Edzani Nephalela
Gauteng Premier, Mr David Makhura, visited the Babelegi Industrial Park in Hammanskraal on Monday accompanied by Tshwane Mayor, Kgosientso Mamokgopa to look at the plans to revitalize the park and recover the area’s economy.
During his visit, Premier Makhura said the economy of Hammanskraal should be anchored in Babelegi.
“We are interested in the industrial parks in and near our townships to ensure they operate and contribute to the success of township economy.” “Today we are not here for a long visit. Our primary objective is to see what we can do to activate this area.
The premier and the Mayor led a delegation to the area to assess progress in delivering government services to the people. The team visited the area of Babelegi to witness the state of factories and to assess the intervention needed from government.
“For us there is a future here, we think we can take it to a different level than where it currently is. We are also interested in how supporting township small business can link them with the big ones that are here,” said Mr Makhura.
The initiative was also a result of the closure of factories around the area that led to thousands of people being unemployed. Previously the factories employed about 25 000 people, but currently only 6 000 are employed.
The area housed factories that predominately focused on furniture and textile manufacturing. It has the capacity to accommodate 191 factories, but currently only 124 spaces are occupied.
The team was also informed of how investors were shying away from the area due to the unstable electricity supply. General Manager of the North West Development Corporation, Mr Mike Mthimunye, said companies could not afford the deposit required by Eskom to provide electricity.
“A company left here after refurbishing one of the factories because they could not afford the R1m deposit required. Others leave because the buildings are too old,” he said.
Mr Ramokgopa said government had to think out of the box to lure investors to the area. He said one method could be to offer rebates to potential investors.
“We can look at giving those investors, who are willing to refurbish the buildings, a grace period where they don’t have to pay rates and taxes for a period of time. That would be the equivalent of the money they used,” said Mr Ramokgopa.
The Mayor also highlighted that installing solar panels on the roofs will help reduce the power problems.
