Banker S.A. September 2012 | Page 25

BANKING SUMMIT Andre Smit, ASISA: ‘All stakeholders involved in the NDP need to regulate stability and promote healthy investing.’ ture linkages and connectedness, present new markets for the provision of trade financing, banking platforms and transaction services for regional business subsidiaries and deal financing between South African enterprises and their regional counterparts. One cannot help but note that generally, the political tone has been one of an aversion to financing with stringent conditions such as those associated with the structural adjustment programmes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. Many infrastructure projects have both a social and a commercial component, and therefore require a hybrid financing approach. Therefore, the optimal financing structure needs to be tailored on a case by case basis to fit the specific nature of the infrastructure project. The same applies to the repayment model. Government should provide first-mover guarantees, or fund the first stages of riskier projects so as to attract the banking sector into subsequent phases of a project. The more government can address private sector concerns, the more money will flow in. However, government also needs to ensure that the private sector comes in on a proper developmental basis. This means localising production wherever possible. Panel discussions held throughout the day explored the key areas where the banking industry and government could plan and work together towards a common goal to alleviate the three ills facing our nation, which are unemployment, poverty and inequality. ‘It is now the appropriate time to form partnerships with clear roles so we can use the National Development Plan to achieve sustainable growth and development for our people,’ said Nxasana. He described South Africa as a young and vibrant economy with enormous opportunities and challenges that can only be addressed through platforms like the Banking Summit. The deputy minister said some of the projects are still in the implementation stages while others such as housing, railways, new hospitals and universities are already underway. ‘In order for this plan to succeed, we need the corporation of all Edition 3 THE BANKER 23