With the objective of proposing and identifying best practice and insights to support renewed growth of the South African economy, Gearing for Growth is a series of four flagship executive seminars that enable the sharing of intellectual capital between local and global industry thought leaders.
While poverty, inequality and unemployment are key challenges in the economy, there is still disagreement between industry specialists surrounding the necessary steps needed to be taken to rectify these issues. The seminar provided a platform to unpack ways in which to practically and pragmatically drive inclusive economic growth in the South African economy.
The line-up included Wesgro CEO, Tim Harris, who explored the pertinent question of What is the Cape economy’s future – Industry or Services?
“We have a services economy with a strong manufacturing base. While farm and food products still dominate our export basket, recent foreign direct investment has been made into services and energy,” commented Harris.
With Agriculture being a key component of exported manufactured goods, Harris spoke of the convergence between industry (Agri-processing) and services (Agri-tech) and how there are opportunities for further growth with the eve of the 4th Industrial revolution. Further to this, Harris stressed that tapping into the rest of Africa will be key for the province’s future growth.
Highlighting the Western Cape’s competencies, Harris added, “The Cape’s economy is the 7th largest in Africa, boasting the lowest unemployment rate in the country - the Cape is a place of hope.”
Addressing the key theme of the seminar, Professor Robert Lawrence - the Albert L. Williams Professor of Trade and Investment at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, followed with a presentation on Achieving the elusive trinity of (re)industrialization, productivity and employment.
Drawing on a global perspective, Professor Lawrence unpicked the manufacturing productivity dilemma, stating how rapid productivity growth leads to fewer employment opportunities. Professor Lawrence warned, “Although South Africa faces its own unique issues, there are powerful global structural trends driving the economy that cannot be ignored.”
Stating that although economic growth is imperative, manufacturing value add should grow proportionately, even if employment share declines. Professor Lawrence further stressed that export competitiveness will be crucial to future growth of our national economy.
Wrapping up the seminar Dr Martyn Davies, Deloitte’s Managing Director for Emerging Markets & Africa, posed two thought provoking questions to the room: “The velocity of our lives has increased exponentially through technology and other factors. How do we take a macro strategy down to the individuals, the smarts in the room that can tap into the global opportunities? South Africa has a tendency to be introspective - maybe the world has changed and we need to change with it?”
Issued by Wesgro Media Team, 6 June 2018