{"id":788867,"date":"2024-09-02T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-02T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=788867"},"modified":"2024-09-02T15:42:43","modified_gmt":"2024-09-02T13:42:43","slug":"the-metro-known-as-counterfeit-city-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/business\/788867\/the-metro-known-as-counterfeit-city-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"The metro known as ‘Counterfeit City’ in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Illicit trade costs the South African Revenue Service (SARS) over R100 billion annually, and to authorities, Johannesburg’s CBD is known as ‘Counterfeit city’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Counterfeit goods, often imitations of branded products sold at reduced prices, represent a significant threat to legitimate industries and consumer safety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

These fake products range from luxury items, clothing, and electronics to pharmaceuticals and food products. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The illicit trade of counterfeit goods harms businesses, fuels organized crime, damages the economy, and undermines consumer trust. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Africa is no stranger to this global issue, with the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and other authorities noting a concerning rise in the trade of counterfeit goods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Africa\u2019s strategic location, well-developed infrastructure, and proximity to major trade routes make it an attractive destination for counterfeiters. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The country\u2019s economic significance in the Southern African region and its established retail sector make it a prime target for counterfeit goods, particularly those entering the market through ports and borders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an interview with Carte Blanche<\/a>, intellectual property lawyer Mohamed Khader noted that most counterfeit goods are produced in Southeast and East Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He explained that it is then transported by ship to Durban harbour. However, he added that the problem comes in when it lands at the port. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goods are often destined for Botswana, and therefore, customs cannot search or check the containers, which are then trucked towards the border. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The goods are then cleared in Botswana and then rerouted back to South Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brigadier Kobus Lategan added that the problem is likely worse than we know, considering there are roughly 54 entry points into the country, and corruption is a major reason why they get through the border checks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regarding their destination, while these counterfeit goods make their way to all parts of South Africa, most of them end up in the economic hub.<\/p>\n\n\n

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SAPS seize R11 Million worth of counterfeit goods in Johannesburg<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Johannesburg CBD is referred to by anti-counterfeit units as ‘Counterfeit city’<\/strong>, and illicit trade costs South Africa billions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The underground economy, driven by counterfeit products and tax evasion, severely affects the country’s ability to invest in public services such as healthcare, education, and infrastructure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

SARS Commissioner Edward Kieswetter estimates the trade costs the country R100 billion a year in lost tax revenue,<\/strong> with the trade in alcohol contributing R11 billion to that loss and illegally imported second-hand cars R8 billion.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

South African police and customs officials frequently conduct large-scale operations to seize counterfeit goods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a notable case in 2023, authorities seized over R1 billion worth of counterfeit goods, including clothing and electronic items, in Johannesburg’s city centre. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The vast volume of these products highlights the scale of the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a problem not only for South Africa but also for the rest of the world. Khader said global research has estimated that the illicit trade costs the global economy 2.5% of international trade, which is around $600 billion (R10.5 trillion).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In response to the problem, Kieswetter has set up a dedicated team within SARS to focus on the illicit trade, clamp down on major players and pursue the ill-gotten profits from this business.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said the team has already dealt with around 1,230 cases of illicit trade and raised almost R80 billion in tax assessments, of which R36 billion has already been collected. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read: South Africa\u2019s R200 billion \u2018kasi\u2019 economy is booming<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

South Africa’s wealthiest province is home to what authorities call ‘Counterfeit City’, and it’s part of a R100 billion problem.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":788917,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9872],"tags":[10265,3246,853],"class_list":["post-788867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business","tag-carte-blanche","tag-sars","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=788867"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788867\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":788919,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/788867\/revisions\/788919"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/788917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=788867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=788867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=788867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}