Page 50 - SM Aug-Sep-2014

Global VillaGe Far left: The imposing Taj Mahal, now a World Heritage Site, is one of the iconic symbols of India Left: Mumbai’s airport is managed by the Airports Company South Africa (Acsa) The SA-India link India has Some SA businesses have already failed to build Several businesses have already tentatively explored the Indian market, its industries among them SA Breweries, Sanlam, FirstRand, De Beers and restaurant/ cocktail bar chain News Café. The latter around 4,5%, in part due to pessimism has franchises in Delhi, Hyderabad and about the government’s commitment to Mumbai catering to the large expatriate Betting on has now placed its hopes in new Prime (Acsa) and Bidvest group have, since further economic reforms. The country community. The Airports Company South Africa Minister, Narendra Modi, who has 2006, held a 30-year concession promised to create jobs and attract the billion: investment to grow the largely free- to manage and upgrade Mumbai’s market economy. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, According to Britain’s Financial Times, while giant media company Naspers owns can India fulfil “the country needs to create nearly an online travel business called Ibibo. one million jobs each month merely to employ young citizens reaching working age – let alone to clear the backlog its potential? of unemployed and underemployed youths, or provide for those migrating en masse from farms to cities.” Part of the problem, according to the respected newspaper, is India’s failure to build its While India poses HE SCALE AND LOgISTICS from around the globe looking potential. “Despite a couple of bouts industries, making it a net importer of involved in India’s recent general many marketing Telections drew the world’s for growth. The middle class, for of reform and spurts of growth, India’s industrial goods such as mobile phones Country Fact File example, is estimated at more than and toys – largely from China. economy has never achieved the challenges, the attention to the sheer size of the second 250-million people, with almost a third momentum that has dragged much of This failure stems from the country’s Language: English and Hindi enormity of the most populous country in the world of the 1,2-billion inhabitants living in East Asia out of poverty,” observed the strict labour laws, poor infrastructure, Currency: Rupee numbers make it after China. A record 551-million voters urban areas. The median age of the London-based The Economist in a May erratic power supply, corruption and Population: 1,2-billion cast their ballots at almost a million 2014 article. population is only 24. (World Bank 2012) a tangle of red tape. Companies with a market not to polling stations in an election that took a But the growing population offers PHOTOS: ISTOCK, SUPPLIED The 10th largest economy in the more than 100 employees, for example, Capital: New Delhi be ignored, writes remarkable fve weeks to complete. both opportunity and pitfalls, as world grew at an average rate of just have to ask permission to dismiss Gross national income per capita: Jacinta Jonas. These numbers alone make it an massive unemployment could prevent under 7% a year from 1997 to 2011. workers, but this is almost never US $1 530 (World Bank 2014) appealing marketplace for companies the country from reaching its full However, growth has since slowed to granted, according to The Economist. 48 48 strategicmarketing August–September 2014 strategicmarketing August–September 2014 August–September strategicmarketing 49