We need positive, proudly SA scribes
2010-01-31 14:00
I HAVE to avoid giving you advice – for who wants advice from
bankers these days? But I may be bold enough to make a plea: Be an advert for
your country.
There is just far too much pessimism around SA at the moment. I
know the old adage that good news does not sell newspapers – but I am imploring
you to at least give this country a chance and then write about the country’s
extraordinary achievements and its exciting future.
For example, the World Economic Forum released its 2009-10 World
Competitiveness Report in mid-October. Although we remained in 45th place
overall out of 133 countries, the report showed that South Africa’s financial
system had jumped up the rankings from 24th to 5th, behind Luxemburg,
Switzerland, Canada and Sweden. Our sector outranks the UK (6th) and the US
(11th).
We did well on a number of other metrics:
- 2nd in regulation
of securities exchanges;
- 2nd in strength of auditing and
reporting standards;
- 3rd in efficacy of corporate boards;
- 4th in
financing through local equity market;
- 5th for the soundness of the banking
sector (the US ranks 108th);
- 6th in financial market
sophistication;
- 9th in protection of minority
shareholders’ interests; and
- 9th for strength of investor
protection.
This is something to be extremely proud of, but my sense is that
this did not receive the air time it deserved.
Further, on December 29 last year the Financial Times voted Trevor
Manuel as one of the top 50 people who helped to shape the past decade. He was
in the company of Barack Obama, Al Gore, Warren Buffett, Alan Greenspan, Melinda
Gates and JK Rowling. Whatever your ideological position, as a patriot you must
agree that that is an enormous achievement.
As far as I could tell, no SA media company reported on this. My
sense is that we need to be a little more aware of the good news and celebrate
it when it happens. I would have loved to have read this from one of our own
writers.
Furthermore, I noted with irrepressible pride this morning (January
26), that the Financial Times, in an online article, listed 50 emerging market
business leaders who have shaped the economic performance of their respective
regions.
What is truly remarkable is that out of those 50, four are South
African. They are Graham Mackay of SABMiller, Phuthuma Nhleko of MTN, Cyril
Ramaphosa of Shanduka and Jacko Maree of Standard Bank Group.
The article focused on the major developing countries – Brazil,
Russia, India and China. These countries contribute 15% of world GDP (South
Africa constitutes 0.5%) and 42% of the world’s population (South Africa’s share
of world population is 0.7%). So with those proportions of GDP and population as
background, you will agree that our representation of four business leaders in
that group of 50 men and women (or 8%), is such that we punch way above our
weight.
I’ll give one more example of something we, as South Africans, have
to be proud of. Did you know that last year South Africa raised two sovereign
bonds: one was $1.5-billion in May at a 375-basis- points (bps) spread over US
Treasuries, and the second was $500 million in August at a 240-bps spread?
(US Treasuries are the debt instruments that are issued and
guaranteed by the US government. The interest rate they are issued at is
regarded as an international standard for government loans.)
Did you know that Mexico has the same rating as South Africa (BBB+)
and yet it also issued a $1.5-billion bond on February 11 2009 at a 425-bps
spread; or that on April 8 last year, South Korea (A rating) issued two bonds
with spreads of 400 bps and 438 bps respectively? A month before our second bond
issue, Poland (with an A- rating) issued a $1.5-billion bond at a spread of 290
bps, significantly higher than our 240 bps spread.
How about the fact that foreign net equity purchases on the JSE
last year were R75 billion – a record level for a calendar year.
This shows that the international investing community believes in
something South Africans themselves seem to find hard to believe. Rating
agencies continue to give this country a stable and fairly high BBB+ rating
despite our challenges.
Finally, let me say this to tonight’s celebrants: The magnificence
of your courage and fortitude, in getting this far in your work and studies, and
the possibilities arising from committing to your professional duties, evoke the
remarkable words of Theodore Rooseveldt, the 26th president of the United
States:
“It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how
the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.
The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred
by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short
again and again because there is no effort without error and shortcomings, who
knows the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best
knows in the end the high achievement of triumph and who, at worst, if he fails
while daring greatly, knows his place shall never be with those timid and cold
souls who know neither victory nor defeat.”
Tonight’s celebrants know victory!
- This is a shortened version of
the speech given by Standard Bank SA chief executive Sim Tshabalala to the first
graduates of the Media24 Journalism Academy this week.