Parliament, Sunday 15 October 2017 – The permanent delegates to the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) from the Northern Cape have concluded that all levels of government and state owned entities need to work better together to create conducive environment for small businesses to thrive. This observation was made following a week-long Provincial week programme in the Francis Baard District Municipality.

The effective, streamlined and functional working relationship between all spheres of government and entities will be beneficial to the economic development of the province. A case in point is the olive farm in Phokwane Local Municipality that has struggled to flourish besides the dedication and hard work by the beneficiaries. The delegation raised concern that the farm is struggling to produce quality olives that it can sell and make profit.

In line with this, the delegation has instructed the Department of Agriculture, Land Reform and Rural Development to work with the municipality to find expertise to perform an analytical study of the soil to ascertain factors hampering productivity.

Similarly, the infrastructure challenge facing Kimberley Manufacturing Incubation Hub represents similar challenges faced by small businesses across the board. Despite the potential the hub has in accelerating the development of start-up companies the infrastructure challenge has hamstrung a viable idea from reaching fruition. Whilst the delegation understands the distinct mandates that different entities and departments have, the delegation is of the view that the long negotiating process among state institutions is a drawback especially considering that the ultimate goal is the development of South Africa and the creation of job opportunities.

“It is unacceptable that the negotiations between Francis Baard District Municipality and Transnet that started in 2011 have not been concluded as yet. A proper Intergovernmental Relationship would have smoothed the way for the two parties to reach an agreement,” said Mr Raseriti Tau, the Deputy Chairperson of the National Council of Provinces.

The prolonged negotiations have the potential of scaring away potential investments and job creation initiatives. The job creation initiative that had targeted to use the Doornhof Building in Magareng Local Municipality is being stymied by lengthy negotiations between the Magareng and Provincial Department of Public Works.

Despite this, the delegation was impressed by the Grain Storage Facility in Magareng Municipality, an initiative by BPC Capital (Pty) Ltd with the backing from the Department of Trade and Industry. The R130 million multi stage project is example of unique business ideas that must be encouraged.

“We were impressed that young people researched and saw a gap in the large storage market and made efforts to fill the gap. We must always encourage unique ideas that have large scale employment capabilities and the potential for high profit margins,” Mr Tau emphasised.

The delegation highlighted its appreciated the support given by the provincial executive to the Provincial Week programme with MEC of Economic Development and MEC for Agriculture, Rural Development and Land Reform traveling with the delegation throughout. “It was the first time that we had three MECs accompanying the delegation throughout the week. This shows the level of commitment that the executive has in creating an environment conducive for economic development. We were also impressed that commitments were made directly by executive authorities which the delegation will monitor,” Mr Tau emphasised.

For its part, the delegation committed itself to doing it best to monitor commitments made by departments during the Provincial Week programme, in parliament and during the previous Taking Parliament to the People held in De Aar. One of the major commitments made there was the revitalisation of the De Aar rail infrastructure hub as it if of the view that rail can unlock the economic potential of the province.

ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE NCOP NC PROVINCIAL DELEGATION 

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