If we are intentional, and if we back key sectors with clear policies and bold investment, the next 30 years can and will look radically different
As the national dialogue wrestles with the question of South Africa’s future there is one unavoidable reality, and that is that our next 30 years cannot look like the last.
For too long, this country has relied on the comfort of our cultural strength and our minerals, as well as the belief that Africa is the next frontier. But forecasts from Absa showing 0.9% GDP growth in 2025, and the IMF estimating our growth will only increase to 1.8% by 2030, are a stark reminder that without bold action the story ahead is not one of growth but of stagnation.
South Africa has always had an entrepreneurial spirit, rooted in ubuntu and the belief that “I can, because we can.” That ethos has birthed businesses with global reach, but it is no longer enough.
Minerals powered our past, technology drives today’s global economy, yet Africa features nowhere among the giants of AI, cloud computing, robotics or cybersecurity. Once again, we risk watching the train leave the station and others defining our future.
We know this story all too well. During Covid we waited for hand-me-down vaccines, sometimes even expired ones. We paid the price for not investing in our own research and manufacturing sectors. The same fate awaits us in this new AI era if we do not act with intention and urgency.
Other nations, such as the US, have clear strategies and are leaps and bounds ahead. President Donald Trump has openly committed to leading the global AI race, with policies to back that ambition, but we lack the equivalent.
But it is not all doom and gloom. The rise of local fintech start-ups such as iKhokha and Bank Zero, both fetching handsome price tags of more than R1bn each, shows that South African entrepreneurs can build valuable companies when given the space to experiment and grow. These are sparks, but we need to ignite a fire.
Citizens are already asking where the next frontier of South Africa’s growth will come from. It won’t come from copy-pasting Silicon Valley, but from leaning into what makes us distinctly African. The growth opportunities that can define the next two decades for us are people, tourism, food security and renewable energy.
South Africa has the chance to really excel in these sectors. Our greatest resource is our youth, and programmes like The Youth Employment Service (YES) have demonstrated how the private sector can drive job creation. The next step is fostering youth entrepreneurship at scale, not just as workers, but as builders of the future.
Tourism is also a major plus. The world craves authentic experience, and no AI can replicate the warmth of South African hospitality or the richness of our landscapes. Tourism, paired with the creative industry, can be another engine of job creation, but only if it is supported with the right infrastructure.
South Africa has the spirit, the people and the potential. What it needs now is leadership that is unafraid to bet on the future
Then there is our beautiful land and climate, and the opportunity to be a breadbasket, not just for ourselves, but for the world. With climate change reshaping global agriculture, this is a strategic advantage we can no longer underutilise. South Africa is blessed with sun and wind, and our transition to clean energy is not just a climate imperative but a growth opportunity to power industry, create green jobs and lead the continent’s energy revolution.
Unlocking this potential requires two things.
First, investment in our people, especially the youth, who must take these opportunities to the world.
We also need to capitalise on the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) by removing the barriers that currently make it more difficult for African countries to trade with one another and easier to trade with Europe and Asia. Seamless, cross-border infrastructure for goods and services will unlock intra-African markets at a scale we have never seen.
If we are intentional, and if we back these sectors with clear policies and bold investment, the next 30 years can and will look radically different. Any business that anchors itself in these areas will not just survive, but thrive.
South Africa has the spirit, the people and the potential. What it needs now is leadership that is unafraid to bet on the future. We no longer need to be asking where the growth will come from, but instead whether we have the courage to build that growth. In my opinion, we do. But we need to get out of our own way.
• Mtwentwe is MD of Vantage Advisory and host of the SAICABiz Impact Podcast
