Saaff to work ‘constructively’ with government

THE EFFICIENCY of trade is critical to the success of business in South Africa and it is encouraging that Government recognises this and is taking positive steps in this regard, says newly appointed Saaff (South African Association of Freight Forwarders) chairman, Philip Womersley. “South Africa has a very open economy so the percentage of our Gross Domestic Product that is traded is extremely high. Compared to the USA for example, our imports and exports are significantly higher when expressed as a percentage of GDP. US manufacturers, conversely, largely serve US consumers. Womersley says the board intends to work constructively with the relevant Government authorities on a number of critical issues. “There is an enormous amount of change taking place, particularly relevant to Customs procedures, which affects not only our members but the whole country. For example, the way entries are passed on sea freight has huge ramifications. The relative strength of the rand in the past year or so is another challenge to exporters and has caused an import boom.” The change in structure of Saaff has been a long time coming, says Womersley. SAAFF’s previous regional structure worked well for regional issues but began to be less effective when faced with national major challenges.