investment,” 

added Survé, who will be 

leading around 50 senior business 

executives from various sectors to the 

mid-term meeting. 

Continued deregulation and the digitalisation 

of economies are key focal 

areas, as are the green economy and 

the energy sector which he described 

as critical. 

“We will also focus on agriculture 

and the involvement of small farmers 

on the African continent, incorporating 

them into the mainstream economy.” 

The BBC has eight working groups 

in the areas of infrastructure, manufacturing, 

financial services, energy 

and the green economy, skills development, 

agribusiness, deregulation and 

regional aviation. “Among the key 

priorities for my chairmanship will be 

ensuring skills development and job 

creation among the youth,” he said, 

citing SA’s introduction of a youth 

initiative and the fact that the BRICS 

community has the most young people 

in the world. 

“We must strengthen the involvement 

of youth, women and SMMEs 

and accelerate the digitilisation of the 

economy.” 

According to Survé, realising 

Africa’s full potential will involve the 

upskilling of young people on the continent 

and the embracing of the Fourth 

Industrial Revolution. 


Infrastructure Africa 

Business Forum 

Access to business opportunities in 

African Infrastructure Development 

A 

GIANT 

You can hear it in the roar of the roads connecting cities; in the 

rumble of trains linking businesses across our continent. It’s there in 

the hum of power stations lighting up countries, and in the technology, 

which makes tomorrow happen today. And yes, it is in the sound of a drop 

of water bringing hope and health to a remote village. This is the sound of 

infrastructure. It is the ring of prosperity, and the promise of opportunity. 

9 - 10 OCTOBER 2018 

Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa 

REGISTER FOR THE SUMMIT WHERE INFRASTRUCTURE 

CONNECTS PEOPLE, PLACES AND OPPORTUNITIES. 

www.infrastructure-africa.com


Economic lift-off 

Atlantis Special Economic Zone 

receives official designation 



Following years of hard work and 

preparation by all spheres of 

government, cabinet has given 

the go ahead for the designation of the 

Atlantis Special Economic Zone. 

The 124.5 hectare area is designated for 

the manufacture of green technologies 

and related services including wind and 

solar power technologies, alternative 

waste management, energy efficient 

technology, alternative building materials 

and many other clean technologies. 

Minister of Trade and Industry, Rob 

Davies confirmed the designation of 

the SEZ, and the approval of cabinet, in 

writing to Minister Winde this weekend. 

A special economic zone clusters 

industries from a particular sector 

closely together, to reap the benefits of 

scale and co-location. The designation 

as an SEZ by the government, allows 

for certain incentives to be offered to 

attract investment. 

In 2011, the City of Cape Town 

established a manufacturing hub for 

green technologies in Atlantis, which 

attracted large investors even before the 

designation was official. Five of these 

investors are already operational. 

The Western Cape Government later 

submitted an application for portions 

of City owned land in Atlantis to be 

declared a GreenTech SEZ. This would 

allow companies to qualify for a range of 

DTI incentives. The most exciting being a 

15% company tax rate. 

A combined R1.8 billion is expected to 

be invested in the SEZ by 2022, with the 

creation of 1200 direct jobs. A total of 24 

000 full time equivalent jobs are expected 

to be created in the SEZ’s 20 lifespan. 

Minister Winde said “we are delighted 

that the SEZ has received official 

designation and thank Minister Davies 

and the DTI for recognising the potential 

of this project, the City for the important 

role they have played and GreenCape and 

Wesgro for identifying and facilitating 

investment. An SEZ is a powerful tool 

which helps to encourage both local 

and international investors to invest, 

which contributes towards growing the 

economy and creating more jobs.” 

“South Africa is one of the world’s 

fastest growing green economies and 

the Western Cape already 

leads the way in green 

technology in 

South 

Africa. This designation will help us to 

position ourselves as the premier green 

technology site in Africa.” 

“Minister Davies has given the 

go-ahead for the SEZ on the condition 

that the Atlantis community is given 

priority in terms of job creation, and 

opportunities for SMMEs. This will 

allow the people of Atlantis to become 

involved in economic opportunities 

right on their doorsteps, and play an 

integral part in growing their economy,” 

Minister Winde said. 

The City of Cape Town Executive 

Mayor, Patricia de Lille said: “The 

City of Cape Town warmly welcomes 

this national designation of the SEZ 

as we see it as completing the hugely 

attractive offering of Atlantis and 

Cape Town as a globally competitive 

investment destination. The City has 

laid the groundwork for a Cleantech 

SEZ in Atlantis by already in 2013 

putting in place a localised incentive 

scheme and designating a certain 

portion of the industrial area as a 

greentech hub. This has seen the area 

being rejuvenated with investment and 

job creation in recent years.” 

“The national incentives that now 

come with an SEZ designation will 

provide a major boost to our efforts 

at regenerating what was once a 

declining industrial part of Cape 

Town and create even more much 

needed jobs for the residents of 

Atlantis and surrounding areas. I 

am also enormously encouraged by 

how all three spheres of government 

collaborated to make this SEZ a reality. 

It shows that progress is possible 

when we work together,” Mayor de 

Lille said. 

CEO of Green Cape, Mike Mulcahy said 

“The team is extremely excited to move 

from the planning and application phase 

into the operational phase. There is a lot 

of work ahead in setting up the structures 

and governance for the SEZ in Atlantis, 

and we look forward to working with all 

three spheres of Government to deliver a 

successful GreenTech focused SEZ." 


FDI 

Deepening 

collaboration 

Brand South Africa hosts talks with EU Investors 

Brand South Africa has 

concluded a meaningful 

consultation session with the 

European Union investor community 

based in South Africa, which will see 

the country’s marketing and reputation 

management agency deepen its 

collaboration and partnership with the 

EU investment community. 

Dr Petrus de Kock, General Manager 

for Research at Brand South Africa 

said: “The consultation session was 

focused on gathering deeper insights 

into the experience of business from 

the EU based in South Africa. We 

will now refine our strategy to promote 

South Africa as an investment 

destination of choice whilst also 

communicating our findings with the 

various government departments that 

work and interact with the EU community 

in South Africa.” 

Brand South Africa shared the findings 

from its International Investor 

Perceptions Research with EU business 

stakeholders that was released at the 

end of last year. 

The research showed that the perception 

and reputation of South Africa fell 

amongst EU nations in recent years. 

However, large numbers of diverse 

investors from the European Union are 

active in the South African market. 

EU nations represent an important 

trading partner and source of foreign 

direct investment for South Africa. The 

EU has historically been South Africa's 

main trading partner and the biggest 

source of foreign direct investment 

(FDI). 

Firms from EU Member States represent 

over 75% of the nation’s total FDI 

stock. 

Linda Sangaret, Chief Marketing 

Officer at Brand South Africa said: “We 

listened to their concerns and challenges 

and affirmed that the EU remains 

an important trading partner to South 

Africa. 

What was encouraging and positive 

was that they expressed their desire for 

further collaboration and deepening of 

partnerships to promote South Africa in 

their country markets.” 

Donnee Kruger, member of the 

Board of Trustees of the EU Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry in South Africa 

said: “The EU investor community in 

South Africa represents 2,000 companies 

with over 850,000 employees 

currently. Profits of these companies 

increased 5% year-on-year within the last 

year, so it shows that these companies 

are an active and important part of the 

South African business landscape.” 

Kruger also presented at the consultation 

a Business Climate Survey which 

included findings from research conducted 

by the EU Chamber of Commerce 

& Industry in South Africa. 

The report indicated that 68% of 

European investors stated that they use 

South Africa as a base for their operations 

and trade relations in Africa. 

In the context of shifting and uncertain 

geopolitical and global economic 

dynamics, Brand South Africa is 

hosting consultation sessions with its 

global trade partners in South Africa 

to strengthen ties that promote South 

Africa’s investor attractiveness and 

enhance its position as an investment 

destination of choice on the African 

continent. Inputs gathered from stakeholders 

will be utilised in planning for 

the Investment Summit announced 

by President Ramaphosa during the 

State Of The Nation Address 2018. 

Brand South Africa looks forward to 

gathering input from current investors 

to assess the competitive/comparative 

advantages the market offers to multinationals, 

as well as to gather insight into 

perceived and real challenges to doing 

business in South Africa. 


We are Africa 

Changing the state of our economy 

PROFILE 

Purple Diamond Business Clinic, established in 2015, 

and situated in the heart of Sandton Johannesburg, has 

its business model built on meeting the developmental 

needs of small and medium enterprises in South Africa. This 

we do through our qualified business analysts engaging the 

business owners on the current state of the businesses, and 

making recommendations on a suitable way forward to get the 

business to the next level. This may be anything from business 

registration, to the acquisition of funding to finance identified 

opportunities… and everything in between. 

