WITH MUCH OF the world’s attention currently focused on Nigeria and the violent outbursts of Boko Haram, the short-term and longer- term decision making of President Goodluck Jonathan and his closest advisors will be the toughest test administration has ever faced. The increased violence, which has left thou- sands dead, is serving as the primarily de-stabilizing force that is now directly impacting on the nation’s economy. For the most part, foreign investment is still in tact, but there are growing concerns that the violence must be stemmed and prevented from spreading, or some of that investment capital may soon leave the country.

Meanwhile, the new governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, recently unveiled his agenda on a five-year plan. Financial system stability, promoting sustainable development and implementing a gradual reduction in interest rates, top his list of priorities, as would be expected.

In South Africa, The Business Confidence Index declined by 3.7 index points from April to 88.9 in May. There still seems to be a lot of businesses concerned about the ANC’s policy plans despite a recent resounding victory in the national election. On a month-on-month basis in May, the municipal services, imports, exports and construction sub-indices showed gains. Vehicle sales, retail sales and real private sector borrowing however pulled back on a month on-month basis.

In this edition of TABJ we provide an insightful look into some extraordinarily successful enterprises, including: Econet Wire- less Zimbabwe; Hilti, one of South Africa’s largest construction and technical engineering companies; Namibia Construction; and Unipro of Kenya, capitalising on the potential oil boom.

Angus Gillespie