By Mbali Tanana
In a bid to attract investors, create job opportunities and bolster local economic development, the embattled Makana Local Municipality has invited business and various industry stakeholders to form part of the newly developed Local Economic Development Forum as part of their turnaround strategy.
The forum, comprising four pillars which have been identified as the key factors of the economy in the municipality; tourism and heritage, arts and creative, agriculture and agro-processing and SMME and informal trade, was launched at the Makana Council Chambers on Wednesday afternoon.
Director for Local Economic Development and Planning, Natasha Khoahla, who was appointed by the municipality in December 2023, said after assessing the dire state of the department over the past few months, saw the need to engage the private sector to collaborate and work together to rally resources, institutional knowledge, experience and the different skills set to achieve a common goal.
“As a municipality we have the responsibility to create an enabling, conducive economic environment for business, which is why we have decided to engage the private sector and industry pioneers to join forces with the municipality and share their expertise to help us work towards rebuilding our town and making it an attractive destination for tourism and investment.”
“To achieve this we need the industry experts from their respective industries because they are the ones who deal with their respective clients and are fully aware of their needs and expectations and what they are unhappy about – and ultimately what drives business away. This is what will help us and inform our policies so we are also aware of things we need to amend, so we can make it easy for businesses to remain or come to Makana,” she said.
The former senior advisor for economic development, trade and investment at the South African Local Government Association said she was excited about the quality of the nominated candidates who brought “a lot of energy and enthusiasm”. She also expressed disappointment at the poor turnout from the community considering the active citizenry in Makana.
While eight members currently comprise of the forum, Khoahla said they were still looking to source more female candidates to add to the current two that were nominated. In addition, they hoped to have people living with disabilities also represented as they understand that they also form part of the community.
Newly appointed Tourism and Heritage representative Deon Meintjes, who works as head of Marketing at Africa Safari Lodge said he was excited about his appointment because it meant that he could be a voice for the tourism sector and the Grahamstown Hospitality Board which he is also a member of.
“We have a lot of tourists coming into the lodge and most of the time they avoid by all means coming into town. So already the economy is losing out and that’s what I would like to change. This means I get to express their grievances and get to play a role in creating opportunities for them to come to town to explore the historic buildings and all the hidden gems this town has to offer, but mostly to also ensure that their trips to town are far more pleasant,” he said.
Meintjes who moved to Makhanda from Cape Town six months ago, said he was determined to get involved because he understands the municipality needs commitment and support of the community to turn things around. He urged other business owners to get involved and play their part instead of “constantly moaning while doing nothing”.
Makana Citizens Front leader Lungile Mxube, however, said the newly established forum was a waste of municipal resources and time.
“This façade of a forum is only going to give false hope. It has been sanctioned to legitimize disaster and poor performance and will only be a failure. How can we expect anything good to come from a rotten mother body which is the municipality?”
DA caucus leader in Makana, Luvuyo Sizani, said the forum was a great concept, but they would be watching very closely to see if they deliver on what is a good idea, “but whether it‘s going to work or not is something else. We have not seen any developments and activations in the township in the 16 years we had the late director for LED, no economic development whatsoever. However, we welcome this initiative by the new director and sincerely hope it bares fruits,” he said.
