South Africa's influence in the newly-formed New Development Bank (NDB) will not be marginalised by the fact that it has made the smallest contribution to the initial capital among the BRICS countries, an analyst said here on Thursday.
Saijjil Singh, lead analyst at the South African office of international credit insurer Coface, told the daily the New Age that concerns over South Africa's contribution to the NDB would also not affect thecountry's financial standing.
South Africa has pledged $5 billion of the initial $100 billion capital, with China's $41 billion being the largest contribution, while Brazil, Russia and India will provide $8 billion each.
“The South Africa component is understandably lower due to the size of its economy, but with a rotational governor system, it does not marginalise South Africa's input or influence,” Singh said.
Reacting to such concerns after the launch of the NDB earlier this week, Singh said there was no harm in asking questions about whether the investment was a good one or not.
“The obvious concern comes in questioning whether or not this money is well spent, or whether participation at a governance level is necessary for South Africa,” Singh said.
“We must not ignore the strategic benefit to funding access and the global image of South Africa,” he added.