Joburg to forge trade and investment links with Atlanta
30 March 2016
Johannesburg and Atlanta in the United States are to develop partnerships to stimulate trade and investments following a visit by a high-profile American delegation to the City of Gold on Tuesday March 29.
Led by the former mayor of Atlanta, veteran diplomat and US Ambassador Andrew Young; his wife Carolyn; and the Mayor of Atlanta, Dr Kasim Reed, the 40-strong delegation was hosted by Johannesburg Executive Mayor Councillor Parks Tau at a luncheon at Apartheid Museum, Gold Reef City.
Also in attendance were Gauteng Premier David Makhura, US Ambassador to South Africa Patrick Gaspard, City of Johannesburg’s Members of the Mayoral Committee, Gauteng MECs and top government and City officials.
Mayor Tau and Premier Makhura thanked the former UN Ambassador Young for being “an active voice” during South Africa’s liberation struggle.
“As a City at work geared towards reversing apartheid social engineering and positively shaping its present and future, we are guided by the words of [former President] Nelson Mandela when he said that as committed public servants, our choices should reflect our hopes and not ours fears,” said Mayor Tau.
He said Johannesburg was a suitable investment destination, with several US companies already doing business in the city.
“Joburg offers many reasons for local and foreign investments, ranging from its unique positioning as a gateway to markets on the continent, its integrated infrastructure, to its organised regulatory environment or ecosystem. It is reassuring that this US delegation includes persons and institutions geared to assisting South African companies interested in investing in the US.
“We welcome the investment of US multinationals that account for over 10% of our GDP,” he said.
Mayor Tau said Johannesburg was keen to learn from Mayor Reed on how he and his team managed to increase Atlanta’s cash reserves from $7.4-million to more than $127-million and how they improved housing and the integrated transport system. Mayor Tau said he and US Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Analysis Marcus Jadotte agreed at a recent meeting to increase co-operation on youth empowerment and educational programmes.
The City’s youth empowerment programme, Vulindlel’ eJozi, seeks to break down barriers to opportunities for more than 200 000 young people, channelling them into jobs, internships, micro franchising, micro-enterprise development and foundation skills training. He said the programme was similar to those run by the Andrew Young Foundation.
He also expressed gratitude to American ICT companies such as Google, IBM and Microsoft that had partnered with the City in projects such as the Massive Open Online Varsity and the JoziDigital skills matrix. Young said investments would help further cement relations between the two cities.
Premier Makhura said any investment in Joburg benefited the whole province.
“We’ve huge economic opportunities in the province. In 2015, Gauteng was the No 1 foreign direct investment destination in Africa, most of it in Joburg. We’ve state-of-the-art infrastructure and an investment-friendly environment to offer,” he said.
Reed, who said Mandela had made a lasting impression on him as a Howard University student, was impressed with the warmth and kindness of South Africans.
“After this visit, I now know where Mandela’s grace came from,” he said, adding that Young’s strong leadership had propelled Atlanta into the top city it was today. Reed said Atlanta was keen to help Johannesburg in whatever way.