The decision by Fitch to retain South Africa’s sovereign credit rating at its current level – although with a rating outlook change – is a vindication of the efforts by government, labour and business over the past year to negotiate and undertake structural reforms to drive faster, more sustainable and more inclusive economic growth for the benefit of all South Africans.

This was the reaction of the CEO Initiative, Business Leadership South Africa and Business Unity South Africa in response to sovereign credit rating announcements by Fitch and Moody’s for South Africa.

Fitch and Moody’s both highlighted the responsible management of the country’s budget and diligent commitment to fiscal consolidation as positive factors in their assessments of the country. Moody’s also recognised the progress made in implementing key structural reforms to improve growth over the medium to long term.

Both ratings agencies recognised the importance of strong, independent institutions – including the Reserve Bank, the courts and the Public Protector.

"While these announcements are certainly welcomed, we see it as a beginning rather than an end of a process. We recognise that a lot of work is still necessary to reach higher levels of growth and we remain firmly committed to the structural reform programme, including initiatives undertaken by the CEO Initiative," the CEO Initiative, formed of leaders from various sectors, said.

"Working together in an unprecedented spirit of cooperation, government, labour and business have made a great deal of positive progress in a number of key areas. Representatives from each social partner have worked tirelessly to promote the reforms necessary to stimulate growth and to avert a ratings downgrade and we can be proud of the success achieved on a number of fronts."

In the view of the CEO Initiative it is essential to guard the independence and capacity of South Africa's institutions.

"We will continue working on our efforts with the same urgency and dedication as we started with 12 months ago. We also encourage South Africans, many of whom have demonstrated their commitment to democracy and economic growth over the past year, to keep building towards a society that is fair, inclusive and prosperous for all who live in it," it said.

Initiatives of the CEO Initiative include an initiative to reduce youth unemployment, with the aim of providing employment to one-million unemployed people between the ages of 18 to 29 over a period of three years; a R1.5-billion fund to invest in small and medium enterprises, with the aim of stimulating job-creation; and positive progress with regard to labour market reforms, with discussions on a national minimum wage and management of workplace conflict and strikes at an advanced stage.

Other initiatives include the development of an Agricultural Growth Fund that would bring together the agricultural sector, the commercial banking sector, the Land Bank and government; an initiative to revitalise manufacturing in the Vaal Triangle; and a partnership between business and government in the tourism sector.

Participants in the CEO Initiative include of Telkom SA chairperson Jabu Mabuza; Standard Bank joint CEO Sim Tshabalala; Old Mutual Emerging Markets CEO Ralph Mupita; Nedbank CEO Mike Brown; Discovery CEO Adrian Gore; Bidvest founder Brian Joffe; Public Investment Corporation CEO Dr Dan Matjila; Goldman Sachs MD Colin Coleman)and Investec Group CEO Stephen Koseff.