RONAK GOPALDAS: Tough times need less policy fiddling and more precision
THE current macroeconomic environment has complicated life for many countries in Africa. External dynamics have put pressure on commodity prices, and consequently Africa’s growth prospects. Though the external environment is largely beyond their control, African governments are deepening the crisis with frequent regulatory changes and uncertainty about policy direction.Such domestic "own goals" are avoidable. But irrational, haphazard policy decisions in a number of countries, such as SA, Nigeria and Zambia, have left local and foreign investors confused, and business struggling to cope with an already volatile economic climate.As Manji Cheto, senior vice-president at Teneo Intelligence, a London-based risk consultancy, notes: "During periods when the economic fundamentals are weakening, it is right that people expect government response to be measured and guided by economic pragmatism — after all, the ability to maintain market confidence becomes one of the very few things within t...
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