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Other service activitiesSouth Africa

Under the circumstances, it is easy to be pessimistic, but South African society has backbone and we should take pride in our many pockets of excellence. My wife and I...

Other service activities

Disruptors present both threats and opportunities and are largely driven by three things; changes in consumer tastes, changes in law and technological innovation. Ostrich feathers were highly fashionable in the...

Other service activitiesSouth Africa

According the Institute of Directors in Southern Africa there is no set rule, but the guideline is that one person ought not to hold more than five posts as non-executive...

Covid19Other service activities

My wife and I recently drove through the Overberg in the Western cape and were treated to a view of lush rolling wheat and canola fields merging with the snow-capped...

Covid19Other service activities

The move to lock down level two brings with it some hope that our economy will gain a fresh momentum to recovery. The WOW industry reports researched since the beginning of lock down have covered the direct impact of the pandemic on various industries. These are some of the observations: Online retail Prior to the corona virus pandemic, online retail sales grew by 20% in 2019, but still accounted for less than 2% of South Africa’s R1-trillion overall retail trade. This compares with ecommerce penetration of 13% to 20% in relatively mature markets in Europe, the US, and China.

Morocco

Morocco’s new coalition government has focused on pro-poor reforms, job creation and implementing the country’s industrialisation strategy, which aims to increase the industrial sector’s share to 23% of GDP by 2020 from 18.5% in 2016. Evidence of its aspirations and success in this regard can be found in the automotive sector, where, in 2017, it overtook South Africa as the continent’s largest producer of passenger cars.

Madagascar

Madagascar is endowed with a wealth of natural resources. These include semi-precious stones, graphite, chromite, coal, bauxite, rare earth elements, salt, quartz, tar sand and mica. The country supplies around 80% of the world’s vanilla. Other main agricultural products include coffee, sugarcane, palm oil, cloves, cocoa, rice, cassava, beans, bananas and peanuts. The island nation also derives revenue from fishing, forestry and hydropower. Renowned for its biodiversity and its unique flora and fauna, Madagascar is often described the ‘Galapagos of the African continent’.

Ethiopia

The winds of change are sweeping through Ethiopia since Abiy Ahmed became prime minister in April. Ethiopia is sub-Saharan Africa’s fastest growing economy, with average growth of around 10% a year for over a decade. GDP was US$8.2bn in 2000, $80bn by 2017, and will reach US$129bn by 2023, according to the IMF. The IMF’s World Economic Outlook expects 8.5% GDP growth in 2019 – while the World Bank expects 8% – outstripping advanced economies and global growth, which is expected at 3.9%.