The World Economic Forum’s (WEF) annual meeting is set to take place on 23 to 26 January 2018, where the theme for the year will be creating a shared future in a fractured world.
The 48th Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, will host 3,000 participants across all stakeholder groups including public & private sectors, civil society, academia, media, and arts & culture.
“The global context has changed dramatically: geostrategic fissures have re-emerged on multiple fronts with wide-ranging political, economic and social consequences,” the group said.
“Realpolitik is no longer just a relic of the Cold War. Economic prosperity and social cohesion are not one and the same. The global commons cannot protect or heal itself.
“The 48th World Economic Forum annual meeting therefore aims to rededicate leaders from all walks of life to developing a shared narrative to improve the state of the world.”
As at 12 January 2018, 58 South Africans have been confirmed as attending the meeting (down from 61 in 2017) including 45 business leaders, 7 government officials, 3 academics, and 3 members of the media.
The South African government delegation will be led by new ANC president and current deputy president of the country, Cyril Ramaphosa, who will be joined by finance minister Malusi Gigaba; minister in the presidency, Jeff Radebe; minister of trade and industries, Rob Davies; as well as the ministers of economic development, public works and international relations.
From the business sector, the same faces that have been attending the meeting for the last few years will again be working to sell a good South African story, including all the big banking CEOs, and executives from the mining and agricultural sector.
The leadership teams from state-owned companies will also be in attendance.
The list of attendees at the forum – particularly from government and state companies – are always of keen interest due to the high costs of attending the meeting, where all members must pay to participate.
Aside from the membership costs to simply attend the WEF meeting, the resort town of Davos does not host delegates cheaply.
Reports have pegged the total cost of attending the meeting anywhere between $20,000 to over $50,000 per delegate, which for South Africa’s government could push the attendance bill as high as R5 million.
However, attendance is not without its merits, as demonstrated by former finance minister Pravin Gordhan, who used the opportunity to build business confidence in South Africa in 2017, at a time when the economy was rocked with uncertainty amid political volatility.
This year, team South Africa, led by Ramaphosa, will try and turn global opinion of a junk status South Africa, by pushing a narrative of economic stability and policy certainty. At a meeting held on Thursday, the deputy president said that political uncertainty is no longer a problem in the country.
South Africa is an attractive country, ripe for investment, he said – but he acknowledged that much work is still needed to reign in state-owned companies, and to deal with corruption.
The tables below list all the South African leaders who will be attending the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos this year:
Government
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Cyril Ramaphosa | Deputy President | South African Government |
Jeff Radebe | Minister in the Presidency | South African Government |
Nkosinathi Nhleko | Minister of Public Works | South African Government |
Rob Davies | Minister of Trade and Industry | South African Government |
Maite Nkoana Mashabane | Minister of International Relations and Cooperation | South African Government |
Malusi Gigaba | Minister of Finance | South African Government |
Ebrahim Patel | Minister of Economic Development | South African Government |
State-run groups
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Lesetja Kganyago | Governor | South African Reserve Bank |
Siyabonga Gama | Acting CEO | Transnet |
Shulami Qalinge | General Manager | Transnet |
Khayalethu Ngema | Group Executive: Strategy | Transnet |
Jabu Mabuza | Chair | Telkom |
Matshepo More | CFO | Public Investment Corp. |
Kingsley Makhubela | CEO | Brand South Africa |
Finance and Investment
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Nicky Newton-King | CEO | JSE |
Aarti Takoordeen | CFO | JSE |
Stephen Koseff | CEO | Investec |
Hendrik du Toit | CEO | Investec Asset Management |
Ben Kruger | Executive Director | Standard Bank |
Alan Pullinger | Deputy CEO | FirstRand |
Mike Brown | CEO | Nedbank |
Trevor Manuel | Chairman | Old Mutual Emerging Markets |
Peter Moyo | CEO | Old Mutual Emerging Markets |
Jacko Maree | Chairman | Liberty Holdings |
Geoffrey Qhena | CEO | IDC |
Busi Mabuza | Chair | IDC |
Patrick Dlamini | CEO | Development Bank of South Africa |
Jabulani Moleketi | Chair | Development Bank of South Africa |
Peter Matlare | Deputy CEO | Barclays Africa |
Maria Ramos | CEO | Barclays Africa |
Business leaders
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Bonang Mohale | CEO | Business Leadership SA |
Iqbal Surve | Executive Chairman | Sekunjalo Holdings |
Calvo Mawela | CEO: Multichoice SA | Naspers |
Peter Staude | CEO | Tongaat Hulett |
Rob Shuter | Group CEO | MTN Group |
Stephen van Coller | VP: Digital Services | MTN Group |
Mary Vilikazi | Group CFO | MMI Holdings |
Stewart Bailey | Senior Vice-President | AngloGold Ashanti |
Sipho Pityana | Chair | AngloGold Ashanti |
Patrice Motsepe | Chair | Africa Rainbow Minerals |
Jongisa Magagula | Head of Investor Relations | Africa Rainbow Minerals |
Andries Wilkens | Director | Africa Rainbow Minerals |
Stephen Cornell | Co-CEO | Sasol |
Bongani Nqwababa | Co-CEO | Sasol |
Soloman Assefa | Director | IBM Research Africa |
Billy Mwasha | Managing Director | Rio Tinto |
Shona McDonald | Executive Director | Shonaquip |
Tracey Chambers | CEO | The Clothing Bank |
Shamiso Kumbirai | Water Engineer | Aurecon |
Luvuyo Rani | Managing Director | Silulo Ulutho Technologies |
Ishmael Sunga | CEO | Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions |
Media
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Christina Adriana de Wet | Executive Editor | Business Report |
Tim Cohen | Editor | Business Day |
Bronwyn Nielsen | Editor-in-Chief | CNBC Africa |
Other
Name | Role | Company |
---|---|---|
Max Price | Vice Chancellor | University of Cape Town |
Tolu Oni | Associate Professor, School of Public Health and Family Medicine | University of Cape Town |
Precious Moloi-Motsepe | Executive Chair | Motsepe Foundation |
Peter Draper |
Senior Research Fellow, Economic Diplomacy Programme |
South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) |
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