Nearly half of South African private businesses say a lack of skills is the biggest constraint to business growth in this country, a new survey showed on Wednesday.

This the second straight year that workforce issues have been cited as the greatest impediment to growth in the Grant Thornton annual International Business Report (IBR).

The survey showed that of the 48% businesses saying they faced a skills crunch.

Lee-Anne Bac, director at Grant Thornton Strategic Solutions, said although the skills shortage was a global concern, South African businesses were the hardest hit.

"The fact that South Africa is 10 percentage points higher than the global average does indicate that the skills crisis is more acute here. A lack of skills development, emigration and crime are just some of the factors that contribute to this problem," she said.

When asked about the areas of regulation that had the biggest impact on the ability to grow, labour laws were ranked number one at 28%.

Globally, 37% of privately held businesses in 34 countries rank a shortage of skills as their greatest constraint to business growth.

"This is the first time in the history of the IBR survey that workforce issues top the chart as a global concern for growth," Bac said.
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