Mandla Mandela undermines President’s Investment agenda
12 May 2022
With rising interest rates, lack of economic growth, and high levels of joblessness, our country needs desperately to increase investment. During the recent Investment Summit, President Cyril Ramaphosa highlighted the critical state the South African economy is in, coming out of the Covid-19 Pandemic.
Despite the dire need for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), Mandla Mandela took the opportunity, not to encourage the President's efforts or perhaps use his grandfather's legacy as a world-renowned statesman to promote South Africa, instead, Mandla Mandela took the opportunity to further isolate South Africa and align our countries foreign policy in terms of outdated, cold war politics.
Mandla Mandela is sabotaging South Africa’s FDI and job creation prospects by isolating South Africa and calling for increased boycotts of Israel. Israel could provide South Africa with not only technology in the sectors of agriculture, water, cybersecurity, and innovation but also the means to improve these sectors with the assistance of Israeli know-how.
The president paid particular attention to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and how crucial it is for South Africa’s economy to improve. International Investment in South Africa can provide job opportunities, skills development, and improved quality of life for South Africa’s citizens. Investment should be a priority topic for all South Africans to help improve our economic indicators. World Bank Data shows FDI in South Africa accounts for only 1% of our GDP. This has been in a steady decline over the last two decades. A reversal in this trend is desperately in need. Therefore, President Ramaphosa began this initiative for increased investment.
Mandla Mandela and his Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement have opposed this initiative when it comes to Israel, calling instead for boycotts of the country. He told a recent meeting of the National Association of Manufacturers: “We call on all producers and exporters of perishable food products to boycott Apartheid Israel as long as the regime continues its occupation of Palestinian land.” His movement also held a protest outside the President’s investment conference.
Mandla Mandela’s global politics are an unfortunate renunciation of his grandfather Nelson Mandela's human rights-centred focus. He is an open apologist of the Russian invasion of Ukraine echoing the Moscow line that the war was caused by “Neo-Nazis” from Ukraine. He is also wrong about Israel which is the only democracy in the Middle East and where all citizen's rights, Jewish and Arab, are protected. What's more, he is happy to oppose Israel even when it could lead South Africa to be disadvantaged.
All economic indicators display that bi-lateral trade and relations between Israel and South Africa will benefit South Africa far beyond the usual metrics of FDI. This is what Mandla Mandela is attempting to prevent. Mandla is working against the interests of the South African population.
Israeli companies can provide South Africa with job opportunities, skills development, and technology desperately needed in our country. Israel is one of South Africa's top export trading partners in the Middle East. This includes diamonds, fertilizer, and manufactured machine parts. Israeli tech is especially well used in our agriculture sector where its world-famous expertise supports farmers to plant, water, grow, monitor, harvest, and move production to the tables of South Africans and others around the world. Another area is water: Israel has succeeded in creating a safe, secure water supply despite being a desert country. Water is an acute challenge in South Africa and the safety of water in several municipalities is already critically at risk.
Mandela's recklessness in opposing South Africa's investment drive is further enhanced when one considers the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA). This legislation gives South African companies preferential access to American markets. When this agreement comes up for renegotiation any boycotts of Israel would certainly be a factor in us retaining our participation. This is due to the United States already recognising the potential that working with Israel has. The United States usually does not approve of unjustified and erratic hostility towards Israel. It is time for Mandla Mandela’s nonsensical stance and his boycott against Israel to be ignored and for all South Africans to rally around the President's investment drive.
Issued by Dylan Stein, Researcher, South African Zionist Federation, 12 May 2022