We endeavour to increase South Africa’s market share within 

the African context, in the industries that run our economy, 

mainly construction, manufacturing, and agro-processing. 

Thus we persistently look for individuals and small businesses 

in these fields, and offer our services to them. 

As Purple Diamond is 100% black women owned, it is 

not blind to the challenges of SMMEs, especially regarding 

the acquisition of both private and Government assistance. 

It therefore endeavours to establish a relationship with its 

clients, intended to successfully walk the client through the 

different stages of business. This we have done through the 

formation of a client database, which constantly gives the 

clients a feel of the economic climate, with regards to new 

opportunities in their specific fields of enterprise. 

The Business Clinic also acknowledges that the signing off 

of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, has now 

opened up more opportunities for SMMEs, and therefore 

endeavours to establish a relationship between these enterprises 

with foreign businesses, through the promulgation of 

both services, and products, that our local businesses have to 

offer, to the broader African community. This will definitely 

increase cross border business rapport between our nations. 

We strive to get these enterprises to develop the necessary 

capacity to participate competently in international 

economic spaces. 

We are Africa, and we have the ability, the agility, and 

the accountability required to change the state of our 

economies. 


RAIL 

Exciting 

times for 

Transnet 

Linking African economies 

State-owned transport group Transnet officially launched 

its international subsidiary Transnet International 

Holdings on May 30. 

Constituted as a separate legal entity, with its own Board of 

Directors, TIH is intended to leverage Transnet’s core skills in 

the operation of ports, railways and pipelines, as well as promoting 

intra-African trade and increasing connectivity. It will 

be responsible for Transnet operations and projects outside 

South Africa, both on the African continent and further afield. 

TIH has been established as part of Transnet’s international 

strategy, which was developed in line with the Department of 

Public Enterprises’ Africa Strategy principles and approved by 

the Transnet Board of Directors in May 2015. 

"These are exciting times for Transnet," said CEO Siyabonga 

Gama at the launch of the new subsidiary. "I am confident we 

will succeed in linking African economies, connecting people 

and growing our continent." 

Transnet is expected to sign a formal agreement within 

the next three months to support the rehabilitation of Ghana 

Railways under a strategic partnership between the two 

countries; a delegation from Ghana including Minister for 

Railway Development Joe Ghartey and GRC acting Managing 

Director John Essel visited South Africa for discussions on 

May 28. 

As an interim step, ahead of the signing of the permanent 

agreement, Transnet has agreed to lease six locomotives 

and 110 wagons to GRC ‘on favourable terms.’ It will also 

provide 24 passenger coaches for use on the Takoradi– 

Tarkwa and Accra–Nsawam lines. 

A technical team from Transnet is due to visit Ghana in June 

to assess the condition of the track on the Western Line. The 

company is to act as technical advisor for the rehabilitation 

of the Accra–Nsawam and Accra–Tema suburban routes, and 

will study the feasibility of extending services to Koforidua. It 

will also providing technical assistance for the revitalisation 

of freight services on the Western Line from Tarkwa to Awaso 

and Dunkwa to Kumasi. 

Up to 20 GRC staff are to undergo safety training at the 

Transnet School of Rail, with six senior officials to undertake 

post-graduate courses in railway engineering. 

Embracing the future 

The Fourth Industrial Revolution... 

is the defining zeitgeist of our nascent 

century. It promises a fusion 

of technologies poised to disrupt 

almost all industries and transform 

systems of production, management 

and governance. 

What does this mean for Transnet 

going forward? Although we've placed 

great value on our infrastructure 

expansion and logistics activities, we 

now need to acknowledge the exciting 

prospects sprawled before us in the 

fast-emerging digital opportunities of 

the Fourth Industrial Revolution. 

As Transnet, we require resilience, 

agility and rapid adaptation to transition 

successfully over the coming decades. 

On a continent still widely beset by 

social inequalities, food insecurity and 

persistent job losses, a transition to a 

futuristic digital world seems remote. 

This, however, will be exactly the 

fertile soil from which emerging technologies, 

entrepreneurial ideas and 

digital innovations will grow and thrive, 

leapfrogging the growing pains experienced 

by developed economies. 

Transnet has a critical role to play in 

furthering South Africa's strategic and 

economic objectives and is actively 

refreshing its brand as it moves into 

new markets, expands and diversifies 

its service offering, and redefines its 

market position. 

As such, we are experimenting 

with blockchain technology in our 

transacting, utilising drones in our rail 

business, exploiting 3D printing in our 

R&D and developing smart applications 

to manage access in our ports. 

Siyabonga Gama, CEO, Transnet 

(Source: www.iol.co.za) 


Intermodal Africa 

Transgroup Logistics is your partner of choice 

Transgroup Logistics is a Level 1 Black Economic 

Empowerment company ready to enhance its partners’ 

logistics, supply chain and warehousing functions, with 

offices strategically situated in Durban (Head Office), Gauteng 

(City Deep) and Northern Natal (Midlands). The company is also 

in the process of opening up a PE office to concentrate on the 

flow of traffic between PE to East London, PE to Gauteng and 

PE to Cape Town. 

Transgroup Logistics has the infrastructure, control measures 

and facilities to ensure that the ever-increasing demands of 

logistics and supply chain are met. 

Transgroup Logistics is committed to: 

• Delivering efficient and reliable service to all clients at 

competitive prices 

• Upholding the law and the spirit of the constitution in all 

activities 

• Maintaining the highest standards in order to build up 

lasting business relationships 

• Upholding the principles of fairness and good faith 

• Recognising and rewarding those whose exceptional efforts 

and attitude contribute to the company’s success. 

Road 

Transgroup Logistics offers a complete array of over-the-road 

trucking solutions ranging from Full Truck Load(FCL) or Less 

than Truck Load (LTL) to regional, asset-based solutions and bulk 

commodities. We manage multiple carriers and provide a single 

point of contact for routing, invoicing and shipment visibility. 

From same-day to deferred services, we have the carriers and 

relationships to meet any transit requirement. We have a fleet of 

80 vehicles running weekly between Durban and Johannesburg. 

We have our own Longhaul and local vehicles as well. 

Rail 

Transgroup Logistics has years of intermodal expertise and 

fully understands what rail customers need to ensure that 

goods are railed and delivered on time, every time. We have 

been dealing with Transnet Freight Rail for over two decades. 

All movements are executed meticulously and communicated 

to customers on a daily basis. Inland transportation via 

intermodal road and rail movement of goods and materials 

provides efficiencies and effectiveness. This plays a vital role 

in meeting delivery schedules and reducing bottom lines, 

while reducing carbon footprint to meet corporate and social 

responsibilities. Let us leverage our position as one of the most 

economical users of intermodal services to ensure you get the 

most efficient and effective services available. 

Warehousing and distribution 

Our bonded warehousing facilities allow us to accommodate 

un-cleared cargo and do customs inspections on-site with the 

added benefit of storage and pre-negotiated free periods. Our 

Logistics and Warehouse staff ensures non-contamination, 

peace of mind and tailor made solutions for client’s consignments 

at competitive rates. 

Services include handling of all commodity types (packed 

in bags or bulk bags, palletized, baled, loose packages, drums, 

pipes, tyres, etc.), handling of group-age consignments, 

packing of bulk minerals, customs unpacks and repacks, specialised 

product handling including abnormal and hazardous 

cargo, cross-dock operations, and sampling and bagging. 

Freight into Africa 

Our African footprint allows us to offer a wide range of international 

and local services. The Transgroup Logistics African 

Control Tower (ACT) was established to centralize and control 

shipments into Africa. The team has a deep knowledge base 

and provides the network and our customers with accurate and 

professional advice and service solutions. Since handling the 

movement of the United Nations Military base from Lusaka to 

Durban in February 2017, our project teams have moved quite 

a few large pieces of cargo through Africa and we specialised 

in these type of abnormal movements with a personal touch at 

all times. Our cross border movements also entails LCL cargo, 

break bulk and containers. We have dedicated our own LCL 

vehicle to run daily cargo from Johannesburg to Botswana and 

back, working at a 98.2% KPI scoring at present. 

Cross-border services include: 

• International Freight Forwarding Services for all Cross 

Trades (air/sea/road) 

• Door to Door Services (EXW – DDP) INCO terms 

• Warehouse Services—Packing / Unpacking Material Control 

• Consolidation & Deconsolidation services 

• Emergencies—Sameday air / road solutions (area specific) 

(Dedicated road, AOG, UDO) 

• Procurement 

• Route optimization / surveys 

• Risk Management 

• Transport Insurance 

• Tracking & Tracing 

• Reporting 

PROFILE 


SUPPLY CHAIN 

Optimising the supply chain 


SUPPLY CHAIN 

Sustainability comes from delivering value for 

all, write Rodney Francis and Helen Lane 

Last-mile solutions (LMS), a 

key aspect of modern supplychain 

management is gaining 

in relevance, while also changing and 

expanding its meaning, as the FMCG 

industry continues to evolve, placing 

ever-greater importance on sustainability, 

digital solutions and delivering real 

value. 

