Through the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA), the province has secured investment pledges from South African and international companies to the value of R312.5-billion, exceeding its initial target, Gauteng Finance and Economic Development MEC Lebogang Maile has reported.

The pledges were for 60 projects spread across 15 sectors, he said during the Gauteng Investment Conference, on April 3.

Among the announced pledges were seven projects in agroprocessing, valued at R22.7-billion; 12 in manufacturing valued at R15.3-billion; five in energy valued at R4.9-billion; and six information and communications technology projects valued at R80.7-billion.

Further, three mining projects valued R2.9-billion; five transportation and logistics projects valued at R39.7-billion; three projects in the automotive sector valued at R9.8-billion; and two projects in the steel sector with an investment value of R4.1-billion were pledged.

The property sector saw pledges for 11 projects valued R123.7-billion. There was also a pledge for a project in the chemicals sector of R2.6-billion and one project pledged in the aviation sector of R5-billion.

There is also a R144-million water and sanitation project; a R550-million agriculture project, a R225-million retail project and a R250-million healthcare project.

The pledges were received from investment organisations in Australia, China, Estonia, France, India, Pakistan, Switzerland, the UK and the US, as well as from South African companies and organisations.

“We are committed to forming strong partnerships with the private sector globally, as we believe this is crucial for economic growth and development, and as a creator of jobs, a driver of innovation and a significant contributor to national income,” Maile said.

Meanwhile, on behalf of the Gauteng government, he pledged that the government would work to improve the ease of doing business, including by building and maintaining reliable infrastructure for power, transportation, water, sanitation and telecommunications.

“We pledge our support for research and development. We pledge to create a stable and predictable regulatory environment in which laws are clear, consistently enforced and predictable. We further pledge to streamline business processes and simplify licensing.

“We also pledge to facilitate efficient internal business processes in government and municipalities, as well as improve supply chain management in provincial government to ensure it is reliable and efficient,” Maile committed.

Trade, Industry and Competition Minister Parks Tau, during his presentation remotely from Cape Town, said the GGDA has made significant strides to develop a system to gain market intelligence through its barometer intelligence platform.

“As the [Department of Trade, Industry and Competition], we call on the Gauteng government to lead in unlocking opportunities provided by the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, including by using economic hubs.

“However, these opportunities can only be leveraged by building internal resilience. We challenge the government of Gauteng to improve operational efficiencies across industrial zones, and to simply regulatory compliance, including by using agencies like [Infrastructure South Africa].

“As we continue to diversify our trade markets, all of government must work to mitigate the risks posed by changing tariff structures. This is our role to help companies to enhance their competitiveness.”

Meanwhile, in his closing remarks on supporting and developing small, medium-sized and microenterprises, Tau highlighted that Gauteng had the largest concentration of financiers and engineers on the continent, which boded well for developing engineered solutions to address a range of challenges.

Deputy President Paul Mashatile, also in a remote address from Cape Town, emphasised that Gauteng needs to invest in maintenance of infrastructure to ensure its long-term functionality, safety and economic viability.

“Gauteng and Johannesburg need to invest more in infrastructure programmes, particularly in the inner city. Such revitalisation must begin with things like fixing potholes and general maintenance of the current infrastructure.

“We must not shy away from this. It breaks our hearts to use roads that are not fixed or maintained for long periods of time, especially when the municipalities have the resources at their disposal and an obligation to do exactly that.

“At the end of this conference, we need to be able to identify investment possibilities in areas like manufacturing and industrialisation, ICT and the digital economy, infrastructure and transportation, green energy and sustainability, in boosting SMEs and ensuring we attain inclusive economic development,” Mashatile said.