12 March 2010
	QUESTIONS & ANSWERS Investment stable SA's largest business delegation went with president Jacob Zuma to the UK last week. Business Unity SA CEO Jerry Vilakazi spoke to Prakash Naidoo

Why did so many business people (216) accompany the president? Many factors came into play, most notably the strategic importance of the UK as a partner in Europe. On the state visit to Angola last year, 170 business people accompanied the president and we are still reaping the benefits. The success of that trip made this one especially attractive. The UK is the gateway to Europe and most of the major institutions are located in London. Four out of five SA investments in Europe are in the UK and for the British, doing business with SA gives them access to the Southern African Development Community region. Jerry Vilakazi This was not only about British companies coming here, but also about SA companies that want to do business in the UK. Are you satisfied with the outcome? Very. We met 240 British companies and we hear the Confederation of Business Industries, our UK counterpart, had to limit the number of British companies wanting to meet us. We came away with a number of concrete commitments with excellent opportunities for various sectors - investment in the rail sector; sharing and developing new technologies, especially in mining; commitments in ICT; youth and skills training, energy, financial services; and health. Did the reports on Zuma's personal life affect your meetings? It was unfortunate the British media missed the substance of the visit. So much was achieved but never reported because of the focus on the peripheral non-issues. It never impacted on meetings with our counterparts. How did these reports affect the image SA wants to project to the world? This is something all South Africans have to consider. We all need to take responsibility for the goodwill we extend to the rest of the world and the kind of image we project. When we as Business Unity SA reflect on the visit, there were some areas in which we were let down, and government could have done a much better job in getting a more positive message across. Was there scepticism? Thankfully, our meetings and discussions never went into the tabloid reports. But there were serious questions around economic policy, the volatility of the rand and nationalisation. They wanted assurances about British investments and also asked about the service delivery protests and the Zimbabwe situation. By the end of the week, I believe, they had a good idea about the challenges we face in SA, such as the high unemployment, low skills levels and the issue of youth unemployment. But they also accept that SA remains a stable economy for British investment.