The leadership of South Africa’s Treasury and Reserve Bank believe a return of business confidence could give the economy the necessary boost to realise President Cyril Ramaphosa’s growth target of 3% for 2018.
Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene on his first visit to the IMF World Bank meetings in Washington since his reinstatement in February says his hit the road running reconnecting with old colleagues and stakeholders as the issue of unemployment in emerging economies has topped the agenda.
The Governor of the Reserve Bank, in his role as chair of the IMF’s powerful policy steering committee, has painted as positive picture of the country’s growth trajectory.
Nene joined ministers and central bank governors from the G20 in closed door discussions where inclusive growth and low levels of job creation in emerging economies were put front and centre.
“Issue of unemployment which we are confronted with as a country and as emerging economies are at the top of our agenda, so inclusive growth becomes part of our agenda collectively and as we move on also, we are beginning to look at what are the key areas where we could actually find each other.”
He warned of headwinds a possible trade war in light of unilateral protectionist policies, managing the national debt at sustainable levels and stabilizing the country’s State Owned Enterprises.
“If you look at Eskom which is our largest in terms of being a heavy drain on the Fiscus in terms of the guarantees but at the same time looking at how the company itself continues to execute its mandate.You now have a new board, new executive and all the people involved in corruption are beginning to face the consequences. All of those things are happening in a short space of time but that’s putting in place the right fundamentals before you move on.”
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