The traditional understanding that LMS 

is merely the journey from a retailer’s 

distribution centre (DC) to the store is 

too simplistic of an explanation of LMS. 

LMS combines merchandising, promotions 

tracking, platform design and a 

holistic supply-chain approach. 

LMS must serve the interests of all 

stakeholders—manufacturers, retailers, 

wholesalers, consumers and the 

environment to be most effective and 

sustainable. The challenge of reaching 

consumers is constantly evolving and 

accommodates changing consumer 

preferences, living patterns, technology, 

retail strategies and a growing social 

and environmental consciousness. 

As such, LMS is intimately affected by 

the trends in the supply-chain management 

industry, while also helping shape 

these trends. It is the LMS area where 

most of the current challenges and costs 

affecting the supply chain are felt. This 

is especially apparent when looking at 

on shelf availability, store replenishment, 

promotional management and 

product display. 

In tandem with this has come a trend 

towards smaller pack sizes, echoed by 

my colleague Helen Lane, Vice President 

for CHEP Northern Europe, who reports 

a move back towards High Street convenience 

stores away from big-box 

stores, as household sizes shrink, and 

people shop little and more often. 

Besides this, shoppers in the UK and 

worldwide are beginning to take an 

omnichannel approach. The days of the 

big monthly shop may be numbered, 

as consumers embrace a wider suite of 

shopping options, buying from convenience 

stores, wholesalers, as well as local 

and international online stores. 

Online shopping itself has various 

manifestations, with different implications 

for the supply chain. An online 

purchase can be fulfilled by staff that 

pick in-store at a regular supermarket, 

or at a retailer’s purpose-built “dark 

distribution centres” for fulfilling 

e-commerce purchases only. Then, 

there are “pure-play” online stores 

like Ocado in the UK, which only offer 

online shopping. 

Supply chains for all of these online 

solutions must be optimised to ensure 

on-shelf availability and in-time shelf 

replenishment. While online shopping 

is yet to fully develop in South Africa as 

it has in the UK, it is an indication of 

things to come. 

But innovation is no less creative in 

SA. There are exciting developments in 

pallet and other distribution platform 

designs that can allow attractive, practical 

new-generation smart platforms to 

move from the distribution centre direct 

to store and be installed in the aisle 

ready for display—saving on packing 

costs and efficiency. 

With new-generation platforms and 

pallets, embedded promotions-tracking 

technology works hand in hand with 

LMS solutions, monitoring various metrics 

that ensure the product is in the 

right place at the right time, in the right 

condition and optimising value. 

Technology being trialled in Europe by 

CHEP allows for the following: 

Proximity Marketing - When a 

shopper enters a store of which they 

have the app downloaded and they 

come within Bluetooth range, the platform 

will be able to send relevant push 

notifications to shoppers about available 

promotions at the right time. 

Tracking—It provides real time product 

visibility, showing the tracker whether 

the product is in store or at the DC. 

Product Quality—It tracks the condition 

of the product, by monitoring 

humidity, temperature etc. 

A holistic understanding of value will 

also mean ensuring the sustainability 

of all supply chain solutions. Here the 

“share and re-use” principles of the 

circular-economy approach are particularly 

relevant. 

In the circular economy, platforms 

can be shared by fractional customers, 

and reused by others, making customer 

supply chains more efficient in terms of 

cost and use of natural resources. Where 

platforms need not be sold to customers, 

but can be rented as required, waste is 

minimised and efficiency grows. 

Transport collaboration ensures trucks 

or pallets are optimally utilised, “closing 

the loop” to reduce empty kilometres. 

Each of these tactics requires a holistic 

approach to supply-chain management. 

Even last mile solutions cannot be 

limited to the last mile. They require a 

broader approach, that needs to be integrated 

from the middle mile all the way 

through to the last mile, and involving 

manufacturers and retailers, as well as 

their logistics service providers. 

Such an understanding of supply 

chain logistics can mean efficiency wins 

for all role players and the environment, 

as we gain a better understanding of 

consumer preferences and use innovation 

to deliver these as effectively as 

possible to the benefit of all of us – and 

for generations to come. 

Rodney Francis is Head of Strategic 

Marketing: CHEP Africa, India and 

the Middle East & Helen Lane is Vice 

President of CHEP Northern Europe 


INDUSTRY 4.0 

Innovation and 

support 

Industry 4.0 

impact on 

organisations, 

leadership and 

management 


INDUSTRY 4.0 

In the Fourth Industrial Revolution 

economy, an organisation’s 

competitiveness no longer depends 

solely on optimisation of its own resources, 

but total inter-organisational value chain 

innovativeness and supportive partner 

knowledge, technologies, products, 

services and systems. Industry 4.0 is 

characterised by increasing digitisation 

and interconnection of value chains, 

products and business models. With 

the aid of partners, organisations 

are co-creating innovative interorganisational 

value and supply chains 

that operate in a local, regional and 

international collaborative business 

ecosystem. Competitiveness is gained 

by collaboratively performing strategic 

activities more effectively and efficiently. 

To achieve success organisations are 

compelled to transform and change by 

abolishing bureaucratic practices and 

structures while adopting knowledgebased 

learning paradigms and designs. 

This demands exceptional governance, 

supported by transformational 

leadership excellence and knowledge 

of systemic programme management. 

Effective and efficient cross-functional 

and inter-organisational management of 

projects and programmes in virtual networks 

of partners emerged as a critical 

enabling competency for entities operating 

in the Industry 4.0 economy. This 

is centred on people, collaboration and 

building relationships in order to create 

successful virtual networks of partners. 

The complexity of modern technologies, 

i.e., robotics, artificial intelligence, mass 

data, internet of things, integrating 

information technology and operations 

technology, etc., calls for specialisation 

and sustainable collaboration among 

partner organisations and demands 

exceptional talents and well-educated 

human resources. 

Consequently, organisational design, 

development and governance have 

entered a challenging new phase. In 

view of these emerging realities strategic 

transformation and change of 

Industry 4.0 organisations become inevitable 

and demand the introduction of 

virtual horisontally shaped supply and 

value chain business models. Virtual 

value chains shape organisations into 

strategic, collaborative, value-driven 

entities where non-core activities are 

performed by carefully selected partners. 

The organisational value system 

guiding the preferred leadership 

behaviour is a crucial element. When 

choosing partners it is of paramount 

importance to select those that have the 

same or similar value systems as your 

own organisation to ensure synergy in 

culture and transformational leadership 

acumen. 

In the emerging Industry 4.0 economy 

organisations experiencing a dearth of 

transformational leadership will have 

difficulty in maintaining and improving 

their levels of operational productivity 

and strategic benefit realisation. 

Transformational leaders create a shift 

away from old motivations of bureaucratic 

powers, towards inspiring people 

to believe in a vision of economic and 

social progress. They balance their 

attention between actions that create 

progress, and the motivation of virtual 

team members. Moreover, they possess 

unique qualities suited to the Industry 

4.0 economic dispensation, and act as 

mentors and coaches while providing 

direction to virtual networks of partner 

teams. This creates trust and support, 

keeping members motivated despite 

the complexity and high risk associated 

with Industry 4.0. 

Design has always been a core 

responsibility of organisations. Leaders 

and managers have a duty to ensure 

that design for customer needs delivers 

a competitive advantage. In the Industry 

4.0 economy an effective and efficient 

design capability has emerged as an 

important competitive key success 

factor due to the advent of modern process 

technologies and virtual partner 

networks. Product, service and process 

design and development have become 

complex and highly important competative 

factors. When creation of the 

product or service is completed and a 

commercialisation strategy for its production 

and marketing been established, 

attention is turned to designing and 

developing the operational process 

for order fulfilment. Product, service 

and process design and development 

are best achieved by utilising a supply 

chain-based cross-functional project and 

programme management approach. 

Partnering has become profoundly 

important in the Industry 4.0 economy. 

Partner organisations come from small-, 

medium- and large-sized organisations. 

Great opportunities are emerging for the 

creation of new small and medium-sized 

entrepreneurial enterprises. This boosts 

much needed job creation opportunities 

and grow the economy in the right direction. 

Importantly, it dispels the notion 

that modern technology will lead to job 

losses (after all the steam engine led to 

massive job creation in the Industry 1.0 

economy). Consequently, entrepreneurship 

has a pivotal and highly important 

role in the emerging Fourth Industrial 

Revolution. Entrepreneurs use creative 

faculties to generate new products or 

services and exploit a new generation 

of opportunities in the developing collaborative 

market. 

In summary it is profoundly clear 

that modern technologies and its 

effect on product, service and process 

design have a significant influence on 

how the Industry 4.0 organisation is 

shaped, lead, managed and governed. 

