French businesses have decided to stop further investments in SA until government implements desperately needed reforms to provide a stable and competitive operating environment.
“French companies chose to hold off on committing to additional investments at the 2023 South Africa Investment Conference as business leaders are eager to see material improvements around energy stability, logistics efficiencies, port competitiveness, anti-corruption measures, and an improved investor visa application process,” said Sébastien de Place, president of the French Foreign Trade Advisor in SA and a partner at Mazars.
In the meantime, while SA grapples with its plethora of ills from Transnet to Eskom to enormous unemployment, countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, Egypt, Ghana, and Nigeria are developing faster through more favourable policies and attracting French attention as better potential investment destinations, according to De Place.
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