South African Business 2025

CONTENTSSouth African

CONTENTSSouth African Business 2025 EditionIntroductionForeword 10A unique guide to business and investment in South Africa.Special featuresAn economic overview of South Africa 12Potentially divisive national elections in 2024 instead produced agrand coalition that has committed itself to grow the South Africaneconomy in a way that creates jobs. Hosting the G20 Summit willallow South Africa to showcase its strengths.Provinces of South Africa 16A snapshot of South Africa’s nine provinces.Time for action on infrastructure 28It’s rolling up the sleeves time for South Africa as work is underwayto fix and upgrade existing facilities and invest in new infrastructurein order to stimulate economic growth.Economic sectorsAgriculture 38An estate near De Rust has won a global prize for olive oil.Mining 42Anglo American is selling.Energy 52Solar is shining.Oil and gas 58Plans to develop gas fields have been put on hold.Engineering 60New engineering capacity is available in Richards Bay.Manufacturing: automotive 68Carbon taxes present a challenge.SOUTH AFRICAN BUSINESS 20256

The NYDA recognizes that South Africa’s youthful population presents anopportunity to boost economic growth, increase employment and reducepoverty. It also recognizes that young people bear the brunt ofunemployment and provide young people with broader opportunities whichmust be sought.It proposes the strengthening of youth service programmes and theintroduction of new, community-based initiatives to offer young people lifeskills training and entrepreneurship training. The NYDA has achieved 100% of itstargets for the year 2023/2024, anticipating achieving another clean audit onceaudit is completed by September 2024. Recent statistics paint a grim picture,however there are some encouraging signs such as the overall increase ofjobs and a movement of discouraged work seekers to active work searchers.Only through a social compact of all sectors of society can our ambitious goals beachieved. The NYDA doors remain open to any individual or institution who iscommitted to giving young people the hand up they crave.NYDA Achievements for theyear 2023/24• A total of 2 200 youth owned enterprises were supported withfinancial interventions and targets were met and exceeded due tothe interest that young people have shown in the Programme andthe NYDA's willingness to assist and support these young people• A total of 43 163 young people were supported with non-financialbusiness development interventions and targets were met andexceeded due to collaborations with local municipalities andprovinces that we have MOU’s in place• Jobs that were created and sustained through supportingentrepreneurs and enterprises were 7 319 and target met andexceeded due to the Grant programme that was oversubscribed byyoung people and the interest shown by them.• A total of 1 203 beneficiaries supported with businessDevelopment Support Services offered to young people by NYDAand the overachievement was due to a partnership and ServiceLevel Agreement established with FASSET to implement the projectwith 3 Universities: University of Pretoria, University of Free Stateand University of KwaZulu-Natal.• A total of 55 549 young people were capacitated with skills toenter the job market, through Life Skills and Job Preparedness andtargets were met and exceeded due to a number of young peoplewho shown interest in life skills and job preparedness offered byNYDA.• A total of 24 307 young people placed in jobs met and exceededdue to partnership established because of intensive focus onpartnerships which increased the number of jobs for young peopleto be placed.Proud to serveNYDAPerformanceAchievementNational Youth ServiceNPO Capacity BuildingProgrammeIn the 2023/24 financial year, the NYS enrolled 68 youth-led NPOs,partnering with entities like the National Lotteries Commission (NLC)and the South African Association of Youth Clubs (SAAYC) to delivertraining workshops and mentorship programs. These initiatives, whichincluded themes such as leadership, life skills, and socialentrepreneurship, were designed to improve the governance,compliance, fundraising, and networking abilities of the NPOs. Theprogram also featured specific training opportunities, like the ICTageprogram funded by CISCO, which provided IT training and certificationto participants.Revitalized Youth ServiceTen projects were contracted under the NYS program, all in variousstages of implementation. By the end of March 2024, a total of 22,306participants had obtained paid service opportunities. Among them,18,115 participants had finished community service, while 4,357 youngpeople had successfully transitioned into other income-generatingopportunities. The NYDA conducted a successful recruitment roadshowfor the second cohort of the NYS program, targeting underservedcommunities across several provinces. This initiative enhanced theprogram's visibility and engagement.The Young Creatives Program (TYCP) is a collaboration with theDepartment of Sport, Arts and Culture led to the enrolment of 270 youngcreatives in the NYS program, providing them with opportunities inCommunity Arts Centres. This program is set to extend through to March2025, with R13 608 000 (Thirteen Million Six Hundred and EightThousand Rand) allocated by the department to support it.The report outlines the number of young people that participated in theExpanded National Youth Service over the year. Quarterly data showsfluctuations, with a notable increase in participation in the secondquarter. For the period under review, we reported 16, 339 young peoplecontributing to the unit meeting and over-achieving this specific target for2023/24. The NYS unit primarily focused on voter education andactivities initiated by partners. Non-Profit Organizations (NPOs) enrolledin the incubation program played a crucial role in implementing NYSExpanded Volunteer Projects (EVP), contributing significantly to the targetof youth participation in the expanded volunteer program.Impact of the Program• At an individual level, participants received comprehensivetraining packages that included technical skills, professionaldevelopment, emotional intelligence, and patriotism. Thesetrainings aimed to prepare them for future employment andself-sufficiency.• At the community level, the NYS participants contributed to theirlocal economies and communities by engaging in various activitiessuch as waste removal, child safety, and food security programs.The presence of NYS participants helped raise awareness andsupport community initiatives.BRICS Youth:The NYDA held a successful inaugural meeting ofthe BRICS Youth Council in December 2023 whichapproved a strategy document for the term of officeof the Council. South Africa officially handed over theChair of BRICS and the Council to Russia.The Executive Chairpersons Office has established a BRICSSouth Africa Youth Chapter whose views will continue to feed intothe BRICS Youth Council.NYDAAmendment Bill• The NYDA Board and Management fully participated in theCommittee meetings for the NYDA Amendment Bill during thethird quarters which has ultimately resulted in recommendationsof the Bill to the National Assembly and the National Council ofProvinces. The Bill has been recommended by the NCOP and theBill has been sent to the President for signing into law. The NCOPSelect Committee has met with the Department of Women, Youthand Persons with Disabilities and has no fundamental challengeswith the bill.• The Board expresses its appreciation to management and all employeesfor their efforts, oversight and support in achieving satisfactoryperformance through another clean audit outcome. We look forward toa better year ahead as we place youth at the front and centre of theeconomic recovery.The impact would take into account a variety of elements, including theorganization’s original status, the effectiveness of interventions, andthe outcomes obtained. Through the survey conducted withGIZ, 15,6% of the respondents (NPOs) stated SARS education asmost valuable intervention. Half (50%) of the respondents statedthat they have a much more clear understanding of NYS afterparticipating in the incubation program.