Time to walk the walk

In Zimbabwe, everyone is eagerly anticipating the elections, hopeful it will bring legitimacy to the government and pave the way for a flood of foreign investment. Elsewhere in Africa, much is being said about the need to boost intra-Africa trade and the need for Africans to do business for themselves. However, too often there is plenty of talk and little action. African governments regularly look to outside institutions and wait for them to kickstart their economies, instead of making the effort themselves. Companies follow suit. As one leading risk manager continually reiterates, the biggest risk is that of the missed opportunity, and Africa is littered with those. Is it now time to walk the walk, as well as talking the talk? There has been a wave of change, according to Control Risks, across southern Africa in particular. Could the new normal be one where African businesses to do more to help themselves and to encourage foreign investors? Sadly, some of those I speak to in London are giving up on Africa, saying they have spent years investing in the continent and seen little return. They don’t feel they win the support of local businesses and wonder why they bother. As yields return elsewhere, could Africa find it even harder to win support? That is a risk. We all know much is led from the top. If politicians continue to run things for themselves, lining their pockets at the expense of their countries, then what is likely to change? But the signs are good. Governments are being forced to change as people have greater access to outside news and realise it doesn’t have to be that way. Now it is time for business to step up too. Read the writing on the wall and start delivering. This is a huge generalisation, of course. There are plenty of great companies on the continent, delivering for their shareholders and also for their wider stakeholders. But Africa needs more of them. We shouldn’t be able to list the great firms on the fingers of one hand – there should be too many to count. As risk practitioners, some of that responsibility lands on your desk. Strong risk management and good governance enables companies to prosper and become great. Lead by example and encourage younger people in the team to have a new approach. People criticise millennials for not being hardworking or ambitious enough. But isn’t that a reaction to what they see going on – too many people taking personal advantage and not building anything beyond their own bank balance? Risk mangers are increasingly becoming enterprise risk managers, taking a more holistic view of their business and the economy. This should provide a new opportunity to make a difference and encourage everyone to deliver on what they are saying, instead of continually just talking about it. As I write, risk managers and their insurers have been negotiating the all-important 1 July renewals. The past few months have seen changes and it will be interesting to see what comes out of these renewals. Anecdotally, much of the change seems to be centred on property risks and those insured in South Africa, with little contagion into other classes of insurance business. Later this month, the southern African insurance market professionals will gather in Sun City for the insurance industry’s annual conference. It will be extremely interesting to hear how these 1 July renewals played out and what challenges risk managers will face in transferring their risks in the coming months. In the meantime, we will be in Botswana for our annual southern African seminar. I look forward to meeting many of you there and hearing first-hand about the key risks you and your businesses are facing. Liz Booth Managing editor

Time to walk the walk

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