Currencies, Constraints and Contradictions of South Africa’s Soft Power

Abstract

Despite increasing interest in South Africa’s soft power in recent years, little analysis is offered on the factors that hinder the projection of such soft power. Most studies have focused on the sources and the optimization of South Africa’s soft power. While this article gives a synoptic account of these sources, it offers a different perspective by engaging the constraints and contradictions that hinder and circumscribe its soft power projection. The article concludes that, in order to maximize its soft power projection, Pretoria must address the impediments that continue to undermine its power of attraction.