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Exporters Eastern Cape engage with Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor

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“Get the basics right,” was one of the key messages shared by Nelson Mandela Bay Executive Mayor Retief Odendaal at a business breakfast held by the Exporters Eastern Cape and DG Incentives in Gqeberha this morning.

While the mayor highlighted the many challenges which the city faced, he was also hopeful that the metro would return to a favourable position to attract tourism and business investment. “Council signed a pledge together with a business plan that they are committed to the turnaround plan supported by a financial plan, that will dictate how the city will invest in water and sanitation over the next ten years,” he said.

Odendaal said that the municipality is working with all stakeholders and civic organisations in the metro to fix the city. “We brought back two retired engineers to support the water infrastructure development as we do not have the expertise to do that,” he added.

Furthermore, he explained that there are plans in place to source electricity from alternative energy sources and decrease the city’s dependence on Eskom by at least fifty percent.

Odendaal further reiterated that water sustainability is crucial as no one will invest in a city where there is no water. He said that while the dam levels on the western side of the city remained critically low, 100 million litres of water per day is added to Nelson Mandela Bay’s water supply from the Nooitgedacht Water Scheme which receives water from the Gariep Dam. “Despite our water shortage and continued drought, residents have not changed water usage behaviour. We must make a mind shift change as our region will always be affected by cyclical drought,” he said.

Responding to the question of increased crime Odendaal said that the city lacked the capacity to fight crime. The Metro Police consists of about only 100 personnel and the South African Police Services (SAPS) is under-resourced as well. “The Flying Squad does not have any vehicles to respond to criminal activities in the city. Therefore, we must ensure that we capacitate our neighbourhood watches with the resources to help prevent crime,” he said.

The lack of law enforcement in the city has resulted in approximately R300 million security equipment being looted shortly after it was installed.

Exporters Eastern Cape chairman, Quintin Levey asked the mayor what businesses could do to support the metro in achieving its turnaround strategy objectives and why business should continue to invest in the city. Odendaal invited a roundtable discussion to pursue the potential support by business.

“We have massive opportunity in this city to develop and grow, but we sell ourselves short. Nelson Mandela Bay has moderate climate, the city is not congested and there are two ports to support exports. We just need Transnet and local government to be responsive to the needs of business,” said Odendaal.

The business briefing was sponsored by DG Incentives and attended by exporters and members of the exports value chain in the city. “As part of Exporters Eastern Cape, we felt a need to host a session with the mayor and industry to discuss the challenges faced by both business and residents alike. We were overwhelmed by the turnout and can see that industry is also committed to make our Metro great again,” said Brenden Adriaanzen, Director of DG Incentives.

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Alan Straton

Chief Cook, Bottle Washer and Broom Mechanic at MyPE
Passionate about Port Elizabeth and definitely NOT packing for Perth. Alan's ethos is epitomised in the words of Nelson Mandela; "I have fought against white domination and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the idea of a democratic and free society. If need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die." See more articles by Alan.