Socio-Economic Impact Summit Forges Collective Transformation Avenues for South Africa’s Future
The inaugural Socio-Economic Impact Summit (SEIS) welcomed a successful launch on Monday, attended by a range of heavy hitting professionals, analysts, activists, government authorities and entrepreneurs - all game-changers in their field.
Held at The Maslow Hotel in Johannesburg, SEIS was backed by DP World, Brand South Africa and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE), while also partnering with W-Suite, Social TV, Good Governance Africa, Afrika Tikkun and the BrandFusion Foundation.
DP World’s Group Sustainability Executive, Rafiek Sharfuddin, in his keynote speech, which unpacked the conglomerate’s 2024 Sustainability Report, provided attendees with valuable insights into the sustainability of global supply chains.
Sara Hamouda, Continental Governance Officer at the African Union, addressed delegates as to the role of South Africa’s transformation in the journey towards achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs) in alignment with the AU’s Agenda 2063. Hamouda mentioned that “in the last ten years we can see that countries have been improving their National Development Plans,” and moreover that “South Africa is one of the most progressive countries [by ensuring it includes] SDGs in its National Development Plan.”
Keynote addresses were punctuated by four breakaway rooms, each focussing on discussions on different SDGs covering topics from environmental sustainability, economic growth, food security, funding for SMMEs and entrepreneurs, corporate-government partnerships and the role of AfCTA (African Continental Free Trade Area) in bolstering the continent’s global economic competitiveness.
Unemployment and job creation were two of the biggest themes that came out of the dialogues. These were particularly addressed in a breakaway room sponsored by Brand South Africa’s entrepreneurial initiative, Play Your Part Ignite, where business professionals provided insightful guidance to young aspiring entrepreneurs on how to grow their businesses, make valuable connections and seek sustainable funding.
Brand South Africa’s Acting CEO, Sithembile Ntombela, applauded the intent of the summit, asserting that “when we share platforms like this, we are able to come up with solutions that are going to be synchronised and integrated.” 30 Years into South Africa’s democracy, Ntombela said that citizens are playing their part in working towards achieving SDGs, but that there also needs to be more efficient measurement. This sentiment was expanded upon by former Minister of Social Development, Lindiwe Zulu, who noted that socio-economic transformation starts by “enabling citizens to be productive for prosperity”.
South African legend, Yvonne Chaka Chaka, delivered an impassioned speech on the role of humanitarianism in achieving SDGs, and particularly how much we undervalue kindness. She called upon youth to think about what their purpose is in transforming the world they live in, and to think about the steps they could make to engender such change.
The summit was coordinated and facilitated by ChangeHub. CEO and founder of ChangeHub, Katie Mohamed, summed up the intent of the event in a few powerful words: “We know that social impact equates to economic impact. And by bringing together people with the power to influence social impact we can pinpoint solutions that are mutually beneficial to both our people and our economy.”
The summit was well received by both delegates and speakers, and is just the start for the movement, which intends to be an annual event, holding captains of industry, activists, NGOs, government and corporate entities accountable for their roles in the socio-economic transformation in the country.
