Dr Zweli Mkhize, Premier of the province of KwaZulu-Natal has welcomed the signing of a deal between Transnet and the Airports Company of South Africa for the purchase of the old Durban International Airport for a whopping R1,8 billion.
“Our efforts aimed at positioning KwaZulu-Natal as a gateway to Africa and to the world have received major boost following the signing of this deal. We can say with pride that KwaZulu-Natal enjoys a competitive advantage over the rest of the country. We have Durban as the busiest port on the continent and Richards Bay managing the biggest volumes of cargo in South Africa. With the addition of the dug-out port, we have an important strategic asset.”
“We have a base of a transportation and freight logistics facilities which will provide an effective platform for forging trade linkages between provinces within the country, with neighbouring states and the rest of the world (particularly the Asian and South American sub-continents), offering the province considerable investment spin-offs and opportunities. KwaZulu-Natal’s competitive edge is thus greatly enhanced and the speed in the roll-out of these developments is encouraging.”
“We are planning an Automobile Supplier Park around the Dug-Out Port. This park will be a strategic site for the production of vehicle components and will improve production and competitiveness of the automotive industry.”
“KwaZulu-Natal is the biggest manufacturing exporter with automotive playing a tremendous role in the provincial economy. About 45.3% of all passengers and bakkies exported from South Africa came from KwaZulu-Natal in 2008. An all-time record for South African automotive industry is 284,000 units.”
“Importantly, the province’s trade index grew by 8.3% year-on-year, its strongest growth since last February. This was driven partly by the 25.3% increase in vehicle sales. Our main strategic goal is to ensure that the province’s automotive industry doubles its size in the next decade and that we become a leading exporter of vehicles. Thousands of jobs will be created in the process.”
“Few weeks ago I travelled with the MEC for Economic Development and Tourism Mr Mike Mabuyakhulu to Japan as part of a drive to attract leading manufacturers from to relocate to KZN. The manufacturing sector has served as a driving force for economic growth in Japan over many years. We met with management of Toyota and invited them to consider the Automobile Supplier Park around the Dug-Out Port for future investments. Potential investors in Japan and other parts of the world are watching the developments in Durban with keen interests.”
“The Dug-out Port, the new Dube Trade Port will greatly expand the capacity of KwaZulu-Natal to import and export goods. The principal component of the Dube Trade Port is a new international passenger and cargo airport, but it is the new facility’s proximity to the harbours of Durban and Richards Bay that give it the edge as a transport and logistics hub. Rail and road links up and down the coast to these two major seaports will make it easy to switch cargo between different modes of transport. Large quantities that arrive by sea can be dispersed in disaggregated volumes at speed by air.”
For more information, contact
Regi Khumalo
Media Liaison Desk for Dr Zweli Mkhize
Cell: 079 751 6108
E-mail: regi.khumalo@yahoo.com
Ndabezinhle Sibiya (Premier’s Spokesperson)
Cell: 082 375 4742
E-mail: sibiyand@premier.kzntl.gov.za
