DATE: 31 MARCH 2022
His Excellency Ambassador, Mr Tobias Elling Rehfeld
Danish Embassy representatives together with Denmark businesses present TIKZN representatives
Transnet,
RBIDZ Executive Management All categories of Staff
Ladies and Gentlemen Good Afternoon
On behalf of our Province of KwaZulu Natal, Richards Bay IDZ Board of Directors, RBIDZ Executive Management and staff, we wish to welcome you to the City of uMhlathuze, and we feel honoured to host you with good intentions of building relations.
We are truly honoured and excited to have you here this afternoon, Your Excellency, Ambassador Mr. Tobias Elling Rehfeld and your delegation.
As the Richards Bay IDZ we have been given a task to promote and attract domestic and foreign direct investments with the intentions of boosting the economy. The Special Economic Zones have proven to be successful globally in driving the economy and creating employment through investments.
This has also been evidenced by the studies conducted by the World Economic Processing Zones Association that the Industrial Development Zones have emerged to be star performers in attracting investments and technology to developing countries during the past 50 years; and as such we are drivers of economic development through investments focusing on different sectors of the economy.
According to the Provincial Growth and Development Strategy we have been identified as the catalytic vehicle to drive socio- economic growth, so welcoming you to our Zone is an honour and privilege because it demonstrates that you still have confidence in doing business with our province and significantly with us as the Richards Bay IDZ.
Indeed, as the Richards Bay IDZ, we can assure you that our estate boasts well developed infrastructure supported by incentives provided by government to investors. Moreover, this region, where we are located is an industrial area which is surrounded by multinational industries that also create a value chain of agglomeration relevance and output. (Simthembile Mapu will highlight that in his presentation).
This is further evidenced by the fact that our province, KwaZulu – Natal is the second largest contributor to the National GDP. In all major platforms, government leaders always point out that the realization of economic transformation and job creation depends strongly on the performance of KwaZulu-Natal, and this has been cemented by on-going highlights that Special Economic Zones are vehicles through which economic transformation and job creation objectives will be achieved.
COLLABORATION EFFORTS SOUGHT FOR FURTHER DISCUSSIONS
- I must further point out that your visit today is also boosting our confidence and we believe that we can also strengthen relations and further interrogate other areas of collaborations as well as economic development, critically where you also believe that you have strong interests with regards to investments and development.
- It encourages us that there is already strong cooperation and partnership between Denmark and South Africa that focuses on economic development, trade, technical cooperation in energy, water and smart city development and political relations amongst
- We further acknowledge that Denmark is home to world-class companies in several sectors of the economy, with a particular focus on renewable energy; which is one of the RBIDZ’s key areas of focus; and is a net exporter of food, fossil fuels, chemicals, and wind power, but depends on raw material imports; which are in abundance in the KwaZulu- Natal
- We are also enticed by the existing bilateral cooperation in the Strategic Sector Cooperation programs that are integrating three different aspects of the Danish- South African relations aimed at promoting Denmark as a nation, while supporting South African development agendas and paving the way for investments and trade in the private
- Significantly, noting the role played by Denmark in the programmes such as Energy partnerships, Water, and Smart and sustainable urban development, we are optimistic that the Denmark business delegation led by His Excellency, Tobias Elling Rehfeld has long willed intentions of creating sustainable and long-lasting trade relations.
- Having highlighted the above and taking key from our focus sectors we believe that enforced relations of mutual benefit can identify ground for collaborations mainly is sectors that are a strong hold for Denmark
- As I indicated earlier, our sectors of focus drive our base for investment attraction; and as well as you may all know, Energy is one key highlight that we want to For the benefit of all, and not forgetting our communities who are still enduring electricity poverty.
- Moreover, we have knowledge of the technical expertise that Denmark has aimed at forming the basis of the cooperation and exchange with the country. These are articulated in detail in the Strategic Sector Cooperation program; being Energy, Water and Smart and sustainable urban
- We hope to interrogate and engage further in areas of business interests going
- We will also appreciate strengthened relations aimed at exchange programs of promoting and marketing our Special Economic Zone to investors in
In Conclusion
Given the above background, as the government entity that has been entrusted to drive initiatives aimed at stimulating the economy and creating employment opportunities as well as developing skills, it becomes prevalent for us all to be in the forefront of driving initiatives aimed at identifying investment opportunities in different sectors of the economy partnering with business friends such as yourselves.
The Richards Bay Industrial Development Zone commits to participate in initiatives that aim to see the mandate of socio-economic development.
Engagements such as these are a prerequisite and need to be upheld with so much commitment and determination.