South Africa’s problem securing investment isn’t due to a ‘liquidity crunch’ among investors – but rather a growing confidence crisis in the government.“The relationship between government and the private sector muddied during the Zuma years ,” said Nedbank senior economist, Isaac Matshego, presenting at a pre-election roundtable this week .
“ always say that we’re looking for investment opportunities in South Africa, investable projects at the right risk, and the moment those come along, we will put money into that,” said Matshego. Positively, Matshego said that despite these numerous prevailing issues, like low trust in government due to the abovementioned reasons, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration has implemented some reforms to restore investor confidence.
These policies have resulted in changes which include increased investment in renewable energy by private companies, a new management team at Transnet, and the awarding of the Durban Pier 2 container terminal to a private firm.