JOBURG FEATURE

t H E C I T Y O F J O H A N N ES B U RG

feature

Johannes A world class city

Š Walter Knirr / City of Johnnesburg 2

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The City of Johannesburg FEATURE

sburg: Johannesburg is where the money is and where deals are made.

Ian Armitage delves into plans to boost the city and transform life for many.

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The City of Johannesburg FEATURE

J

ohannesburg was built on gold almost literally because the city was the site of some of the most 1. Gateway to Africa’s markets. productive discoveries a century ago. Although gold mining 2. Africa’s economic powerhouse and one of the and ancillary industries still provide world’s leading emerging market economies. thousands of jobs, mining is 3. Stable democracy and well-structured increasingly less important to the city regulatory environment. than the manufacturing, retail and financial sectors.

4. Quality of institutions recognised in global All the big banking and investment competitiveness surveys. institutions have their headquarters in 5. Financial market sophistication and home to Johannesburg and the Johannesburg Africa’s largest stock exchange.

Stock Exchange is the centre of the capital markets for the whole 6. Enabling environment and incentives for of southern Africa. “There are only investors on national, regional and city levels. few South African companies which are not represented here,” says 7. Excellent transport and telecommunications Jason Ngobeni executive director for infrastructure services.

Economic Development in the City.

8. Freight and logistics hub: Africa’s largest But Johannesburg is eager for inland port, SA’s largest container depot more. “We have a long-term strategy and Africa’s largest freight and passenger that is shaping the city’s future and airport hub. to enabling us to position ourselves to grasp emerging opportunities,” 9. Low cost of living and least expensive African city. says Ngobeni. “We are a primary 10. Shopping Mecca for sub-Saharan Africa and business city, a dynamic centre of strong cross-border trade. production, innovation, trade, finance and services.”

As Africa’s economic hub, have set ourselves very comprehensive and Johannesburg is the place where ambitious targets.” business starts, Ngobeni says. It is where the money is and where deals are made. “We are CHANGING THE FACE OF SOWETO an attractive, growth city. We attribute that Retail is big in Johannesburg. It is a favourite to our visionary plans, diversification to fast growing sectors, socio-economic development destination for retailers from sub-Saharan countries, particularly those from South and building a good climate for foreign direct Africa’s neighbours. The city has a number of investment.” large retail precincts; the inner city business Johannesburg’s Growth and Development district and the Sandton City precinct are two Strategy (GDS) is the city’s plan to ensure of the biggest. sustainable delivery of services, deal with “One of our major investments has been social and economic development, involve the Soweto Retail Strategy,” says Ngobeni. residents in local government and promote “Soweto is one of the biggest townships in a safe and healthy environment. “As well as South Africa and over the years we have really this, the city has formulated a number of related plans and policies,” says Ngobeni. “We transformed it into an economic hive. It is now

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to Invest in Johannesburg

a fully-fledged socio-economic area where you have a mix of residents, office and retail.

We have attracted quite substantial retail investment in Soweto.”

The face of Soweto is also changing with the establishment of the Soweto Empowerment Zone, a support facility for small businesses in the township.

“The retail boom and the establishment of the Soweto Empowerment Zone signal a change for Soweto,” Ngobeni says. “It is a programme that supports and promotes Soweto-based small medium and micro enterprises.”

The plan is to develop and grow BBE small medium and micro enterprises through developing and strengthening links with

established businesses and service providers, each anchored by a “sector champion”. This would then be rolled out to other townships.

“The sector champion would be a big name from that industry, which will provide business support services like marketing, quality control and capacity building to small business.”

We have aggressively reduced poverty levels and have been increasing employment

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DIGITAL CITY

Johannesburg is also on a drive to become a so-called digital city. A modern information and communications technology infrastructure is already in place and has helped position it as a leader in the growing business process outsourcing industry. But the industry is competitive and the plan aims

The City of Johannesburg FEATURE

to reduce the cost of telecommunications, improve service delivery and increase access to information technology.

“Ericsson is the service provider on this project and is partnering us in our broadband network project,” says Ngobeni. “Access to broadband is a key driver of economic growth and wealth generation. Through this initiative we will ensure that all the citizens of Joburg gain access to universally available, reliable and affordable broadband.”

He considers broadband access to be as important as the provision of water and electricity. “The benefits and possibilities of a digital city are numerous for not only the city and its entities but for residents, business, hospitals, educational institutions, tourism and entertainment.”

The Johannesburg Broadband Network Project aims to build a strong ICT infrastructure for the city and to bring ICT closer to citizens at a cost effective price, by selling off spare capacity to operators.

