An aggressive drive to
diversify South Africa’s
export markets is under way.
“Finding new markets and
exporting goods and services
is where we see real hope
for our industries,” Joan
Warburton-
McBride,
CEO of the
Johannesburg
Chamber of
Commerce
and Industry,
told FTW.
Several
workshops,
forums
and other
initiatives to
showcase new
markets to
business are being planned.
More importantly, said
Warburton-McBride, they
were not just looking at the
usual international markets
but were focusing on finding
markets that were not
traditionally targeted by
South African companies.
These include Vietnam,
Cambodia and Myanmar
as well as Indonesia,
Singapore, Thailand,
Philippines, Malaysia,
Laos and
Brunei, all
part of the
Association
of Southeast
Asian
Nations
(Asean).
“We
are also
looking at
Iran, Saudi
Arabia and
Pakistan,”
said
Warburton-McBride. “At
the heart of this drive to
grow exports is to keep
our companies and their
growth trajectory positive.”
She said a lot of effort
had gone into growing
the African market over
the past five years and on
the whole exports into the
continent had increased.
“We had a very strong
African focus and we
will continue to look at
the continent, but we
believe there are some real
opportunities in markets
that have been neglected
to date.”
She said Johannesburg’s
proximity to markets,
thanks to its connectivity
via OR Tambo
International Airport,
made it an extremely
viable option for exports
dependent on air.
“For the next
four months we are
concentrating very heavily
on getting more people into
the export market.”
Exporting was the
one lifeline to business
at present, she added.
“There is no question that
operating conditions at
the moment are harsh,
and the short- to mediumterm
outlook – particularly
for small to medium
enterprises – is not good.
The economy is not
growing and they are under
tremendous pressure.”
Warburton-McBride said
now more than ever these
businesses had to be exposed
to new opportunities.
INSERT & CAPTION
Finding new markets
and exporting goods
and services is where
we see real hope for
our industries.
– Joan Warburton-McBride
