Premier woos business leaders
The Eastern Cape government says it is time to “sharpen its focus” and build stronger relationships with business leaders across the province as it looks towards a new financial year in April.
Premier Phumulo Masualle says there are still stumbling blocks preventing the province from developing its full potential, but with the help of big business and the development of smaller enterprises, it has the potential to thrive in the not too distant future. Masualle and members of his executive council met business leaders from Nelson Mandela Bay and the Sarah Baartman District Municipality yesterday as part of their business engagement road show, leading up to the premier’s state of the province address. “Engagements like this session are crucial for us to solicit the views of business leaders on how to address the biggest challenges still facing our province, namely unemployment, poverty and inequality,” the premier said. “The success of government hinges on the success of business, so we need to collaborate if we want to achieve our goals.
“As we look at the path behind us we have identified relationships that need nurturing, and our relationship with the business sector will give us a better idea of what needs to improve, and what needs to be done away with as we prepare for the coming financial year,” he said. One of province’s main goals was to ensure that 50% of the government procurement of services and goods benefited Eastern Cape businesses and contractors, he said. More emphasis would also be placed on paying service providers in a timely manner. Nelson Mandela Bay Business Chamber chief executive Kevin Hustler welcomed the initiative to develop a partnership with the business sector, and said he would like to see more localisation of services through government procurement. Hustler also requested the provincial government to put more pressure on Transnet to speed up its plan of moving the tank farm and manganese ore dumps from the Port Elizabeth Harbour to Ngqura, with the aim of developing the city’s waterfront. “It appears Transnet is stalling the project. Now we hear whispers that the [new] proposed timeline of 2020 will also be delayed,” he said.
