Program Director,
I appreciate the platform and the opportunity you have given us in order to share with you our plans and programs which we are busy implementing.
Our work is located within and guided by the objectives and goals of a comprehensive strategic framework of Gauteng Vision 2055. It is a vision that attempts to outline the future character, shape and position of the province we all love to call home. The year 2055 as our horizon provides us with ample time and space necessary to carefully plan, implement and execute change over generations to come.
The Gauteng Vision 2055 charts our long-term vision and strategy for the Gauteng City Region. Our critical position in the country as the economic engine with a potential of having a competitive urge amongst the Global City Regions such as the thriving cosmopolitans of Paris, New York, Shanghai, London, Melbourne, Tokyo and many others is fully comprehended.
This potential strength of being a strong competitive force within the Global City Regions was highlighted by the review findings of the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) which is open to public scrutiny.
While we appreciate the importance of forging links with countries outside the Continent, we are equally appreciative of our responsibility as the province to contribute to a stable and prosperous Africa. Africa holds numerous opportunities in terms of business and trade promotion as well as people to people relations. Our growth and development is fatefully intertwined with the rest of Africa. We cannot prosper as the nation in the face of hunger, strife and deprivation that still bedevil many of our people in Africa.
We will have to forge close relations with Africa without adopting a “know-all Big Brother” posture but rather an attitude that reflects openness to reciprocal relationships from which we can all gain and learn invaluable lessons.
With this view forming a backdrop to our work, we are diligently marshalling our resources to precipitate the attainment of our strategic vision which will breed a better Gauteng for all. And a better Gauteng will be built if we all work together and throw our weight behind the plans and programs encapsulated in the strategic vision, Gauteng Vision 2055.
At this point it is appropriate that I share with you some of the critical interventions of our operations that will shape the future of Gauteng.
Automotive sector
We house more than 50% of the motor manufacturing capacity of the country in Gauteng. One of the bold decisions to provide infrastructure and business support to Ford Motor Company in the Ford T6 Investment led to the establishment of a world class black economic empowerment (BEE) supplier facility in Silverton, Pretoria. Through this programme, 150 retrenched workers were up-skilled and redeployed into the formal economy. The number of employed workers is set to increase to 250 in the second quarter of 2012.
In 2012 the Nissan Investment Support project will commence with technical and business skills to more than 40 informal auto body repairs businesses thereby bringing them in the formal economy, and 20 SMMEs will receive productivity improvement support.
The motor sector will also train 2 500 young people and this will create 700 direct jobs, benefiting mainly the youth. A further 100 young people will receive a technical training within the auto sector in Dubai. The programme will run for three years.
Township Enterprise Hubs
We have finalised a model Township Enterprise Hubs for Youth Employment and Entrepreneurship.
Enterprise hubs will be constructed in the following sites:
- Sebokeng
- Sharpville
- Kagiso
- Katlehong
- Winterveld
- Tembisa
And each of the hubs will host three clusters of work.
These are:
- Automotive cluster focusing on body repairs and spraying, wheel and tyre, audio and sound fitment and repairs, auto spares and general motor mechanic.
- Services cluster which will focus on providing general services, ranging from car wash, hair salons, laundry, internet cafés and other services depending on the market factors in each area.
- Light manufacturing cluster will focus initially in furniture, cleaning chemicals, clothing and textile, and depending on the market factors in each area, may include fast moving goods.
In addition, MTN has committed to put mini wholesale with all their GSM for distribution in the hubs. In addition MTN will employ 1000 zoners for the whole province who are paid basic stipend of R1 500, plus commission on the amount of airtime sold by the entrepreneurs.
Youth Entrepreneurship Development Programme (Y-Age)
The first intake of training is scheduled for March 2012 in 90 training sites throughout the province with 8 600 people per 6 week cycle will be trained, this translates to 40 000 per year.
The young people who are not entrepreneurs will be automatically directed to the placement programme, and/or training. We have already employed 400 training facilitators and inspectors to ensure quality training in the identified sites.
We have also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Consumer Goods Council of South Africa. This will facilitate product placement to a network of retailers and wholesalers for Y-AGE participants. We view the opening up of markets for these entrepreneurs as an important milestone in our effort to build sustainable youth entrepreneurship.
Industrial Development Zone and Jewellery Manufacturing Precinct
In March 2012, we will complete the business case for the Jewellery Manufacturing Precinct, which will be located in the OR Tambo IDZ.
We will also be sending 20 students by September to different jewellery schools in Italy and India to study jewellery design, and specialise in different aspects of jewellery manufacturing (polishing, stone setting, and cladding). Training will also be offered in South Africa, in partnership with international experts.
In partnership with the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality, we will be developing an Aerotropolis or airport city around the OR Tambo International Airport. The project seeks to grow the Gauteng economy by improving the business environment linked to airports in the province through efficient supply lines and integrated socio-economic development along this supply chain.
The Aerotropolis programme also seeks to optimise the economic linkages between the various airports in the province, like Lanseria in Johannesburg and Wonderboom in Tshwane.
Tourism
Gauteng accounts for over 50% of all international visitor arrivals to this country and a significant number of these are business tourists hence our campaign to “stay another day” and explore the many different offerings by our province. We will as part of this campaign this year launch new tourism routes that will, among others, include the struggle route, an important route tracing the historic liberation struggle footsteps and sites like the recently opened Pretoria Central Prison Gallows Museum, the World Cup venues and activities route, and other international big events that will further cement our standing as an all-round 24/7 entertaining competitive city region with world-class events and offerings.
