Dr Lucy Price, Dr Marko Saravanja and Mr Cas Coovadia
Mr Cas Coovadia, the Managing Director of the Banking Association of South Africa, spoke at the Regenesys Leadership Exchange, hosted by Regenesys Business School.
Reflecting on the struggle against the then apartheid government, Mr Coovadia highlighted the role of leaders understanding the context that they are in and the fact that the civic movement played a crucial role in community mobilisation – but that these structures have largely been lost.
He contended that no South African leader, whether in business or in government, can be blind to the history of the country and that there are still many people that do not have access to property, houses, finance and education. The current political discourse is violent, according to Coovadia, and tends to attack the individual while ignoring the issue. This is played out by our politicians who are openly engaged in a display that denigrates governance and loses the essence of what must be achieved through governing in the country.
Many leaders in South Africa learnt their skills from having to mobilise people and communities during the struggle, including Coovadia himself, who was often detained and criticised for his political views, while building civic structures across the country.
While it is important to have an ego and build confidence by interacting with people, it is also important to understand that people won’t follow you if you do not bring them along to a broader vision, one which is very clear. This, combined with persistence, will create an environment in which change can happen.
Reflecting on the struggle, Coovadia urged leaders to consider the role of rebuilding civic structures with a view towards fighting poverty. In this way the struggle continues, as there are still significant divides between people, and the ideal of a non-racial and equal society is still not achieved.
The alleviation of poverty is as large a goal as the fight against the then apartheid system, and will occupy the South African leadership agenda for some time to come, according to Coovadia.
The Regenesys Leadership Exchange is a conversation between leaders in civil society and individuals seeking to learn about leadership. The Regenesys Leadership Exchange platform was created to enable networking and knowledge exchange around dimensions of leadership as a critical enabler of transformation. For more information visit www.regenesys.co.za/leadership or email leadership@regenesys.co.za
