"I think that is what is important to remember," he said in Johannesburg. "We must carry forward his legacy ... Everyone has to be a Nelson Mandela.

"Whatever Madiba had worked to achieve, including democracy, was a success," he said.

Manuel said Mandela's physical presence was only one part of his contribution.

"We ... understand that his physical presence is only one part of it ... his spiritual presence [must] live on."

The elderly statesman (94) is in a critical condition in a Pretoria hospital, where he was admitted with a recurring lung infection on June 8.

Meanwhile, while speaking on the sidelines of a conference held to launch a report on the validity of an annual World Bank business survey, Manuel told international investors on Monday that they need not worry about South Africa's future when Mandela eventually dies as his legacy will be safeguarded.

'Concerns'
The health of the country's first democratically elected president is a huge concern for South Africa's 53-million people who revere him as the architect of peaceful transition to democracy in 1994 after three centuries of white rule.

But many investors and economists also fear that the death of Mandela will embolden the ANC's radical elements, such as those who criticised him for making too many concessions to the white minority or others who call for nationalising the giant mining industry.

"There have been concerns expressed, unjustifiably, about what happens when Nelson Mandela is no longer with us," Manuel, a respected former finance minister, said.

Manuel noted that Mandela's health had been deteriorating – his last public appearance was in July 2010 – so his role is already diminished.

"It is a deep and profound tragedy but one that in many ways we have been close to and thinking about for many months ... but over the past year he hasn't been able to play the advisory role of a patriarch," he said.

"It is up to us [to see] his legacy lives on. Whether he is physically here or not, it is his legacy we have to protect."

Criticised government
Mandela's illness has coincided with a storm of events for South Africa, which is seeing investors flee its bond markets as domestic worries over chronic labour unrest coincide with a withdrawal of liquidity by the US Federal Reserve.

Many have criticised the government for lack of progress in implementing key reforms in an economy which is grappling with shortages of power, poor healthcare and high unemployment.

Manuel, who was known for his prudent fiscal stance as finance minister, now oversees the National Development Plan, a blue-print for future development. The plan has been under fire from union leaders and communists who have attacked it for placing too much emphasis on private capital.

Manuel said the plan would be debated and he predicted that in coming months there would be advances on several fronts such as with civil service, education and on anti-corruption. But he said the plan would be implemented.

"Even as we work through all these issues, there is no holding off on the plan until some cataclysmic event happens."

Manuel, meanwhile, said it was natural that South Africa, like other emerging markets, was feeling the impact of the Federal Reserve's stimulus withdrawal process.

"It's a fact, there are very few safe havens left. There was a time South Africa was seen as one of the safe havens ... We will continue to see periods of uncertainty, but at some point people will start looking for value," he added. – Sapa, Reuters