{"id":760043,"date":"2024-03-16T13:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-03-16T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=760043"},"modified":"2024-03-15T15:39:28","modified_gmt":"2024-03-15T13:39:28","slug":"the-rise-of-remote-work-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/lifestyle\/760043\/the-rise-of-remote-work-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"The rise of remote work in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

South Africa has seen a surge in digital nomads, with the country ranking as the top location in Africa for people looking for the perfect environment to work remotely. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While some have argued that these remote workers impact rental prices and could price locals out of the market, property experts say this is not feeding through in the data; instead, they are looking at the benefits for the local economy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cape Town, in particular, is seen as a hotspot for this remote-working movement, with the city featuring in around half<\/a> of all of the country’s digital nomad social media activity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For years, President Cyril Ramaphosa has embraced this idea and the rise in these fleeting workers, saying that “to succeed in an ever-changing global economy, our country needs far more people with the right skills\u201d and has urged for legislation to accommodate it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Broadly defined, digital nomads are people who work remotely from any location in the world. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Most popular cities for digital nomads in Africa. Source: Resume.io<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Property experts have noted the uptick in professionals looking to work remotely (particularly for short periods of time) in Cape Town, predicting that this trend will garner even more pace than it already has in the years to come.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“South Africa is absolutely ideal for digital nomads – Cape Town in particular,” thanks to its Mediterranean climate and top-class amenities and facilities, said Ross Levin, a licensee for Seeff Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is an even further boost to the Mother City, as it “is already popular with the so-called ‘European Swallows’ who travel south for the winter to escape the European cold,” said Levin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to property experts, the digital nomads are generally younger, relatively highly skilled, spend on average 3 – 6 months on rented properties, and predominantly come from European countries like the United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There have been numerous arguments that the <\/strong>surge in digital nomads has subsequently been driving up costs for local communities around the world – particularly in urban areas, which are often confronted with housing shortages for locals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his study of digital nomads, researcher Dave Cook said<\/a> that he has “found that the rise of professional short-term-let landlords, in particular, is helping to price local people out of their homes.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While it is seen that these digital nomads are able to scoop up short-term rentals in droves, those on the other side of the argument say that these individuals provide an essential contribution to the local economy (both directly and indirectly).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked specifically whether they have noticed an impact on the rental market, Pam Golding Properties’ regional head in the Western Cape, Basil Moraitis, said that, in his experience, due to the majority of rental agreements being short-term, “it doesn\u2019t really move the long term rental market.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking at the boost for the economy, Moraitis said that “most of the digital nomads earn significant hard currency [in US dollars, Euros or Pounds], which is then spent in the local economy.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Levin said that “this could unlock further spin-off benefits… in the form of more opportunities to open [things like] eateries\/restaurants, retail, leisure, transport and so on.” <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Digital nomads could also provide the opportunity to <\/strong>bring highly skilled individuals and remote workers to contribute their expertise to the country’s workforce, while some may even look to launch their own businesses or companies here. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The government wants to attract digital nomads<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The pandemic has accelerated the shift to online and remote work, which has proven in many industries as likely to stay. This has significantly boosted the prevalence of digital nomads across the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Work from home not going anywhere in South Africa<\/a><\/blockquote>