A business delegation from the US led by Mayor of Atlanta, Andre Dickens, has pledged to strengthen the trade and investment bonds between Atlanta in Georgia and South Africa.

Speaking at the Trade and Investment Seminar as part of the Atlanta Phambili initiative yesterday, Dickens referenced global human rights icons Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela as part of the historical legacy that bound Atlanta to South Africa, saying what the delegation was aimed at was to “move forward together”.

“We have numerous economic synergies. In the same way that South Africa is the gateway to the rest of Africa, so Atlanta is the gateway to the rest of America. 80% of the US is within a 2-hour flight of Atlanta. We have a shared cultural DNA and that is why we can move forward together,” Dickens said.

US Ambassador to South Africa, Reuben Brigety, also amplified that message of working together, saying that both sides would benefit from the increasing trade and investment links between Atlanta and South Africa.

“This meeting will help to unlock the export opportunities from both sides. Atlanta is renowned for upscaling black businesses, while South Africa is the premier destination for African investment,” Brigety said.

Sim Tshabalala, the CEO of Standard Bank, said the Atlanta delegation was coming at the right time to invest in South Africa.

“You have come to South Africa, and to Africa, at absolutely the right moment. We are at start of the African century – by 2030, sub-Saharan Africa will be the fastest growing region in the world,” he said.

“But the continent is still overlooked as an investment destination – receiving just 4% of world total foreign direct investment last year.”

Tshabalala noted that African assets were still relatively cheap with a great deal of upside. He said that many places in Africa were growing even faster than the continental average. Kenya, for example, grows very steadily at around 5% a year, and is expected to keep growing at that pace for at least the next five years. Rwanda does even better, with growth hovering around 7% or better.

Africa’s major cities are also a very attractive growth story. For example, while Kenya’s economy grew at 5.1% on average over the past decade, Nairobi’s grew at 5.3%. Ghana grew at 7.1% over the same period, with Accra growing at 7.9%.

Tshabalala said these were cities full of avid and aspirational consumers.

“Another very attractive investment theme is the central African copper belt – as the US government and US investors are very much aware. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Zambia hold a large proportion of the minerals required for the energy transition including the world’s richest copper mines and 70% of the world’s cobalt reserves, he said.

“South Africa is also an important source of minerals that are essential to the energy transition. These include the platinum group metals, chrome and manganese, which are required along the supply chain for renewable energy, in hybrids and EVs, and in catalytic converters for internal combustion engines.”

Tshabalala noted that South Africa was a fully mature and stable democracy, with a very strong and reliable legal system.

“As I am sure you know, South Africa’s economy is just emerging from a very difficult period. But our current administration – which was elected in May - is rapidly and successfully executing the ambitious programme of structural reform that was started by the previous administration,” he said.

“Constraints to growth are being systematically removed, and the administration is determined to attract as much investment as we can. As bankers we can clearly see the economy starting to take off – for instance, we have just seen the numbers for Black Friday, and retail sales are strongly up.”

BUSINESS REPORT