Speech by Executive Mayor, Alderman Patricia de Lille,
addressing the Diplomatic and Consular Corps
Members of the Diplomatic and Consular Corps,
Honoured guests,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Good morning, goeiedag, molweni.
We are working towards making this a city of opportunity; a city where
people can live to their full potential and feel part of the city.
But a city of opportunity requires more work than just talking about
opportunity.
It requires investment.
It requires collaboration.
It requires tapping into global markets.
These are general points of principle that most cities, or investment
destinations, can agree on.
What is different is how these cities and destinations attract this
investment.
We all differ in terms of our strengths and our weaknesses.
We differ in terms of our approaches to marketing and providing investor
support.
At the end of the day, we have to consider what we can leverage to the
market and how we can support that leverage.
Because really, when it comes to investment, the city must act as an
enabler and a facilitator, helping to draw funds and partners to create
strategic links with other stakeholders based in Cape Town.
As Cape Town, we have been considering how we can best act as an
enabler of foreign investment.
We have considered where we fit into the national and regional economies
and considering the assets which we can maximise.
We have decided, as a baseline, to not limit ourselves to traditional
thinking of economic spheres fitting within a national hierarchy.
The globalised market is an expansive one where boundaries don’t
matter.
And if geographical boundaries do not matter, then we must shake off the
conventions of old economic thinking.
As such, we have considered ourselves as a dynamic city-regional
economy that, while fitting in to a bigger national picture, is the key
driver of growth and development in the metro region and our immediate
surrounds.
I believe this is consistent with the current economic view of cities as the
drivers of growth globally.
Considering our perspective then, we seek to position ourselves to take
advantage of our strengths in the broader regional market.
That is, considering our immediate competitors are all actors in
developing economies, taking note of our structural assets.
We have excellent infrastructure; we have excellent transportation
networks; we have excellent educational facilities; we have reliable and
transparent governance procedures; and we have stable and consistent
provision of services.
This gives us the core mix of market fundamentals that need to be in
place for people wanting to capitalise on existing networks and facilities.
And frankly, such facilities give us an advantage over our immediate
competitors.
So, as a city, we have been looking at our position as a centre for
investment in the region and up the West Coast of Africa.
We think we provide the perfect mix for international companies looking
for a base from which to expand their regional operations.
This is perhaps one of the biggest aspects of our international investment
strategy.
But a strategy has many parts to it.
We have to also build up the partnerships for investment overseas as
ambassadors of our city brand – commercial diplomacy if you will.
As such, we are developing a strategic focus for our diplomatic
programme whereby we can send delegations to meet with potential
investors and facilitate their introduction to Cape Town.
This is the best way to use our resources to really position the city as an
international destination that links into global markets.
But it must be focused.
We can’t just go out blindly looking for partners.
That wastes our time and the time of others.
So with our partners, we will be conducting research into where the major
sectors that would invest regionally are based and looking for key players
where they are based with which to form relationships.
As such, I shall use all opportunities for diplomacy, such as this, to appeal
for partners.
Please use your networks with this administration to facilitate meetings
and enable the development of fruitful business relationships with Cape
Town.
We need your expertise and help to put us in contact with interested
investors that can help us achieve our objectives.
Every time we start one of those relationships, we cement the relations
between our great city and the world.
And then we will be able to talk of being a leading city in the developing
world and the foremost African city linking into global markets.