Organisations are compelled to abandon 

bureaucracy in favour of knowledgebased 

learning paradigms. Human talent 

must be better educated and skilled to 

cope with the new situation. Processes 

are structured cross-functionally and 

programme-managed. Cross-functional 

processes incorporate collaborative 

virtual networks of partners to improve 

organisational effectiveness and efficiency, 

leading to much improved 

competitiveness. Moreover, partnering 

boosts small and medium sized enterprise 

creation and concomitant job 

creation. The resulting transformation 

and change hold profound benefits for 

society. 

Professor Pieter Steyn 

Cranefield College 


HUMAN CAPITAL 

Thriving amidst 

disruption 

It's time to put African people at the heart of change 

Today, African businesses are being shaped by the 

disruptive forces that are impacting collective 

global markets. Just one example is speed of the 

current advancements in technology – such as AI, robotics, 

autonomous transport, IoT, 3D printing and big data analytics 

among others. 

Against this backdrop of disruption, organisations need 

to distinguish themselves from others in order to stand 

out. This is also shaping the next decade of work and if 

your organisation is not developing people strategies that 

account for these forces, prepare to be blindsided. Despite 

this clear recognition, the 2017 WEF Human Capital Report 

highlighted the failure by business to adequately develop 

people’s talents. The report found that only 62% of the 

world’s human capital is fully developed. In Africa, Kenya 

with a ranking of 78, outperformed South Africa and Nigeria 

with rankings of 87 and 114 respectively. 

Thriving organisations seek to enrich the lives of their 

employees—meeting their health, wealth, and career growth 

needs. They ensure that managers provide the personal support 

required to help individuals reach their potential and, 

as much as possible, are able to contribute to the innovation 


HUMAN CAPITAL 

agenda. As a result, people feel connected, 

challenged, and empowered. 

Our research clearly points to the 

need for employees to connect with 

the true purpose of the organisation, 

beyond profit. If organisations are 

able to ensure that senior leaders and 

employees understand the deeper 

purpose of why the organisation exists 

and then align their intent and efforts 

to that, more people will be able to 

bring their real and authentic selves to 

work. Furthermore, to place people at 

the centre of what and how you deliver 

work is key, not because HR says so, 

but because it makes business sense, 

more organisations will find that they 

not only thrive from a people perspective, 

but also achieve higher results. 

Failure to thrive 

Thriving organisations i.e. those that 

transform their work environment into 

a compelling experience, will be most 

successful in building the workforce 

of the future. According to Mercer’s 

latest research, “Thriving in an Age of 

Disruption,” which surveyed over 800 

participants in 57 countries across 26 

industries, only 52% of respondents said 

their organisations were committed 

to creating an environment where 

employees are able to THRIVE. 

Why do so many organisations find it 

difficult to achieve the transformational 

work environment that will support 

their continued success? From our 

work with companies around the world, 

Mercer have observed three contributing 

factors. 

First, organisations fail to adapt 

effectively to changes in their external 

environment. Rather than developing 

creative ways to tackle new problems, 

they often find themselves maintaining 

the status quo. As a result, they gradually 

drift into a state of survival—fighting 

just to get by. 

Second, organisations fail to develop 

an internal environment that stimulates 

the growth and innovation they need to 

stay ahead. They view their relationship 

with employees as a transactional quid 

pro quo and therefore struggle to find 

people who feel truly invested in their 

work and the organisation’s future. 

And third, some organisations have 

uninformed decision-making processes. 

Thriving organisations are curious 

about their people and laser focused 

on taking data-driven action, not just 

importing best practices from others. 

This approach enables them to pinpoint 

the unique menu of actions that will 

help their people thrive. 

The impact of these failures is tangible. 

With the lifespan of the average 

S&P 500 company now under 20 years, 

it is clear that failure to thrive has a real 

impact on people, businesses, and the 

economy. 

What does it mean to thrive? 

To find out what it feels like to Thrive 

at work, we asked over 800 HR and 

business leaders from around the world 

a series of open-ended questions about 

their organisational culture and people 

practices. We then identified a number 

of key themes in those companies 

that are committed to developing a 

thriving workforce. 

Growth and learning came out 

most prominently, matching previous 

research, which suggested that thriving 

is a combination of vitality and learning. 

In addition, our data showed that 

organisations have been focused on 

strengthening the sense of equity and 

efficiency in talent processes to help 

people thrive. 

By overlaying these findings with 

Mercer’s Global Talent Trends Study 

results, we found that two dimensions 

were predictive of job satisfaction and 

commitment: how energized employees 

feel day-to-day and whether they can 

bring their authentic selves to work. 

When both factors occurred, employees 

were nearly three times more likely to 

report job satisfaction and a desire to 

stay with the organisation. 

These results suggest a clear call to 

action. 

A new mandate 

Thriving organisations do not happen by 

chance—they are deliberately designed 

and intentionally built. In the same way 

that leading organisations obsess about 

their customers, thriving organisations 

obsess about their people—finding ways 

to help them have transformational 

experiences at work. 

Our research has pinpointed the strategic 

focus of thriving organisations, the 

characteristics of thriving workforces, 

and how thriving individuals experience 

their workplace. 

Four critical priorities 

Thriving is about focusing on the needs 

and desires of individuals and understanding 

what drives their personal 

investment. To get there, organisations 

need a purposeful strategy and committed 

leaders. 

How do you ensure that your organisation 

is on the Thrive journey? 

Mercer recommends focusing on four 

critical priorities: 

1. Craft a future-focused people 

strategy: Organizations need to 

approach their people strategy with 

as much dedication as they approach 

their innovation and digital strategies. 

Thriving organizations treat 

their workforce as an asset in which 

to invest—not simply a business cost. 

2. Curate a compelling employee value 

proposition: People want jobs that 

work for them. They want tools to 

manage work and life in a way that is 

personalized, flexible and unique to 

their own interests and aspirations. 

3. Create a thriving work environment: 

Individuals thrive when work is challenging 

and purposeful, when they 

feel empowered to make decisions 

and when they are connected to colleagues 

and experts. 

4. Cultivate a lab mindset: To stay 

ahead in changing times, cultivate a 

mindset that encourages experimentation, 

design thinking, innovation, 

balanced risk taking and a climate of 

continuous learning 

Most people spend at least half of their 

waking hours at work; for many, organisations 

are where the majority of life is 

lived. When employees thrive, organisations 

grow. When organisations thrive, 

they benefit stakeholders, shareholders, 

and the community at large. 

Deon de Swardt, Principal Consultant, 

Mercer LinkedIn 


DEVELOPMENT 

NDB President Mr. K.V.Kamath, senior representatives of BRICS countries and the Mayor of Shanghai at the Opening Ceremony of the 

NDB 3rd Annual Meeting in Shanghai, China, May 28, 2018 

Projects in 

the pipeline 

New Development Bank unveils key updates 

on technology-backed development 

The New Development Bank (NDB) 

held its Third Annual Meeting 

in Shanghai on May 28-29, 

welcoming high-level delegates including 

government ministers, senior figures from 

multilateral development institutions and 

business leaders from the BRICS member 

nations. The event included seminars 

and high-level meetings focused on the 

definitive measures the NDB is taking 

to drive sustainable development in 

emerging markets based on innovation 

and disruptive technology. The NDB 

also announced key updates from 

management and shared insights on 

how new-age innovation will impact the 

work of the NDB in close collaboration 

with other multilateral development 

institutions. 

The two-day event held in Shanghai’s 

Lujiazui financial district included 

the participation of Mr. Marcello de 

Moura Estevão Filho, Secretary for 

International Affairs, Ministry of 

Finance, Brazil; Mr. Sergei Storchak, 

Deputy Minister of Finance, Russia; 

Mr. Subhash Chandra Garg, Secretary 

(Economic Affairs), Ministry of Finance, 

India; Mr. Kun Liu, Minister of Finance, 

China; and Mr. Nhlanhla Nene, Minister 

of Finance, South Africa. Hundreds of 

representatives of civil society organizations, 

media, academia, government 

and business from the BRICS nations 

also attended. 

During the meetings of the Board 

of Governors (BoG) and the Board of 

Directors (BoD), their members reviewed 

the progress of the Bank and elaborated 

on plans to support the expansion of the 

NDB’s business scope in line with the 

Bank’s mandate. 

Listen, learn, innovate 

Mr. Nhlanhla Nene was elected as the 

Chairman of the BoG, and will serve 

in this position until the end of the 

next BoG Annual Meeting. It was also 

decided that the next Annual Meeting 

of the Bank’s BoG will be held in South 

Africa in 2019. 

During the Meeting, the BoG approved 

the Audited Financial Statements for the 

year ended December 31, 2017 and also 

approved the Condensed Unaudited 

Financial Statements for the NDB 

Project Preparation Fund for the year 

ended December 31, 2017. 

