Tag-Archive for » South Africa «

Mar

The Brics summit in Durban was deemed a success by the leaders of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

South African Finance Minister Pravin Gordhan said “phenomenal progress” had been made in reaching an agreement to establish the New Development Bank. He could not say how long it would take to establish, but that it would be within 10 years.

Pacts signed on Wednesday included a “Multilateral agreement on Infrastructure Co-financing for Africa” and a “Multilateral Agreement on Green Economy Co-operation Co-Financing.”

A Brics Business Council was also formed and billionaire businessman Patrice Motsepe has been appointed to chair it.

China’s president Xi Jinping called on Brics countries to support Africa for stronger growth: “We should not only seek our own development, but seek the development of all countries”.

The Democratic Alliance welcomed the Brics Business Council, saying that the council could become a platform to trade and develop commerce worldwide, and an axis of influence which could alter the traditional distribution of economic power in the world.

Full article: http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Brics-sign-pact-as-summit-ends-20130327

Video: http://www.fin24.com/Multimedia/Brics-wrangle-over-new-development-bank-20130327-2

(See also post of 13 May on the subject)

Aug

ANC Secretary-General Mantashe: I have serious issues with BEE

Virginia

It’s about time people start analysing this!

ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe has said he has “serious grievances” with BEE focusing on shareholding rather helping beneficiaries gain a deeper understanding of business on Tuesday. He was addressing analysts as part of the ANC’s programme to speak to various sectors in South Africa.

Mantashe said the ANC would meet the Black Business Council (BBC) to discuss the strengths and failures of black economic empowerment (BEE) and the role of state procurement in transformation of the economy. A representative from the BBC had complained that the government’s procurement policy had gone wrong.

Various delegates raised questions about the effectiveness of BEE policies. Mantashe responded that he had a problem with the idea of BEE. “I have a serious grievance with BEE… focusing on shareholding with beneficiaries not being operational.” He said if the beneficiaries of BEE deals were not part of operations, they were not gaining a deeper understanding of the business in order to grow. “Operational exposure, to me, is more powerful than just ownership…”

He commended Exxaro Coal’s South African CEO Sipho Nkosi for not being a “window-shopping CEO”. “Sipho Nkosi is not a big shareholder, but he is very operational… he knows mining. To me, that is how we are going to transform the economy.”

Black business should deliver affordable, quality products and services if it wants government contracts, Mantashe said. “As we support black business, black business must bring a commitment of delivery, cost-competitive and quality of items that are procured,” he told analysts and business people in Soweto.

Mantashe said the primary outcome of the ANC lekgotla in July was that the government needed to drop the system of tenders. It needed to move away from giving business to black companies, and then afterwards arguing about quality and cost. “Don’t undermine this question of people delivering bridges that get eroded with the first rainfall. It can’t continue. It just can’t continue. It is wrong. It is wrong.”

Full article:

http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Mantashe-I-have-serious-issues-with-BEE-20120822?utm_source=fin24-am-update&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Newsletters

May

BRIC Countries and South Africa

Virginia

South African business needs to take advantage of the commercial opportunities offered by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (Brics), said Business Unity SA (Busa) CEO Nomaxabiso Majokweni.

“Africa’s economic expansion of plus 5% over the past decade has been a direct product of its strategic ties to the emerging world, where Bric (excluding SA) countries serve as the growth engine,” she said ahead of the second Brics business forum in India.

Majokweni said South Africa’s trade with the other Brics economies had increased by 108% from 2007 to 2011. “This is in stark contrast to South Africa’s trade relationship with the EU (European Union), which saw growth of 12% in the same period.”

Full article: http://www.fin24.com/Economy/SA-business-must-take-advantage-of-Brics-20120325

Jul

Arms Scandal: Why SA had to Buy the Gripen

Lara

Follow up on the very “interesting” case of the Arms Deal, by the Institute for Security Studies:

(Anton Kruger, Consultant, Peace Missions Programme, ISS Pretoria Office)

The 11 year controversy surrounding the South African government’s controversial arms deal has once again made news headlines after Swedish defence company SAAB admitted that following its own investigations, it found “supposed” evidence of large scale corruption by British defence company BAE systems. From a purely military perspective, the question that needs to be asked now is whether the decision by the South African government to purchase the hugely expensive Gripen aircraft from BAE was actually warranted in the current low threat environment? Also, does the Gripen actually fulfill the needs of the South African Air Force (SAAF)?

