{"id":43537,"date":"2025-11-30T12:01:01","date_gmt":"2025-11-30T12:01:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=43537"},"modified":"2025-11-30T12:01:01","modified_gmt":"2025-11-30T12:01:01","slug":"why-billionaire-christo-wiese-chooses-to-stay-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2025\/11\/30\/why-billionaire-christo-wiese-chooses-to-stay-in-south-africa\/","title":{"rendered":"Why billionaire Christo Wiese chooses to stay in South Africa \u2013 Newsday"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>Amid ongoing economic and political uncertainty, retail magnate Christo Wiese, the architect of the Shoprite empire, remains steadfastly committed to South Africa.<\/p>\n<p>For Wiese, the decision to stay in South Africa is rooted in a blend of personal convictions.<\/p>\n<p>These include the inherent goodness of its people, a resilient spirit, and optimism, combined with a pragmatic belief in the power and potential of the country\u2019s private sector.<\/p>\n<p>In a recent wide-ranging interview with SMWX, Wiese, who has lived through every major shift in South Africa since World War II, addressed the question that many wealthy South Africans have grappled with: why stay?<\/p>\n<p>The main reason, he said, is the overwhelming presence of good people.<\/p>\n<p>Reflecting on the political transition leading up to the 1990s, Wiese recalled being asked whether he planned to leave the country.<\/p>\n<p>His answer then, and now, remains the same. \u201cI\u2019m staying for a number of reasons, but the main reason is I believe the majority of people in South Africa are good people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>He contrasted this with other countries, noting, \u201cThere are countries where you cannot say that. But the majority here are good people, and that, in the end, will matter.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Wiese also highlighted South Africa\u2019s resilience and a persistent element of historical good fortune. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cCountries, like human beings, are either lucky or unlucky, and in South Africa, its history shows that it\u2019s a lucky country,\u201d he said, pointing to moments such as the simultaneous leadership of Nelson Mandela and F.W. de Klerk. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cImagine how different the movie could have been if Mandela and de Klerk were not there at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This combination of resilience and fortuitous historical moments underpins Wiese\u2019s conviction that South Africa can continue to weather challenges.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Confidence in the private sector and an \u2018incurable optimist\u2019<\/h2>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-full\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Why-billionaire-Christo-Wiese-chooses-to-stay-in-South-Africa.png?resize=640%2C360&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-12069\" srcset=\"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Why-billionaire-Christo-Wiese-chooses-to-stay-in-South-Africa.png 1200w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-36-300x169.png 300w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-36-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/newsday.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/image-36-600x338.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\"\/><\/figure>\n<p>While candid about governmental failings, particularly in law and order, Wiese expressed optimism about the nation\u2019s non-governmental economy. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe have a very vibrant, large, competent, committed private sector,\u201d he said, emphasising that it is the private sector, rather than government, that holds the key to addressing crises in infrastructure and utilities.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhatever the government cannot do\u2014and governments cannot do most things\u2014the private sector can fix it tomorrow,\u201d Wiese explained. <\/p>\n<p>He believes that if government simply \u201cgets out of the way,\u201d the country could transform rapidly, becoming \u201cunrecognisable\u201d within a year.<\/p>\n<p>Describing himself as an \u201cincurable optimist,\u201d Wiese stressed that negativity serves no purpose. Even after suffering major personal financial loss in the Steinhoff scandal, he chose to focus on the positives rather than dwell on setbacks. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cI live in the most beautiful city, in my mind the best country in the world,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<div class=\"text-center border p-3 bg-light mt-4 rounded\">You have read 1 out of 5 free articles. Log in or register for unlimited access.<\/div>\n<p>                        <!-- Share Data Setup for JavaScript --><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#billionaire #Christo #Wiese #chooses #stay #South #Africa #Newsday<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Amid ongoing economic and political uncertainty, retail magnate Christo Wiese, the architect of the Shoprite empire, remains steadfastly committed to&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43538,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43537","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43537"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43537\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":43539,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43537\/revisions\/43539"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/43538"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43537"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43537"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43537"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}