During the 14th BoD Meeting, the 

Board discussed the Bank’s work, 

including project pipelines in the 

member countries of the NDB. 

The BoD approved six projects from 

all five member countries of the NDB 

with loans aggregating USD 1.6 billion. 

It was highlighted that in 2018 the 

Bank has significantly strengthened its 

project portfolio, and the total amount of 

approvals in 2018 has reached USD 1.7 

billion. As of now, the total amount of the 

Bank’s portfolio has reached over USD 

5.1 billion. 

“The biggest economic opportunity 

today is that we can invest in a new 


DEVELOPMENT 

generation of smart, sustainable technologies 

to meet our infrastructure 

requirements. We will leverage these 

transformations and promote knowledge 

flows to support appropriate and effective 

solutions in our member countries,” 

Mr. K.V. Kamath, President of NDB, said 

at the Opening Ceremony of the Third 

Annual Meeting. “By doing so, we will 

contribute to sustainable development 

and poverty alleviation. As we do so, 

we at the NDB will continue to listen, to 

learn, and to innovate.” 

In the opening seminar titled 

“Development Financing in a Changing 

Global Environment”, participants 

addressed the ongoing technological 

advances that will affect our future and 

the operating environment for development 

institutions. The finance ministers 

of the BRICS nations gave their high-level 

insights, reflecting on how multilateral 

development institutions could adapt 

to the emerging economic realities 

including technological advances such 

as artificial intelligence and block chain 

and also the operating environment for 

development institutions. 

The second seminar titled 

“Innovative Approaches for Mobilising 

Finance for Sustainable Infrastructure 

Development” considered the role of 

development institutions in supporting 

innovation and sustainable infrastructure 

development during the fourth 

industrial revolution. The panelists 

shared their views on lending models, 

including local currency financing and 

NDB President Mr. K.V.Kamath 

other alternative models for raising 

funds, and how to attract private sector 

and other institutional lenders. 

In the third seminar titled “The 

Social Aspects of the Fourth Industrial 

Revolution and Digital Economy”, 

prominent representatives of academia, 

civil society organisations and 

social leaders from the BRICS nations 

addressed the impact of new technological 

trends. It was noted that while 

tremendous economic opportunities 

will be created, some countries and 

social groups will require the special 

attention and support of multilateral 

development institutions to avoid being 

left behind in a fast-changing global 

economic landscape. 

Background Information 

The New Development Bank is a multilateral 

development bank established by 

Brazil, Russia, India, China and South 

Africa in 2014. The Bank is mandated 

to mobilize resources for infrastructure 

and sustainable development projects 

in BRICS and other emerging economies 

and developing countries, complementing 

the efforts of multilateral and 

regional financial institutions for global 

growth and development. 

For more information about the Bank, 

please visit the official website of the 

NDB athttp://www.ndb.int or email NDB 

Corporate Communications at media@ 

ndb.int. 

Participants of Seminar 1 


INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 

Unlimited 

What China’s President Xi’s 

extended tenure means for Africa 

China’s decision to suspend 

presidential term limits is 

still reverberating around the 

world. The announcement, made after 

a vote by China’s parliament in March, 

prompted some commentators to draw 

comparisons with “third termism” in 

Africa, when leaders flout democratic 

conventions to stay in power as long as 

possible. 

These concerns certainly resonate on 

a continent where leaders like Joseph 

Kabila of the Democratic Republic of 

Congo, or Yoweri Museveni of Uganda 

are clinging to power. But there is also 

a wider question that must be asked: 

what does an extended tenure for 

Chinese incumbent Xi Jinping mean for 

Africa beyond the constitutional issue 

of term limits? 

For the foreseeable future, Africa’s 

engagement with China will be shaped 

by Xi’s vision. This makes it important 

to unpack exactly what that vision is. 

That’s why the South African Institute 

of International Affairs—where I work 

and conduct research on China and 

Africa—has just published a policy paper 

identifying five key trends for Africa. 

We did this by drawing on Xi’s own writings 

and public comments. The trends will 

open certain opportunities for Africa in its 

relationship with China, and close down 

others. It is important for the continent 

to take note of these trends because Xi’s 

extended tenure will arguably deepen 

their impact over the next decade. 

1. Communist Party centrality 

Dealing with China means dealing with 

the Communist Party of China (CPC). 

Xi rose to power by strengthening his 

control of the party and its control of 

the country. Throughout his writings he 

has emphasised that the CPC is key to 

Chinese decision-making from the local 

to the international level. 

Part of the CPC’s strategy is to influence 

young Africans through education 

and training. To this end, thousands of 

African government officials, journalists 

and students receive training in China 

annually. In 2016, Beijing increased the 

number of scholarships for African junior 

politicians from 200 to 1000 per year. 

More African students now study 

in China than in the US and the UK 

combined. Xi routinely insists on 

the centrality of party doctrine in all 

university teaching. Since 2013 he 

has called for the exclusion of so-called 

western ideas from university curricula. 

Education and training shapes one’s 

worldview. As these African students 

return home, then, Communist Party 

doctrine will increasingly inform conversations 

on the continent. 

2. The Belt and Road Initiative 

President Xi’s long-term rule also 

ensures the future of the Belt and 

Road Initiative. It is his signature 

foreign policy and investment initiative; 

a massive infrastructure project 

linking China overland to Europe via 

rail through Central Asia, and through 

sea routes to the Mediterranean and 

Europe via East Africa. It is already 

funnelling large amounts of fundingto 

infrastructure projects in countries like 

Tanzania and Ethiopia. 

Now that Xi has tightened his grip on 

power this initiative—which has been 

enshrined in the CPC constitution—is 

here to stay. 

This opens significant opportunities 

for African development. However, 

infrastructure doesn’t come for free: 

African countries should take a hard 


INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 

look at how the initiative will affect 

the continent’s debt sustainability and 

local priorities. 

3. UN reform 

China has been a long-term supporter 

of reforming the United Nations 

Security Council (UNSC) to allow 

wider representation from the global 

south. Beijing has not forgotten that 

it gained its own UNSC seat partly 

through African countries’ votes. In his 

address at the 19th Party Congress, Xi 

voiced support for “the efforts of other 

developing countries to increase their 

representation”. 

In theory, this could initiate a discussion 

about Security Council reform. 

There is little further indication that 

China is actively campaigning for it, but 

it is an area to watch. 

4. Global military role 

President Xi has repeatedly called for 

China’s military hardware, and the 

Chinese army’s combat-readiness to be 

boosted. His extended term raises the 

possibility that the People’s Liberation 

Army will pursue a more prominent 

global role. 

Military budgets for 2018 have been 

raised by 8.1%, a three-year high. While 

China is still far behind the United 

States in total military spending, it is 

catching up. 

This expansion directly affects 

Africa. China’s first overseas military 

base recently became operational in 

Djibouti, despite complaints from the 

United States, whose Camp Lemonnier 

is mere kilometres away. Djibouti also 

hosts French, Japanese, Spanish, Italian, 

and German bases, and a Saudi base is 

under construction. 

China has become more involved in 

UN peacekeeping in Africa. Its troops 

serve in South Sudan, Mali and Liberia, 

as well as in anti-piracy initiatives off 

Somalia. While these missions have 

contributed to African security, they also 

help to strengthen China’s profile as a 

global leader and to give Chinese troops 

valuable real-world combat training. 

This raises questions for Africa about an 

increasing Chinese military presence on 

the continent. 

5. Internet governance 

Xi’s first term has seen a significant 

tightening of China’s own internet 

regulations. The US NGO Freedom House 

now lists China’s internet as the world’s 

most constrained. Xi has called for further 

controls and for enhanced “internet 

sovereignty”: this shuns global internet 

governance conventions in favour of 

control by national governments. 

There is little evidence that China 

is interested in exporting its internet 

governance to other countries. But 

some fear that repressive African governments 

will seize on the theme of 

internet sovereignty to crack down on 

internal dissent. 

Planning ahead 

China is Africa’s top trade partner and a 

key foreign investor. Africa needs more 

local experts fluent in Mandarin, who 

can provide insights into the inner workings 

of this rising superpower. 

Barring unexpected upheavals, Xi 

Jinping is set to govern for a long time. 

Africa had better plan accordingly. 

Cobus van Staden 

Senior Researcher: China Africa, South 

African Institute of International Affairs 

theconversation.com 


LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 

Under pressure 

to deliver 

The role of the 

municipality in 

securing economic 

development 

outcomes 

Government’s Broadbased 

Black Economic 

Empowerment (B-BBEE) 

regulations stipulate that a percentage 

of business turnover be spent on 

socio-economic development. Many of 

these programmes are designed and 

implemented without engaging with 

the relevant municipality. This is a 

mistake. Municipalities are involved 

across communities and their inputs 

can add tremendous value, helping to 

optimise outcomes. 