Why did the SAAF want a new fighter aircraft in the first place? The Air Force’s previous fighter platform the Cheetah strike aircraft’s lifetime was coming to an end and the Air Force needed to replace it. Itself being an upgraded version of the vaunted French Mirage 3 that was purchased by the South African Air Force in the 1960’s, it served the country nearly 20 years.

Contrary to popular belief, aircraft such as the Gripen have also been used extensively during peacekeeping and enforcement missions the world over. South Africa is one of Africa’s biggest contributors to peacekeeping operations on the continent and this commitment can only be expected to increase in the future.

In conclusion it can be said that the Gripen was indeed the best aircraft for the SAAF to replace its elderly cheetah fighters and that the government did indeed need to replace it.

Those responsible for corruption and malpractice during the awarding of the arms deal should be severely punished. The scandal surrounding the arms deal has been continuing for far too long now and it is time for it to be brought to a conclusion. It is however also time for the South African public to separate the two issues: there is on the one side the bad practice and corruption, but the needs of the SANDF should also be taken into account.

Full article:

http://www.issafrica.org/iss_today.php?ID=1304

Jun

Swaziland

Lara

Today I am writing from Swaziland, where I am on an interpreting assignment, and thus it is fitting to share news about this friendly and beautiful country.

Swaziland asks SA for bailout —- Jun 23 2011, Reuters (excerpt)

Swaziland, Africa’s last absolute monarchy, has asked South Africa for a bailout to remedy a fiscal crisis that has sparked rare political protests. Swazi dissident groups have reported that King Mswati III was looking for a R10bn loan from Pretoria.

Like the International Monetary Fund (IMF), South Africa will also baulk at lending anything to Swaziland, a landlocked nation of 1.4 million people, until the government takes the carving knife to what is Africa’s most bloated bureaucracy. The IMF said last month the country was near financial collapse, with a budget deficit of 14.3% of gross domestic product (GDP) – similar to Greece – and an economy stuck in the doldrums. Swaziland’s public wage bill amounts to 18% of GDP, more than any other country in Africa.

http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Swaziland-asks-SA-for-bailout-20110623

Category: Conferences, Economy, News, Political Tags: analysis, analytical, finance, media monitor, News, Portuguese translator, Portuguese-English translation, relatórios, reports, South Africa, summaries, Swaziland, traduções, translator Leave a Comment

Jun

Mozambique Favoured Above South Africa for International Investment

Lara

Jun 23, Adri van Zyl, Fin24.com (excerpt)

Brazil, Russia, India, China and the Middle Eastern countries all prefer to invest in African countries other than South Africa. Countries that the Brics nations favour as investment destinations above South Africa include Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique and Botswana.

In what was described as the “second scramble for Africa” at the African Union summit in Ethiopia earlier this month, South Africa was overlooked as an investment destination for several reasons.

The catalogue of problems scaring off potential investors in South Africa includes irresponsible pronouncements on nationalisation, high cost of labour, lack of required skills, and black economic empowerment.

Indian companies are descending on the Waterberg coal deposits, and the export route will be via Mozambique rather than Richards Bay. South Africa needs to urgently upgrade its ports and rail lines. Mozambique has been establishing active rail corridors and is making huge investments to attract exports to its ports.

Jun

U.S. First Lady to Visit South Africa

Lara

(The Wall Street Journal, by Jackie Bischof)

U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama is expected to arrive in South Africa on Monday to meet with women’s groups, speak about the importance of education and youth leadership, as well as take in the sights.

Yet many say there’s another unstated aspect of the trip: soothing prickly ties between the U.S. and South Africa. South Africa’s shifting stances on crises in the Ivory Coast and Libya has showed the continent’s foremost economic and political power to be an important but unpredictable partner—an ally that can turn fierce public critic. Mrs. Obama’s might help reduce tensions in a way that a visit from a senior U.S. official couldn’t, say analysts.

Over the past six months, South Africa has been in the thick of major crises on the continent—and often at odds with the U.S. In the Ivory Coast, President Jacob Zuma tried to mediate between two dueling claimants to the presidency, but came under fire from supporters of the United Nations-recognized election winner, Alassane Ouattara, for appearing to side with Laurent Gbagbo. He later backed calls for the ouster of Mr. Gbagbo, who was captured when he refused to leave his presidential palace.

