Academic gets top job

Daniel Malan, a senior lecturer at the University of Stellenbosch, has been appointed to the council of the World Economic Forum.

And he was invited, in an e-mail, by none other than acclaimed executive chairman of the forum, Klaus Schwabe.

"I was absolutely delighted and honoured to receive the mail because it is a huge honour. It is a challenge because I will be sitting around the table with many other global experts who I look up to and who might know more than I do," said Malan, who is also the director of the Centre for Corporate Governance in Africa at the University of Stellenbosch Business School where he lectures in ethics and governance.

The forum is an international organisation geared at "improving the state of the world" by engaging with academics, leaders in society, businesses and governments.

Malan will serve on the Global Agenda Council on Values and Decision Making of the forum.

According the forum, the "network of Global Agenda Councils study the foremost topics in the global arena. It consists of select, invitation-only groups."

The members on these councils serve as an advisory board to the forum.

Malan said his first meeting will take place in October in Abu Dhabi.

But he has his work cut out for him as the council he is serving on is so pivotal.

"The difficulties that are faced by the global economy at the moment, many would argue, has to do with a lapse in values by leaders and organisations around the world.

"I would see the role of this council to analyse this, think about it and make suggests and recommendations to the forum and through forum to governments and businesses," said Malan.

What surprised Malan was that he had no idea he had been nominated or by whom. Nevertheless, many in South Africa are beaming with pride at his appointment.

Asked what was the solution to South Africa's governance problems, corporate and otherwise, Malan said there wasn't a magic solution.

But the fact that we are acknowledging that corruption, the growing gap between rich and poor, and climate change is real, are steps in the right direction, Malan said.