Ramaphosa Abandoned by Key Support Base Over South Africa Policy Missteps
- South African executives say they’ve lost faith in government
- Foreign investors are dumping the nation’s bonds and currency
Cyril Ramaphosa
Photographer: Rajesh Jantilal/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has lost the confidence of a key constituency.
Five years after ushering in a wave of business optimism that he’d revive an economy hobbled by industrial-scale corruption under his predecessor, executives are running out of patience with the 70-year-old leader. Economic stagnation spawned by record daily power outages, rampant crime, disintegrating infrastructure and foreign policy missteps is leading investors to the exits, with the rand fast-approaching a record low of 20 per dollar.