In Libya, South Africa has walked a similarly blurry line. As a member of the United Nations Security Council, it supported a resolution to impose a no-fly zone over Libya. But President Zuma has since urged the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to end its campaign and allow the African Union to help facilitate a ceasefire in the country. Rebels seeking to dislodge the country’s leader, Moammar Gadhafi, have rejected those appeals.

The youth wing of Mr. Zuma’s ruling African National Congress suggests South Africa was duped into supporting western military action in Libya. “It is evident that certain powers, particularly the U.S., U.K. and France want to impose a puppet government in Libya so that they can have access to its oil reserves and capacity, like the U.S. did through the illegal war it waged against Iraq in 2003,” the organization said in a press statement.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303936704576395281113014552.html

and The Washington Post:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/44/post/michelle-obama-in-africa/2011/06/17/AGokaGZH_blog.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/details-of-obama-family-trip-to-africa/2011/06/17/AG9P7NaH_story.html

Category: Events, News, Political Tags: analysis, analytical, Botswana, Ivory Coast, Libya, media monitor, News, Political, Português, Portuguese translator, relatórios, reports, serviços de tradução, South Africa, translator, US Leave a Comment

Feb

The ANC and Christianity

Lara

One of the more witty articles on President Zuma’s comments about the ANC and Christianity:

“…President Zuma is absolutely accurate in his metaphor. The ANC appears to operate exactly the way organised Christianity does. As with Christianity, it’s who you know that advances you in the political arena. If you haven’t personally welcomed Jesus into your life, or JZ into your business, you have no chance of getting to heaven, or that Great Tender in the Sky as it’s known locally.”

Full article:

http://mg.co.za/article/2011-02-08-what-would-jacob-do/

Category: News, Political Tags: analysis, analytical, media monitor, News, Political, Portuguese translator, Portuguese-English translation, relatórios, reports, South Africa, traduções, translator Leave a Comment

Nov

China and South Africa and Angola

Lara

China-South Africa

The 4th SA-China Bi-National Commission (BNC) provided the first opportunity to implement the Beijing Declaration on the Establishment of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and set a precedent for the future BNCs, focusing on the following issues:

The strengthening and deepening of political relations between the two countries

Strengthening of bilateral economic and trade relations

Strengthening cooperation on the foreign policy of advancing the African Agenda; and

Strengthening coordination and consolidation on multilateral positions.

http://www.dfa.gov.za/docs/2010/chin1115.html

China Defends Its African Investments

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping called on the international community to recognise the benefits of continued Chinese investment in Africa. “I noticed that some scholars from developed countries, who have long studied China-Africa relations, have recognised… that China-Africa relations are win-win in nature,” he said in a speech in Pretoria. “They have called on the international community to perceive China’s role in Africa as it truly is.”

At last year’s gathering in Egypt, the Chinese government pledged $10bn in loans to Africa, and cancelled or reduced the debts of more than 30 African countries. Beijing claims its bilateral trade with Africa will top $100bn in 2010 as Chinese firms continue pouring investment into the continent’s oil, mining, agriculture and manufacturing sectors.

http://www.fin24.com/Economy/Africa/China-defends-its-African-investments-20101118

Angola and China Strengthen Cooperation

http://dn.sapo.pt/inicio/economia/interior.aspx?content_id=1717041&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%253A+DN-Economia+%2528DN+-+Economia%2529

In a joint statement, after the visit to Angola by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, Angola and China declared that they would “strengthen cooperation and increase economic and trade relations…towards mutual benefits and growth”. Angola is China’s largest partner in Africa and its main oil supplier.

Category: Economy, energy, Events, News, Political, Portuguese Tags: analytical, Angola, China, energy, finance, media monitor, News, Political, Portuguese translator, Portuguese-English translation, relatórios, reports, South Africa, traduções, translator Leave a Comment

Oct

The Angola-South Africa Relationship

Lara

Good reading about relations between South Africa and Angola by IPRIS:

IPRIS Lusophone Countries Bulletin for Sept 2010

Category: Economy, energy, News, Political, Portuguese Tags: analysis, Angola, energy, finance, media monitor, News, Political, Português, Portuguese-English translation, relatórios, reports, South Africa, translator Leave a Comment

Tag-Archive for » South Africa «

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