opportunity away from South Africa.
In conclusion
Although the developments around Brexit
may be introducing a lot of uncertainty, it also brings with it the potential to open up new
opportunities which otherwise may not have
happened. However, only in being pro-active
and forward thinking can business decision
makers and policy makers potentially capitalise on this potential opportunity. During the
next two years it will be crucial for South African agricultural entrepreneurs and related
supporting organisations such as producers’
and industry forums and export councils to
understand as well as influence (where possible) the developments around agricultural
and trade policy developments resulting from
the Brexit to position South African agricultural exports. Only then will the South African
agricultural sector be able to leverage from
this potential change in the global trade envi-
ronment. The same argument also holds for
potential developments from the EU-market
side.
The TRADE research entity specialises in the
fields of international trade and economic development and Prof Wilma Viviers, director of
TRADE, holds a Chair in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) Chairs Programme. For
more information on TRADE’s activities see
http://www.nwu.ac.za/trade
TRADE Research Advisory (Pty) Ltd, which is
TRADE’s commercial advisory arm and a spinout company of the NWU, provides strategic
and practical assistance to government entities and business concerns in how to optimise
their regional or global presence, from the
perspective of economic development and/or
export expansion. For more information on
TRADE Advisory’s activities see http://
www.tradeadvisory.za