President Cyril Ramaphosa has defined his new Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment Advisory Council as ‘landmark’, ‘historic’ and ‘a game-changer’.

Speaking at the launch of the council on Tuesday (5 July), Ramaphosa said the group will be responsible for guiding the trajectory of B-BBEE and transformation efforts in South Africa, following years of slow economic growth and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He added that the council will be specifically responsible for:

  • Reviewing progress around B-BBEE;
  • Advising on the Draft Codes of Good Practice that the minister of Employment and Labour will be publishing for public comment;
  • Reviewing sector charters;
  • Providing advice on draft transformation charters such as the Draft Legal Services Charter that will soon be published for public comment.

“When we speak about the next frontier we are talking about a new vision for B-BBEE; that builds on successes, that learns from shortcomings, and that is both agile and adaptive in response to the realities of the national and global economies.

“In this year’s state of the nation address, I called for a new consensus to achieve higher rates of economic growth, social transformation and advance common prosperity. Consolidating B-BBEE  is one of the aspects such a consensus will rely upon. There can be no growth without economic inclusion. There can be no inclusive recovery and reconstruction unless B-BBEE is at the center of our efforts.”

Ramaphosa added that the council will assist the government to enhance the implementation of B-BBEE and associated policy such as the Codes of Good Practice, the Sector Charters, and recent instruments like the DTIC’s Black Industrialists Programme and Worker Ownership requirements.

He added that the council is made up of several experienced businesspeople, including people with experience in state-owned enterprises, private companies, SMME’s, to public procurement, to serving as regulators on B-BBEE, competition and trade policy.

“I have no doubt that this expertise will be brought to bear as you undertake your work, in collaboration with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition and other departments.

“Next year we will mark 20 years since the promulgation of B-BBEE legislation. As we journey towards this occasion, we want to see the council at the forefront of advocacy campaigns, especially to counter negative narratives that are gaining traction around B-BBEE.”


Read: 3 load shedding scenarios for South Africa – and why CEOs have sent an urgent letter to Ramaphosa