Opportunities

Investing in the Eastern Cape

The Eastern Cape offers major cities, airports, ports as well as a dynamic manufacturing sector which includes the southern African bases of some of the world's major companies.

The province lies equidistant from the South Africa's major market centres, to which it is linked by a modern network of airways, roads and railways.

The province's manufacturing sector is already well integrated into the world economy. Nearly 50% of the 120 large-scale enterprises are part of international corporations, while over 50% of the large-scale enterprises are exporting more than 25% of their output.

Total provincial personal disposable income is estimated to be an annual R50-billion. This represents a major consumer market for producers both inside and outside the Eastern Cape. Exports from the province through the harbours of Port Elizabeth and East London (as measured by Portnet) amount to R8-billion, with nearly 6-million tons of cargo handled in 2005.

Eastern Cape overview

Eastern Cape Development Corporation
The Eastern Cape Development Corporation (ECDC) is the official implementing agency of the policies of the provincial Department of Economic Affairs, Environment and Tourism. It is partially funded by the provincial government and reports to a board of directors representing government, business and labour.

ECDC works closely with ministries, chambers, municipalities and government departments to develop and support entrepreneurs and investors in the provincial economy.

Eastern Cape Development Corporation

Overview: Eastern Cape
The Eastern Cape lies on the southeastern seaboard of South Africa and is the country's second largest province. The capital, Bisho, is conveniently located 60 kilometres from East London, one of two ports in the province, the other being Port Elizabeth.

A multi-media promotion of the Eastern Cape - home of Nelson Mandela, also known as Madiba.
The container ports in East London and Port Elizabeth are of the highest international standard. Major airports link them to Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg. These act as international gateways for South Africa, offering direct flights to key cities throughout the world.

The Nelson Mandela metropole (previously Port Elizabeth and Uitenhage municipalities) has a population of about 1.4-million people and is home to some of the largest automotive and original equipment manufacturers (OEM) in the country. The stage has been set for further investment in the region with an entertainment resort earmarked for the city's beachfront.

Manufacturing
Good-quality factories are available in Butterworth, East London, Port Elizabeth, Queenstown, Uitenhage and Mthatha, all served by an efficient transport and containerised traffic network.

Electricity costs are the second cheapest in the world and all factories are supplied with three-phase electricity at 220/380 volts. The water quality is of a high standard and can generally be drunk from taps and used without further treatment. The province has abundant capacity to accommodate further industrial expansion and cheap industrial land is available in most towns.

The province also possesses a strong, dynamic and diversified productive sector and a particularly large manufacturing sector, accounting for about 35% of private production. Many world-famous companies have made major investments in the province, including Volkswagen, General Motors (Delta), Daimler Chrysler South Africa, Goodyear tyres, Nestlé, Cadbury’s, Firestone tyres, Duracell Eveready, Ford (Samcor), Johnson & Johnson, Dulux paints, SKF bearings and Marley flooring.

Spatial Development Initiatives
To facilitate integrated planning sensitive to the environment, the province has two targeted Spatial Development Initiatives (SDI), namely the Fish River SDI and the Wild Coast SDI, and two industrial development zones (IDZs), namely the West Bank (East London) IDZ and the Coega IDZ.

The latter, 20 kilometres east of the Nelson Mandela metropole was the first IDZ to be earmarked and is one of the biggest initiatives ever undertaken in South Africa. Plans for the development of the area as an ex port-orientated zone include the building of a deepwater port (see below).

East London IDZ

Coega Industrial Development Zone (IDZ)
Situated on South Africa's Eastern Cape coast, the Coega Industrial Development Zone is equidistant from American, European and Pacific-Rim markets. The new deepwater port being developed is ideally placed to serve as a trans-shipment hub port for locations throughout southern Africa and further afield, meeting the opportunities provided by the rapid changes in international shipping traffic.

Coega

Tourism
Africa's Sunshine Coast stretches from the forests of the Tsitsikamma in the west along hundreds of kilometres of sandy beaches to East London in the east, and northwards to the fertile river valleys and the Amatola Mountains.

The Tsitsikamma comprises a wonderful stretch of natural forests and boasts a wide array of adventure activities on the province's western gateway.

An invitation of "out of the forest and into the sunshine" then awaits the visitor, as the glorious Sunshine Coast invites the visitor to follow the wonderful beaches of this route to Port Alfred in the west. This quaint resort town, together with St Francis Bay, Cape St Francis, Jeffreys Bay and the gateway city of Port Elizabeth offer a fantastic variety of activities and special interests.

Attractions include stunning beaches and warm water, a full variety of watersports (including world class surfing and sailing), quality golf courses, historical trails, a variety of eco-walks and attractions, many annual festivals and welcoming locals.

Less than an hour from the coast, one is able to view the "Big Five" in a malaria-free area which boats a unique bio-diversity or ramble through the agricultural valleys to sample their hospitality and local fare. The numerous hunting farms of these areas are also a comfortable drive from the coast.

The coastline north of Port Alfred boasts a lush network of rivers, lagoons, estuaries and grassy plains and includes South Africa's only river port at the mouth of the Buffalo River.

Download the Department of Trade and Industry's Provincial Economic Overview (1.8 MB) here.

SouthAfrica.info reporter

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	The dolos, a South African invention in which interlocking blocks of concrete are used to protect seawalls and preserve beaches from erosion, at the Coega deep-water port in the Eastern Cape (Image: Coega)