As an economic development specialist 

with many years’ experience working 

across a number of South African 

communities, Economic Development 

Solutions (EDS) has gained insight 

into effective engagement strategies 

that can be applied to drive productive 

interactions with municipalities. 

In an ideal world… 

In an ideal world, impact studies 

would identify how the establishment 

and operation of the business 

might impact the environment, 

municipal infrastructure and services 

(e.g., roads and water use), 

and the community. The business’ 

socio-economic development plan 

would then be designed with inputs 

from the municipality and other 

authorities — specifically with insight 

into the municipality’s Integrated 

Development Plan (IDP), which spells 

out the needs and ambitions of the 

community. Finally, a well-managed 

rollout of the programme would add 

value to the community, with careful 

monitoring providing evidence that 

the effort was successful. This is 

often not the reality. 

Barriers to interaction 

Many municipalities in South Africa 

are under-resourced and under enormous 

pressure to deliver. They don’t 

have sufficient staff and lack the 

fundamental skills, budgets and tools 

to deliver on their mandates, namely 

managing the infrastructure and 

services required by the community. 


LOCAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT 

For many of these municipalities, collaborating 

with large organisations to 

deliver on socio-economic development 

programmes is often a challenge. 

There are also a number of other 

barriers to interaction. Organisations 

remain wary of engaging too closely 

with municipalities. While they recognise 

that it is important for them 

to access the IDP to understand the 

municipality’s development priorities 

and invest in programmes that 

can augment and complement the 

municipality’s efforts, a lack of clear 

processes and governance within local 

government structures makes private 

companies cautious. Their own governance 

is at risk if they entrust these 

local government structure with investments 

or the management thereof. 

While a change of leadership has 

brought a new, tougher stance against 

corruption in the public service sectors, 

it will take some time to rebuild trust. 

It would nevertheless be a mistake 

not to seek out the inputs of municipalities. 

There is a way this can be done 

without placing an additional burden on 

the municipal authorities or subjecting 

the company to undue risk. 

Specialised tactics 

An independent economic development 

specialist is aware of these challenges 

and often has the insight, tools, relationships 

and capability to resolve many of 

these challenges. 

With a focussed mandate, an 

independent economic development 

specialist can drive collaboration and 

ensure proper monitoring, management 

and reporting. 

To ensure transparency, an independent 

specialist can be given a 

limited mandate by the business - i.e., 

only the authority to conduct business 

related to the economic development 

programme. This makes it difficult for 

public sector or other stakeholders to 

engage on topics that are out of scope. 

Far reaching benefits 

There are also other potentially farreaching 

benefits that are specific to 

using a specialist in this sector. With 

multi-dimensional insight into the 

dynamics at play, they are also able 

to delve deeper to help identify and 

address the psycho-social impact on 

the community. 

Although the responsibility of the 

municipality does not reach across 

education, social and health services, 

these challenges are inter-related. 

For example, job losses at a mine can 

plunge workers and their families into 

poverty, which could result in the need 

for feeding schemes and counselling 

to deal with stress. Armed with this 

knowledge, the municipality and independent 

specialist can play a central 

role in facilitating decision-making 

about the placement of investments— 

for example, potentially funnelling 

funds and the jobless to building new 

infrastructure or other projects initiated 

in the community. 

Being able to make these observations 

and decisions takes involvement 

on the ground and in boardrooms and 

municipal councils. For companies that 

are committed to making a real difference 

and making their investments 

count, it’s important to put the right 

team and guidance in place. Find the 

right partners with the right skills, 

capabilities and motivation to drive 

economic development success — it is 

good for business, for the community 

and for the country. 

Janine Espin, Managing Director at 

Economic Development Solutions 

The municipality’s IDP describes the 

development priorities of the community 

as identified at an annual ward 

committee meeting. For example, if 

the schools in the community need 

to be expanded, a clinic needs to be 

built or road infrastructure needs 

improvement, these requirements 

will be allocated (or not) to the 

budgets of the relevant departments— 

in these instances the Departments of 

Health, Education and or Roads will 

be tasked with delivery. 


REPUTATION MANAGEMENT 

The impact 

of image 

A good reputation is priceless 


REPUTATION MANAGEMENT 

In a time when reputation loss seems 

to be all around us and the value of 

a good reputation is more evident 

than ever, managing your company’s 

reputation strategically is vital whether 

you are a multinational or start up. 

But why is a reputation so important? 

Let’s take a step back; what exactly is 

a reputation? It is something that is built 

on consistency, you are either going to 

be consistently good or consistently bad 

at something and that behaviour will 

impact how you are perceived by others. 

So, why is a reputation important? 

As the founder, owner or leader of your 

company, your organisation’s reputation 

has an impact on the people you attract 

to work for you, this in turn impacts 

your outputs. The quality and perceived 

value of those outputs plays a role in 

determining whether people are willing 

to part with their hard-earned cash to 

buy your offering, and that ultimately 

impacts your bottom-line profit. 

Reputations are built on perceptions. 

These perceptions are not necessarily 

the truth, they are however someone’s 

idea of reality and it is that reality which 

shapes their worldview and what they 

communicate to others. 

What is reputation management and 

how can your business get it right? 

Reputation management is first and 

foremost about building relationships 

with a company’s key stakeholders, which 

includes communicating with employees, 

engaging with clients, reacting to investor 

concerns, collaborating with government 

and partnering with the media and everything 

in between. 

Personal experiences, perceptions 

and expectations intrinsic in relationship 

building is what complicates 

the reputation management process. 

It is important for organisations to 

realise that different stakeholders 

make different assessments and not 

all stakeholders share the same view 

of what your company’s reputation is. 

The values of these groups differ and 

change over time; what was important 

yesterday may not necessarily mean 

as much today and can even be of no 

significance to some stakeholders. 

In an increasingly turbulent economic 

environment and due to the changing 

perceptions of key stakeholders, decisions 

should be based on research. It 

also necessitates that the organisation 

is open to the opinions of their internal 

and external stakeholders. 

The only way to secure information 

about stakeholders’ perceptions and 

expectations is to request it through 

research and evaluation, which ranges 

from informal research in the form of 

regular conversations, to focus groups 

and questionnaires. 

What are the building blocks to 

consider for a solid foundation for our 

reputation? 

At Reputation Matters we believe 

there are five core building blocks that 

impact an organisation’s reputation. 

The first is corporate management. 

We need to understand how the business 

is run and managed. Do you have 

a clear vision of where the business is 

going? Can everyone in the business 

fluently articulate this vision? What are 

the values that drive decision making? 

Is the handbook on ‘how we do things 

around here’ easily accessible to ensure 

consistent delivery of your products and 

services? Are you leading by example? 

The second building block to consider 

is corporate capital. Do you have the 

right team on your side to achieve your 

strategic intent? Are you attracting the 

right calibre of individuals to help you 

achieve your business’ vision? Are you 

providing sufficient training, coaching 

and mentorship to your team members? 

The next building block is corporate 

performance. What is the perceived 

value of your business? Do customers 

understand the value offering, in other 

words, why would they use their hard 

earned cash for your product or service 

instead of your competitors’? How transparent 

and ethical are you about your 

financial matters? 

The fourth building block impacting 

your reputation is corporate positioning. 

Who are you conducting business with? 

Do your suppliers and partners share 

your values? Part of this building block 

is your corporate social investment, 

are you sustainably giving back to the 

community? 

The fifth block is the "glue" that ties 

all of these building blocks together, 

corporate dialogue. You need to consider 

both internal and external communication. 

Can your team succinctly describe 

the vision and values of your business, 

explain the unique selling proposition 

and elaborate on the corporate social 

investment initiatives your business 

are involved in? The internal dialogue 

between colleagues is what is being 

communicated externally. With your 

external communication you can ask 

yourself if you really understand all your 

stakeholder groups. Are you using the 

most appropriate channels of communication 

to get your message across? Or 

did you for example, create a Facebook 

page because it sounded good at the 

time, and you haven’t posted anything 

on there since October 2014? 

Balance of all these different elements 

is important in all spheres of the 

business, you can’t focus too much on 

one element, because then you will be 

neglecting another area of your business. 

The trick is to understand who 

your stakeholders are and what information 

is important to share with them 

using the most appropriate channel of 

communication. 

The value of research is immense, but 

the value of regular research is immeasurable. 

By regularly reassessing your 

organisation’s reputation, you will be 

able to evaluate what is and what is not 

working and whether your stakeholders’ 

expectations have changed. It will also 

help you to identify any looming gaps 

and potential crisis situations. This will 

give your business the insight that can 

be used to tailor communication initiatives 

and stay current and relevant, and 

continually seek ways to take your business’ 

reputation to the next level. 

