Multinationals - Are They Leading The Way To Economic Freedom?

Diversity and Inclusion - Multinationals in SA

By Sinazo Mkoko

While there is there’s still a way to go on the transformation journey for the business sector in South Africa, in the words of former American president Harry S. Truman: “Progress occurs when courageous, skillful leaders seize the opportunity to change things for the better.” There are companies who are making progress in driving transformation in South Africa - and here we look at four multinationals making great strides in transforming the country’s economy.

Samsung

The incredible strides Samsung has made in supporting economic transformation in South Africa cannot be overstated. This is reflected not only in the company’s continued investment in the country or its Level 1 B-BBEE status “which is aligned with Samsung’s dedication to remain an active contributor to the future of the South African economy and strong supporter of economic transformation,” but also in initiatives that the company runs throughout South Africa which include empowerment, entrepreneurial and skills-based projects in the ICT sector in which it operates in.

The company states that its ten-year plan aims to address key developmental aspects linked to the National Development Plan and the overall transformation of the economy. The company says: “Samsung’s aim is to build on the landmark multimillionaire Equity Equivalent Investment Programme (EEIP), which is already celebrating over three years of sustained success. Launched in May 2019 in partnership with the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition (DTIC) and sector support from the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies (DCDT), the programme is expected to have a measurable impact on job creation with a projected contribution of over a billion rands to the South African economy at large.”

Vodacom

“We are serious about the transformation agenda and the development of South Africa and we won’t be deterred in our resolve to play an active role in moving South Africa forward by driving meaningful and sustainable transformation programmes to afford historically disadvantaged people the opportunity to participate in the mainstream economy.” So said the Chief Executive Officer of Vodacom South Africa, Shameel Joosub, following Vodacom’s achievement of Level 1 B-BBEE status for the fourth consecutive year in 2022.

Joosub said the achievement demonstrates the organisation’s strong commitment to the transformation agenda and is testament to its commitment towards the transformation of this economy. “For us at Vodacom, B-BBEE is not something we do to get points. As a company with deep local roots, we fully embrace transformation and its ideals which, among other things, aim to provide women with equal work opportunities so they can contribute meaningfully in the mainstream economy,” he said.

Unilever

To achieve a fairer and more socially inclusive world, Unilever believes that equality and equity are equally important.

It was in 2020 when Unilever established a Racial Equity Task Force with an aim to advance the representation of people of colour in its four leading markets: Brazil, South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States. Chief Transformation Officer & Chief People Officer, Nitin Paranjpe, says to be able to reach a place where “workplace opportunities are fair, just and equal, we need to take into account the different needs, cultural barriers and potential discrimination that specific groups may face in our business.”

The company says: “Our global and local HR teams are working together to remove bias from our talent management practices and processes so that, while we develop all our people, we can focus on equitably accelerating the progress of those from under-represented communities.” The company says while they are aware that there’s still a long way to go to be fully inclusive, real progress has been made. The company has made commitments to achieve by 2030 which include:

• Ensuring that everyone who directly provides goods and services to the company earns at least a living wage or income, by 2030.

• Spending €2-billion annually with suppliers owned and managed by people from under-represented groups, by 2025.

• Pioneering new employment models for employees, and equipping 10 million young people with essential skills to prepare them for job opportunities, by 2030.

MTN Group

The MTN Group is also making steady progress in contributing to the country’s economic growth. This is what the MTN Group saw in May 2022 when, for the first time ever, the group reached a major milestone in their work to create shared value by achieving, for the first time, Level 1 B-BBEE contributor status in South Africa.

MTN Group President and CEO, Ralph Mupita, said they were happy with the progress the organisation is making in driving broad-based transformation. “As MTN Group, we see the broad-based transformation and making socio-economic contributions to the markets we operate in as the key to our sustainability and creating shared value,” he said.

Sharing his sentiments, MTN SA CEO Charles Molapisi said, “In an environment of mounting economic challenges, we are pleased to be able to help create meaningful opportunities for South Africans. In 2022 we will work harder to provide a world-class Enterprise and Supplier Development Programme to deliver more sustainable solutions that are aligned to government’s efforts to speed up the inclusion of black-owned business in the mainstream economy [sic].”

Sources: Samsung | Unilever | MTN Group | Vodacom | Sanlam Gauge Report 2022