There is a lack of cooperation between the public and private sectors in implementing policy directives in South Africa, said panellists at a seminar hosted by emerging markets advisory firm Frontier Advisory on Thursday. The seminar reflected on the impressions and outcomes of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Africa’s summit, held recently in Cape Town.

Frontier Advisory CEO Martyn Davies said that economic growth on the African continent was not moving fast enough, due mainly to poor policy implementation owing to a lack of cooperation between the various sectors of society.

He said that it was ironic that it took an international organisation, the WEF, to facilitate corporate and government dialogue and interaction. This illustrated the disconnection between business and government, he added.

Africa Worldwide Media executive director Tumi Mkgabo expressed her frustration at the lack of action that results from forums such as the WEF. She argued that the forum runs the danger of being labelled a talk shop due to it lacking any solid implementation mechanism on resolutions made by delegates.

She also called for a greater emphasis on skills development, arguing that education was imperative to creating opportunity on the African continent and key to driving employment and economic growth.

Business prosperator Raizcorp CEO Allon Raiz welcomed an emphasis on small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). He particularly lauded the comments made by South Africa’s National Planning Minister Trevor Manuel, who argued that the development of SMEs were integral in creating opportunity in Africa.

Raiz argued that it was important for government to remove barriers that discourage SMEs to grow and to promote a regulatory environment that allows them to create economic headway and ease the continents burgeoning unemployment problem.