The City of Ekurhuleni has ring-fenced R12-billion to procure from 2 000 local entrepreneurs.
This announcement was made by MMC for Infrastructure Services Clr Robert Mashego at the City Meets Business engagement held at Birchwood Hotel and Conference Centre in Boksburg on April 12.
The MMC said while this was to ensure that Small, Medium and Micro-Enterprises (SMMEs) in Ekurhuleni reposition themselves as capable and preferred service providers to government, the city was mindful of the reality that many companies experience bottlenecks in surviving the business market because of some government supply chain processes not being business-friendly.
“In business, time is money,” he said.
“In acknowledgment of that fact, plans are currently underway to establish a Central Investment Clearing Committee that will assist business owners on matters of compliance when they want to make investments. This will assist them not to be sent from pillar to post in a manner that consumes time,” said Mashego.
The committee, he pointed out, is envisioned to reduce the turnaround times in matters that require approval such as land zoning, building applications and bulk infrastructure services.
Reacting to this statement, the chairman of the South African Shanghai Chamber of Commerce, Jacky Li, stated that this would give investors more confidence to do business in the City of Ekurhuleni.
The City Meets Business engagement is held every quarter where the City and its officials engage the business fraternity on investment opportunities and give feedback on how the city plans to deal with the processes that frustrate the business sector.
