CEO Chirp: Time to stop bypassing our own economic potential

The vessel traffic currently diverting around the Cape of Good Hope is a fitting analogy for South Africa’s foreign investment dilemma.

From afar, South Africa’s value proposition is enticing: rich mineral resources, advanced financial services,  and a strategic position in the green economy – to name but three local advantages.  

But like the ships bypassing our shores en route alternative port facilities, many investors shy away from local investment opportunities in favour of better options. This is evident from the 2026 Kearney Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) Confidence Index, which shows South Africa slipped five positions to 12th on the list, from 7th last year.

It is not that South Africa has nothing to offer – we're still on the Kearney FDI list of the top 25 most attractive economies for FDI globally. The point is that we could be doing more to get our Kearney ranking moving in the right direction.  

In particular, we could be doing more to address the key challenges cited by investors, notably logistics failures (specifically rail and ports), infrastructure quality (including power supply), and governance.

Of course, much HAS been done to address these challenges, ranging from cross-sector initiatives to specialised inter-ministerial committees (IMCs). The Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), composed of independent experts providing evidence-based proposals for economic growth and stability, is widely credited with accelerating structural reforms seen to date.  

But it is also common cause that there is huge room for improvement -- particularly in the public sector -- when it comes to creating an enabling environment for the economy to succeed. In the same way that the Cape Chamber regularly rallies our members and private sector stakeholders to shape the economy, we wish to see our public sector partners do as much as possible to help businesses to succeed.  Judging by the Kearney FDI survey, foreign investors are feeling the same way.

To return to our maritime analogy, much has been said about our ship repair facilities, which currently are not sufficient to accommodate many of the super-sized vessels passing our shores, a traffic likely to continue for the foreseeable future. TNPA upgrades are underway, and there are plans for a floating drydock in Cape Town Port. Maritime stakeholders have long been calling for these improvements.

But the private sector can also lead by example. A case in point is the Victoria and Alfred Waterfront, which last month confirmed plans for a R230-million six-berth superyacht marina. By investing in infrastructure for superyachts and local boatbuilding, the V&A is investing in future economic growth, thereby creating an enabling business environment.  

It is the kind of catalytic investment needed to stimulate mega-projects other sectors.

However, projects of this magnitude require heavyweight investors, of the kind we are more likely to see if we are moving upwards on the Kearney list, not downwards.

The more investment-ready we become, the less opportunities will pass us by.  

John Lawson

CEO of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry