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Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt said South Africa offers a standard of living like no other country can, but to take advantage of it, South Africans must prioritise their safety and ensure the majority of their wealth is invested outside the country.<\/p>\n
Statistics show that about one million South Africans live in other countries, with almost half choosing the United Kingdom, Australia, or Canada.<\/p>\n
The United Nations\u2019 latest report counted around 915,000 South Africans living in 30 countries, mostly in Africa, Europe, and North America.<\/p>\n
Since these numbers were last updated in 2021, the actual number is probably even higher. Many people leave because of poor services, lack of jobs, and high crime rates.<\/p>\n
However, Roodt told BusinessTech that South Africa offers many benefits to its residents that can\u2019t be replicated in any other country.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe weather is fantastic, the natural beauty is breathtaking, and the people are welcoming.<\/p>\n
He added that South Africa is an exciting place to be and far more affordable than most developed countries.<\/p>\n
\u201cSouth Africa is a very special place. The first thing I did after returning from New Zealand was to buy a proper steak for a third of the price,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
However, Roodt noted that\u00a0to take full advantage of living in South Africa, people must follow a few basic rules.<\/strong><\/p>\n He said people staying in South Africa need to prioritise their safety, acquire the necessary skills, have a reliable computer and internet connection, and maintain a steady income.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Africa is a dangerous place. There are many risks in South Africa. You need to identify these risks and manage them,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n One of the most important things is to be safe. This may involve living in a security estate and avoiding risky situations.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Africa is not an ideal place for those without financial means, but for those with a reasonable income, it can be a wonderful place to live,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n However, Roodt stressed that this depends on being very careful with what you do with your money and investments.<\/p>\n When it comes to investments, there are a few key strategies to consider.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Africa\u2019s currency is highly volatile, so it\u2019s essential to protect your wealth from potential devaluation.<\/p>\n \u201cA substantial portion of your assets should be invested abroad. However, simply moving money overseas isn\u2019t enough\u2014you need the proper financial structures in place.<\/p>\n \u201cMany people fail to plan for scenarios like taxes or accessing funds in case of emergencies, which can create complications later,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He also advised South Africans to avoid buying property or any fixed assets that are illiquid by nature, as they present a significant risk to their wealth and cannot be disposed of easily.<\/p>\n At the same time, keeping some of your investments in South Africa can be beneficial if you are very careful with what you invest in.<\/p>\n \u201cDue to the higher risk in the country, interest rates are relatively high, offering good returns on interest-bearing instruments,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n He also added that South Africa\u2019s banking system is stable, and you can rely on local investments for income despite the risk of currency devaluation.<\/p>\n \u201cThe high interest rates often compensate for this risk\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cSouth Africa is a fantastic country to live in as long as you can effectively manage the risks and take advantage of the overseas markets that could benefit your standard of living with the rand,\u201d said Roodt.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt said South Africa offers a standard of living like no other country can, but to take advantage of it,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1909","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-innov8ions"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1909","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1909"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1909\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1912,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1909\/revisions\/1912"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1909"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1909"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1909"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.innov8fs.co.za\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/Dawie-Roodt-1024x576-1.jpg\")
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