TO: PRINT AND ELECTRONIC MEDIA HOUSES
FROM: KGANKI MATABANE
DATE: 28 March 2020
SUBJECT: THE BBC CALLS ALL SOCIAL PARTNERS TO RALLY TOGETHER IN THE WAKE OF THE DOWNGRADE BY MOODY’S
The Black Business Council (BBC) calls on all social partners to rally together in the wake of the downgrade by Moody’s. This follows the decision by Moody’s to downgrade South Africa’s long-term foreign and local currency debt ratings to ‘Ba1’ from ‘Baa3’. South Africa’s credit ratings by Moody’s are now one notch below investment grade.
The downgrade will impact SA negatively in that the sovereign downgrade will further see South Africa being excluded from the FTSE World Government Bond Index (WGBI). The interest rate for government, households and the broader economy is also expected to increase as a result.
The decision by Moody’s could not have come at a worse time when the country is fighting to contain Covid-19.
The BBC is of the view that the solution to revive and fix the South African economy could be found in us focusing inwardly and internally for economic reforms. We should support localisation by prioritising procurement of goods and services from local companies, channel our investments into Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) and encourage local manufacturing through strong procurement policies.