GENERAL NEWS
From the MD’s desk
By Sandy Kelly
Covid-19 and the
effects on our business
“My last quarter’s message came from the comfort of my veranda at
home during lockdown postulating how Covid 19 would affect our
business, our industry and us personally at TIME Projects.
There is no end to the consequences, the strategies to cope by governments
and health authorities as well as how to manage or treat the disease from
every expert around the world, so I don’t even wish to volunteer anything on
that front, except what we are seeing in real life around us.
We see a vibrant exuberance amongst our staff who have all returned
to the office - couldn’t wait for that spirit of camaraderie (observing all
the protocols of course); our associates, tenants and clients displaying
similar enthusiasm to get the show back on the road - not only for
economic reasons but because that is what we do. Elsewhere in the
world, there are communities that seem to be happy to sit at home while
the government picks up the bills and our neighbours who continue to
loot and pillage rather than seek productive ways to live and contribute.
Our team has excelled during these last few months.”
That was the introduction to my latest quarterly report which I started
writing prior to this latest two-week lockdown. Since then, we have all
taken another knockdown. How many more rounds can we all go in the
ring? Will we make it through the full 15 rounds or will the referee count
some of us out, effectively a TKO (technical knock-out for those not familiar
with boxing terminology), or will some ‘throw in the towel’ (also a TKO by
the way) and who will be there at the final bell to fight another bout?
Our metal is being severely tested at this time. All we can do is be as
tough as we can; draw on all our hidden resources and resilience;
those who are as fortunate as ourselves with immensely strong team
spirit and support for each other, including all our associates, tenants,
financiers, shareholders and the public at large with due consideration
to everyone’s plight will have the best chance. It will be a long haul
back but we are convinced that we will emerge stronger than before.
No doubt by now, many of us had the experience of losing a close one
to this dreaded disease – we cannot take it lightly.
What’s our outlook for the short and medium term in the
local property space?
• Contrary to some people’s beliefs, we don’t see a massive switch to
working remotely, so offices will not become abandoned.
• In any event, there is only so much work that gets done in the office.
So much is done outside – you can’t manufacture from home or build a
new building or mine from home – all these must continue as before.
• Especially in our relatively developed but also undeveloped economy and
communities – the vast majority of the population does not have access to
internet and technology to work or school from home – this applies to the
whole of Africa – despite the government’s ERP to get digital education
up and running as a priority – is that really going to happen, and at what
cost, in the near future? The idea is nice, but is it realistically achievable?
• Are we all now hooked on Amazon, Alibaba, Takealot, etc? Well, if
you are in the UK, USA, Europe, Japan and parts of China, even the
major cities in SA maybe, but probably only for the top 5% to 10% of
the population? So – not likely to happen here anytime soon and even
so, not to the extent that our retail industry will be compromised for
many years to come.
• Residential property will be drastically affected as people already have
less income and depleted reserves; banks are under severe strain as they
have had to provide credit relief to almost everyone; valuations will be
negatively affected; banks will be more cautious and loan-to-values are
already being reduced, increasing the number of distressed properties.
We would recommend making every effort to reign in whatever
unnecessary expenses one has and reschedule loan repayments with your
bank to retain your lifelong, most important asset (apart from your own lives).
Apart from all of that, there is not much else to say for now. The one
word which we have learnt to appreciate more than ever before since
the start of the first lockdown and more so now is ‘patience’ – it now has
a totally enhanced perspective. We also all have to make do with less.
Take care and stay safe.
ABOUT TIME, the quarterly
newsletter of Time Projects
Editor: Brett Marlin
Managing editor: Faye-Marie Cloete
Email: [email protected]
Cell: +267 7137 6232
Contributors: Brett Marlin, Heinrich Malan,
Mmika Selei, Tapiwa Modise, Mike Hughes, Roy
Mapharing, Funkie Moroka and Kagiso Sebetso
Tel: +267 395 6080 | Fax: +267 390 0160 | Email: [email protected] | Website: www.time.co.bw
ABOUT TIME is published on behalf of Time Projects by Nova Communications (Pty) Ltd.
The opinions expressed in this newsletter are those of the authors and people interviewed and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editor, publisher or Time Projects. While all
precautions have been taken to ensure accuracy of information, the editors and publisher cannot accept responsibility for any inaccuracies which may inadvertently have occurred.
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ISSUE 43 - AUGUST 2020