BEE Partner, South Africa Economy Watch

Sun Tzu’s advice to make one’s position unassailable assumes critical proportions for an emerging nation like South Africa, faced with stiff global competition not only from the well-established and First World nations of the world, but also from other developing countries. The world’s more advanced and wealthy nations are deeply entrenched in the global system, and manipulate it for their own benefit. They virtually control it, and have often come under intense criticism for practising double standards, particularly in their application of such issues as, for example, international trade.’

Other emerging nations, as well as the poorer countries of the world, also want their slice of the global pie and their share of global resources. They too possess a desire to improve the standard of living of their citizens, thereby improving their position in the global (or at least their region’s) economic rankings. For any emerging nation to successfully play the globalisation game, there are a number of strategic principles, identified by Sun Tzu, that should be followed. Read the rest of this entry »

If South Africa wishes to become a highly successful emerging nation, one that can seriously challenge for position in the world economic rankings and have its business corporations develop _agreater sense of competitiveness, a change in strategic outlook at both government and corporate level is required. This aims to outline the kind of approach an emerging nation like South Africa needs in order to enhance its competitive prowess at both national and corporate level.

Before a home-grown business organisation in an emerging economy can achieve a higher level of competitiveness, the condition_sin that country have to be conducive to competitive thinking.’ Read the rest of this entry »

Wing says that, since the time of Sun Tzu, the major conflict experienced throughout the world has remained the same, namely the struggle for ideological supremacy and the control of resources.’ In nation-states, and especially in the current global environment, _competition takes place for people, materials, technology and/or financial resources. A key principle in making one’s position unassailable is for the government of the day to view its nation as a complete and interdependable entity, and to take steps to ensure it survives as such. Sun Tzu said that it is not individually, but altogether, as a single and complete entity, that the people of the world face survival or extinction.’ Read the rest of this entry »