Regine Le Roux, Founder, Reputation 

Matters 


WASTE 

A world 

without plastic 

Radical imagination and leadership is required 

Almost everything we own and 

buy contains plastics. Look 

around. If it’s not the chair you’re 

sitting on, or that part of a pen in your 

drawer, that bottle in your refrigerator, 

it may be this thing you’re holding—your 

smartphone, or a keyboard, or a tablet. 

They are everywhere. But before you 

blame plastic water bottles and candy 

wrappers solely for climate change 

or marine plastic pollution, think 

again. It turns out, as with many other 

relationships, sometimes it’s the small 

things that create the biggest impacts. 

And in this case, it’s the plastics that 

we don’t see, the microplastics, that 

are about to damage the world we are 

living in. 

We have to wake up, before it’s too late. 

It’s not just ‘small’ stuff… 

The United Nation’s Environmental 

Programme (UNEP) identified 

microplastics as one of the alarming 

issues that we should keep an eye on 

as plastic pollution remains the biggest 

threat to marine biodiversity today. But 

are we already many years too late? 

Based on current rates of plastic 

pollution, the World Economic Forum 

predicts that by 2050 there will be more 

plastic than fish in our oceans. 

Microplastics, whilst tiny, pack a 

big punch. They have been around for 

more than five decades as microbeads 

and microfibres ranging in size from 

0.5 to 5mm in length. And we have 

unknowingly let them into our homes 

and closets, as they have replaced the 

natural ingredients of our personal care 

products, and cosmetics such as toothpaste, 

facial and body scrubs, and have 

been manufactured into some of the 

clothes we love to wear. 

However, it’s not actually the products 

that directly harm us, but rather what 

happens to them after they go down the 

drain. These synthetic fabrics (polyesters, 

acrylics) that we love to wear have 

been found to release more than 700 

000 particles to the environment after 

just one cycle in the washing machine. 

In a study titled ‘Plastic Pollution in 

the World’s Oceans’, oceanographer Dr 

Marcus Eriksen and his team went on 

several expeditions to investigate which 

kinds of plastic were most polluting the 

oceans. To their surprise, significantly 

outnumbering bigger plastic items such 

as toothbrushes and the balls in deodorant 

roll-ons were confetti-sized and 

smaller shreds of plastics. 

Because here’s something that not all 

people know: plastics rarely degrade. 

Once these microplastics enter our 

water system, treatment facilities cannot 

break them down or filter them out, and 

they end up in the ocean, mistaken for 

food by fish and other sea creatures— 

ultimately infiltrating our lives via our 

food chain. 


WASTE 

“Plastic pollution is surfing onto 

Indonesian beaches, settling onto 

the ocean floor at the North Pole, and 

rising through the food chain onto our 

dinner tables,” says United Nations 

Environment Programme (UNEP) 

Executive Director Erik Solheim. “We’ve 

stood by too long as the problem has 

gotten worse. It must stop.” 

True enough, not only have microplastics 

been found in fish and shellfish, they 

have also been found in beer, honey, tap 

water, sugar and even air. We just didn’t 

know it! And, contrary to popular belief, 

when it comes to microplastics, what we 

don’t know can actually hurt us. 

One Health, one environment 

When it comes to microplastics, what 

we don’t know can actually hurt us.Now, 

here’s where it gets scarier… While the 

studies about the effects of microplastics 

are still at a relatively early stage, 

initial researches published by UNEP 

and in the Proceedings of the National 

Academy of Sciences (PNAS) have discovered 

that eating plastic particles may 

cause reduced activity rates, reproductive 

disruption, weakened schooling 

behaviour, and altered feeding behaviour 

among sea creatures. How does this 

affect humans? 

According to the One Health approach, 

the health of all living things (humans, 

animals and plants) and everything 

that surrounds us are interconnected. 

If something is wrong with the animals 

and plants around us, then something is 

likely to go wrong with us, unless we do 

something about it. 

“Microplastic may not only affect 

species at the organism level; they may 

also have the capacity to modify population 

structure with potential impacts on 

ecosystem dynamics, including bacteria 

and viruses. Negative effects on the 

photosynthesis of primary producers 

and on the growth of secondary producers, 

potentially result in a reduced 

productivity of the whole ecosystem and 

represent a primary concern,” according 

to a report by the joint Group of Experts 

on the Scientific Aspects of Marine 

Environmental Protection (GESAMP). 

“Our understanding of the fate and 

toxicity of microplastics in humans 

constitutes a major knowledge gap that 

deserves special attention,” it adds. 

So, if we ignore this issue now, it is 

probable that the ‘plastic soup’ will no 

longer be metaphorical in the next 20 or 

50 years. It will be a reality—and one at 

a scale we simply can’t ignore. 

Can we survive without plastics? 

The journey to a plastic-free world may 

be unimaginable to think about now. The 

truth is, if almost everything around us 

is made up of plastic, it’s going to be 

hard to live without them—especially 

if they are cheaper, durable and more 

convenient to use. There are, however, 

many things that we can do on a personal 

level to reduce our consumption 

of plastic—such as using reusable bags 

for groceries, buying cotton and wool 

clothing, and using stainless steel water 

bottles and compostable rubbish bin 

liners. 

In 2017, the US and UK legally banned 

the use of microbeads. But what if banning 

plastics entirely is not the answer? 

“Shifting to a genuine circular economy 

for plastics is a massive opportunity to 

close the loop, save billions of dollars, 

and decouple plastics production from 

fossil fuel consumption,” says Dame 

Ellen MacArthur. 

According to a report by her foundation, 

“Manufacturers could redesign 

plastic items so they could be reused 

better, and rethink their production 

methods to make recycling easier. More 

products could be made out of materials 

which can be composted on an industrial 

scale, including rubbish bags for 

organic waste and food packaging for 

outdoor events, canteens and fast food 

outlets.” 

In December 2017, the French 

Government reaffirmed an important 

commitment towards tackling plastic 

pollution, by pledging to recycle 100% 

of plastics by 2025. 

A number of large manufacturers 

such as Nestlé, Adidas, Unilever, and HP 

Hewlett-Packard have recently started 

initiatives looking for alternatives to 

make their products and their packaging 

sustainable and environment-friendly. 

To tackle this crisis, there is an urgent 

need for governments, industry and 

entrepreneurs to develop systemic, 

more innovative, and more audacious 

solutions that prevent plastic from 

becoming waste in the first place. 

Turning oil to plastic and back again 

Priyanka Bakaya is one entrepreneur 

who has discovered the power of plastic 

waste—quite literally. Bakaya is an 

Australian-American entrepreneur and 

founder of a clean energy company 

which converts plastic waste into fuel. 

Her company, Renewlogy, makes diesel, 

kerosene, light fuels in a process that 

chemically takes the plastics back down 

into their basic building blocks without 

creating toxic emissions in the process. 

Investors are watching closely. 

Meanwhile, China has done the world 

a favour. In January, China stopped 

taking the world’s plastics back for 

recycling for environmental reasons. 

Recyclers worldwide were left scrambling 

for alternatives. This is a good 

thing. What if every country closed 

its doors to others waste? This could 

drive greater innovation and new business 

opportunities that benefit local 

communities. 

In the UK, scientists and engineers 

from the University of Bath have 

developed a way of making microbeads 

from cellulose, which is not only from 

a renewable source, but also biodegrades 

into harmless sugars. Work 

is underway to scale this process for 

manufacturing. If offered a choice, 

consumers will prefer not to rub 

plastic into their skins when they exfoliate—brands 

that are earlier adopters 

of these alternative ‘ingredients’ can 

create competitive advantage. 

So, how might we get products to 

people without generating plastic waste 

and mitigate a potential eco-genocide? 

We’re not sure yet but some smart 

people and organisations are working 

on finding solutions. 

If nothing else, microplastics have 

taught us that sometimes the smallest 

things can make the biggest impact. 

Paul Stephenson, Design Director at 

Aurecon New Zealand 

This article first appeared on Aurecon's 

Just Imagine blog. 


OCEAN ECONOMY 

Blueprint for the 

ocean economy 

Outlining the Comprehensive Maritime 

Transport Policy for South Africa 

On 20 July 2017, the Department 

of Transport launched the 

Comprehensive Maritime 

Transport Policy for South Africa at the 

Elangeni Hotel in Durban. The event, 

attended by more than 300 maritime 

decision-makers and experts from both 

the private and public sectors, was 

preceded by a visit to Operation Phakisa 

projects within the port of Durban. 

South Africa is a maritime nation and 

there is no doubt that our maritime 

nationhood is strengthened by the 

adoption of this policy, said the Deputy 

Minister of Transport during her 

opening remarks. The principles 

underpinning the maritime transport 

policy of our developmental state are 

largely about transformation, innovation, 

efficiency, safety, affordability, 

accessibility and reliability. These principles 

are themselves based on broader 

developmental imperatives whose 

ultimate aim is to ensure inclusive 

growth of the economy by growing and 

or enhancing maritime human capital, 

infrastructure, finance, technology and 

frameworks of governance. 