Ericsson was chosen for its ability to supply an endto-end solution, extensive experience in delivering similar networks around the world, a strong local presence and commitment to empowerment and skills transfer. “From the outset, we focused on finding a partner that had the right credentials to deliver on an initiative of this size,” says Ngobeni.

says Ngobeni. “We have aggressively reduced poverty levels and have been increasing employment. The population is, in general, better educated than our rivals. We have a number of citizens with degrees, for instance.

“We have done substantial work on enterprise development,” he adds. “We want to constantly grow the economy and always look for ways to do it, whether it be by policy or whatever. We want to make sure the city supports economic growth.

“We have worked hard to ensure that the poor are properly integrated. This is important as well. We have also reviewed all of our policies in the city that interface with investors when they come here. We have reviewed them in terms of what is in those policies that might be inhibiting investment or might be making it difficult for investors to come to Johannesburg and we are in the process of reviewing those policies to make sure they work and enable investment.”

Johannesburg is an “ideal” investment destination, Ngobeni stresses. “Something we must mention is the FIFA World Cup. The World Cup provided the impetus for investment in infrastructure but ensured a lasting legacy, with an improved inter-modal transport network as well as communications and power generation. The tournament also brought an increased number of people to the city and it has altered the landscape for tourism in southern Africa. There has also been a reputational boost for South Africa that can help bring inward investment and visitors.”

Johannesburg played a trend-setting role in developments for the World Cup, Ngobeni says, and has certainly benefited from Gauteng Province’s R40 billion boost for infrastructure. END

The World Cup provided the impetus for investment in infrastructure

ON THE RIGHT TRACK Johannesburg is certainly on the right track and its long-term vision is to be admired. The city is aiming for an economic growth rate of 9 percent by 2014.

“We, through the programmes I have outline and many others I haven’t that we are operating, have made great strides forward,”

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Alexandra Ext9

Alexandra Ext9

Mountainview

Mountainview

Lebohang Project Management (Pty) Ltd is a wholly South African, young, dynamic consulting engineering company which strives for Client Excellence by handling each project in an innovative, creative and strategic manner. We believe that one size does not fit all and thus consult and customise solutions for each client and project as required. We have a fast growing professional team, committed to service excellence to meet client requirements and exceed their expectations. We are proud to announce that we have a level 4 BEE Certificate and are thus 100% contributor to BBBEE. We are also a member firm of the Consulting Engineers of South Africa (CESA).

Lebohang Project Management (Pty) Ltd is proud to be a part of the City of Johannesburg and South Africa’s Economic Development initiatives by providing turnkey electrical infrastructure solutions to RDP, low cost and mixed income communities – we believe in equal opportunities for everyone. Bringing electricity to communities from informal settlements to RDP and low-income housing is much more than just providing a service, but is rather about creating equal opportunities and impacting on everyone in the community.

We prescribe to the principle of sustainability and prosperity for all, and in doing so have developed a concept of turnkey solution that involves and creates opportunities for companies and people that have been previously negated these opportunities.

We have for a number of years focused on social housing and developed a unique turnkey electrical infrastructure solution. This unique solution encompasses consulting, design, project management, training, manufacturing and supply of equipment with the preoccupation in mind of making use of alternative sources of energy, energy saving equipment and involvement of local firms and communities through the entire process.

We believe that in doing so we contribute to

the alleviation of poverty by involving local communities, providing training to small firms, creating temporary jobs in each of our projects and finally deliver a product that is cost effective and of sustainable quality.

“Lebohang” is a Sesotho name which means to “Be Thankful”. At Lebohang Project Management we are sincerely thankful to all that have afforded us the opportunity to contribute albeit in a small way to a better and more prosperous country.

We are proud to be part of a number of selected ground breaking housing initiatives in South Africa, of which some are highlighted below: Lufhereng is one of South Africa’s biggest housing projects comprising of 24 000 households with an expected 110 000 people expected to make Lufhereng their home as part of the “Breaking New Ground Initiative”.

As part of Governments approach to the utilisation of “Green Energy” and reducing the South Africa’s “carbon footprint”, this development will make provision for Solar Heating and Induction Street Lighting technologies.

Mountainview entailed the electrification of 1757 households with street lighting thus providing upliftment and a better quality of life for the community which is now evident with the local clinic in full operation.

Alexandra X9 comprises of approximately 3116 connections which are currently being electrified in line with the Alexandra Renewal Project (ARP) whose purpose is to upgrade the living conditions and human development potential within Alexandra. Alexandra forms part of the South African government’s Integrated Sustainable Rural Development and Urban Renewal Programme. This programme is a key component of the Government’s approach to addressing urbanisation and housing challenges in South Africa and comprises the integrated development of an area addressing economic, social and physical challenges simultaneously.

LEBOHANG PROJECT MANAGEMENT (PTY) LTD Headquarters: Green Park Sandton Commercial offices AAA+ Green Star rated offices.

This Eco Park is one of the first of its kind and falls in line with our company’s philosophy of a “greener” South Africa.

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