Ramaphosa charms business back into his corner
South African business leaders left meetings with President Cyril Ramaphosa last week feeling positive and enthusiastic that the government is finally taking steps to address the most serious issues impacting the country.
The president joined with various business leaders in an unprecedented meeting at the Union Buildings last week to try and coordinate partnerships between state and business to tackle various crises impacting both government and various industries in the country.
The outcome of the meeting was an agreement that businesses would work with the various relevant government departments and ministers in three priority areas: energy, logistics and crime.
According to Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) chief executive officer Busi Mavuso, the meeting was well-received by the business leaders who attended and reignited the enthusiasm to partner and work with the government.
Executives in South Africa have been criticising the government and Ramaphosa for months, warning that not enough was being done to keep the country from becoming a failed state. BLSA has also been pushing for more open communication and for the state to reach out to businesses to help resolve the country’s issues.
“It was a genuine and positive meeting that has enthused business to pull together and partner government to deal with the most urgent priorities through clear programmes of action,” she said.
“This is not about new policies but about urgently implementing long-agreed policies in key areas and then investing, to kickstart economic growth and rebuild confidence. It will take resources, many of which business has already been contributing.”
Mavuso said that each priority area now has at least two chief executives working with the government to address issues.
The CEOs in question will bring decades of experience and expertise to each sector, supported by business structures like BLSA, BUSA and others. Meanwhile, the presidency has lined up the appropriate public sector bodies for each stream.
“The National Energy Crisis Committee, National Logistics Crisis Committee, and Joint Initiative to Fight Crime and Corruption will be the main vehicles for public sector engagement. They will draw on officials from different government departments, Operation Vulindlela and, in the crime workstream, the National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure,” Mavuso said.
“I am glad the president shares our view that this must be a long-term partnership. To solve our challenges we will need huge investment into projects with multi-year lifecycles.”
The BLSA lead said that this marks only the start of a journey working with the government, but she said business leaders are encouraged by the move.
Read: South Africa’s new BEE targets – the massive dilemma for businesses
Loading ...