Star 2023-08-23

SOUTH Africa is hosting the summit of BRICS leaders at a time when the global economy is going through a period of challenge and opportunity. The BRICS nations matter. Together, they account for almost one third of the world’s gross domestic product (GDP). In 2023, their share of the global economy overtook the share of the Group of Seven (G7). Of course, the BRICS are a more diverse set of countries than the G7, which is essentially a grouping of democratic, free-market Western countries plus Japan. However, what the BRICS nations have in common is a strong aspiration to become developed countries in the very near future. This must be leveraged. Economic growth is the key to prosperity. The way forward may be different from what it was in…

IN ORDER FOR businesses to fully take advantage of the opportunities provided by South Africa being part of BRICS and Africa, several infrastructure challenges have to be overcome, which the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) could help solve. This was according to Wamkele Mene, who is the secretary general of the AfCFTA Secretariat, who was speaking at a panel discussion on BRICS in Africa: Unlocking opportunities through AfCFTA, hosted by the BRICS Business Council at the 15th BRICS Summit in Johannesburg yesterday. The panel members were Gugulethu Mfuphi, who was the moderator, Mene, Stavros Nicolaou of South Africa, Angelo Oselame of Brazil, Mikhail Makarov of Russia, Onkar Kanwar of India and Tongzhou Wang of China. Mene said the AfCFTA could provide the tools to make Africa globally competitive to…

INAUGURAL chairperson of the BRICS Business Council, Patrice Motsepe, has called for the fast-tracking the visa process for BRICS countries. Speaking at the BRICS Summit held in Sandton, Motsepe said business people who want to do business in these countries should be given preferential treatment. ‘’We understand that there are legitimate concerns about making sure that governments maintain the sovereign control of who comes in and who comes out. ‘’We don’t just agree with that, we support it as well, but as these are some of the low-hanging fruit, we can immediately give preferential access to businesspeople from China, India, Brazil, and from Russia, give them visas that allow them to come in and look at opportunities in South Africa, and on the continent,” he said. Motsepe said what was…

AS SOUTH Africa hosts the 15th BRICS Summit from August 22 to 24, the focus turns to the collaboration on and improvement of copyright law in music among the BRICS nations. This pivotal gathering provides an opportunity to address the lack of synergies in copyright legislation and the ongoing exploitation of women in the music industry within the individual BRICS countries. The BRICS nations have long been recognised as global economic power- houses, but their music industries face challenges due to the absence of harmonised copyright laws. Each country operates under its own legal framework, copyright durations and licensing mechanisms, creating complexities and hindrances for artists seeking international collaborations. By working together to align copyright legislation, the BRICS nations can unlock new avenues for artistic partnerships while protecting the intellectual…

AS THE GLOBAL community rallies to combat the pressing challenges posed by climate change, the role of local governments cannot be underestimated. In the context of South Africa, municipalities stand at the forefront of the battle for a more sustainable future. The Just Energy Transition (JET), a key element of this endeavour, hinges upon the effective mobilisation of climate finance to ensure that municipalities can transition to cleaner and more resilient energy systems. The Presidential Climate Commission seeks to explore, through various interventions in partnerships with our metros, cities and towns, the pivotal role that South African municipalities must play in the just energy transition, highlighting the need for climate finance flows into these entities, while addressing the challenges they currently face in accessing and utilising climate finance. These challenges…

IN HIS ADDRESS to the University of Witwatersrand’s Business School on August 17, 2023, Minister of Mineral Resources and Energy, Gwede Mantashe, reaffirmed that nuclear energy will be part of South Africa’s mixed energy strategy. His remarks are in line with the 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) that specifies an additional 2.5GW of nu- clear power “at a pace and scale that the country can afford, because it is a no-regret option”. The 2.5GW of nu- clear power should ideally be proportioned between a traditional pressure water reactor (PWR) and Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) as they become available within the next decade. A new PWR will provide affordable baseload electricity and desalinated water to our coastal cities. Two sites have already been identified for construction, Thyspunt in the Eastern Cape…