REIGNITING THE SPIRIT OF UBUNTU

This year’s virtual conference saw government and private business
discuss and debate the shortest and most effective path to recovery.

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ABOUT


The past two years have seen SA face many challenges as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. As we start adjusting to a new way of living with the virus, it’s also time to evaluate the areas of society and the economy that require rehabilitation and support, from both the public and private sectors.

The Directors Event 2022 focused on reigniting the spirit of ubuntu and saw the public and private sectors discuss and debate the shortest and most effective path to recovery.

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AGENDA


S’thembiso Msomi

Editor, Sunday Times

Jonas Bogoshi

CEO, BCX

Dr Imtiaz Sooliman

Founder and Chairman, Gift of the Givers

The implications of the Russia-Ukraine war for South Africa, its economic recovery and global positioning.

Daniel Silke

Political Economy Analyst, Political Futures Consulting

As we finally enter the tail end of the Covid-19 pandemic in SA, the country needs to rebuild, particularly in the face of structural unemployment. President Cyril Ramaphosa, for the first time in his State of the Nation address, in February 2022, admitted that the government is not the creator of jobs in SA, but that business is the key enabler of employment.

The president is committed to reducing red tape to encourage investment and the development of the small business sector. This could be a significant silver lining for creating jobs if it materialises. But there remain challenges: skills shortages, an inadequate and struggling education system and a social welfare system that requires ongoing government funding. How can business step up to deliver real social impact as we embark on a path to post-Covid socioeconomic recovery?

Dr Azar Jammine

Chief Economist, Econometrix

Hendrik Malan

CEO, Frost & Sullivan Africa

Notobeko Hlela

Researcher, SA Office of the Tricontinental Institute for Social Research

John Dludlu

CEO, Small Business Institute

Jan Bouwer

Chief of Digital Platform Solutions, BCX

Eustace Mashimbye

CEO, Proudly South Africa

Gugulethu Mfuphi

MC and Moderator

“As we work to grow the economy and create jobs, we will expand support to poor families to ensure that no person in this country has to endure the pain and indignity of hunger.” – President Cyril Ramaphosa, State of the Nation Address 2022. Currently more than 40% of South Africans are affected by hunger, while approximately 2.3-million households reported child hunger in 2021.

SA’s natural resources are under threat as a result of climate change. Unpredictable and extreme weather patterns – floods, droughts and wildfires – are playing havoc with agricultural supply chains and are having an impact on food security in the country. The international Ukraine/Russia crisis has seen fuel prices in SA skyrocket, and the knock-on effect is hitting consumers hard. Simply getting a basic, staple meal on the table is less predictable for millions in our country.

In February, the president promised to finalise a comprehensive social compact to grow the economy, create jobs and combat hunger within 100 days. How do we mitigate climate change, manage water resources, execute a just energy transition and support agriculture to ensure food security so that no person goes to bed hungry, as per Ramaphosa’s commitment to SA?

Andy Du Plessis

Managing Director, FoodForward SA

Prof Imraan Valodia

Professor of Economics, Pro Vice-Chancellor: Climate, Sustainability and Inequality, and Director of the Southern Centre for Inequality Studies, WITS

Prof Mark Swilling

Co-Director, Centre for Sustainability Transitions, University of Stellenbosch

Prof Francois Engelbrecht

Director and Professor of Climatology, Global Change Institute, University of the Witwatersrand

Dr Jaisheila Rajput

Founder and CEO, Tomorrow Matters Now (TOMA-Now)

Uveka Rangappa

Moderator

According to the World Bank, SA is the most unequal country in the world. It has one of the highest Gini coefficients: a measure of income distribution that highlights the stark gap between the country’s richest and poorest. It also points to a country with slow GDP growth, increased household debt, political polarisation and increased levels of poverty.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic has only added to the country’s woes, with SA having the highest percentage of businesses expected to fall into arrears as a result of the lockdown. This has significantly exacerbated the prevailing socioeconomic crisis where access, for example, to quality healthcare and affordable broadband internet is not available to everyone.

What actions can be taken to improve the circumstances of those most affected by poverty? How should public and private sectors work together to remove SA from its classification in the “fragile five” of emerging economies?

Prof Murray Leibbrandt

NRF Chair in Poverty and Inequality Research and Director, Southern Africa Labour and Dev Research Unit, UCT

Phelisa Nkomo

Development Economist and Chairperson, Oxfam South Africa

Sizwe Pamla

Spokesperson, COSATU

Busisiwe Memela-Khambula

CEO, South African Social Security Agency (SASSA)

Dr Precious Zikhali

Senior Economist: Poverty and Equity Global Practice, World Bank

Nompumelelo Runji

Moderator

2022 PARTICIPANTS


HEADLINE PARTNER


ASSOCIATION PARTNER


CONTACT US


EVENT ENQUIRIES
Marcia Minnaar
011 280 5770
minnaarm@arena.africa

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