The Chief Executive of one of South Africa's leading local technology companies has urged other local manufacturers to support the South Africa First campaign and "work together to jointly increase the competitiveness and share of tender awards for local brands".
According to Arnold Fourie, CEO of black empowered ICT distributor, Pinnacle Micro, local manufacturers and brands need to actively lobby for "level playing field" procurement so they can benefit from the estimated R1 billion per week in "infrastructure boom tenders" being spent on products and services.
Pinnacle Micro was one of the first IT companies to become members of South Africa First. Fourie said there was a "misplaced conception" that the new organisation has been set up in competition with Proudly South African (PSA) - "and this conception is to the detriment of the intentions behind the new drive, which will actually complement the work of Proudly South African".
Fourie's statement follows comments that South Africa First could compete with Proudly South African. The South Africa First campaign was set up to encourage government departments, state-owned enterprises and businesses to include local content preference in tenders, and will run competitions and projects to promote local design, manufacture and competitiveness.
The first IT sector members of South Africa First are Proline and Mecer, two of the largest local PC brands. A number of other public and private sector organisations are planning to join the campaign. Fourie said only about 40% of computers sold in South Africa are assembled locally. The remainder are imported.
"If government, alone, bought locally-assembled computers, this country would be in a position to create another 10 000 jobs. So it is a mystery to me why so many computers sold locally are imported. We have some very good brands available locally," he said.
Detractors, however, believe the South Africa First campaign will cause confusion in the marketplace - and will compete with PSA. "It is true that there have been some questions raised about the effectiveness of the PSA's 'buy South African campaign', but this is not why South Africa First was launched. The organisation has not been set up to compete. It has been set up to lobby for locally-owned member producers, in the spirit of participatory democracy - and to instil a more positive mindset.
"Just from an ICT point of view, increasing the number of locally assembled computers being sold locally will be a 'quick win' for job creation. A 40% penetration rate is not good at all - there is significant room for improvement. Besides saving costs, the government and corporate companies will be supporting the local industry; and this is the rationale behind SA First. This is why Pinnacle Micro is a member."
SA First is headed by PSA's former CE, Martin Feinstein, who has pointed out to the press - and to detractors - that it is the intention of the new organisation to actively lobby on behalf of its members to level the playing field and to encourage the better uptake of "made in SA" brands across all industry sectors, not just in IT.
"We must not get bogged down in politics here," said Fourie, noting that the Department of Trade and Industry had responded positively to the idea. "We understand that PSA was launched in 2001 by the National Economic Development and Labour Council (Nedlac) to assist with local demand - and to grow the local economy. So it is all about economic growth here - and if SA First can assist with this, then there should be broad-based encouragement, not dissention and rancour."
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