SA is sliding down the global brand rankings. It’s not hard to see why.-MY FRIEND SOLLY MOENG

[Nat Quinn]

SA is sliding down the global brand rankings. It’s not hard to see why. Interviewers often ask at the onset of media interviews, “What does this mean for South Africa’s brand?” This question usually follows a major incident involving a government announcement, e.g., the strange, recent Cabinet reshuffle of sorts, a crime incident that made internal headlines, South Africa’s sovereign credit rating being downgraded by one or all three of the global credit ratings agencies – Fitch, Moody’s, or S&P – or the recent greylisting by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). Sometimes one gets the impression that interviewers fail to connect the dots that link all these incidents and, instead, treat them as standalone events. Not only are they connected, but they also indicate an evolution, a worsening situation that, at best, further erodes destination brand reputation and, at worst, relegates brand South Africa to a much lower ranking in the global list of attractive destination brands. The final culmination is the same. According to the 2023 nation brand rankings, South Africa features at number 45, down from 44 in 2022 and certainly even further down from what it used to be in earlier years. It had all the ingredients to sit in the top 10 of this ranking soon after the advent of the new democracy up to the late 2000s. But all the reputational credits have been eroded by own goals, thanks to bad leadership and a seemingly deliberate, malicious, straying from the core values of the country’s brand promise, enshrined in its founding documents. Nation Brands 121 2023 | Brand Value Ranking League Table | Brandirectory This worsening state of affairs cannot only be convincingly addressed by beautifully crafted messages and opinion pieces crafted and published by the agencies helping government tell the world that things are not as bad as they look, repeating the tiring, discredited, claim that ‘South Africa is open for business’. Sadly, the evidence of this “being open for business” claim is being eroded on a daily basis. South Africans at home and in the vast diaspora cannot be fooled by superficial public relations messages that only further enrich conniving, entrepreneurial, spin doctoring agencies, nor can the world be fooled. What is needed is honest acknowledgement and convincing action by the authorities – starting with the president, who is the de facto CEO of South Africa Inc. – that steps are being taken without fear or favour to ensure that the well-being of the country and all its citizens is prioritised ahead of narrow political machinations. Immediate post-apartheid South Africa carried much promise for those South Africans who chose to remain in place and be part of the unfolding dream, as well as countless others who moved to South Africa to be part of what they saw as a rainbow nation in a truly beautiful country, rich in human, cultural, floral, faunal, and oceanic diversity. Many others were drawn there from countries led by repressive regimes of all kinds by the promises held in South Africa’s much celebrated Constitution and Bill of Rights. This included people in the broad LGBTQI+ community, whose basic rights were denied in their own African, European, Asian, and other far-away countries, rights that the newly unpacked South Africa enshrined in its founding documents and promised to protect and enhance. The people are the brand The credibility of South Africa’s nation brand has always resided in its people, South Africans and others who moved there to adopt the country as their new home, irrespective of their countries of origin. They, more than promotional messages from government’s marketing agencies – for which there is a role to play, of course – were the ones who lived the brand and informed its flavours through their hospitality, the music, diverse cultures, the rich culinary influences, and the stories they told, unprompted, to outsiders they encountered at home and abroad. The word-of-mouth by tourists to South Africa who return to relate their positive South African stories to family, friends, and other loved ones back in their home countries, can also not be under-valued. No monetary value can be allocated to such an organic way of positioning any destination brand. Over the years, however, as state capture and everything it entailed took hold, including the opportunity cost of all the trillions of rands diverted from public coffers into the pockets of criminals often linked to politicians, as well as other forms of ongoing corruption, the positive attitudes of South Africans vis-à-vis the country began to erode. In many cases, what remains of what used to be natural positivity is feigned positivity, as many, understandably, fear losing what they still believe is the only thing they’re left with, hope. This is unsustainable. A pained, robbed, abused, misled citizenry cannot be relied upon to provide credible evidence that should buttress marketing messages from government spokespersons and agencies. So, a shift over time from more reliance on organic positive messages from citizens and visitors to a reliance on spin by those paid to produce rosy messages related to it is not the way to go. It is hard to believe that the South African authorities do not know what pains South Africans and what authentic steps they must take to correct the situation. Let’s help them with a few of such steps: Deal honestly and transparently with reported incidents of corruption, irrespective of who is alleged to be behind such corruption. Action all recommendations contained in the Zondo Commission Report on State Capture, including making those already occupying positions in government and other state institutions, including foreign affairs missions, step aside and get their names cleared before they can be considered again. Amend policies that racially discriminate against minorities. Implement economic policies that will, over time, create a more enabling investment and business environment and reduce the need for too many citizens relying on government grants for sustenance. Get rid of alleged corruption in the criminal justice system. Do more to diversify sources of energy, prioritising cleaner sources, to increase electricity generation, transmission, and distribution to eliminate power cuts, etc. The list could be longer, of course, but starting with the implementation of the above measures would ensure that more credible reasons are created to bring back citizen positivity about the country. Positive citizens at home would also lead to a positive South African diaspora and better global support for South Africa’s tourism and investment promotional efforts around the world. This would also, by extension, lead to a more nurturing environment for a credibly rooted destination brand, not one relying on costly, yet misleading, government spin.

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