The Comprehensive Maritime 

Transport Policy (CMTP) is from now on 

the blueprint for the advancement of the 

maritime transport agenda. 

According to the Department of 

Transport, this CMTP is a developmental 

enabling policy toolkit developed in 

order to ensure through an enabled environment 

of business and trade that the 

industry develops through innovation 


OCEAN ECONOMY 

and entrepreneurial development to 

contribute in incentivised growth and 

organic employment creation in the 

maritime transport sector. 

The CMTP’s strategic objectives are to: 

• Develop and grow South Africa to 

be an international Maritime Centre 

(IMC) in Africa serving its maritime 

transport customers in particular and 

world trade in general. 

• Contribute to Government’s efforts 

of ensuring the competitiveness of 

South Africa’s international trade 

by providing customer-focussed 

maritime transport infrastructure 

and services through an innovative, 

safe, secured, reliable, effective, 

profitable and integrated maritime 

supply chain, infrastructure and systems 

including safety of navigation. 

• Promote the growth and broadened 

participation of local entrepreneurs in 

the shipping industry and marine manufacturing 

and related services while 

vigorously promoting the increase 

of ships under the South African flag 

registry through incentives and continuous 

improvement in ship registration. 

• Promote marine transport; manufacturing 

and related services. 

• Guide maritime transport sector 

stakeholders and customers with 

regard to institutional arrangements, 

governance and regulatory interventions 

while ensuring effective 

and efficient co-ordination across 

Government on matters of common 

interest to the growth of the maritime 

transport sector. 

• Provide a clear framework around 

which operators, customers, 

investors and funders can freely participate 

in maritime transport market 

to improve growth, performance and 

competitiveness of the total Maritime 

Transport sector. 

• Establish where feasible sustainable 

funding and financing mechanisms 

to facilitate infrastructure development 

and possible acquisition of 

ships and equipment necessary 

to meet the needs of customers in 

particular and the South African 

economy in general. 

• Create and enhance viable and 

sustainable opportunities for historically 

disadvantaged entrepreneurs, 

especially women and youth, to 

participate in maritime transport 

initiatives. 

• Ensure efficient and effective regulation 

and clear separation between 

maritime operations and maritime 

regulation and these to be a reflected 

in the institutional and governance 

frameworks. 

• From an economic development perspective, 

create a conducive climate 

for South African perishable goods 

businesses to take part in the global 

perishable products market either as 

producers or as consumers. 

• Develop modalities for the creation of 

a national shipping carrier to serve 

the nation’s trade 

• Develop and maintain a competitive 

ship registration system. 

The CMTP has 37 policy statements covering 

matters of maritime governance; 

shipping; research and innovation; 

awareness; education and training; 

technology transfer; maritime culture, 

heritage; infrastructure; small harbours; 

maritime safety and security; ports; 

coastal shipping; marine environment 

protection; and a maritime sector 

common brand under Maritime South 

Africa (MariSA). 

Launching the CMTP, the Minister said: 

“The launch of the Comprehensive 

Maritime Transport Policy presents 

an opportunity for South Africa to 

invest more in the maritime sector 

and its associated opportunities.” 

The Minister went on to say that as 

a country, we could not remain consumers 

of maritime services from 

other countries whilst we have such 

a coastal heritage. The Minister further 

expressed displeasure at the fact 

that, our country might be a leading 

economy on the African continent 

with advanced transportation infrastructure, 

yet it still does not feature 

among the 35 nations that enjoy the 

95% monopoly of the world’s merchant 

vessels navigating in and out of 

our waters. 

The Minister called on the 

Department to make sure that the 

CMTP must from now on inform future 

programme planning and budgeting for 

maritime portfolio in the Department, 

for, without this commitment, the 

chance of realising the achievement 

of the CMTP strategic outcomes in 

our lifetime will be far reduced by 

the level of funding allocated to its 

implementation. 

The Department is now working flat 

out in developing the Comprehensive 

Maritime Transport Sector Strategy 

2030 in order to meet the first three (3) 

years of the CMTP targets. 

The Key industry stakeholders and 

industry representative expressed 

their support to the CMTP launch. 

The Department received and read out 

messages of support from the departments 

of Environment, Trade and 

Industry, Agriculture and Fisheries. 

Guests had an opportunity to sign the 

CMTP launch Statement. 


MONEY 

Exchanging control 

Measures for a more robust Rand 

The invention of money allowed 

people to replace their original 

system of trade, which was 

barter. Instead of swapping one good 

or service for another, the creation of 

money allowed people to buy what they 

wanted on credit. Money is essentially an 

exchange of an (IOU) I-owe-you token. A 

person holding IOUs has credit, and can 

then exchange them for goods or services 

within the community that accepts them. 

Money is thus a contractual obligation on 

an incomplete exchange. It can take the 

form of anything, from commodities to 

printed notes or even digitally encrypted 

tokens, provided that people recognise it 

and accept it. 

Historically, societies have used almost 

anything as money. Scarce commodities 

were particularly popular in the 

past. Cowry shells, tobacco, salt, even 

giant carved stone wheels (on the island 

of Yap) have been used as a means of 

exchange and savings. Gold, silver and 

copper have been used extensively for 

thousands of years. The US dollar even 

had ties to the value of gold up until the 

1970s. The problem with using commodities 

as money is that their value is 

not always stable. The value of tobacco 

would sky-rocket in a drought, and the 

price of gold would plummet if a Spanish 

ship returned from plundering the 

Aztecs of their precious metals. 

Governments found a solution to 

create a more stable money by issuing 

their own IOU notes, and managing 

the supply to keep its value from fluctuating 

wildly. Fiat money is currency 

that a government has declared to be 

legal tender. It has no intrinsic value 

and is not backed by any physical commodities, 

but people accept it as an IOU 

because the supply is constrained, it is 

difficult to counterfeit, it is durable and 

tradable, divisible, stable, and easily recognisable. 

Fiat currencies are created by 

government decree, but the government 

has to maintain the above-mentioned 

characteristics of a good currency or its 

people will no longer accept it as an IOU. 

Some countries do not manage their 

fiat currencies well, and there are 

numerous historical examples of currency 

collapses. Recently, Zimbabwe 

failed to constrain the supply of 

Zimbabwean dollars, pushing inflation 

to over a million percent in 2008, and 

rendering the Zimbabwean dollar worthless. 

Currently, Venezuela’s inflation 

rate is nearing 20,000% and people are 

abandoning the bolívar and resorting 

back to bartering, using US dollars or 

other currencies. The US dollar has an 

established history and has been relatively 

stable over the past decade, with 

inflation close to 2 percent. The value of 

money is therefore (no more or no less 

than) the value people attribute to what 

they want to exchange for it. 

When governments debase or inflate 

the money supply, they are taxing people 

who hold it for its value. So it is tempting 

for greedy governments to increase the 

money supply and allow high inflation 

rates to persist. The South African government 

aims to keep annual inflation 

between 3% and 6%, much higher than 

the US and EU targets of 2%. Ten years 

ago, the Rand was exchanged for about 

R7.50 to the US dollar. The exchange 

rate is now close to R12.50. High inflation 

makes it difficult for poor South 

Africans to save because poor people 

have limited access to interest-bearing 

or investment accounts, so their cash 

savings lose value. The South African 

government also imposes strict foreign 

exchange controls on its citizens trying 

to buy other currencies. Legally imposed 

exchange control regulations limit the 

extent to which South African residents 

and companies can move money abroad. 

This makes the Rand less tradable, 

lowers liquidity and makes it less likely 

to be accepted in a transaction. 

The South African government should 

abandon costly foreign exchange controls 

and slowly lower its inflation target, 

increasing the tradability, acceptance, 

and stability of the Rand. It will then 

become less taxing for South Africans to 

save and easier for them to be integrated 

into the world of globalised trade and 

business. A robust Rand would allow 

for a liquid foreign exchange market 

because this is part of what makes a 

good currency. The Rand might not be 

able to compete with global reserve currencies 

(US dollar, euro, yuan, yen and 

pound) that have an established history 

of stability and good management, but 

we can start to make improvements 

immediately. If the Rand maintains the 

characteristics of a good currency, it will 

provide a generally accepted medium of 

exchange, a more reliable unit for measuring 

the cost of goods and services, an 

asset where value can be stored over the 

long term, and a catalyst for economic 

stability and real growth. 

Luke Muller is an independent economist 

Article courtesy of the Free Market 

Foundation 


2018 

ACCELERATING 

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at the Opportunity SMME Roadshow 

Sponsors ignite 

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26 July 

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www.smmesa.co.za

Opportunity Issue 87 - July-Aug 2018

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