A newly established private security association that has criticised the dominance of the market by foreign-owned businesses says it wants to shake up the R45 billion industry. The Association of Private Security Owners of South Africa (Tapsosa) was launched recently.
It aims to champion the preference of local companies as main security service providers in homes, businesses and government institutions challenging what it described as exclusionary structural impediments. The South African private security industry is the fourth largest in the world per capita, with high crime rates seeing more citizens rely on the services.
Tapsosa’s secretary general Moses Malada said the lack of investment in local security companies also poses a threat to South Africans. “We can’t let the security of our country be in the hands of foreigners, we want to participate. Besides there being exploitation in the industry. When you enter an estate, you have to scan your ID. You don’t know where that information goes to and that is part of security that we need to look at.”