Our iconic visitor centres of Maropeng and Sterkfontein in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site (COH WHS) are currently being upgraded after extensive research of best practice in museums of this nature throughout the world.
ICT
We will be partnering with the national Department of Communication and City of Johannesburg to develop a Smart City at Nasrec. The project takes advantage of the World Cup legacy projects and is anchored around the ICT sector.
The Smart City will be a hive of activity. We have secured investors for the following:
- Manufacturing of different ICT products
- The Film and Animation Studio
- Multi-media Centre
- Data Centre
- BPO-O
- Training Centre, and
- Knowledge Centre consisting of R&D, Knowledge Village, and Green ICT Centre.
We will take further steps to implement the G-link Project to roll-out broadband across Gauteng. The project will help close the digital divide, whilst providing Gauteng with a vastly improved broadband capability to the benefit of business and Gauteng residents in general. The ICT pilot project is underway in Alexandra.
Infrastructure Development
The Sedibeng Regional Sanitation Scheme, which is a R5 billion bulk infrastructure project necessary to unlock development in the southern part of Gauteng. The project will receive an injection of the funds from both the provincial government and national treasury. We expect construction to start before the end of this calendar year.
To better enable Gauteng to fulfill its role as a regional logistics hub and improve the movement of freight, we will work with the private sector and other spheres of government to establish four freight and logistics hubs as follows:
- The Tambo Springs Inland port
- The West Rand Logistics hub
- The Rosslyn Logistics hub and
- Vaal Logistics hub.
We will further develop the Constitutional Hill Precinct and preserve historically significant buildings from the Old Fort in a manner that makes them publicly and commercially useful and catalyses the regeneration of the Braamfontein Precinct.
Restorative work on some of the buildings was completed towards the end of last year. Discussions are underway with the relevant national departments to complete other phases of the project and further explore the possibility of erecting the Justice College within the precinct.
Public Transport
The Ethekwini-Gauteng Corridor was recently announced by the President in his State of the Nation Address. Gauteng and our three metros form part of the President’s Infrastructure Coordinating Committee (PICC), which will oversee the effective implementation of the project.
In addition to these key economic infrastructure projects, we are aware of the importance of investing in road infrastructure and the development of an integrated public transport system for the Gauteng City Region. This is even more important considering Gauteng’s strategic location as a key logistics region for the country and Sub-Saharan Africa.
Last year saw the exciting opening of the Gautrain service between Tshwane and Johannesburg, further increasing the number of people in the province who use public transport. In response to this demand, additional capacity will be introduced from March this year.
To expand the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system in the province, key BRT corridors have been identified by the Tshwane and Ekurhuleni metros and we will undertake planning on the further rollout of BRT in the coming year. Construction of the Tshwane BRT is scheduled to start in 2013.
Gautrain and BRT represent additional offerings of an emerging intermodal, integrated public transport system in Gauteng. We are in the process of developing a long-term transport plan that will enable us to achieve this goal.
We currently provide bus subsidies to private operators to the tune of R1.6 billion per annum. We are however concerned that the current system of subsidies does not lend itself to equity across the province. We will be working with national government to re-determine routes so as to phase-in bus services in areas that do not enjoy this benefit and will propose that Mogale City in the West Rand receives priority.
In the year ahead, we will spend over R500 million on the construction and maintenance of roads in the province. The N14 and the R25 will undergo major rehabilitation. We will upgrade the R82 (the old Vereeniging Road) linking Johannesburg and Sedibeng and William Nicol Drive. The construction of the K154 will be undertaken, stimulating development in the rural parts of south Sedibeng.
As part of rural development, we will upgrade roads in five rural development nodes – Magaliesburg, Winterveld, Hammanskraal, Rust de Winter and Bantu Bonke. We will also surface Cayman Road, which will further enhance access to the Eye of Africa Development.
Through the S’hamba Sonke road maintenance project, we will capacitate 100 new contractors and create 6 500 jobs, benefitting cooperatives and companies owned by women, youth and people with disabilities.
Agriculture
We will continue to implement the Maize Triangle Project to resuscitate agricultural activities in the area. Since its inception, the Project has provided support to farmers in the area, including production inputs, and support for agro-processing projects. In addition, an Agri-Park with 10 flower production tunnels was built in Onverwacht as part of the development of an agricultural hub.
Green Economy
We will embark on a range of projects to develop the Green Economy in the province, including the establishment of solar farms, the utilisation of LPG Gas as an alternative to petrol and the establishment of Buy Back Centres to encourage communities to generate an income through collecting recyclable materials which will also contribute to cleaning and beautifying of the environment.
Linked to The Innovation Hub in Tshwane, we will work towards the establishment of the Climate Innovation Centre (CIC), to help entrepreneurs to develop and commercialise green technologies that will assist disadvantaged communities.
As much as I would like to exhaust all the issues in the spirit of information sharing, allow me, ladies and gentlemen, to stop at this point. I trust that what we have shared with you will spur you into action and join forces with us. It is our belief that through the implementation of these initiatives the face of Gauteng will transform for the better.
Dankie. Ngiyabonga.
